* Output hits 119 mln kg vs 58.6 mln kg in previous
season
* Country earns $327 million from sales
* 2011 yield seen
at 200 million kg
* Production still below record of 236 million
kg
By Nelson Banya
HARARE, Sept 3 (Reuters) - Zimbabwe produced
119 million kg of tobacco in the 2009/10 season, double the previous year's
output, an official said on Friday, as the sector recovers from the damage
to commercial farming associated with land seizures.
The southern
African country's tobacco yield plunged from a peak of 236 million kg in
2000, before President Robert Mugabe embarked on a drive to take white-owned
commercial farms to resettle landless blacks, to 48 million kg in
2007/08.
Zimbabwe's economy, devastated by hyperinflation which peaked at
500 billion percent in December 2008, has stabilised since last year when
Mugabe was forced into sharing power with bitter rival Morgan Tsvangirai,
now prime minister, after disputed elections.
Zimbabwe Tobacco
Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB) chief executive officer Andrew Matibiri
told Reuters total sales could rise to 120 million kg at the end of the
tobacco-selling season on Friday.
"As of yesterday, 119.4 million kg of
tobacco had gone through the auctions, compared to 58.6 million kg last
year," Matibiri said.
"The sales have realised $347 million, at an
average of $2.91 per kg."
Matibiri said output was projected to be higher
next year.
"For the next season we have recorded seed sales enough for
105,000 hectares and from that planting area, if everything goes well, we
can get anything up to 200 million kg," Matibiri said.
"But that's
assuming the rains and other conditions are favourable."
Western firms
were formerly the main purchasers of Zimbabwean tobacco but Chinese
interests have emerged as major financiers and buyers in recent years.
Industry officials estimate that a third of the tobacco crop was taken up by
China.
According to official figures, over 40,000 small-scale black
farmers produced 70 percent of the tobacco crop. The remainder was from
large-scale commercial farmers, of whom just over 120 are white farmers. In
all, about 400 white farmers remain.
Critics accuse Mugabe of
destroying the economy through his farm seizures. The veteran ruler -- in
power since independence from Britain in 1980 -- accuses Western
governments opposed to his rule of plotting to unseat him through economic
sanctions.
The Governor's office in Matabeleland
South has reportedly said that 300,000 villagers in four districts urgently
need food supplies, but they are getting no assistance from donors. Serious
food shortages have hit the drought stricken province, and villagers say
organizations that usually provide them with food left the area, due to
interference by ZANU PF officials and their violent thugs.
The
situation has become so dire that last week the provincial governor,
Angeline Masuku, summoned leaders from all political parties and civic
groups and made an urgent appeal to donors for food supplies. The one
name that always comes up in discussions on this situation is, Andrew Langa,
the ZANU-PF chairman for Matabeleland South, whose vicious acts became
notorious during the 2002 elections. According to reports Langa claims that
aid agencies pulled out "for reasons only known to themselves". But local
villagers, when they are not too fearful to comment, point to Langa as the
ringleader in a violent ZANU PF campaign against the MDC and any perceived
supporters.
Our Bulawayo correspondent Lionel Saungweme, said Langa has
an elaborate history in terms of violence. He believes the Filabusi and
Insiza areas of Matabeleland became impossible for donors to assist because
of violence perpetrated by Langa, with the backing of central intelligence
agents. Saungweme recalled some incidents from Langa's sordid past.
He
said: "In 2002 about 5 to 10,000 rand worth of Zimbabwean dollars were taken
forcibly from a MDC vehicle by ZANU PF youth in that area, and those youth
were operating under the command of Andrew Langa."
In the same year Langa
shot Darlington Kadengu, an MDC activist who is now a personal assistant to
the deputy Prime Minister Thokozane Khupe. Saungweme said the bullet is
still lodged in Kadengu's spine, as doctors fear he may become immobilized
if they were to remove it.
Our correspondent said he went to Filabusi
this year to report on a meeting of ZIPRA war veterans, that was held in
Langa's territory. He said the veterans were stalked by vehicles belonging
to CIO agents and they ended up changing the venue for their meeting, to try
to escape the intimidation.
MDC MP Siyabonga Ncube, popularly known as
Malandu in Insiza, has also blamed Langa for driving away the donor agencies
that used to assist with food in the area. Ncube reportedly said that the
agencies were accused of working for the MDC by Robert Mugabe himself, and
they left soon after.
Matabeleland South has always been a low rainfall
area and the province has relied on food aid since 2000. In many areas
people survive on just one meal a day, even though there is plenty of food
in the shops. The problem is that villagers cannot afford to buy it and
unemployment in Zimbabwe is over 90%. An estimated 2.1 million people are in
need of food aid around the country.
Corruption in the already tainted diamond industry is set to deepen,
as known ZANU PF aligned businesses are set to venture into diamond
processing.
The Affirmative Action Group (AAG) has announced that it has
ten members lined up to venture into diamond cutting and polishing, at a
multi million dollar diamond plant under construction in Harare. The
Zimbabwe Diamond and Technology Centre is set to be fully operational in the
next six months, and will be the central hub for Zimbabwe's diamonds to be
cut and polished.
The Centre is being constructed by Canadile Mining, one
of the government approved firms illegally mining in Chiadzwa. Once fully
completed, the US$20 million centre will have, among other things, banks, a
diamond processing college and even insurance firms.On the surface, the
Centre has the chance to create massive employment opportunities and lead
the way in indeginisation and economic empowerment. But critics are warning
that the involvement of the AAG will merely see more corruption take root in
the diamond sector.
Commentator Professor John Makumbe told SW Radio
Africa on Friday that the public must be concerned that AAG members are
being funneled into diamond processing, under the guise of empowerment and
indiginisation. Makumbe warned that the AAG is "a well known group of mainly
ZANU PF aligned business people," who have been "looting the economy for
several years."
"It is likely that these groups are flooding into the
(Diamond Technology) Centre to have unbridled access to diamonds," Makumbe
said. "The state is unlikely then to benefit significantly from these
diamonds until proper legislation is put in place to stop this kind of
corruption."
Zimbabwe is pegged as becoming the number one diamond
producer in the world, with a Belgian expert this week saying that the
Chiadzwa alluvial fields could produce up to 40 million carats of diamonds a
year. International diamond consultant Fillipe van Laere said, on the
sidelines of a ceremony to mark the establishment of the Diamond Technology
Centre, that Zimbabwe will be "propelled to the number one spot as the
world's most important diamond producer in the next two or three
years."
But there is growing scepticism that any profits from diamonds
sales will benefit the state in any significant way, as currently no
legislation exists on how diamond profits will be handled. Over the past
year US$30 million dollars worth of diamonds were sold illegally, despite a
ban on international trade over rampant human rights abuses in
Chiadzwa.
Those profits were never seen by the Treasury. Finance Minister
Tendai Biti has proposed a Diamond Law, to be debated in parliament, that
will try and end corruption in the sector and ensure that diamond proceeds
benefit the country. Biti has said that the diamond profits will rescue the
shattered economy if they are steered into the State coffers. But there is
no policy in place on how this will happen.
A public sector strike in South Africa has
put President Jacob Zuma on the spot to find a lasting solution to the
Zimbabwe crisis, due to the resentment against immigrants, many of them from
Zimbabwe, for taking jobs.
Radio talk shows and newspaper columns have
been awash with speculation that one of the problems that triggered the
strike in South Africa lay squarely with that country's failure to deal with
the crisis in Zimbabwe. South Africa is host to an estimated three million
Zimbabweans, many of them living there illegally or as refugees, after
fleeing the political and economic meltdown at home. Political analyst Luke
Zunga said there is hardly a day that passes without negative comments about
Zimbabweans in South Africa.
'Whether it's true or not, some South
Africans complain that Zimbabweans are stealing their jobs and overloading
government's service delivery to its citizens. But the truth of the matter
is, Zuma has been put so much under pressure to ensure things return to
normal in Zimbabwe,' Zunga said.
It has been up to Zuma, the SADC
facilitator on Zimbabwe, to keep the pressure on the three principals to the
Global Political Agreement to meet the 30-day timeline set by a Troika
summit held in Windhoek, Namibia last month.
Lindiwe Zulu, the
international relations advisor to Zuma, said the facilitator has been in
regular contact with the three leaders in the inclusive government since the
summit. But indications are that, 19-days after the ultimatum, there is no
visible movement to suggest the principals are implementing any of the 24
agreed to issues in the GPA, that are supposed to be dealt
with.
Media reports quote Zulu saying the South African facilitation team
will be travelling to Zimbabwe soon, and that they were working within the
30-day period that President Zuma pledged.
'Resolving the impasse
between ZANU PF and the two MDC parties remain President Zuma's top
priority. The president and the people of South Africa will not rest until a
solution has been found. The consultations are expected to culminate in a
roadmap to elections,' Zulu said.
During the SADC Troika, Zuma
recommended that the regional bloc should help Zimbabwe come up with
guidelines for violence-free elections, which are expected anytime after the
drafting of a new constitution.
Many civil society organizations and the
two MDC formations, are calling for a roadmap that will involve SADC and the
African Union in the supervision of elections, to ensure full compliance
with their principles and guidelines governing democratic
elections.
Recently the Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition co-ordinator in
South Africa, Dewa Mavhinga, told us that SADC and the AU must guarantee the
democratic transfer of power to the eventual winner of the proposed
elections.
'Any roadmap to an election in Zimbabwe should ensure that
there is security sector-reform to prevent the security forces from blocking
the transfer of power as has happened in the past,' Mavhinga said.
So
far there has been no word from SADC about any 'roadmap' for elections and
analysts remain concerned about SADC's apparent support for Robert Mugabe.
Chipinge, Sept
03, 2010 - A provincial magistrate here has sentenced a 23-year old man from
Gaza Township here to one year in jail with hard labour for insulting
President Robert Mugabe.
Gift Mafuka was found guilty of contravening
Section 33 (2) (B) of the Criminal Codification and Reform Act, Chapters
9-23, when he appeared before provincial magistrate, Samuel Zuze.
Two
months were suspended on conditions he does not commit a similar offence in
the next five years.
The State, led by Last Goredema said Mafuka saw two
young boys aged between 12 and 13 wearing t-shirts with President Mugabe's
images and asked why they were putting on t-shirts with the image of an old
person with wrinkles on the face.
The court heard Mafuka then told
the two boys that President Mugabe was on his way out and that Prime
Minister Morgan Tsvangirai was the president-in-waiting.
The court
heard that Mafuka went on to threaten the juveniles before the minors ran
away.
Mafuka ran after them and caught one of them. He whipped
him.
In passing sentence Zuze said Mafuka committed a very serious crime
in insulting the person of the president.
Zuze condemned Mafuka's
actions saying they were coming at a time when the country was making
progress in promoting national healing, reconciliation and
tolerance.
HARARE- Father
Oskar Wermter, the social communications secretary of Zimbabwe Catholic
Bishops' Conference who is also the Vice Chairperson of the Voluntary Media
Council of Zimbabwe says he is worried about leaders who continue to
suppress information dissemination.
Wermter said this at Radio Voice of
the People 10th anniversary celebrations.
"Every society needs free
media and free communication.......this is unfortunately the basic wisdom
some of our leaders have not understood," said Wermter.
Wermter said
there was need to open media space to allow for plurality of voices to avoid
media being a preserve of the elite.
He added the church will not
stand-by while leaders abused power.
"We all of us have responsibilities
we all of us have people at our care and what the big ones decide affects
the little ones in our care and therefore we cannot be empathetic to what
the big ones say," said Wermter.
President Mugabe has in the past told
bishops to stay out of politics accusing them of supporting the MDC and
calling for his ouster.
However Wermter believes they have an obligation
to intervene as the church.
"Some time ago someone said to me leave
politics to the politicians, I'm afraid in my view that is simple not an
option," said the Priest.
By Chris Goko and Enock
Muchinjo Friday, 03 September 2010 15:39
HARARE - Sports minister
David Coltart has ordered the Zimbabwe Football Association (Zifa) to cut
ties with non-sports actors such as the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA), in
the aftermath of the Brazil/Zimbabwe friendly match debacle, marked by
allegations of shady commercial arrangements.
The minister's letter,
coming after spirited attempts by Harare businessman Phillip Chiyangwa to
promote a high-profile international friendly between Zimbabwe and World Cup
quarter finalists Ghana, effectively shuts out non-football agents from
involvement in the game.
Zifa, still reeling from salacious allegations
over the misappropriation of funds as caused by suspended chief executive
Henrietta Rushwaya's conduct and exposed by Kentaro's cash demands after the
ZTA-organised match, has been given a hand by Coltart's intervention, as it
seeks to clean up its act.
"I have raised similar concerns in the
past with Zifa. The last Zifa board on a number of occasions sidelined the
SRC (Sports and Recreation Commission), which was very unhealthy for
sports," Coltart told the Daily News.
"There was a very close
relationship between Zifa and the ZTA, which I found unusual," the feisty
minister said.
Crucially, Coltart argues that Zifa needs to forge "closer
ties" with associations such as the SRC instead of "loose alliances" with
non-commissioned organisations like the ZTA and individual promoters,
including Chiyangwa.
"I had deep concerns about the way Zifa was run.
In this regard, I wrote to Mr (Cuthbert) Dube (Zifa board president) to say
we need to have a special indaba to look into the financing of football.
Zifa have replied, saying they are happy to have a preliminary meeting with
us. I hope this will open a new chapter in our relationship with Zifa," he
said.
Kentaro, a Switzerland-based sports management firm also
representing Brazil's Samba Boys, worked with the government in staging the
historic match, but it is now threatening to sue Zifa over unpaid "gate
takings" and television rights revenue totaling US$650 000.
While
Dube claimed he had not seen Coltart's letter, attempts to secure Karikoga
Kaseke on the latest development were fruitless.As Coltart and Dube's new
board rails at Rushwaya, and Kaseke's ZTA, other regulatory bodies such as
the Public Works ministry and SRC are also coming hard on the beleaguered
football governing body with demands for unpaid dues.
In a July 28
letter, George Mlilo, the Public Works permanent secretary, issued a "formal
demand" to his Tourism and Hospitality counterpart Sylvester Maunganidze for
a US$10 000 stadium hire fee, while the SRC is also baying for its mandatory
six percent of gate takings from the match.
In the dispatch, sources
said, the SRC quotes a figure of US$650 000 as total revenue from the
match.
While the new Zifa board is distancing itself from the June 2
Brazil-Warriors fiasco and Kaseke's ZTA is accusing Kentaro of tampering
with the "final contract" over match rights, the flurry of demand letters
and Zifa's inability to pay the SRC funds, for instance, also strengthens
fears of the mishandling of such by the characters involved.
Also on
July 28, Dube's board told Kentaro by letter that Rushwaya did not represent
Zifa when she entered into the controversy-ridden contract with them.
MASVINGO - No one within the MDC harbours ambitions to topple
the party leader Morgan Tsvangirayi from his position because he has the
mandate of the people and has become the party's most loved choice, a senior
party official has said.
Addressing party supporters Thursday night
at the official launch of the party's new membership cards in Masvingo,
MDC-T national organising secretary Elias Mudzuri said he was only
hearing it from other people that there were factions in the
party.
"No one is harbouring ambitions to topple the president because he
has become our top selling brand", said Mudzuri. " In addition he has the
mandate of the people and commands a large following and no one in the
party wants to remove him".
"We just hear from other people that
there are factions in the party yet this is not true". Some have gone to the
extend of labelling our supporters as Mudzuri's people or Biti's people but
this is not true".
"No one owns an individual; we all belong to one party
which is the MDC", he said.
Tendai Biti is the party's secretary
general and there had been reports linking him to a faction which wants to
wrestle power from Tsvangirai.
Turning to the issues of violence ,Mudzuri
said the party 's standing committee had agreed to fire anyone who is
involved in violence.
"We have no room for violence in our party", he
said . "The standing committee has agreed that all those who engage in
violence at our meetings should automatically be expelled from the
party".
"If we engage in violence it means we are not different from
Zanu -PF "he said.
On outstanding issues in the Global Political
Agreement (GPA ) Mudzuri said it was a blatant attempt by Zanu PF to violate
the agreement by linking the appointment of provincial governors to the
so called restrictive measures.
"We cannot link the appointment of
provincial governors to the restrictive measures because on governors we
agreed that we should share them, our party getting five, Zanu PF four and
MDC-M one.
"Any move to link the two is a blatant attempt to violate the
GPA", he said "We are saying lets stick to what we agreed upon and things
will move in the right direction".
President Robert Mugabe's Zanu PF
has made it clear that it will not make any more concessions unless
sanctions or restrictive measures have be removed.
The sanctions were
imposed by Western countries on President Mugabe and his cronies for
failure to restore the rule of law and gross human rights abuses.
The
West has vowed not to remove the sanctions unless the GPA, which ushered in
the country's inclusive government between MDC-T , MDC-M and Zanu Pf is
fully implemented.
Robert Mugabe has never
been known for his sense of humour. So you wouldn't want to be the apparatchik
at Zimbabwe's State House
explaining to the president how a music video that lampoons him as a chicken is
threatening to go viral.
A latex puppet of Mugabe, redolent of 80s TV satire Spitting Image, is the
star of a slick video by multinational African group Freshlyground, best known for their
collaboration with Shakira on the official World Cup song Waka Waka (This Time
for Africa).
The song, Chicken to Change, has a bouncy and upbeat feel that belies its
serious political message. The video depicts an aloof Mugabe riding in the back
of a chauffeur-driven presidential car and reading a newspaper, "Bob's Times",
with the front page headline: "Glorious victory for Zanu-PF". It cuts to
Freshlyground singing in a shebeen, dancing like chickens and challenging
Africa's oldest leader to relinquish his 30-year grip on power.
At first lead singer Zolani Mahola pays tribute to the 86-year-old veteran's
part in the struggle for Zimbabwe's independence, describing him as a
"supernova". Her lyrics continue: "An iridescent example of honour for the
coming generation/ You promised always to open the doors for us/ Indeed it is
you and only you who sleeps with the key/ You are chicken to change!"
Mugabe's car comes to a sudden halt and some chicken feathers flutter in
front of the windscreen. He looks out at an impoverished couple clutching
chickens, but chooses to ignore them and drive on. Chickens have become used as
barter trade, including as bus fares, in rural areas of Zimbabwe where cash is
scarce.
At the end of the video, the Mugabe puppet transforms into a chicken with
suit and spectacles intact.
The video also features puppets of Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tutu playing
dominoes, polygamous president Jacob Zuma flirting with women, former president
Thabo Mbeki and other leading South African figures.
Zapiro
told the Times in South Africa: "I've been doing cartoons of Mugabe for
years. Working with Freshlyground gave us the opportunity to finally add him to
our cast of latex characters.
"Although I positively love this puppet, I truly hope we can retire him
sooner rather than later."
The video was directed by Thierry Cassuto, executive producer of satirical
internet show ZA News. It was filmed in Cape Town with the band dressed in
Zimbabwean-style 80s fashion.
Freshlyground's seven members are a racial mix hailing from South Africa,
Zimbabwe and Mozambique. Sarah Barnett, a spokeswoman for the group, said they
"believe in freedom of speech and that people should be able to talk about
topics that affect many civilians".
She added: "The video is not an attack on Mugabe at all. It is a
tongue-in-cheek challenge for him to reflect on things and become the hero he
used to be, to consider his actions and surprise us. We are not afraid of his
reaction. Why should we be in a democratic world?"
A few weeks before the second anniversary of the signing
of the power sharing deal all signs are that the coalition government
remains determined to control freedom of expression. Two days after jamming
the frequencies of SW Radio Africa's shortwave broadcasts it's reported the
country's censorship board has declared it will now be a crime for artists
to perform without an entertainment licence.
Solomon Chitungo, an
official with the Censorship Board, is quoted as saying; 'This is not a new
thing it has always been there but it's just that it was not applied
strictly and artists have been performing illegally. The certificate will be
valid for 12 months. It's just like a drivers licence, we are also just
issuing a licence to provide entertainment and if one is to be found without
the certificate we will stop the show and confiscate their equipment,' he
said.
In March this year Bulawayo based artist Owen Maseko was arrested
following an exhibition depicting the Gukurahundi Massacres and decades of
oppression under Mugabe's regime. He was eventually released on US$100 bail
after 4 days in custody. Last Friday his exhibit was officially banned by
the censorship board and on Monday he was charged with 'obscenity and ethnic
bias.' A few days later he was charged with 'making false statements to
incite violence'.
Newsreel has been told artists like Maseko will now
need to pay US$25 a year while institutions will have to cough up US$155 a
year to get the entertainment licence. While the law is not new, as the
censorship board official admitted, their motivation in dusting-off an
outdated law from Ian Smith's Rhodesian regime is meant to find yet another
way of controlling free expression. The Censorship and Entertainment Act has
been amended since the Rhodesian days, but still retains a lot of its
previous repressive clauses. Top selling musician Leonard Zhakata, who
songs have been banned by the state broadcaster, told Newsreel on Friday
that he knew about the licencing requirement from a few years
back.
He said although he was not against the law per se, he was
concerned that it would be used to target individual artists and musicians.
He said the licencing requirement should not be used to 'take our
freedom.' So is his music still banned by the ZBC? Zhakata said he does not
bother listening to them, since they 'make me out to be a bad
person.'
The previous government policy automatically expelled girls
who became pregnant, completely disrupting their education.
Tatenda
Gumbo | Washington 02 September 2010
The Ministry of Education in
Zimbabwe is drawing criticism from conservative groups after announcing a
policy halting expulsions of girl students who become pregnant.
The
recent policy framework grants students maternity leave of up to three
months, after which they can return to their studies. It also entitles male
students responsible for the pregnancies to paternity
leave.
Authorities say the law is designed to give pregnant students a
chance to finish their education. Critics however, believe the policy
encourages teenage pregnancies.
Education Minister David Coltart is
defending the plan saying instead it will "remove the discriminatory factors
and give young women who fall pregnant the chance to continue their
education."
The previous government policy automatically expelled girls
who became pregnant, completely disrupting their education.
But
critics of the new regulation say they doubt it will lessen the stigma of
pregnancy. Government says it is working to combat such skepticism.
The
government this week appealed for some US$8.2 million to fund the
finalization of consultations after being snubbed by the UNDP
Brenda
Moyo | Washington DC 02 September 2010
Zimbabwe's constitution
revision teams appeared unfazed Thursday by a critical shortage of funds
affecting the process as they went about consultations across the
country.
The government launched an US$8.2 million appeal this week for
finalization of the outreach phase of the constitution revision
exercise.
Sources said though some outreach team members complained over
nonpayment, public consultations were held and the process went smoothly in
many places.
In Matabeleland South Province meetings were held at Embakwe
Mission, Plumtree where turnout is reported to have been very
high.
But authorities said there were no youths in attendence.
Parliamentary select committe co-chairman Edward Mkhosi told VOA Studio 7
reporter Brenda Moyo his panel was greatly concerned by the nonattendence of
youths in their meetings.
U.S. Embassy Statement on COPAC support and funding
Public Affairs
Section
U.S. Embassy
Harare
Press Statement:
COPAC support and funding
The United
States government strongly supports the constitutional outreach process
currently underway in Zimbabwe. This consultative process is an important step
in the development and implementation of an inclusive, forward-looking
constitution that will contribute towards the establishment of democratic norms
and institutions in Zimbabwe. The United States is a contributor to the
UNDP-led funding mechanism for COPAC and remains committed to the overall
process of transition and the full and transparent implementation of the Global
Political Agreement. As future funding needs for the process become known and
are evaluated, the United States will work with other donors and the Government
of Zimbabwe to develop strategies for addressing these needs. The United States
is committed to helping build a better future for the Zimbabwean people.
Issued by Sharon
Hudson- Dean, Public Affairs Officer
Zimbabwe may not be on the verge of another mining industry
boom, according to one company with several interests in the
country.
With rich deposits of platinum and other minerals, government
departments and investment firms have been trumpeting Zimbabwe's potential
explosion as a production hub.
However, DRA Mineral Resources, a
South African project management and engineering group involved with the
Unki, Mimosa and Ngezi mines, has offered a more cautious
assessment.
Director for Project Services Rodney Drew explained that it
is not clear whether a boom will happen in the near future as Zimbabwe's
policy and revival strategy following its financial crisis are "still on the
drawing board".
"The Zimbabwe government is still getting back on its
feet after the turmoil of the 2006 to 2008 economic meltdown," he said in an
interview with Mining Weekly.
"But, since Zimbabwe has decided that
the mining industry is key to its recovery, we don't think it will be too
long before everything falls into place, opening the way for new mines to be
constructed."
Mr Drew also explained that a number of bureaucratic
hurdles are impacting on companies' plans to expand or bring their mining
operations to Zimbabwe.
He noted that the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority and
the Zimbabwe Immigration Ministry are putting pressure on both indigenous
firms and their foreign contractors.
And with taxes remaining
sky-high in the country - it has not signed a double tax agreement with
South Africa since 1965 - Mr Drew claimed that mining projects are less
appealing at present.
"DRA used to be able to brag that it could build a
process plant more cheaply in Zimbabwe than it could in South Africa, but
this is no longer the case," he added.
Meanwhile, a more bullish
assessment was offered by Victor Gapare, President of the Zimbabwe Chamber
of Mines, who predicted that the country's mining industry could grow by as
much as 30 per cent in 2010.
He also suggested that this figure could
increase in 2011, assuming the Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority does
not experience problems and more power plants are constructed.
"As
much as $160 million was spent by mines on local procurement in 2009 and
this is projected to increase threefold in 2010 and significantly more in
2011 and beyond," he told the news provider.
"The mining industry is
on the verge of a mining boom, particularly if government retains the
current mining fiscal regime and improves the investment climate, which is
competitive and can attract the risk capital for exploration that is key for
mining development."
Mr Gopare also claimed that the easing of the
economic restrictions in Zimbabwe should allow it to properly capitalise on
favourable international pgm prices for the first time.
Meanwhile,
Zimplats, which is operated by Impala Platinum, revealed last month that its
pgm output in concentrate increased from 93,845 oz to 95,144 oz in Q2 2010
on a quarter-on-quarter basis.
While everyone else concentrates on putting into
effect the so-called 'implementation matrix', salvaging the now doomed
constitution making process and considering the feasibility of holding an
election next year among other things, Zanu (PF) needs to preoccupy itself
with one thing- and one thing alone- namely the completion of the succession
debate within that party.
To tiptoe around the issue and pretend it
is of no consequence is to deliberately put the future of this country and
its people in harm's way. Mugabe's health is swiftly deteriorating and his
journey into the unknown has noticeably begun. Time is of the
essence.
The moment has come for Zimbabwe to attain its political
maturity, with power changing hands and life going along. After all it is
not the state of the leader that matters, but the state of the nation. As a
matter of urgency Zanu PF needs to make up its mind. Only then can the
voters remember them and have a clear picture of their
intentions.
Guaranteed instability
As it stands Zanu (PF)'s
conservative old guard remains intact, and they fight amongst themselves not
over policy but purely for power and prestige. They have an enduring desire
to maintain the status quo at any cost.
The fact is that the upheavals of
the past will continue so long as these dinosaurs remain in charge of
operations.
Here is the crux of the matter though: Our country's
political instability is guaranteed to worsen should President Mugabe die in
office -especially if there is no succession plan in place acceptable to the
two well-known factions within Zanu (PF). The decision must be made without
delay. Everyone who cares about this country knows it.
It is cause
for considerable heartache, therefore, that there seems to be such a
striking lack of preparation for a Zimbabwe after Mugabe. Not enough, if
anything at all, is being done by the relevant people to show that they
understand what could befall Zimbabwe if the President dies before the
succession debate in Zanu (PF) has been completed.
The reality is
that no one lives forever and we are witnessing the effects of old age
compounded by ill health and the exacting demands of public office as Mugabe
approaches the inevitable.
Saluting Tsvangirai
Zanu PF has had
plenty of time to think about it but still bears a stark resemblance to
Ethelred the Unready.
Let me not be misconstrued as condoning or in
anyway seeking to entrench the dictatorship and the now irretrievably
damaged legacy of Mugabe and Zanu (PF). Far from it! I beg instead to be
regarded as a realist and a peace-loving Zimbabwean democrat who loves his
country too much to foresee a potentially devastating political crisis
without alerting his fellow citizens to it.
Nor can the MDC be relied
upon to single handedly avert what could easily develop into an aggravation
of our political woes. It is a matter of public record, for instance, that
some of Zanu (PF)'s notorious Joint Operations Command members have stated
unequivocally that under no circumstances will they salute Morgan Tsvangirai
should he attempt to wield any kind of authority as Commander in-Chief of
the Zimbabwe Defence Forces.
Whereas Mugabe was sensible enough to invite
the MDC- by all accounts the outright winners of every election this country
has held since 2002- it can be assumed that neither Mujuru nor Mnangagwa
will be willing to recognise them as the people's party of choice or even
their very existence as a political player.
Absurd though it may
seem, therefore, the reality is that with the right ingredients the MDC
stands a much better chance of forming a substantive government while Mugabe
is still in politics than after his exit.
There is a better chance of
Zimbabwe becoming a democratic country, a prosperous nation and a land of
limitless opportunities with a living and breathing Mugabe still around than
when his body lies at what has become the Zanu (PF) Heroes
Acre.
Succumbed to temptation
If you sense, dear reader, that I am
fed up with the MDC you are dead right. Of course I am! Morgan Tsvangirai
and his MDC loudly proclaimed all sorts of policies and promises before
joining the inclusive government. Every right thinking Zimbabwean looked to
him and his party to make things better.
Alas, MDC officials, like their
Zanu (PF) counterparts in the inclusive government, have quite evidently
succumbed to the temptation that comes with power and the greed that can
accompany bureaucratic privilege.
Consequently, they have killed whatever
momentum was gathered against the tyranny of Mugabe. By so doing they have
afforded him and his men with much needed time to re-group.
In the
circumstances, if the MDC is not going to realise and correct the mistakes
made during the tenure of the inclusive government. If it is not going to
insist on genuine and lasting political reforms. If they are going to ignore
the lessons of the past in shaping the future. If they choose to continue to
put faith, and so responsibility, on SADC and not themselves, then they
ought to go to hell and stop wasting our precious time. The future does not
belong to the timid. They do not deserve it.
Meanwhile, and in the
interest of averting a possible civil war after Mugabe's demise, Zanu (PF)
needs to urgently conclude any further debate and set a succession strategy
in place. If in the process of doing so Zanu (PF) officials see the benefit
in reforming their outmoded movement to become a relevant and credible
political party then that will truly be a huge step forwards.
As the
country anxiously waits for the MDC to regain its old self and for Zanu (PF)
to stop fudging, we all must welcome and enjoy Akon and hope that he finds
our otherwise beautiful country as 'free and uplifting' a world as the
United States of America.
Psychology Maziwisa is a member of the Union
for Sustainable Democracy.
HARARE - Zimbabwean men are a proud lot, but they are slowly
taking a bruising with increasing reports of women raping men, in a bizarre
trend that appears driven more by superstition, and which social
commentators say reflects a more serious underlying problem - total moral
decay of the nation.
Admitting to rape by a woman is as embarrassing
as it gets for a Zimbabwean man. But an increasing number have in recent
weeks found themselves doing the unthinkable - going to the police to report
being raped by a woman!
Last week a Chinhoyi man was abducted at gunpoint
by three women who forced him to have sex with them, the latest in a string
of such incidents which started last year and which police are investigating
countrywide.
"This shows you that society has completely broken down,"
Gordon Chavunduka, a social commentator and former vice chancellor at the
University of Zimbabwe said.
Zimbabwe is a largely christian
conservative society but also highly superstitious, which could explain the
new rape phenomenon, analysts said.
In most cases, unsuspecting men are
offered a lift, only to find themselves being driven to secluded bushes
where they are forced to have sex at gun point.
But it can be in the
form of abduction as happened to one man from the farming town of Chinhoyi,
who was forced into a car by the three women after refusing to voluntarily
accompany them.
Ritual purposes
The prowling women usually carry
condoms, which they take away after intercourse, ostensibly to use the semen
for ritual purposes.
"We are a very superstitious country and I suspect
people who do this (rape) may want to use the male semen for some rituals,"
Claude Mararike, sociology lecturer at the UZ.
Only five years ago,
it was not a crime for a woman to rape a man and it was not even considered
possible that a woman could rape a man until cases of cases of women
sexually abusing young boys started to increase.
No wonder when the
initial incidences were reported there were doubts to the veracity of the
stories, with the odd joke that these were men making excuses for their
philandering activities to avoid conflict at home.
But increasingly men
are alarmed and wonder whether women are turning the tide against
them.
Rituals are not new in Zimbabwe, but there have for long been
confined to the business sector where murders were carried out for body
parts, with the belief that this would make a business flourish.
In
the last decade there has been an escalation in incidences of men raping
young girls, believing this would cure the deadly HIV
scourge.
Smoke-filled hut
But for a patriarchal society like
Zimbabwe, where men still dominate everyday life, a woman raping a man was
just taboo. In fact men did not see it coming.
"I still don't believe
these stories. I suspect that these are men just making up such stories when
they stay out from home," said Faith Chinomona, a vegetable vendor in Harare
said. "There is no way you can force a man to have sex, its impossible. I
don't believe but this."
There is always a lighter, if somewhat crude,
side to the rape cases though.
Last year a man reported to the police
that he was raped after spending a week in a smoke-filled hut in Lower Gweru
in the Midlands Province after what started as a harmless offer for a lift
by two women turned into abduction.
The married man and father of
three said he was given a daily dose of porridge laced with an unknown
powder to enable him to have sex with the two armed women. He was later
dumped on the roadside with little energy after the weeklong
ordeal.
"I don't know what is happening in our society. Maybe this is
God's curse for shunning our customs in favour of the Western culture,"
Tsitsi Murindagomo, a 63-year-old traditional healer from Mabvuku
said.
Two weeks ago two armed women forced a 44-year-old man into having
sex with them while another man stood guard after giving him a lift to Karoi
town from Westgate in Harare.
In July a Mwenezi man was reportedly
drugged and forced to have sex with two women who had offered him a lift
along the Masvingo-Ngundu Road.
Get rich quick
Chavunduka said the
cases could be a reflection of the degeneration of Zimbabwean culture after
a decade of economic collapse.
While the economy has stabilised, poverty
remains rampant in the southern African country and most people go to the
extreme just to make money.
"These are people who want to make money
because of poverty. The women will have been instructed by a traditional
healer to collect semen and the only way is to rape an unsuspecting man,"
said Chavunduka, a former head of the Zimbabwe National Association of
Traditional Healers.
"I don't think it works. But more importantly this
is a signal that we need to look at how to strengthen our culture. It is
very worrying, our society is in trouble."
In July police reported
that four women forced themselves on a 25-year-old Masvingo man at gunpoint
after forcing him to drink an unknown substance that afterwards made him
pass out for eight hours.
Some men believe the women force the men into
having sex just for fun and dismissed that this was driven by superstition
or desire to get rich quickly.
"This is just publicity seeking. There
are some people who get an adrenalin rush by doing very odd things and I
believe this is the case here," Stanley Jena, business studies student at a
Harare college said. - ZimOnline.
Tony Blair's
memoir titled 'A Journey' stormed into the best-seller lists this week
selling hundreds of thousands of copies within minutes of going onto the
shelves. Critiques and commentaries of the book have dominated the news
media in the UK all week. 'A Journey' was published on the eve of the Labour
Party's leadership vote and has raised quite a storm. Tony Blair UK Prime
Minister from 1997 to 2007 came in on a wave of euphoria; this was to be a
brave new beginning for the UK. Ten years later, Blair left office with the
bitter legacy of Iraq and countless other foreign interventions. Two million
people took to the streets to demonstrate their opposition to the Iraq war
but still Blair and Bush went ahead and invaded anyway. In his memoir Blair
claims, once again, that he 'did what he thought was right'. He makes no
apology for the countless dead Iraqis or the human misery that followed the
invasion. The US and UK with the help of other western powers mounted the
invasion of Iraq on the grounds that Saddam Hussein was a wicked dictator
who deserved to be overthrown. Zimbabweans at home and in the diaspora
wondered why Mugabe was being let off the hook since he so clearly qualified
as another 'wicked dictator'.
Perhaps Zimbabweans might one day read a
politician's memoir which exposes the inside story of what went on in the
country over the last twenty years of Mugabe's dictatorial rule. Censorship
laws in Zimbabwe being what they are, that's not very likely. If Owen
Maseko's example is anything to go by this paranoid government will not even
allow images of the Gukurukundi atrocities back in the eighties to see the
light of day. The news that Owen Maseko is to face trial after the
Censorship Board banned his work does not suggest that the Inclusive
Government cares any more for artistic and media freedom than the former
ruling party. Maseko has revealed that in addition to the original charge of
'obscenity and ethnic bias' he now faces the criminal charge of
'communicating falsehoods in order to incite violence' - a charge which
carries a twenty year prison sentence. SW Radio is itself being jammed
presumably with the knowledge of the Inclusive Government. 'Pirate radio
stations' and sanctions continue to be Zanu PF's excuse for their failure to
implement the GPA that could bring an end to Mugabe's 'oppressive and
dictatorial rule'
It is just such a rule, Tony Blair claims in his memoir
that justifies foreign intervention. "People often used to say to me: If you
got rid of gangsters in Sierra Leone; Slobodan Milosevic, the Taliban and
Saddam, why can't you get rid of Mugabe?"
Blair's answer to the
question is that "it just wasn't practical" in Mugabe's case because Africa
would have opposed any such action strenuously. Whether that was the real
reason for the UK's failure to intervene we will probably never know for
sure though there is evidence that New Labour under Tony Blair was initially
quite prepared to do business with Robert Mugabe in return for certain trade
considerations.
What is clear is that despite the formation of an
Inclusive Government, Mugabe has continued virtually unimpeded to go his own
way. Speaking at Reward Marefu's funeral last Sunday, he declared that he
will defy the SADC Tribunal or any other International Court's rulings on
the matter of farm ownership. It is hardly surprising that law and order
have collapsed in Zimbabwe when the country's president states publicly that
he has no intention of abiding by court rulings. The Police Commissioner's
term of office expired this week and it will be interesting to see who
replaces Augustine Chihuri or whether Mugabe will extend the Zanu PF
loyalist's term in office for a third or is it a fourth term. Ironically
the UK also has a coalition government now but as yet we have had no clear
indication as to what their attitude will be to Zimbabwe. Mugabe has said he
thinks he can do business with a Tory led government but it is unlikely that
David Cameron will be any more popular than Tony Blair unless he gives
Robert Mugabe uncritical support and public acclaim.
Yours in the
(continuing) struggle PH. aka Pauline Henson.