A REPORT OF A TALK GIVEN BY THE HONOURABLE DAVID COLTART, MP FOR BULAWAYO SOUTH, AT THE CHURCH OF THE ASCENSION, HILLSIDE, BULAWAYO ON FRIDAY, 30 NOVEMBER 2001

I will start by referring to Psalm 7, which is a prayer of the virtuous under persecution. Evil men who devise wicked schemes will find that the evil rebounds against themselves.

The enemy may sharpen his sword,
he may bend his bow to take aim,
but the weapons he prepares will kill himself
and his arrows will turn into firebrands.
Look at him, pregnant with wickedness,
Conceiving spite, he gives birth to Mishap.
He dug a pit, hollowed it out,
Only to fall into his own trap!
His spite recoils on his own head,
His brutality falls back on his own skull.

On Tuesday this week, two young men gave evidence in court of serious torture they had endured at the hands of our state agents. Foreign journalists were present and heard what had been done to them. There evidence showed the lengths this regime is prepared to go to subvert justice.

I was at a meeting at Ruzawi River (near Marondera) recently. It is clear that even farm workers in Mashonaland understand who killed Cain Nkala. The vast majority of Zimbabweans are shocked that a member of a political party can be killed by his own political party, in furtherance of its own ends.

It is now time to show solidarity with the 14 to 18 people in detention. Financial support is necessary. Contributions are needed to set up a legal fund. Our offices have been burnt down. A collective effort is needed to help re-build them. This will be a powerful reminder that the tide of democracy cannot be stopped. Our goal is a multi-racial, democratic nation.

The entire Cain Nkala saga is a reaction to ZANU PF’s sense of panic. This panic has resulted in murder, detentions and such moves as Statutory Instrument 338, where farmers can be evicted before being able to take their cases to court. The government is in the process of formulating new media legislation…. if a journalist writes about a matter that causes alarm and despondency that journalist is liable to be fined or he is likely to lose his journalistic licence…. We are even lucky enough now to have Spot (SPORT) FM Radio!

But the international noose is tightening. We have known all along that without international understanding of what is really going on in Zimbabwe, we are lost. Over the months international opinion has waxed and waned. NOW, a powerful international and regional coalition has been built up around our agenda…., which is, in essence, the need for free and fair elections.

In the aftermath of September 11, we felt that the World had forgotten about us. We must remember that TV’s preoccupation with America’s own problems is not a true reflection of the American State Department’s reaction and response to the world at large.

They certainly have not forgotten about us. Much of the attention on us has, of course, been self-inflicted. Robert Mugabe constantly uses inflammatory language. At Cain Nkala’s funeral, he made reference to the tall towers. Let it be heard in the tall towers of London, in their tall towers elsewhere… The ZBC has been mimicking CNN’s banner across the screen The Fight Against Terrorism. This type of behaviour demeans and angers the Americans. We have seen evidence of their anger this week. The Daily News published a picture of Geoff Nyarota standing next to Jesse Jackson. Our problem in the past has been the Black caucus. Black Americans have traditionally had a nostalgic view of Robert Mugabe as a liberator. It has been difficult for them to move away from that viewpoint. But this Wednesday, the House International Relations Committee passed the Zimbabwe Democracy and Economic Recovery Act of 2001 unanimously. The attempt by ZANU PF to host and fete Andrew Young, and so to influence Black American opinion, has failed.

The next step will be the imposition of personal sanctions. The Assistant Secretary of State arrives in the country next weekend. There is a determination in the United States that wasn’t there prior to September 11. America will deal with all countries that promote terror.

Judge Victor Marrero of the Southern District of New York handed down 130 pages of judgement, when he ruled that ZANU PF was liable for murdering and torturing its political opponents in the run-up to the June 2000 elections. Referring to such fallen dictators as Marcos, Pinochet and Milosevic, Marrero slated attempts by governments and heads of state to use diplomatic immunity as a shield for private abuses. He condemned those whose chosen way of life is to do wrong by inflicting harm of massive proportion.

The MDC sent representatives to attend the EU meeting in Brussels. There, ZANU PF was trying to persuade the African and Caribbean countries that colonialists and imperialists were responsible for Zimbabwe’s present state of affairs. For some time, France and Belgium have been a problem for us, as there has to be unanimity in this caucus. ZANU PF was utterly shocked when Spain, France and Belgium voted with the rest. By the end of the week, the MDC had achieved broad consensus about the elections. A resolution was agreed to that stated that Zimbabwe was to comply with the SADC standards for holding an election. Seventeen ACP (African, Caribbean & Pacific) countries voted against Zimbabwe. In an unprecedented move, the MDC’s Mr Bhebe was allowed to put forward the opposition’s point of view. This he did brilliantly. We have friends internationally as we have never had before.

Robert Mugabe has managed to charm people for the last 21 years. Last Friday, however, he stormed out of a meeting with Louis Michel (the Belgian deputy Prime Minister and current EU President), Chris Patten (the EU commissioner for external relations) and Javier Solana (the EU Secretary General). Zimbabwe has lost whatever support it had with the European Community. The knowledge that we have the EU and the Americans on the side of democracy is wonderful. BUT… we need to exert more pressure; we need the unqualified support of the region. The President of Botswana, Festus Mogae, has been very outspoken. President Mbeki is now speaking about the elections, and warning the Zimbabwe Government about procedures. Everyone is now focused on the need to have a free and fair election. We have achieved a broad international and regional coalition.

I believe that the people of Zimbabwe will register and vote the right way. I feel that the white community (which tends to be pessimistic) is out of touch with the way black people are thinking. I now believe that we could even have a landslide. One of my reasons for this belief is the prevailing situation in Masvingo. There has been a massive swing of opinion in this area. Mugabe booted Zvobgo off the politburo. Neither he, nor his right-hand man, Mavahiri, will be campaigning for Mugabe in the presidential election. Mugabe has an uncanny knack of making enemies. Morgan Tsvangirai is buoyant about the mood in Masvingo.

My second reason for feeling as I do, is the new mood of anger in our own province of Matabeleland. The people here have had enough, they are not prepared to be taken back to the 1980’s, to Gukurahundi. In Mashonaland farm workers are realising what is happening to their colleagues on seized farms. When a person uses violence and evil, this rebounds against him as the psalmist stated. The government is building bunkers at state house and buying limousines when people are dying in our hospitals.

ZANU PF is left with support in Northern Mashonaland and pockets that are loyal in Gokwe. The fast-track land reform programme is their only tactic. Some of the farm occupiers are actually leaving the farms. There are no crops: there is no tobacco and no maize. They are planting the seed packs given to them by government in the places they know best – back in the communal areas.

Politicians are going back and forth from Chinhoyi telling the occupiers not to interrupt farming operations, and begging commercial farmers to put in maize and tobacco. The abandoned and derelict huts of erstwhile farm invaders are to be seen everywhere.

Why are we on the winning path? It is because of the MDC. The MDC has been subjected to a sustained assault since its inception. This is a baptism of fire that will make the MDC stronger. The MDC is intact. Morgan Tsvangirai is growing in stature by the week. He is absolutely focused.

The MDC is stronger, has international support and is ready to govern. ZANU PF will not stop the tide. In essence, now, we are on the final lap. The last few kilometres of a marathon are always the toughest. That is when the athlete questions his sanity for running the race.

I predict an election possibly as early as February. What about rigging? It is difficult to rig an election when one is dealing with a landslide. There are some good High Court surprises coming up. The new Supreme Court bench may indeed, subvert these. But these cases will keep ZANU PF on the back foot. And, of course, there is the international community, who will be watching.

I would like to return for a moment to Psalm 7. Everything has backfired. The bombing of The Daily News has finally culminated in Geoff Nyarota’s standing side by side with the Rev Jesse Jackson. The treatment of the farmers, their workers and the attack on the MDC has refined us all. Tyrants ultimately find their wicked schemes to be the cause of their own destruction. All tyrants, as they get to the end of their careers, become more irrational. This tyrant is going soon. I address the following remarks to those who would seek to terrify us: Do not think we are intimidated. We are stronger than ever. The MDC is committed to working within the law and the constitution. When we come to power, there will be no violence, but there will be justice.

We have to keep our nerve. We cannot allow ourselves to become depressed. Our country is worth fighting for. Commit yourselves with us to the principles of non-violence and to working within the law and the constitution. God honours those who honour Him. Good WILL prevail within this country.

Writers Comment: I have taken the liberty of quoting more of Psalm 7 than Mr Coltart did at the meeting. I think it assists us to appreciate his words more clearly. I should also like to mention that Mr Coltart does not use this version of The Bible. My version is The Jerusalem Bible. I would like to use his version ideally, and will ask him to supply it as soon as possible. I have also explained the positions of some of the dignitaries referred to, to assist readers who do not know them.