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Archived News
23rd November 2004
Mugabe forces in harsh new legislation
Concern about electoral reform in Zimbabwe
Zimbabwean refugees to be forcibly removed as ban is lifted
Tsvangirai to meet top EU officials
The mysterious grain drain
Criticising Mugabe is a crime
Mugabe bans human rights groups
Cosatu calls for ANC clarity on Zim
Tsvangirai warned 'not to return home'
Top international lawyer leads bid to free Zimbabwean MP
Mugabe 'building up his arsenal' before polls
Chinese to take over key state firms
Zanu PF in vicious Mugabe succession battle
Return will be a death trap
16 civic group activists arrested for protesting against NGO Bill
Video captures plight of Zimbabwean refugees
Presidency sparks war
Woman lands vice-presidency
Activists criticise UK's resumption of forced repatriation
Bishop wants refugee clarity
Govt says no bias against asylum seekers from Zimbabwe
Amnesty warns against NGO bill
Tsvangirai expects December poll decision
Losing Zanu PF MPs still attending sessions
Registrar-General to issue out new ID cards
War veterans want Mugabe to rule for life
How Mugabe man's suitcase full of dollars fuelled buying spree
MDC legislator for Mkoba dies
Baby 'killed by witches' alive in Zim prison
Zanu PF members revolt against Mugabe's heir apparent
'I will do things the Robert Mugabe way'
Harvest of lies as Mugabe bans food aid
Ballots, not bullets
Zimbabwe needs a 'regime change'
Zimbabwe aid agencies in South Africa join hands
Mugabe would like to have a female vice-president
Zanu PF women's wing to nominate Mujuru for vice-presidency
SACP call for an end to Zimbabwe atrocities
Behind the Cosatu-ANC spat over Zimbabwe
Mugabe gets woman vice-president
Mugabe explodes
SADC chairperson defends Mbeki's quiet diplomacy
New courts to speed up Zimbabwe land grab
Held over in a hellhole
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From The Daily Telegraph (UK), 17 November
Mugabe forces in harsh new legislation
Harare - President Robert Mugabe's ruling party yesterday suspended Zimbabwe's constitution to drive a batch of repressive new laws through parliament. Zanu PF has said it will sit through the night all week to bring in the changes, including a ban all foreign-funded human rights organisations. Mr Mugabe wants the slew of bills passed into law before Dec 1, when Zanu PF holds its annual conference. Parliament's legal committee, in which the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) has the majority, has said all the bills are unconstitutional. With its overwhelming parliamentary majority, Zanu PF yesterday suspended parliament's standing orders, which would have required a three-week delay to redraft the laws to bring them in line with the constitution. Among the bills is the creation of a Zimbabwe Electoral Commission to run elections. It will have five commissioners, all appointed by Mr Mugabe, who has said elections will be held in March. This legislation went through its second reading yesterday. When it is signed into law by Mr Mugabe, it will be an offence for any foreign-funded organisation to provide voter education. "Why is voter education a threat to national security?" demanded Tendai Biti, an opposition MP, during a rowdy parliamentary session yesterday. The new electoral laws for the first time will allow members of the Zimbabwe National Army, the police and prison services to be election officials.
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From The Pretoria News, 17 November
Concern about electoral reform in Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe's "electoral reform" isn't going to happen. On the contrary, new laws before parliament will, for the first time, officially allow the police and army to be employed as election officials. And Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa made it clear to parliament the past week that two new Electoral Bills were the total package of "reforms". A detailed analysis by the Zimbabwe Electoral Support Network (ZESN), a non-governmental organisation (NGO), concludes that the fundamentals in the two Bills are worse than existing legislation governing elections. One will create a Zimbabwe Election Commission (ZEC) which has already been heavily criticised by ZESN. It has also received an adverse report from parliament's legal committee and the second will replace the existing and much-amended Electoral Act. Constitutionally the elections are only due by October 2005 but Zanu PF wants them in March ahead of celebrations to mark President Robert Mugabe's 25 years in power on April 18.
Since announcing "electoral reform" ahead of a Southern African Development Community (SADC) summit in August, when Mugabe signed up to free and fair electoral principles, Zanu PF has created four new pieces of legislation: To establish a maximum two year sentence for journalists found working without accreditation from the state-appointed media commission - passed by parliament last week; To ban human rights and governance NGOs, like ZESN; To create the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission, bringing to four the number of election authorities. The ZEC will only allow voter education by government approved, locally funded organisations. Its chair and four commissioners, all ultimately appointed by Mugabe must recruit staff from the army, police and prisons; To replace the existing Electoral Act retaining all previous laws, adding new ones but without even replacing two voting days by one, as specifically announced by Mugabe.
The latest ZESN analysis on the Electoral Bill says that existing authorities, plus new ones have "overlapping responsibilities, leading to confusion and appear to be usurping the functions of the constitutionally-established Electoral Supervisory Commission." Nowhere in either of the electoral Bills are provisions for fair access to the only electronic media, the partisan Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation. Election observers "will have to be accredited by a committee dominated by nominees of various government ministers, including the President's Office, and only persons invited by a minister or by the (existing) Electoral Supervisory Commission will be eligible for accreditation", reads ZESN's analysis. "The Bill will require state employees, including members of the defence forces, the police force and the prison service, to be seconded to the Electoral Commission during elections." "The Bill's provisions regarding access to voters' rolls are similar to those in the present Act," which ZESN says means there is no fixed date to check for accuracy of the current roll, nor access to its electronic version.
While ZESN says it welcomes the abolition of mobile polling booths it questions the lack of rules to ensure sufficient fixed booths. The opposition Movement for Democratic Change estimated 100 000 Harare residents were unable to vote in the 2002 presidential election because of a reduction of polling booths in its largest urban stronghold. Postal votes are ruled out, except for voters absent from their constituency on "government business," which ZESN says is "unfair" given that so many have been forced to leave Zimbabwe. Although ZESN welcomes the establishment of an Electoral Court it says: "the judges appointed to the court must be selected through an impartial process. It is unfortunate, too, that there are no time-limits laid down for the hearing of election petitions". Only two of 40 legal challenges by the MDC to the 2000 parliamentary and presidential poll have been concluded, both in the MDC's favour.
Significantly, the Electoral Bill does not preclude Mugabe from amending electoral laws using his absolute power as contained in Presidential Powers (Temporary Measures Act). MDC legal secretary David Coltart, who co-ordinated the party's legal challenges to the previous two national polls said: "The combination of these two Bills makes the electoral environment far worse because of the proliferation of electoral authorities and because the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission is even more subject to government control than its predecessor." "The commissioners will be appointed by the president, leader of a political party, and can be sacked by the justice minister who will be a candidate in the next election. The Electoral Bill is a crude attempt to pull the wool over SADC's eyes. Zanu PF has taken the bulk of the provisions of the old Electoral Act and slapped in a few even more draconian provisions. There is no reform to provide for any free and fair election," he said. The MDC says it will not take part in any election until Mugabe adheres to SADC electoral principles.
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From The Times (UK), 17 November
Zimbabwean refugees to be forcibly removed as ban is lifted
By Stewart Tendler and Jemma Chapman
Zimbabwean asylum-seekers face forcible repatriation after the Government ended a two-year ban on enforced removals yesterday. The decision was greeted with anger by refugee organisations but Des Browne, the Immigration Minister, told MPs that the ban was ending because it was being abused by Zimbabweans who were not genuine refugees. Maeve Sherlock, the chief executive of the Refugee Council, said that it was "concerned about the prospect of anyone being forcibly returned to (President) Mugabe's Zimbabwe" , and called on the Government to monitor who was sent back. She said: "No one should be sent back before monitoring procedures are put in place." A spokeswoman for the Zimbabwe Community Association in London said that sending back Zimbabweans would be exposing them to death or torture. "The moment you have a connection with this country you are an enemy of Mugabe and he will do whatever it takes to make (you) suffer. Mugabe has openly said that anyone who opposes him faces death."
The announcement comes as the England cricket team face a controversial winter tour in Zimbabwe. Last week Chris Mullins, the Foreign Office Minister responsible for Africa, conceded that despite the UK doing all it could, the situation was deteriorating and there was no sign of an end to abuses. The regime has been accused of using repressive laws to criminalise peaceful gatherings, as well as shutting down independent media outlets and nongovernmental organisations. There have been systematic attacks on the independence of judges and lawyers and allegations of torture and ill-treatment, including rape by security forces and "youth" militia. After more than 5,000 white farmers were forced off their farms, Zimbabwe announced this summer that it would nationalise all farms. Amnesty International, in its latest report, issued a warning that millions of people in Zimbabwe are going hungry because the Government refused aid, claiming that the country had had a "bumper harvest" in 2004. The claims have been widely discredited. The UN estimates that at least 2.3 million rural people will need food assistance before next April's harvest.
Mr Browne said that the ban on removals had been introduced in January 2002 in response to concerns about the serious deterioration in the situation in Zimbabwe before the presidential election held in March that year. The latest statistics, published yesterday, showed that in the first nine months of this year, asylum was granted to 195 Zimbabweans, and some other form of protection to more than 25 others. This was out of a total of 2,025 decisions. The number of overall asylum seekers coming to Britain increased by 13 per cent in the third quarter of this year, Government figures showed yesterday. Provisional figures from the Home Office indicated that, including dependants, there were 10,385 new asylum seekers, compared with 9,210 in the second quarter of the year. The number of failed applicants being deported from the UK fell by 2 per cent to 3,085, excluding dependants. This was the fourth quarter in a row to see numbers decrease. The number of removals was also 15 per cent lower than in the same period last year.
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From Zim Online (SA), 17 November
Tsvangirai to meet top EU officials
Harare - Zimbabwean opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai will this week meet top European Union (EU) officials in a bid to draw world attention back on Zimbabwe's deepening crisis. Tsvangirai, who has met key African leaders urging them to pressure President Robert Mugabe to hold a free and fair general election next year, is also expected to meet EU leaders on the sidelines of the EU-African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries meeting in the Netherlands next Monday. The Zimbabwean politician meets top EU secretariat executives tomorrow, a top official of his Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) party said. "After meeting the EU secretariat, he will fly back to London to address several gatherings of Zimbabweans in the Diaspora. He will then visit Norway, Sweden and Denmark," MDC deputy secretary-general Gift Chimanikire said. Chimanikire, who said the whirlwind diplomatic offensive was meant to update the international community on Zimbabwe's crisis, said Tsvangirai was scheduled to later meet EU leaders at the EU-ACP conference. Tsvangirai and his MDC party say a democratic election next year could provide a solution to Zimbabwe's political crisis but have so far insisted that they will not take part in the crucial general election because conditions in Zimbabwe were not conducive to a free and fair contest. Tsvangirai has met the leaders of South Africa, Mauritius, Botswana, Nigeria, Ghana, Burkina Faso and Senegal in his bid to mobilise African support for democratic elections in Zimbabwe next year. He will meet the leaders of Madagascar, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Kenya and Malawi on his return from Europe.
From The Daily News Online Edition, 17 November
Will Mugabe's tribal balancing act yield positive results?
Zanu PF insiders have said it is now a fait accompli that Emmerson Mnangagwa will be appointed the successor to President Robert Mugabe as leader of the ruling party and government at the December congress. His two deputies will be John Nkomo and Didymus Mutasa. The current vice-president, Joseph Msika is expected to step down but it is not clear whether this will be of his own accord or by coercion. A number of things emerge from this scenario. The first is that Zanu PF wants the old guard to remain in power at all cost. It is clear that there is no room, as yet, for the younger generation of politicians in the likes of Dr Simba Makoni, Joyce Mujuru or Dzikamai Mavhaire. It means, in effect, that the old Zanu PF train will continue the political journey of economic destruction, press repression and political harassment. The other key factor to emerge is that Mugabe will have done a splendid tribal balancing act. Mugabe is a Zezuru and there has been talk that the next party and government leader should either be a Karanga, Ndebele or Manyika, the other major tribes in the country. The Karangas are the biggest tribal group and Mnangagwa, who enjoyed unbridled support of the late vice-president Simon Muzenda, himself a Karanga, is also from Masvingo province.
Didymus Mutasa will represent the Manyikas who have been agitating for long to have their fingers in the royal pie after Mugabe. John Nkomo, a distant relative of President Mugabe will represent the Ndebeles after their party, Zapu was swallowed in the December 1987 Unity Accord between Zanu PF and Zapu. But it remains to be seen whether or not the tribal balancing act will yield positive results. Tribalism has always played havoc in African politics in Kenya, Zambia, Malawi and west Africa. It has become the bane of African unity as it divides people needlessly along tribal lines. It seems, from the latest development, that the quest for a slice of the cake by women, who form the majority of voters in Zimbabwe might prove all in vain. The Zanu PF women's league had passed a resolution at their recent congress that one of the two posts of vice-president should be set aside for women. But already, there seems to be division among the women themselves over the choice of Joyce Mujuru, the wife of former army commander, Solomon Mujuru as their candidate for the vice-presidency. The name of ageing Thenjiwe Lesabe, Mugabe's former pupil has cropped up while some people prefer the younger and more aggressive and amicable Oppah Muchinguri.
Critics of Mugabe view Mnangagwa as a vicious operator who will not allow anything to stand in his way. His hands are tainted by the Gukurahundi massacres in Matabeleland and he will have to do a lot of damage control to pacify the Ndebeles. Mnangagwa's hands are also tainted by his involvement with the dreaded Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO) and there are many people who have stories to tell about the CIO atrocities during his time at the helm. Up to now, rumour has it that Mnangagwa's tentacles are still within the CIO as he appointed his blue-eyed boys to some of the key positions which they still hold up to now. But the change at the top, if it does take place, might not mean anything significant to the ordinary Zimbabwean, unless Mnangagwa has an ace up his sleeve, such as forming a government of national unity with the Movement for Democratic Change whose leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, he has been courting of late.
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From BBC News, 15 November
The mysterious grain drain
By Sandy Smith
There is a new crime in Zimbabwe: driving with food. Not eating a takeaway at the wheel, but travelling from one part of the country to another with maize on your back seat. Three bags is OK but more is not, as our undercover team discovered this autumn. An official from the Grain Marketing Board wrote them out a ticket at a roadblock. Thankfully unaware of the hidden camera, he let slip the reason. "There's nothing in the villages. Even in the town there is hunger." The truth was out of the bag. This fertile and once well farmed country is no longer producing enough food to feed its people, despite Robert Mugabe's boasts to the contrary. In May he told aid agencies to go elsewhere as his people were in danger of choking on what they already had. This came as a surprise to the World Food Programme which was feeding over five million people earlier this year. Once it used to buy grain in Harare to feed neighbouring countries. Now it is the other way round.
The Famine Early Warning System which monitors hunger across the world now labels Zimbabwe with emergency status alongside Chad and Ethiopia. Zimbabwean journalist Farai Sevenzo set out to discover the truth about the lack of food in his country. His aim was not just to take the word of opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) politicians but to find out and film evidence for himself. Hence the bags of grain. It was not an easy task in a country where the independent journalism has been crushed and the BBC is not welcome. One of his first encounters was a demonstration against the NGO bill which would control foreign charities and organisations, including those working for better democracy. He secretly filmed as the police violently broke it up. Next stop was a hospital in a region run by the ruling Zanu PF where the local governor had been brave enough to ask for food assistance. "These children are all malnourished," the ward nurse told him in a whisper. She was not able to speak out in public but the Archbishop of Bulawayo, Pius Ncube, can. He explains how children die of malnutrition in his area. "I know people who have committed suicide, pensioners, because they can't live - some of them white. People are suffering. It is impossible to live in Zimbabwe, honestly," he says, frustrated that anyone might think he would exaggerate the truth.
In the countryside Farai finds plenty of evidence that Mugabe's land reforms have contributed to the food shortages. Fields which were once productive now lie fallow or support straggling shoots. Farmers complain of lack of water, seed crop and fertiliser. Most of those with the expertise in running big farms, as opposed to small holdings, have gone. Some to Zambia. Others are on their way to Nigeria at the invitation of the government there. We do hear from successful cash croppers and a local Zanu PF commander with a herd of cattle and dreams of striking it rich. "When the people know that in the soil there is money, they start to work hard," he says. He may be right but the land on which he has settled - and divided up among new farmers - is a nature conservancy: Buffalo Range, home to rhino, zebra and other game. A sad spinoff of the hunger story is that the new settlers on land once devoted to wildlife, are trapping and killing the animals. Game that was once carefully culled is now being slaughtered wholesale. "We have lost 95% of our game," says one game warder. "Whatever comes along they will take it. Meat is meat to them." Next March there are elections and cynics predict that food shortage will suddenly come to an end. Food impounded by the Grain Marketing Board and clandestinely imported from South Africa is expected to be made available to those intending to vote Zanu PF. Sure enough, Farai witnesses trains from South Africa in sidings at the Grain Marketing Board in Harare. Food supply is no accident here, say the opposition, but a means to prolong power. "The government wants to be the only one with food," says Ransen Gasela, the shadow agriculture minister. "We cannot play with people's lives."
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From News24 (SA), 17 November
Criticising Mugabe is a crime
Harare - An unemployed Zimbabwean was sentenced to 140 hours of community service for calling President Robert Mugabe a dictator and saying British Prime Minister Tony Blair was a liberator. Reason Tafirei, 31, was arrested on November 10 and kept in police cells until his trial on Monday and Tuesday on a charge of "undermining the authority of the president." That offence is included in the draconian Public Order and Security Act, a law widely condemned by human rights lawyers and groups in Zimbabwe and internationally. Douglas Saungweme, an official of Mugabe's ruling Zanu-PF party heard Tafirei tell other passengers on a bus that "Mugabe is a dictator who rules by the sword while Tony Blair is a liberator." Saungweme ordered the bus driver to go to the police, who arrested Tafirei. At his trial, Tafirei, who could not afford a lawyer, pleaded guilty. "I plead for forgiveness," he told Magistrate Shelton Jura in Harare's Chitungwiza suburb. "The truth is I committed the crime through shouting these words. May you please be merciful." Jura said: "A wholly suspended sentence would meet the justice of the case." He imposed an eight month jail term, half of which was suspended on condition Tafirei commit no similar offence in the next five years, the other half on condition he completes the community service at a school. He will likely clean and do other janitorial duties during his service. Mugabe, 80, and in power since 1980 independence, is facing widespread discontent over runaway inflation, unemployment and food shortages. Mugabe claims mounting opposition is a British conspiracy to reverse the redistribution of 5 000 formerly white owned farms to black Zimbabweans.
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From The Times (UK), 18 November
Mugabe bans human rights groups
From Jan Raath in Harare
Zimbabwe's parliament was rushing through legislation yesterday that will shut down human rights groups and other organisations critical of President Mugabe and his Government. It is regarded as the most repressive legislation since independence in 1980. The Zimbabwe Non-Governmental Organisations Bill will force all the estimated 3,000 private voluntary organisations to register with a state commission or be closed, have their staff arrested and their assets seized. Those not already on the Social Welfare Ministry's voluntary register will be regarded as illegal as soon as the law comes into force. The Bill also threatens charities that serve as an alternative Civil Service for impoverished Zimbabweans in a society where the state infrastructure is largely in ruins. These organisations bring water supplies, famine relief, seed and farming implements, literacy and support to much of the one third of the population stricken by HIV/Aids. The jobs of up to 20,000 people working for the charities are at risk.
Agencies devoted to what is broadly described as "governance" will be banned from receiving foreign funding. Foreign human rights organisations, including the local office of Amnesty International, will be outlawed. David Coltart, legal director of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), said: "It attacks the churches, human rights organisations, trade unions, everything." In Zimbabwe, private organisations have managed to keep alive a semblance of democracy and independence. Observers say the face of the country will be changed rapidly when Mr Mugabe signs the Bill into law. Announcing the Bill in July, he declared that "we cannot allow them (voluntary organisations) to be conduits of foreign interference in our national efforts". Since then, the state propaganda mill has incessantly denounced the groups as "puppets of imperialist forces seeking to destabilise the country to effect regime change".
The parliamentary legal committee reported yesterday that the Bill violated the Constitution on 12 counts. Welshman Ncube, the committee's chairman, described it as "a determined and pervasive attempt to curtail and extinguish the fundamental freedoms of the people of Zimbabwe". He added: "It does not seek to regulate but to control, to silence, to render ineffective and ultimately shut down non-governmental organisations." The same groups had "painstakingly recorded . . . political beatings, intimidation, torture, rape, killings, unlawful arrests and detention, destruction of homes, the suppression of media freedoms". They had also provided victims with legal advice, counselling and medical care, he said. There is little doubt that parliamentary elections set for March are the main reason for the extraordinary legislation and the haste in passing it. "We work in rural areas all over the country, and whether we like it or not we see what is going on," a Western aid manager said. "They don't want us to see what they do."
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From The Star (SA), 18 November
Cosatu calls for ANC clarity on Zim
Federation condemns statements made by leader of youth league
The Congress of SA Trade Unions has urged its alliance partner, the ruling ANC, to clarify its stance on political and human rights abuses in Zimbabwe. Federation general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi yesterday slammed recent statements by ANC Youth League president Fikile Mbalula likening Cosatu's criticism of the Zimbabwean state of affairs to that of right-wing personalities and media. Mbalula's article in last week's ANC Today online publication raised serious questions for the ANC-Cosatu-SA Communist Party alliance, Vavi said, as it sought to question the bona fides of and cast aspersions on other alliance partners on behalf of the ANC. "To ensure a proper, open and comradely debate in the alliance, we need clarity from the ANC leadership," Vavi said. Among other things, the ANC should clarify whether it agreed with Mbalula that the government of President Robert Mugabe still represented a progressive national liberation movement.
Mbalula's statements were a chilling warning that events in Zimbabwe could be a foretaste of what could happen in South Africa if the author had his way, Vavi said. The only buffer to such a scenario was a strong ANC-Cosatu-SACP alliance and the country's democratic and progressive constitution. The article pointed to the need for the alliance to develop a common understanding of what was actually happening in Zimbabwe, Vavi said. "Maybe the alliance must send a joint fact-finding mission to Zimbabwe so that we can read from the same page." A Cosatu fact-finding mission to that country was recently expelled by Mugabe's government, and drew criticism from President Thabo Mbeki. Mbeki has urged Zimbabwe's ruling and opposition parties to agree on a revised election law before polls in March, to ensure no recurrence of disputes over the result. Mbeki noted that Zimbabwe's parliament was currently considering new legislation relating to creating an independent electoral commission and other changes in the election system. These were needed "to address concerns that have been raised by the Movement for Democratic Change and the rest of the world about ... the conduct of elections", he said. "What we've tried to do is encourage the ruling party and the opposition to get together."
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From AFP, 18 November
Tsvangirai warned 'not to return home'
Zimbabwe's justice minister warned opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai on Wednesday that he should not return home from his ongoing European tour if he is lobbying for renewed sanctions against President Robert Mugabe and his entourage. Tsvangirai reportedly called on Sweden and the European Union to extend sanctions against Mugabe and 94 of his close associates during talks with the Swedish leadership on Tuesday. "If he has called for the continuation of sanctions on Zimbabwe, that would make him the state's enemy number one, and I don't think he would want to come back to the country," Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa said. The EU imposed a travel ban on Mugabe and his close associates in 2002, citing rights abuses. The sanctions, which also include a freeze on the leader's assets in the EU over what the bloc called worsening human rights, were renewed in February.
Chinamasa was responding to a question in parliament from a member of Mugabe's ruling Zanu PF, asking him to comment on Tsvangirai's statements during talks with Sweden's top leadership on Tuesday. Tsvangirai last month launched a series of foreign trips shortly after he was acquitted on treason charges and his passport was returned to him. He has already met with leaders of South Africa, Mauritius, Botswana, Senegal, Ghana and Nigeria and is expected to hold talks with EU officials and also travel to Norway, Denmark and Britain. Media reports said he will meet leaders of Ethiopia, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi and Tanzania on his return from Europe. Chinamasa also ruled out the possibility of inviting EU observers for key parliamentary elections in March. "I do not expect the minister of foreign affairs to invite people who are already biased, people who come with pre-judged ideas people who have imposed sanctions on us, to observe our elections," Chinamasa said.
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From Business Day (SA), 18 November
Top international lawyer leads bid to free Zimbabwean MP
Wife tells of Roy Bennett's life of hardship in crowded prison cell
Business Day Correspondent
Heather Bennett, wife of jailed Zimbabwean opposition MP Roy Bennett, and celebrated human rights lawyer Beatrice Mtetwa have launched an international campaign for his release. Bennett, a Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) MP, was "sentenced" by Zimbabwe's parliament on October 28 to an effective one year in prison with hard labour. The sentence, now being served in Harare Central prison, is unprecedented throughout the world, says Mtetwa. Bennett's "crime" was to push over Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa in parliament after Chinamasa had racially insulted him, for which he was not reprimanded by Acting Speaker Edna Madzongwe. Chinamasa also said that Bennett could never again set foot on his Chimanimani farm Charleswood which despite six court orders has not been returned to him. Bennett and his family were evicted in April by Zimbabwe Defence Industries, who evicted the senior management from the farm and put up a boom manned by armed personnel to deny Bennett access to his farm.
A month after the incident, at a privileges committee meeting , Tendai Biti, the opposition MDC MP for Harare East, questioned Chinamasa about the seizure of Bennett's farm. Biti asked him if he was aware that court orders were being flouted. "I am not aware, but I just want to emphasise that notwithstanding these court orders we are going to take the land," Chinamasa replied. Mtetwa says that the chain of events in Bennett's case proved that the judiciary in Zimbabwe was not independent. "In about 1998, the speaker of parliament, Emmerson Mnangagwa, himself stressed the importance of a separation of powers of the executive, parliament and the judiciary. Yet, when the Bennett-Chinamasa fracas came before parliament, interested parties were not excluded. Before Roy's sentence was handed down by parliament, we tried to get the court to block it. "But Judge Omerjee was given a certificate by Mnangagwa precluding him from hearing the matter. This was given on the grounds that it was a parliamentary matter. "Yet last week when we applied for bail, when it was no longer a parliamentary matter, Justice Charles Hungwe, who had been issued by another certificate by the speaker, reserved judgment until a later date. "We may only hear if it was been approved next week."
Meanwhile, Bennett has to sleep on a concrete floor with one blanket in a cell meant for four with 17 other inmates. He spends his day scrubbing floors in the prison, and is fed one cup of sadza (mealiemeal porridge) a day and one cup of cabbage or bean soup, says his wife, who is permitted to visit him for 10 minutes once every fortnight. "He has been issued with only one substandard prison uniform. When he washes it, he has to wash the top while wearing the bottoms and then wash the bottoms while wearing the top. He then puts them on wet," she said. "I am particularly worried about the fact that tuberculosis is rife in the prison, and I am afraid he might get infected", she said. Heather Bennett is passionate about securing her husband's release. In 2000 Bennett, as a white Shona-speaking candidate, won a traditionally Zanu PF seat in Chimanimani.
Since that time she and her husband have lost all their property, seen their workers brutalised and been driven off their farms. After one incident, when she was held hostage by Zanu PF supporters and forced to watch two of her workers being brutalised, she miscarried the baby she was carrying. Heather Bennett says they have been punished by the ruling party for her husband's popularity in a rural area where nearly all the people who voted for him were black. The latest battle she is fighting while her husband is in prison is for payment for 120 tons of their export-ready coffee, which they say was seized by the government and sold to the Hamburg Coffee Company in Germany. The matter is now under litigation. Last week the International Bar Council in Britain condemned Bennett's sentence as harsh and degrading. It also described the sentence for such an offence as "unprecedented" and "fundamentally unsafe".
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From The Cape Argus (SA), 17 November
Mugabe 'building up his arsenal' before polls
President Robert Mugabe has ordered tons of police anti-riot equipment and other military hardware worth millions of dollars from China to prepare his security forces for quelling anti-government protests before and after next March's general elections. Authoritative sources said the police and the military were being fully prepared to deal with internal disturbances being mooted by the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) should it boycott next year's poll. Mugabe has opted for equipment from China after several European countries imposed an arms embargo on his regime. The exact details of the new order placed slightly over a week ago could not be ascertained, but officials said police anti-riot equipment, including several tons of teargas, would constitute the bulk. It is understood that the MDC is planning a sustained civil disobedience campaign if it decides to boycott next year's poll. MDC spokespersons have not publicly spoken about their "Plan B", but in private, party officials say the MDC is not prepared to become irrelevant or die a natural death.
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From Zim Online (SA), 18 November
Chinese to take over key state firms
Harare - Cash-strapped Zimbabwe will cede control of most of its strategic but loss-making state firms to China, acting Finance Minister Hebert Murerwa told journalists in Harare yesterday. Murerwa, who was briefing the Press on his macro-economic policy framework for 2005-2006, said the Chinese were going to invest into the ailing parastatals and take over control while in some cases they were going to provide loans only. "Chinese deals are purely investment deals in which case the Chinese would assume control of the companies and also provide lines of credit to the parastatals. We expect tourism growth to provide foreign exchange to finance these loans," said Murerwa. Key state firms set to be taken over or to receive financial rescue packages from China include, National Railways of Zimbabwe, Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority, Air Zimbabwe, Zimbabwe Broadcasting Holdings and the country's only fixed telephone company, Tel-One. The Chinese are said to have already provided three aircraft to national flag carrier, Air Zimbabwe. Murerwa said the Chinese were also already working on rehabilitating the dilapidated national rail system and would also be bringing in new rail wagons for the country.
Harare is vigorously pursuing a "look East" policy after falling out with traditional trading and development partners in the West over its appalling human rights record, failure to uphold democracy and the rule of law. Local industry however says Zimbabwe is reaping little positive results from its association with China and other Asian states. For example, a survey commissioned by the Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries two months ago established that at least 40 companies were forced to shut down last year after losing the market to cheaper goods from mostly China. And local hotel and leisure mogul, Shingi Munyeza, told the Press yesterday that the tourism sector had benefited little from Zimbabwe's association with China. He said: "The Chinese are bad spenders moving in large volumes. They insist on their dishes and we have to configure all our systems to suit their demands. This puts pressure on the local operators. There is nothing of significance in terms of business arising from the influx of the Chinese."
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From Zim Online (SA), 18 November
Zanu PF in vicious Mugabe succession battle
Harare - Zimbabwe's ruling Zanu PF party next Sunday nominates candidates to fill in various top posts including that of party president, breaking into the open a vicious struggle to succeed President Robert Mugabe silently raging within the party for months now. In a letter dated November 11, 2004, Zanu PF secretary for administration, Emmerson Mnangagwa, asked party provincial executives to submit names of candidates to fill in the posts of party president, the two deputies and the party's national chairman. The nominees will be ratified or rejected at a watershed congress of the party scheduled to take place in the first week of next month. Mnangagwa's letter, a copy of which is in the possession of Zim Online, reads in part: "The respective party organs (provincial executives) shall meet on Sunday 21 November 2004 to elect and nominate the above (candidates for top party posts.) (They will) submit nominated candidates' detailed curriculum vitaes (CVs) to the national Secretary for Administration by 22 November, 2004 for forward transmission to the Politburo and Central Committee before election and ratification by the National People's Congress to be held in December, 2004." Party insiders last night said Mugabe, his deputy, Joseph Msika and party chairman, John Nkomo, were going to be nominated by all Zanu PF's 10 provinces and also retained by Congress. It is the other post of vice-president, which fell vacant following the death of Simon Muzenda in July 2003, that has generated vicious behind-the-scenes in-fighting with insiders saying whoever gets the post is sure to replace Mugabe as party and possibly national president, when he steps down in about three years time.
Mugabe has publicly indicated he will step down at the expiry of his current term in 2008. The Zanu PF leader is said to have long preferred Mnangagwa to take over Muzenda's post and eventually the presidency. Insiders also note that Mnangagwa, who last week publicly indicated he coveted the vacant vice-president's post, has used his five-year reign as Zanu PF secretary for administration to place his supporters in key provincial posts and they say he could win the strategic post if the matter were left to provincial executives alone. But Mnangagwa, who is Speaker of Zimbabwe's Parliament, faces bitter opposition from retired army general, Solomon Mujuru, who has roped in the support of the powerful women's league and nearly all senior leaders in Zanu PF's influential central committee to promote the candidature of his wife, Joyce, to fill in the vice-president's post. Mujuru, who commanded the Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army guerrillas, who fought under Mugabe during the country's 1970s independence war, also has on his side most of Zimbabwe's senior military commanders and intelligence chiefs, many of whom owe their ranks to him.
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From The Times (UK), 17 November
Return will be a death trap
By Jemma Chapman
The thought of returning to Zimbabwe evokes the deepest fears in Tanyaradzwa. Three years ago the Zimbabwean, 27, was raped and beaten by five men. Her crime: taking part in a voter education programme for the opposition Movement for Democratic Change and dating a white Zimbabwean man. Tanyaradzwa fled Zimbabwe soon after the attack and hoped to start a new life in London. She now faces a forced return. "I'm devastated. This is the worst news," she said yesterday. "Before, I was having hope because I thought there was no way we would be sent back." Tanyaradzwa said that she had discovered she had HIV as a result of the rapes. She added: "My hope is just for things to change." But the country was a "death trap" now. "Because you are an asylum-seeker you will be targeted from the day you set foot in Zimbabwe."
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From Zim Online (SA), 19 November
16 civic group activists arrested for protesting against NGO Bill
Harare - Police yesterday arrested about 16 supporters of the National Constitutional Assembly (NCA) who were protesting against proposed new legislation imposing severe restrictions on non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in Zimbabwe. The NCA is a coalition of human and civic rights groups, pro-democracy organisations, labour, churches and opposition parties campaigning for a new and democratic constitution for Zimbabwe. The group has on several occasions in the past few months clashed with the police over the proposed NGO law and had yesterday called yet another demonstration against the draft law. About 300 supporters of the coalition converged in central Harare singing and waving placards denouncing the NGO Bill before heavily armed police who had kept tight surveillance throughout the city since morning pounced on the protesters beating them up and arresting some of them. "We are now working with our lawyers to have them (the arrested) released. What is sad about this matter is that the police went on to arrest some people who are not even our members who were going about their business in town," NCA spokeswoman Jessie Majome, said. Parliament is expected to pass the NGO Bill next week after the House earlier this week adjourned debate on the draft legislation to next Tuesday. The proposed law bans NGOs from carrying out voter education and prohibits those wishing to carry out human rights and governance-related work from receiving foreign funding.
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From The Daily News Online Edition, 19 November
Video captures plight of Zimbabwean refugees
Johannesburg - A local non-governmental organisation, Solidarity Peace Trust, has produced a video, No War in Zimbabwe, which captures the South African government's indifference and insensitivity to the plight of thousands of Zimbabwean refugees in South Africa. The Trust says the 52-minute video would be used to raise awareness on the state of the Zimbabwean refugees in the United Kingdom and South Africa where the majority of are staying. Zimbabweans are now the biggest group of foreign Africans in South Africa, although very few are have been granted political refugee status. The South African Home Affairs ministry has told them that they cannot be granted asylum status because "there is no war in Zimbabwe." The video, based on extensive research over one year looks at why Zimbabweans are leaving their country and whether South Africa is meeting its international obligations towards refugees. In the video immigrants recount horror experiences at the hands of South African authorities and how some died by jumping from moving trains to avoid deportation.
Speaking after screening of the video to refugees at the Central Methodist Church, a Solidarity Peace Trust official said the video would be used to conscientise the African government and population about the plight of the Zimbabwean refugees. Socks Chikowore, a Zimbabwean refugee, said: "This video is good and we are going to use for lobbying here so that our situation could be improved." Another refugee said: "I hope this video would be used to change things here and at home." A South African who declined to be named said: "What I saw in the video is disturbing. I lived in exile in many countries and I was never treated that way." A young male refugee who claimed that his father used to cook for President Thabo Mbeki when he was exiled in Harare said South Africans must remember they are now free because of the assistance they got from fellow African brother and sisters. Hundreds of Zimbabweans are dying in South African detention centres and are being buried as paupers.
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From The Financial Gazette, 18 November
Presidency sparks war
Hama Saburi
A long-expected power struggle that threatens to widen the cracks within the faction-riven Zanu PF has erupted in the run-up to next month's congress, which will elect the party's top four leaders. Party sources yesterday revealed that there were feverish moves to bar Emmerson Mnangagwa from superintending the administrative procedures ahead of the congress because he was now considered an interested party, having publicly stated his desire to fill the vice-president's post left vacant by the late Simon Muzenda. Senior party members still serving as government ministers and some who have since left the civil service confirmed that the sentiments expressed by Mnangagwa in a rare interview with The Financial Gazette last week seemed to have re-ignited the potentially explosive power struggles, with two distinct bitter factions emerging as the jockeying for the vice-president's post intensifies. One of the factions is behind Mnangagwa while the other is rooting for Joyce Mujuru, who until recently had remained in the shadows of the unfolding political drama in the ruling Zanu PF.
Mnangagwa is the Zanu PF secretary for administration tasked, among other things, with running the party's secretariat and laying the groundwork for party events, such as conferences and congresses. It has, however, emerged that those against Mnangagwa's ascendancy to the vice-presidency are pushing for an emergency politburo meeting today to give guidance on the nominations and the general conduct of the congress elections. At the proposed politburo meeting, which had not been confirmed at the time of going to press, it would be proposed that Mnangagwa recuse himself from handling any correspondence to do with the congress since he was an interested party. The power struggle has spilled over to the party's 10 political provinces, whose executives nominate candidates for the party's presidency. "It has become a tale of suspicion, hate and craftsmanship, which may work to the detriment of the party. The young Turks are completely out of this thing and it is the old Zanu now at each other's throat," said a senior Zanu PF insider. "As the race progresses, there are provincial chairpersons who have been cowed to drop candidates they were backing for one reason or the other. The situation is quite bad," added the source. Matabeleland South provincial chairman Lloyd Siyoka - a perceived Mnangagwa backer - has landed himself in trouble over comments that his province would not support a woman for the vice-presidency. Siyoka raised the collective ire of Zanu PF heavyweights from the region over the comments, made at a ceremony where Mnangagwa was guest speaker.
In a letter dated November 11 2004, the day this newspaper published an interview in which he literally threw down the gauntlet, Mnangagwa invited provincial executives to nominate their preferred candidates. The letter was copied to the party's national chairman, John Nkomo, and its secretary for the commissariat, Elliot Manyika, as well as provincial chairpersons, provincial secretaries for administration and provincial secretaries for the commissariat. "The respective party organs shall meet on Sunday 21, November 2004 to elect and nominate the above and submit nominated candidates' detailed curriculum vitaes to the national secretary for administration by 22 November, 2004 for onward transmission to the Politburo and the central committee before election and ratification by the National People's Congress to be held in December 2004. Please note that all proceedings in terms of Article 7 Section 32 (1), Article 32 (2), Article 7 (9), Article 11, 79 (5), should also be submitted to this office no later than Tuesday 23rd November 2004," reads part of the letter, signed by Mnangagwa.
Among the top positions open for nomination are those of the president and first secretary of Zanu PF, two vice-presidents and second secretaries and the national chairman. The congress is also expected to elect members of the party's central committee and the national consultative assembly. Sources said President Robert Mugabe, who has ruled Zimbabwe since independence in 1980, would be retained as president and first secretary for Zanu PF. Vice-President Joseph Msika, who has flatly denied rumours that he would retire at the congress, would also have his candidature endorsed, while the formidable Zanu PF Women's League, which could meet again before the congress, is set to throw its weight behind Mujuru for the second vice-presidency. With just under two weeks left before the crucial congress, the spotlight is fixed on the race to fill the vacancy left by Muzenda, over which battle lines have been drawn between Mnangagwa and Mujuru, a Zanu PF politburo member and the longest serving female Cabinet minister. Either of Mnangagwa or Mujuru, who both fought in the protracted struggle to liberate Zimbabwe, is tipped to replace Muzenda, whose death last year worsened divisions in the faction-ridden Masvingo province.
Sources told The Financial Gazette this week that Bulawayo, Matabeleland North and Matabeleland South provinces would be going to the eagerly awaited congress with a cushion provided for by the 1987 unity accord signed between Zanu PF and PF Zapu. The three Matabeleland provinces, the sources, will throw their weight behind Vice-President Msika for the first vice-presidency and second secretary and Nkomo to continue as the ruling party national chairman. It is in the Masvingo, Midlands, Manicaland and Mashonaland provinces where political gamesmanship and deceit has erupted as the Zanu PF bigwigs vie for Muzenda's post. Sources said there were clandestine manoeuvres from camps tussling for Muzenda's post to rope in the three Matabeleland provinces into supporting their cause, while consolidating support in Masvingo, Midlands, Manicaland and Mashonaland provinces. On the surface, Mnangagwa appears to have the backing of five provincial chairmen and will be hoping for the support to filter down to the entire provincial executive councils' members. Mujuru is expected to wield "gender equality" as her trump card, while drawing sympathy from the provinces aligned to her husband, retired army general Solomon Mujuru.
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From The Daily Mirror, 19 November
Woman lands vice-presidency
Brian Mangwende, News Editor
Zanu PF's supreme decision-making body outside congress, the Politburo, has succumbed to pressure from the women's league that one of the party's two vice-presidents should be a woman. This has boosted Water Resources and Infrastructural Development Minister Joyce Mujuru's chances of landing the second highest position in the party, following her nomination by the Women' s League for the vice presidency in September. At an emergency Politburo meeting held yesterday, a proposal was made to change the party's constitution so that it explicitly pronounces that one of the vice-presidents should be a woman. Congress will have to approve the amendment when it meets in December, prior to the election of new office bearers. While the move throws a lifeline to Mujuru, it derails Parliamentary Speaker Emmerson Mnangagwa's chances of occupying the void left by the late Vice-President Simon Muzenda.
Mujuru's name came up during the ruling party's women's league conference in September as a suitable candidate to fill one of Zanu PF's top posts. Already, there is consensus on the ground that President Robert Mugabe will retain his seat as the party's President and First Secretary. Although there has been no word from the provinces concerning the future of Vice President Joseph Msika and National Chairman John Nkomo, chances are that they will retain their seats. According to a Politburo member, it was unlikely that anyone would challenge Msika for the party's vice presidency. Observers said if Msika was dropped, Nkomo would be elevated. But if Nkomo does not ascend, the option will be on former Cabinet Minister Dumiso Dabengwa, Matabeleland South Governor Angeline Masuku and Zanu PF's secretary for women's affairs and chairperson for the women's league, Thenjiwe Lesabe. If either Masuku or Lesabe is elected as co-vice president, in the event that Msika has been retired, then this could scuttle Mujuru's bid and at the same time enhance Mnangagwa's chances. But as long as Msika remains, Mujuru's chances are much greater than Mnangagwa, Lesabe and Masuku's. According the Unity Accord power equation, one of the vice presidents should be from the old Zanu PF while the other from the former PF Zapu. Masuku and Lesabe are from the former PF Zapu, and, therefore, will not be in the running as long as their old party's former Vice President hangs on.
In a circular to all provincial chairmen, secretaries for administration and the commissariat, Mnangagwa, considered President Robert Mugabe's protégé and who has declared interest in the vice presidency said: "Article 7 Section 32 (1) of the party's constitution states that there shall be a central committee which shall be the principal organ of congress and shall consist of .232 members as follows: "Four members being the President and the First Secretary, two vice presidents and second secretaries, one of the vice presidents and second secretary being a woman, and the national chairman of the party, elected by congress directly upon nomination by at least six provincial coordinating committees of the party, meeting separately in a special session called for that purpose." Prior to the amendment, the constitution was quiet on women standing for positions in the party, save for the Women's League, which was automatic anyway. Mnangagwa also said 50 members, shall be women allocated to the provinces in such a way and manner that each province shall have five members, "provided that the respective provincial women's council shall nominate the candidates in such a way and manner that each administrative district shall have at least one member appointed to the central committee where this is possible (Article 7 (9)". Yesterday's letter superseded the one he wrote on November 11 calling on provincial executives to nominate their preferred candidates for the party's top positions.
As is required by the party's constitution, President Mugabe will step down as Zanu PF's party president and first secretary, alongside his lieutenants, to pave way for the election of a new leadership at the party's congress slated for next month. Nkomo, as congress chairman, will dissolve the current leadership. This Sunday, a showdown looms as all provinces are expected to identify their candidates and forward their names to their provincial coordinating committees where the names will either be endorsed or challenged. Already, each province is coming up with a list of aspiring members to the central committee and the indabas will give a glimpse into who will occupy the top four posts of the party. Zanu PF's national spokesperson and secretary for information and publicity, Dr Nathan Shamuyarira said: "All the people will be elected at congress, including the President and First Secretary of the party."
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From IRIN (UN), 17 November
Activists criticise UK's resumption of forced repatriation
Johannesburg - Zimbabwean human rights activists have criticised the British government for its decision to end a two-year suspension of the forced repatriation of failed asylum seekers. Des Browne, the British minister for citizenship and immigration, announced on Tuesday that while "there has not been any improvement in conditions in Zimbabwe", he was removing the suspension put in place in January 2002, as it was being abused. "We can appreciate the fact that the suspension was perhaps being abused, but the timing of the announcement - ahead of the [Zimbabwe] general elections [in March 2005], when a number of opposition party supporters could possibly face persecution - is unfortunate," said Bidi Munyaradzi, director of the Zimbabwe Human Rights Association. "There are a number of Zimbabweans who have fled because of economic reasons, but there remains a substantial number who face pressure because of their political leanings," he told IRIN.
Maeve Sherlock, the chief executive of the UK-based NGO, the Refugee Council, which works with asylum seekers, has called on the British government to monitor "what happens to those who are sent back. No one should be sent back to Zimbabwe before monitoring procedures are in place". Citing asylum statistics released this week, Browne pointed out that in the first nine months of 2004 the British government granted asylum to 195 Zimbabweans, and some form of protection to more than 25 others, out of a total of 2,025 applicants. With a 90 percent refusal rate and the dismissal of 82 percent of subsequent appeals to the independent adjudicator, "the clear message is that the majority of Zimbabwean asylum applicants are able safely to return to Zimbabwe," he added. However, Sherlock said, "Far too many valid applications are being turned down". Several million Zimbabweans are reported to have sought refuge outside their homeland as a result of the political and economic crisis in their country.
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From News24 (SA), 19 November
Bishop wants refugee clarity
Johannesburg - South Africa's reluctance to give political refugee status to Zimbabweans needs to be tested in a South African court, a bishop said on Friday. Bishop Kevin Dowling of the Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace said economic reasons forced Zimbabweans to flee, but there was political motivation behind the conditions in that country. "A test case needs to be brought before the courts on that issue," he said. Dowling was addressing a Johannesburg media conference representing the Catholic Archbishop of Bulawayo, Pius Ncube, chairperson of the Solidarity Peace Trust and an outspoken critic of Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe. Mugabe has been widely accused of using the distribution of food aid as a political weapon. Dowling also called on the African Union, the Southern African Development Community and, particularly, South Africa to take a "more-principled stand with the people" of Zimbabwe, instead of the government. "They must move beyond solidarity with political leaders to solidarity with African people." Admitting this would not be easy to lobby, Dowling said it was important to keep the pressure on governments by "pronouncing the unpleasant truths".
Dowling also warned there could be a possible further influx of Zimbabwean refugees to South Africa around March when elections were scheduled to take place. The controversial Non-Government Organisation Bill, before the Zimbabwe Parliament, would restrict NGOs and churches monitoring the run-up to the elections and the climate of oppression could increase, he said. The bill restricts organisations from acting on human rights issues. The media conference saw the launch of a report by the Solidarity Peace Trust on the exodus of Zimbabweans. It said up to 30% of Zimbabweans had left the country, including 60% to 70% of all productive adults. Recommendations of the report included: that bribery be investigated at the South African department of home affairs, where Zimbabweans had a particularly hard time applying for documentation; that the department should issue greater numbers of Zimbabweans and others with asylum-seeker permits as the backlog was causing real hardship for people, some of whom were victims of torture who were at real risk if they were deported; and that police be reminded of their legal obligation to give 15-day permits to any person they picked up for deportation who said they wanted to apply for asylum. Ncube was not present as he was doing his rounds visiting the two million Zimbabweans estimated to be in South Africa.
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From IRIN (UN), 19 November
Govt says no bias against asylum seekers from Zimbabwe
Johannesburg - The South African Ministry of Home Affairs has denied any bias in granting Zimbabweans political asylum, but said they lacked the manpower to deal with the number of applications. "We have a backlog of 80,000 to 90,000 applications for political asylum from people from various nationalities; out of these, 5,000 are from Zimbabweans. All applications are being dealt with on a first come, first served basis - no country is being given preference," home affairs spokesman Mike Ramagoma told IRIN. The church-led NGO, Solidarity Peace Trust, claimed in a report released in Johannesburg on Friday that the South African government was reluctant to grant refugee status to Zimbabweans. "There is a clash between the policy of 'quiet diplomacy', which plays down the crisis of governance, and simultaneously acknowledging that citizens of Zimbabwe have genuine reasons to fear persecution and to run away in their thousands," noted the report, 'No War in Zimbabwe: An Account of the Exodus of a Nation's People'.
Ramagoma pointed out that only six applications from Zimbabwean asylum seekers had been rejected, while 15 had been accepted. "We are obliged, under the UN Convention [and Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees], to assess the merits of each application," he said. The Peace Trust report estimated that at least two million Zimbabweans were living in South Africa, many of them illegally. Around 45,000 Zimbabweans were deported annually at a cost of approximately R720 million a year, most of whom tried to return to South Africa as quickly as possible. The Peace Trust also alleged that the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, showed a "lack of commitment to protecting Zimbabwean asylum seekers in South Africa". UNHCR spokeswoman Melita Sunjic told IRIN, "Very few Zimbabwean asylum seekers - only about 1,500 - have approached us for assistance. We have found that very few Zimbabweans want refugee status, as they are reluctant to forfeit the right to travel to and fro between South Africa and Zimbabwe."
Bishop Kevin Dowling of the Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace said there was a need for a test case in South Africa to establish whether being denied food on political grounds [in Zimbabwe] would be justification for asylum. Some human rights groups have alleged that food aid distributions by Zimbabwe's government have been based on membership of the ruling party. Dowling called on the African Union and the Southern African Development Community to shift their stance from "solidarity with the government to solidarity with the Zimbabwean people". Ramagoma said South Africa's department of home affairs was employing 69 more officers to determine refugee status, and was involved in a major restructuring and electronic updating exercise to improve its services.
From ZWNEWS: If you would like to read the Solidarity Peace Trust report on Zimbabwe refugees in South Africa, please let us know. It will be sent as a Word attachment to an email message - approximately ten times the size of the average daily ZWNEWS.
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From News24 (SA), 19 November
Amnesty warns against NGO bill
Johannesburg - Zimbabwe's draft Non-Government Organisation Bill will restrict the reporting of human rights violations in that country, Amnesty International warned on Friday. The bill, set to be passed by parliament as early as next week, would prevent human rights organisations from easily operating within Zimbabwe, spokesperson Joseph Dube said in a statement. The bill states that no foreign NGOs could be registered if its "principal objectives involved issues of governance". The bill defines "issues of governance" as including "the promotion and protection of human rights". Said Dube: "If such provisions were enacted several human rights organisations would not be legally able to operate in Zimbabwe." The bill forces organisations to register with an NGO Council, which would comprise five NGO representatives and nine others from various government ministries. NGOs would have to cease operation immediately until they were registered with the council. "This could conceivably mean that medical and legal programmes would cease on enactment of the bill and that humanitarian organisations would also have to cease their work until registered." Dube said Amnesty International believed that the council - like the Media Information Commission which repressed the media - would be a biased body. The bill would prohibit local NGOs from accepting foreign funding or donations to carry out activities. However, due to the economic situation in Zimbabwe, the funding NGOs required was not available. Dube said this was of grave concern, especially in light of reports that medical staff at government hospitals had refused to treat victims of politically-motivated attacks for fear of reprisal. "NGOs are often the only source of medical help for these people."
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From SABC News, 20 November
Tsvangirai expects December poll decision
Morgan Tsvangirai, Zimbabwe's opposition leader, said yesterday his party expects to decide within weeks whether to take part in March elections but warned there was a real possibility it might boycott the polls. Tsvangirai, the head of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), said the party would only be willing to take part in the 2005 parliamentary vote if President Robert Mugabe's government implemented reforms to ensure a free and fair poll. The MDC could not take part in the elections unless the government improved press freedom, repealed key legislation and appointed an independent electoral commission, he said. Tsvangirai, the biggest challenger to Mugabe's 24-year-old rule, urged African and European countries to put pressure on Mugabe to conduct free and fair elections in a country battling its worst political and economic crisis in decades. "I think the prospects of the MDC not taking part in the election are very, very real," Tsvangirai said during a visit to the Netherlands. "I am not ruling out that we may participate. But it's a decision that we have to arrive at after a full assessment. If we decide not to participate we just decide not to participate and as far as the Zimbabwe situation is concerned it will be a one-party election," he said.
The MDC, regarded by many political analysts as the most potent threat to President Mugabe's rule since he took power more than two decades ago, is expected to reach a decision around the end of December after a leadership meeting, he said. "A categorical position will be determined once we have made an assessment sometime at the end of December," Tsvangirai said. Last month he suggested polls may have to be delayed if they are to meet regional standards for freedom and fairness. The governing Zanu PF party has ruled out a postponement. Tsvangirai was acquitted in October of plotting to assassinate Mugabe and seize power ahead of a presidential election in 2002. He still faces separate treason charges linked to anti-Mugabe protests the MDC tried to organise in 2003. Mugabe and Zanu PF, in power since independence, are accused by the West of rigging elections, muzzling the press and ruining the agriculture driven economy by seizing white owned commercial farms for distribution to land less blacks. Mugabe in turn has accused Britain, Zimbabwe's former colonial power, of undermining Zimbabwe as retribution for the land seizures from white farmers.
Tsvangirai, who held talks with South African President Thabo Mbeki in October after the MDC leader was allowed to travel abroad for the first time since 2002, said Mbeki had a vital role to play in Zimbabwe. "I think he realises that there is more national and international pressure and I think the focus on him is becoming more discernible, that he is the critical player in the resolution of the Zimbabwe crisis," Tsvangirai said. Political analysts say Zimbabwe's 2005 elections could be marred by violence similar to that witnessed in the last two major polls in 2000 and in 2002, which was mainly blamed on Mugabe's militant war veteran supporters. Zanu PF, under pressure from the Southern African Development Community (SADC), has proposed reforms such as setting up an electoral commission, increasing the number of polling stations, reducing polling from two days to one day and using transparent ballot boxes. But implementation of the changes has been slow, leading some regional analysts to question whether the proposed March vote can meet the SADC guidelines. Ruling Zanu PF holds nearly two-thirds of seats in Zimbabwe's 150 member parliament, including 30 reserved for traditional chiefs and presidential appointees. Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) has 51.
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From The Daily Mirror, 20 November
Losing Zanu PF MPs still attending sessions
Clemence Manyukwe
The two Zanu PF MPs - who lost their seats in Parliament - are still attending sessions, thanks to the intervention of Parliamentary Speaker Emmerson Mnangagwa. The Supreme Court nullified the victories of Elleck Mkandla (Gokwe North) and Korerayi Machaya (Gokwe South)'s following challenges by the opposition MDC. Mnangagwa recently ruled that Mkandla and Machaya, the deputy minister of Mines and Mining Development, would remain lawmakers since they had appealed to reinstate them. Mkandla and Machaya initially lost their seats in the High Court early this year after the MDC challenged their respective victories in the 2000 parliamentary polls alleging violence before, during and after polling. Subsequent appeals to the Supreme Court against that ruling were thrown out by the country's highest court on the grounds that they failed to file their appeal papers within the stipulated time. The development saw the MDC writing a letter to Mnangagwa asking him to declare their seats vacant in terms of the Constitution of Zimbabwe, but Mkandla and Machaya have not stopped attending Parliament.
Yesterday Innocent Gonese, the opposition party's chief whip, said Mnangagwa wrote to him advising that the two legislators had filed a second application in the Supreme Court seeking the reinstatement of their appeal. As a result, Gonese explained, the Parliamentary Speaker said the law should be allowed to take its full course before any action on the matter was taken. "That is the communication I received from the honourable Speaker, but as of now I am reserving my comment on the matter," Gonese said. Clerk of Parliament Austin Zvoma declined to comment on the matter. However, the ruling party's chief whip, Joram Gumbo said as far as Zanu PF was concerned the two seats could only be declared vacant by a certificate issued by the courts. "There are procedures to be followed. The MDC should not bother writing to the Speaker to declare the seats vacant. Only the Supreme Court or the High Court can issue a certificate to the effect." Gumbo said.
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From The Daily News Online Edition, 20 November
Registrar-General to issue out new ID cards
The state-run Herald newspaper reports that the Registrar-General's Office is to introduce new instant national identity cards from next Thursday and eventually phase out the existing metal cards that have been in use since 1978. The Registrar-General Tobaiwa Mudede told newsmen in Harare on Thursday that it had become necessary to do so because the cards were produced instantly compared to the existing system which takes long to produce the metal IDs. Mudede said the first phase of the programme would begin on November 25 and go on until February 25 next year. The programme would consist of five teams that would issue the new national IDs to people who are 16 years old and have not yet applied for the national ID cards. The second phase, according to the Herald story, would come later and would involve the deployment of more machinery, issuing the new cards to people with green waiting passes awaiting the issuing of their metal cards. Mudede stressed that people who have lost their metal IDs cards would have to go to the district office for interviews and go through the whole process of replacing the old metal ID cards. The new ID card is made of polythene synthetic material which does not break if it is bent and features a number of visible security features. Instead of featuring one facial picture as the case with the metal ID, the new card will have two pictures of different sizes. It will also feature the signature of the bearer, fingerprints, citizen status, map of Zimbabwe in the background and the national registration number. Mudede said residents who were non-citizens of Zimbabwe also qualified to be issued with the new cards.
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From The Zimbabwe Independent, 19 November
War veterans want Mugabe to rule for life
Dumisani Muleya
War veterans say they will urge President Robert Mugabe to "rule for life" at Zanu PF's congress next month. Zimbabwe Liberation War Veterans Association deputy chairman, Joseph Chinotimba, who led farm invasions, said the former freedom fighters-turned party militias want Mugabe to remain in power forever. "We want him to be there until he dies. We will support him at congress to remain there forever," Chinotimba said in an interview last week. "There is no one who will remove him. We will mobilise the people to support him. He will be there whether the Americans or the British like it or not." Chinotimba spearheaded the seizure of white-owned farms by government, which began in 2000 and dubbed himself the "commander-in-chief of farm invasions". Traditional chiefs, the Zanu PF Women's League and some local council authorities, among other groups, have said they will support Mugabe at congress. Zanu PF will hold the crucial congress from December 1 to 5 where new leaders are expected to be elected. Mugabe is expected to be retained unchallenged. Vice president Joseph Msika is also expected to bounce back with little or no challenge despite an undercurrent of opposition to his return.
The real battle is expected to be concentrated on the other post of vice president which has been a subject of controversy of late. Zanu PF administration secretary and Speaker of parliament Emmerson Mnangagwa was initially seen as the leading candidate, while senior party officials and cabinet ministers Joyce Mujuru and Didymus Mutasa are also vying for the post. But an emergency politburo meeting yesterday reportedly decided that a woman - most likely Mujuru - would be the most appropriate choice. Nominations for Zanu PF's four elected positions - first secretary, two second secretaries and national chairman - as well as members of the central committee and the national consultative assembly, will be conducted this weekend by the party's 10 provinces. Controversy erupted this week after Mnangagwa sent out a memo on the issue of nominations. Senior party officials objected to Mnangagwa handling the nominations, saying he was an interested party. The escalating row over Mnangagwa's possible ascendancy threatened to widen cracks in Zanu PF before the politburo moved in on Mujuru's side.
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From The Sunday Times (SA), 21 November
How Mugabe man's suitcase full of dollars fuelled buying spree
Edwin Lombard
Zimbabwe's Reserve Bank Governor Gideon Gono personally facilitated the deal which saw the country's former Finance Minister Chris Kuruneri buy a multimillion-rand mansion in Llandudno, Cape Town, with a suitcase full of cash. Lorenzo Bruttomesso, Kuruneri's lawyer in South Africa, who handled the transaction, told a Cape Town court this week that his client had arranged the payment through the Commercial Bank of Zimbabwe, and dealt directly with Gono, the bank's chief executive at the time. Bruttomesso said Gono assured him that the funds were legitimate. Kuruneri told Bruttomesso that he earned the money by doing consultation work overseas. Kuruneri was arrested after the Sunday Times exposed his purchase of the Llandudno house. Zimbabwe wants to prosecute him for illegally syphoning foreign currency out of the cash-strapped country. Once one of President Robert Mugabe's favourites, Kuruneri has been languishing in a Harare jail for seven months, his bail applications denied, and no trial date yet set. While he is in jail, the Mercedes-Benz he never managed to collect gathers dust in a Claremont showroom, and weeds overrun the site of one of his properties.
Some of Kuruneri's business associates gave evidence to a Cape Town magistrate this week after Zimbabwean authorities asked the South African government to help with their investigation against him. The Cape Town Magistrate's Court heard how Kuruneri spent money freely, buying: a R548 000 Mercedes-Benz; a R5.2-million palatial mansion in Llandudno, on which he spent a further R1-million renovating; another R2.7-million house in Llandudno which he had demolished to build a three-storey mansion costing R7.8-million; and a R2.5-million flat in Sea Point. One of the key people to testify this week was Chris Hayman, a Cape Town property developer who acted as a go-between in Kuruneri's business deals. Hayman said he did not find it strange that his client carried a suitcase stuffed with cash. The court heard that Kuruneri had so much cash he had been forced to install a safe so big that it had to be hoisted by a crane into one of the properties he bought.
Hayman said he met Kuruneri in 2001 after being told by a client that the Zimbabwean was interested in buying 17 Apostle Road, Llandudno, a large home with sea views. Hayman recalled that he met Kuruneri, who was holding a suitcase containing about R5-million in US dollars, at the President Hotel in Sea Point in 2001. Kuruneri wanted to buy another two properties, one at 38 Sunset Road, Llandudno and a Sea Point flat belonging to businessman Neil Bernstein. Hayman arranged for Kuruneri to pay the money into a bank account. Bernstein said he thought Kuruneri was a "gentleman of questionable integrity" and contacted the Scorpions. Hayman, however, said he researched Kuruneri on the Internet and found nothing suspicious. He is still acting as the jailed politician's agent and managing his properties.
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From The Sunday Mirror, 21 November
MDC legislator for Mkoba dies
Staff Writer
The opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) MP for Mkoba, Bethel Makwembere died on the spot after a head -on collision with another vehicle on Friday night. The party's spokesperson Paul Themba-Nyathi yesterday said Makwembere said yesterday the accident happened at about 10 pm while driving from Harare to his home in Gweru. Themba-Nyathi said while the details of the accident were still sketchy, it is believed that the legislator was alone when he bumped into a heavy truck that did not have a headlight and the its full width was not easily discernible. Makwembere is survived by his wife, Belta, and six children. "We mourn the sad passing away of yet another gallant hero of democracy. While it is difficult to accept the reality of his death, we are inspired by his dedication and bravery," Themba-Nyathi said. Meanwhile, the government of Botswana, long suspected of having strained diplomatic ties with Zimbabwe, has urged the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) to participate in next year's general elections. Botswana President Festus Mogae recently met MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai and reportedly told him that the political and economic challenges in the country could only be resolved through dialogue and compromise. "It is my hope that you (MDC) will continue to participate in the electoral process and that any outstanding political differences among Zimbabweans would be resolved peacefully through dialogue and compromise," Mogae was quoted saying. Tsvangirai, who is on n African tour meant to mobilise pressure on President Robert Mugabe to fully implement the SADC protocol on free and fair elections, visited Mogae to brief him on the situation in the country. MDC spokesperson Paul Themba-Nyathi however insisted they would boycott the elections if the SADC protocol were not fully implemented. "The communiqué by President Mogae is not expressing anything new. We said we will suspend participating in elections until the principles of the Mauritius (SADC) protocol are addressed in full," he said.
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From Sapa, 20 November
Baby 'killed by witches' alive in Zim prison
Harare, Zimbabwe - A two-year-old girl, who was feared killed in a witchcraft ritual after she disappeared five months ago, had been locked up all along in a maximum security prison in Zimbabwe's capital, a state-owned newspaper reported on Saturday. The baby, Tendai Muisa, was locked away in Harare's grim Chikurubi Maximum Security Prison since June along with her family's servant Juliet Kasundwa, 19, The Herald newspaper reported. Kasundwa was minding the baby when police arrested her, demanding she explain where she got a pair of shoes that she was carrying, the paper said. A Zimbabwe police spokesperson was unable to immediately say why the teen was arrested and held without bail, or whether she ever appeared in court. Tendai's story once again put a spotlight on Zimbabwe's justice system. Human rights groups have criticised new laws that allow prosecutors to deny many suspects bail. The family had notified police after Tendai disappeared. Fearing she had become a victim in a series of ritual child killings, they also consulted traditional healers and spirit mediums for reassurance that Tendai was still alive. "We could not believe our eyes when Kasundwa came back with the child," Tendai's mother Shelly Muisa was quoted as saying. "We shed tears of joy. I couldn't move or say anything. I just held my baby close to my bosom and looked at her." Zimbabwean prison regulations allow women to keep babies under four years old with them and do not require more than verbal assertion of parentage.
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From The Sunday Times (SA), 21 November
Zanu PF members revolt against Mugabe's heir apparent
The battle to succeed Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe this week culminated in a dramatic palace coup against his heir apparent, Emmerson Mnangagwa. Mnangagwa, secretary of the ruling Zanu PF and Speaker of Parliament, was effectively knocked out of the race when party members passed a resolution stating that one of Mugabe's two vice-presidents must be a woman. The post had been vacant following the death of Simon Muzenda. Mnangagwa was up against Joyce Mujuru, a senior politburo member and Cabinet minister, and Didymus Mutasa, also a Cabinet minister. Joseph Msika - who is set to retire after Zanu PF's important December congress - occupies the second vice-presidency. Whoever is appointed to the post is likely to take over from Mugabe when he leaves office.
Mnangagwa was effectively ousted at an emergency meeting on Thursday when a faction led by influential General Solomon Mujuru - Joyce Mujuru's husband - bulldozed through a resolution on Thursday that stated a woman had to fill one of the vice-presidency positions. Mnangagwa appeared to have garnered the majority of provincial support ahead of the meeting by securing the backing of six out of 10 Zanu PF provincial votes. But most of the senior politicians in the provinces were opposed to his appointment. He further damaged his candidacy in a newspaper interview last week in which he ridiculed women's bid for power. This led to the Zanu PF Women's League and politicians from the Matabeleland region joining ranks to block Mnangagwa. Zanu PF chairman John Nkomo is now better positioned to succeed Mugabe.
Meanwhile, the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) has embarked on a whirlwind tour of Africa to drum up support. Leader Morgan Tsvangirai has visited West Africa (Nigeria, Burkina Faso and Ghana) and Southern Africa in the past two weeks to discuss Zimbabwe's political and economic crisis and the general elections in March. The MDC wants African leaders to pressure Mugabe into ensuring the elections are free and fair by adopting the Southern African Development Community's principles governing democratic elections. MDC secretary-general Welshman Ncube, who accompanied Tsvangirai to Botswana, said his party was intensifying engagements with African leaders in search of a solution to the Zimbabwe crisis. He said the next stop would be East Africa. The opposition has suspended participation in the elections pending the implementation of the SADC guidelines.
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From The Sunday Mirror, 21 November
'I will do things the Robert Mugabe way'
Godwine Mueriwa, Assistant Editor
When the late and founding president of Tanzania stepped down and was replaced by Ali Hassan Mwinyi, one daring journalist asked President Mugabe then if he was going to do the same. The answer was: "I thought I was Robert Mugabe and not Julius Nyerere. I will do things the Robert Mugabe way." That apparently includes not choosing a successor. President Mugabe has always insisted that it is not his prerogative to choose a successor as the onus was on the people who had duly elected him. This led to one letter writer to this paper to remark, in response to an earlier article, that :"Having said the Congress is the supreme organ, is it not an issue worth projecting to the readers what the Zanu PF Constitution says about the composition of the Politburo; that is, it arrogates powers to compose the Politburo to the President? Does he have any obligation to consult anyone in the exercise of those powers? If all the big fish literally depend on him for their political fortunes (politburo wise) how realistic is it then that anyone could manoeuvre their way to the Presidency without active assistance of the incumbent President - how honest is President Mugabe when he says he won't choose a successor because it is the people's prerogative to do so?"
The big fish referred to by the writer have however taken a cue from the President's stance with none of them openly declaring their desire to succeed him - with the exception of the late veteran nationalist, Dr Eddison Zvobgo who quipped that every politician would aspire to be president in as much as every lawyer would aspire to be Chief Justice. But it is precisely that natural ambition that many in Zanu PF have been skirting, while President Mugabe has stood firm about not choosing a successor. However, African founding leaders of independent states have generally shouldered the responsibility of not only choosing, or at least influencing the choice of their successors, but also shaping the direction that the people take even after their days in office. When Nyerere realised that the one-party system was failing, he advised Tanzania to introduce a multi-party system which saw the rise of Benjamin Mkapa becoming the President of a multi-party government in March 1992. In Southern Africa ,former presidents Nelson Mandela, Fredrick Chiluba and Sam Nujoma literally handpicked their successors, Thabo Mbeki, Levy Mwanawasa and Hifikepunye Pohamba respectively.
Ironically, upon his arrival at the Johannesburg Airport in South Africa for the inauguration ceremony of President Mbeki in 1999 he was asked whether he would do things the Mandela way. Although he expressed appreciation, respect and recognition for the path that South Africa had taken, he did not mince his words in predicting a different course for Zimbabwe; "In Zimbabwe we believe leaders are supposed to come from the people." Mugabe was elected President of the ruling Zanu PF at an extra-ordinary Chimoio Congress in 1977. A leadership vacuum and crisis had been created, allegedly because of the inconsistency, cowardice and treachery of the founding President Ndabaningi Sithole and also partly because of the sudden and tragic death of party chairman Herbert Chitepo, who was assassinated in 1975. Mugabe was perceived to have in abundance the very qualities Sithole allegedly lacked and consequently cost him the presidency through the "palace coup" of the Mugagawu Declaration. However, back then, regional leaders like Samora Machel and Kenneth Kaunda were part of the international coalition of resistance to his leadership, alongside the leadership of the powerful Soviet Union. He weathered the storm.
Will he retire in 2008 as he has hinted? Who will succeed him? These questions have sent tongues wagging leading to great anticipation of the forthcoming party congress where a succession roadmap is expected to emerge. Whilst President Mugabe is expected to retain his position at the helm of the party, the election of the two Vice-Presidents and National Chairman is certainly going to provide a pointer as to who could eventually take over as State President should Zanu PF sustain its popularity and majority until the next Presidential elections in 2008. Constitutionally, the Vice- Presidency is a stepping stone to the highest office in the land of Zimbabwe. Said one commentator: "Mnangagwa (party secretary for administration) has been quoted as saying ' It is a crime to conceive the exit of head of state' but where that head of state has said he intends to retire and has even said the succession debate is acceptable, it is only proper to prepare for it. That is the general trend in the region and for Zanu PF to pretend that the issue is taboo, or continue to postpone it, will be running away from responsibility - which could have negative consequences"
In 2001, President Chissano of Mozambique criticised leaders who stay on for too long, which was generally seen as a reference to Zambian President Fredrick Chiluba, who at the time was considering a third term, and Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe, then in his fourth term. In line with Chissano's prescription, Frelimo has through its Central Committee, with the ratification of its 8th Congress on June 8, overwhelmingly voted Armando Guebuza (a top office bearer since the party's second Congress held in 1968) as new Secretary General and candidate for the forthcoming Presidential election. Chissano is to retain his post as President of Frelimo - so it is likely that for the first time in that country's history, the two posts of President of Frelimo and Head of State will be held by different people. Although such trends are not in keeping with "the Robert Mugabe way, " (against a background of clear tendencies to divide the party on tribal, regional, gender, status, age and other lines), President Mugabe shoulders the challenge to keep the party united and focused - much as he might want to respect the will of the people, it is also his mandated responsibility to direct it. And the 'Joyce Mujuru factor', seemingly at the behest of the Women's League, could be one of the cunning ways he has used to do this and scuttle the aspirations of male party hopefuls he does not approve of, as the recent emergency Politburo meeting which endorsed the call by women, would seem to confirm. It's only one week before the historic National People's Congress, where succession across the party hierarchy is decided, so it remains to be seen if he will do things the "Robert Mugabe way".
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From The Sunday Times (UK), 21 November
Harvest of lies as Mugabe bans food aid
A special correspondent, Bulawayo
When Zimbabwe's president, Robert Mugabe, announced that his country had enjoyed a "bumper harvest", Alice Gela was sending her children to school without breakfast yet again. Some days, the family does not eat at all. While Gela stared into her bare cupboards, 40,000 tons of food from the Catholic Relief Services was lying unused not far away, according to Pius Ncube, the Archbishop of Bulawayo. Mugabe has banned all foreign food aid, even the UN World Food Programme. Although his own countrymen have begun starving to death, he accuses the West of trying to "choke" his country with food and tells them to send it elsewhere in Africa. "The government is shouting that there is plenty of food, but where is it then?" asked Angilacala Ndlovu, deputy mayor of the southern city of Bulawayo, where government records show that 160 people have recently died of malnutrition. Last week a parliamentary committee flatly contradicted Mugabe's claim of a bumper crop and warned that the country was facing serious food shortages. Mugabe responded by directing Zimbabwean television to show endless film of silos full of grain which critics claim is library footage. Even weather forecasts now have to be approved by his office so there can be no talk of drought.
Under Gela's corrugated iron roof on Friday there was no food. No cooking oil, no flour, none of the staple maize. The idea of milk or meat raised laughter. Infected by HIV, Gela's wasted body lies on a dirty blanket, tended by her eldest daughter Sandra, who has two children of her own. Gela watches dull-eyed and powerless as her five-year-old son complains that his belly is empty. Twelve family members live in the three-roomed house, one of which is let to a lodger. On the wall is a framed 20-year service award in Zimbabwe Post and Telecom for her husband, Wilford. After he lost his job and joined the 70% of Zimbabweans unemployed, he left for Botswana to try to earn some money. The family have heard nothing from him for months. All of this is just a few miles south of the lush Queens Club where the England cricket team will play two matches in their controversial tour of Zimbabwe, which starts this Friday. On their journey between the Holiday Inn and the pitch, the cricketers might be surprised by the air of normality in a country that is on its knees.
Zimbabweans are stoical people, battered into submission by Mugabe's henchmen and youth militia. The traffic lights still work, the bougainvillea is flowering deepest pink and at first sight all seems well, apart from the mile-long queues at petrol stations and banks. But enter any one of the neat bungalows in Emganwini township, where Gela lives, and one encounters similar stories of struggle and hardship. A few streets along, five-year-old Dudza plays with an armless doll, the only toy in a room that serves as bedroom, living room and kitchen for him and his two elder sisters. Their mother is dying of Aids and too weak to walk so has gone to live with relatives, leaving her children in the room with a sagging mattress, some packing cases and a two-ring stove. What will happen to them, nobody knows. The 80-year-old president would rather watch his own people starve - and welcome cricket tours - than admit to a problem. With parliamentary elections due next March, critics say he plans to use government control of food to starve out those who oppose him. "Food is a powerful weapon," said David Coltart, legal affairs spokesman of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change. "The banning of foreign feeding programmes mean the government controls all food and the clear message is: either you vote the right way or you and your children will starve."
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From ZWNEWS, 22 November
Ballots, not bullets
Zimbabwe opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai, addressing a packed meeting of enthusiastic supporters in London on Sunday, declared it is now the responsibility of African leaders to pressure Robert Mugabe's regime to implement vital reforms that would allow free and fair elections next year. "The challenge is that the burden now lies on the SADC leadership, on the African leadership to deliver," said the MDC president who has warned that, unless Mugabe complies with SADC ground rules for elections, his party will boycott the poll scheduled in March. He added, however, "I am quite certain that we will achieve a reasonably free and fair election for us to participate in, because any other option is not an option." Members of the audience cheered, sang and erupted in a thunderous standing ovation as Tsvangirai, under virtual house arrest in Zimbabwe for two years, entered the Friends' Meeting House in central London. They raised outstretched palms, the symbol of the MDC and chanted, "Chinja". Tsvangirai smiled broadly in acknowledgement of a show of support that would be forbidden under Mugabe's draconian laws suppressing freedom of speech and association, and which have silenced the country's only independent daily newspaper. In recent rushed legislation, the regime has clamped down on non-governmental organisations and is controlling food supplies in a country where hunger is widespread.
Tsvangirai embarked on a tour of African countries in October, after being acquitted on what were widely seen as trumped up treason charges. He is seeking to pressure African countries, particularly South Africa which has helped keep Mugabe in power through a policy it describes as "quiet diplomacy," to persuade the Zimbabwe leader to appoint an independent electoral commission, repeal its mounting array of repressive laws and restore press freedom. Mugabe has announced token reforms such as the use of transparent ballot boxes, but he has simultaneously reinforced what critics see as a cast-iron plan to rig the election, including having police and soldiers as election officers, and a ruling Zanu PF party zealot acting as registrar-general. Professor Welshman Ncube, the MDC secretary-general, told Sunday's meeting that the voters' roll, already compiled for drawing new constitiuency boundaries, shows sharp population falls in MDC areas, and huge rises in Zanu PF's Mashonaland rural heartlands. Harare, the MDC-supporting capital where the population grew by 500,000 according to the regime's census in 2002, the number of registered voters has risen by just 19,000 in the new voters' roll. Three Zanu PF Mashonaland districts, Central, East and West, however, have put on a massive total of 311,000 voters. The voter population of the solidly MDC second city, Bulawayo, has actually gone down by 18,000 in the new roll. That, said Ncube, means three MDC seats gone before a single vote is cast.
Tsvangirai, who warned during a visit to the Netherlands last week that there is a real prospect of the MDC boycotting the elections, summed up the party's Catch-22 to supporters at the London meeting, most of them Zimbabwean exiles who fled because of state persecution or because of the dire state of the economy. "If you don't participate, then people will be short-changed. If you participate, then you are legitimising a farce. It is a dilemma." But he said that many African leaders were coming to realise that the crisis in Zimbabwe, triggered when Mugabe set about seizing white-owned land after losing a referendum to entrench his power in 2000, was not about land, but about governance. "What has rape, killing, arson and murder to do with land reform?," said Tsvangirai, referring to the murders, beating and harassment of MDC supporters and white farmers. Some observers considered that there should have been mass, violent demonstrations in 2002 when Mugabe announced he had won a presidential election, widely regarded as rigged. Tsvangirai reiterated on Sunday, however, that his party sought only peaceful change, "through the ballot not the bullet . we do not want another Somalia in Zimbabwe."
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From The Mail & Guardian (SA), 22 November
Zimbabwe needs a 'regime change'
Michelle Hoffman
London - Zimbabwe's main opposition leader took his campaign against President Robert Mugabe to Britain on Sunday, rallying expatriates and declaring their destitute southern African country ready for "regime change". "We want regime change in Zimbabwe. But we want regime change by through the ballot, not the bullet," said Morgan Tsvangirai, the head of the main opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC). "They may beat us, they may kill us, they may burn our houses... [but] they can not take our independence away from us. The struggle we are waging against the regime... it's a justified struggle," he told a packed audience in the British capital. Tsvangirai kicked off a European tour last week, the second foreign trip he has made since being acquitted of treason charges and his passport was returned to him one month ago. Mugabe's regime has already warned the 52-year-old, a former weaver turned union leader and then politician, that he should not return to Zimbabwe if he has been calling on Western governments to keep up sanctions against the state. "That would make him the state's enemy number one, and I don't think he would want to come back to the country," Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa said on Wednesday after Tsvangirai's stopover in Sweden.
But in London the political rival to Mugabe sounded a defiant note, shouting "No apologies to Chinamasa!" "I will be back home. It [Zimbabwe] is not the private property of Robert Mugabe," he added, to huge cheers from the crowd. He brushed aside claims from Mugabe's camp that he was a "puppet" of former colonial power Britain, saying Zimbabwe's crisis was the making of the 80-year-old Mugabe, who led the country to independence in 1980 and has hung clung to power since. "It is not a creation of [British Prime Minister Tony] Blair, it is not a creation of [US President George] Bush," he said, adding that accusations of his collusion with Western powers were signs of Mugabe's own guilt. "They have to say it. They have nothing to offer the people of Zimbabwe. They've destroyed all we entrusted them with.... Zimbabwe has gone from a breadbasket to a basketcase." European Union sanctions on Zimbabwe include a travel ban on Mugabe and his close associates, as well as a freeze on his EU-based assets. A former agricultural exporter for the region, Zimbabwe's once-model economy has crashed, leading to spiralling inflation now topping 300%, with 70% unemployed according to official statistics and 80% of the population living below the poverty line.
Tsvangirai, who visited South Africa and several other African states on his first foreign trip following his acquittal last month, said regional leaders had come to a "sudden realisation" that Mugabe's regime had created the "crisis of starvation" there. "If Africa is to regain its credibility, they had better start solving some of the national crises we face. Zimbabwe is certainly one of them," he said, indicating conflicts in Côte d'Ivoire and Sudan's Darfur region were others. The MDC has boycotted all by-elections in Zimbabwe in a bid to pressure the government into passing electoral reforms ahead of polls next March. In 2002, Tsvangirai, former Secretary General of the powerful Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions, lost the presidential election to Mugabe. The election was deemed unfair by international rights groups, and the MDC is challenging the outcome in court. Zimbabwe's Parliament is currently considering new legislation which would create an independent electoral commission and other changes in the election system. MDC Secretary General Welshman Ncube called the current situation "wholly unacceptable", saying before the election commission had even been formed the registrar had already reapportioned voting districts based on "highly, highly flawed" voter rolls, and had taken three seats away from MDC-loyal constituencies. "The election is already in the process of being rigged as we speak," he told the London audience. The MDC leaders are expected to remain in Britain until Tuesday, before moving on to Germany, France and other Western European states.
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From SABC News, 21 November
Zimbabwe aid agencies in South Africa join hands
Zimbabwean civil society agencies (CSOs) based in South Africa have resolved to join hands to find a common approach to helping refugees who have fled to the country to escape poverty and persecution under Robert Mugabe's government. CSOs working on humanitarian projects would coordinate their programmes under the umbrella of the Heal Zimbabwe Trust, Tendai Dumbutshena, its chairperson said today that after a weekend workshop in Braamfontein. Those dealing with issues of advocacy and governance would unite under the banner of the Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition. Each would remain responsible for the financing and management of its own projects. The 21 CSOs' common goal was to create a genuinely democratic Zimbabwe, said Dumbutshena. Of the 3.4 million Zimbabweans about 25% of the country's population believed to have left the country, an estimated one to two million were living in South Africa, legally and illegally, they claimed. This was testimony that all was not well in Zimbabwe, they added, criticising the South African government's "quiet diplomacy" approach to the problem. It was time the South African government was true to its commitment to the guiding principles of the Southern African Development Community, the African Union and its own foreign policy premised on the need to uphold human rights throughout the world.
Appealing to South Africa to consider as genuine asylum seekers those who had fled Zimbabwe because of political persecution or poverty, the organisations said many refugees were having a hard time submitting their applications to home affairs and getting them considered, claiming it processed only about five a week. Others arrived destitute and were forced to beg on the streets, and some ended up living in "awful conditions" in the Lindela repatriation camp, said Elinor Sisulu, the co-ordinator of Crisis in Zimbabwe South Africa. Joining forces would enable CSOs to avoid duplication of their work, develop common approaches to donors, exchange ideas and support each other's visions, giving them clarity of purpose and helping them come up with a common agenda. As things stood, it was difficult to quantify the work done on the humanitarian side since the upheaval began in 2000, with much of it carried out through informal assistance networks in a fragmented way, said Sisulu. Most of the CSOs were also relatively new, she said.
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From The Star (SA), 22 November
Mugabe would like to have a female vice-president
Harare - Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe has said he would like to see a woman elected in one of the country's two vice-presidential posts. Mugabe told the women's wing of his ruling Zanu PF party that his 26-member politburo had decided that the country should have a female vice-president. The position has been vacant since Simon Muzenda, one of two vice-presidents, died in September last year. "We must elevate our women because in other countries they have women prime ministers, even presidents," Mugabe said in comments made on Saturday and rebroadcast by national radio yesterday. Mugabe said the final choice for vice-president lay with 7 000 delegates at next month's party congress in Harare, but analysts said the party's endorsement was only a formality. The front runner to become the female vice-president was Joyce Mujuru, the wife of retired army commander Solomon Mujuru, said John Makumbe, a political analyst at the University of Zimbabwe.
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From Zim Online (SA), 22 November
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