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Archived News
12th October 2004
Amnesty blasts Mugabe over food crisis
Farmers supplied with wrong maize seed
Mnangagwa challenged
Govt hires retired teachers to counter strike
Zanu PF youths harass electorate
Foreigners fined for posing as Zimbabweans
England safety probe enters second phase
CIO agents move in to finish off hospitalised students* leader
Zimbabwe voters' roll 'inflated by a million'
Mugabe accused of erasing MDC voters from roll
Zim to prohibit observers
Zimbabwe purges farms again
Zim bans Cosatu visit
Tsvangirai gets passport back
Tour to Zimbabwe seems set to go ahead
Cricket protesters risk torture again to condemn Mugabe
Tsvangirai begins tour of Africa
Mbeki to hold talks with MDC
Zimbabwe church protests clampdown on relief agencies
Singing Bob's song
It's hard to believe Mugabe has become liberal
Now war vets want to be MPs
Cosatu's planned fact-finding mission to Zimbabwe hits a snag
Cosatu leaders face stormy reception
Govt grabs plantations
Govt bars three million Zimbabweans from voting
'Allow Zimbabweans abroad to vote"- poll
Vic Falls bridge lifespan up
Cosatu delegation muscles its way in
Cosatu defies ban, gets into Zimbabwe
Showing the way
Mbeki to meet Zim's Tsvangirai today
NGO calls for elections to be delayed
We are not broke: Zim's Newsnet
Top Zanu PF politician quits
Now Zimbabwe police ban toyi-toying
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From Reuters, 15 October
Amnesty blasts Mugabe over food crisis
By Andrew Cawthorne
London - President Robert Mugabe's government is underplaying Zimbabwe's food crisis and may again use hunger to punish political foes prior to next year's parliamentary elections, a rights group has charged. Harare has curtailed foreign food aid since May, forecasting a good harvest in the coming year. But some aid agencies say the southern African country could face further shortages. "The government's claims have been widely discredited, and there is compelling evidence that serious food insecurity and hunger persist in Zimbabwe," British-based rights group Amnesty International said in a new report published on Friday. Amnesty said the cessation of most international food aid since mid-2004 had left millions of people dependent on grain distributed by the state-run Grain Marketing Board (GMB), which researcher Audrey Gaughran said has a track record of using food supplies for political ends. She told a news conference in Johannesburg that there were reports Zimbabweans had to show membership cards for the ruling ZANU PF party in order to get food. "In some case, the GMB has taken maize from an area and then failed to redistribute it, creating a food shortage in that area," she said. "This discrimination has mainly affected supporters of the opposition."
Amnesty says that although there were reports of Zimbabwe buying maize from neighbouring Zambia and South Africa, supplies might run out by the next harvest in April 2005, and the GMB has a history of depriving government opponents of grain. In its report "Zimbabwe: Power and Hunger - Violations of the right to food", Amnesty said tens of thousands had gone hungry in recent years due to "discrimination and corruption". Amnesty said children as young as one had suffered from officials denying grain to supporters of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) but giving it to those who back Zanu PF. The MDC, whose leader Morgan Tsvangirai was acquitted of treason in Harare on Friday, has accused Mugabe and Zanu PF of a draconian crackdown in an effort to remain in power. Once Africa's bread basket and an exporter in the region, Zimbabwe's agricultural production has dropped in recent years. Neighbouring countries, also affected by poor weather and the AIDS pandemic, have also suffered food shortages and aid agencies say millions of people across the region will need food aid in early 2005. The former British colony won scorn from Western countries for its chaotic redistribution of white-owned land to landless blacks. The government is also accused of rights abuses against opponents and rigging a 2002 poll. Mugabe denies the charges, and says his government is being targeted for retribution and economic sabotage by foreign "neocolonial" forces opposed to the land reform programme. Aid groups say that in addition to Mugabe's land reforms, which have frequently put untrained farmers in charge of prime farmland, weather and the AIDS epidemic have also hit Zimbabwe's ability to grow crops.
From ZWNEWS: If you would like to read 'Power and Hunger - Violations of the right to food', please let us know. It will be sent as a Word attachment, approximately nine times the size of the average daily ZWNEWS.
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From Zim Online (SA), 20 October
Farmers supplied with wrong maize seed
Mutare - Several thousands of farmers were supplied with the wrong type of maize seed in a development that could see a drastic fall in maize production this season even if Zimbabwe receives good rains. The Chairman of Parliament's Portfolio Committee on Lands and Agriculture, Daniel McKenzie Ncube, told a meeting of parliamentarians here that poor planning and haphazard distribution by both private seed suppliers and the government's Grain Marketing Board had resulted in farmers being supplied seed that did not grow well in their regions. Zimbabwe is divided into six ecological regions each with specific soil and climatic conditions requiring particular crop seeds. For example, the planting of long-maturing and less drought tolerant maize in region four where conditions are drier could see yields being reduced by more than 50 percent. Ncube said: "Input supply can be best described as erratic and inappropriate. For example, seed distribution did not take into account the ecological disparities of the provinces and hence in some cases seed varieties were distributed to areas where they were not suitable."
Production of maize, which is Zimbabwe's staple food, was already under serious threat because of a severe shortage of seed maize with local seed companies saying they were at most able to supply 43 000 tonnes of maize against a national requirement of about 100 000 tonnes. Foreign suppliers are reluctant to sell seed maize to the country unless the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe guaranteed they will be paid in hard cash. The government had also seized some seed producing farms under its chaotic and often violent land reform programme which had also contributed to a drop in production of seed maize, Ncube said. Ncube, who is the ruling Zanu PF Member of Parliament for Zhombe constituency, said: "The government should undertake a review of the land reform programme in order to spare all seed companies their farms where seed factories are located and parent seed is grown." According to Ncube, fertilizer companies were also unable to produce enough to meet requirements because they were allocated only US$6 million to import raw materials, far below the US$20 million they required. Once the regional breadbasket, Zimbabwe has for the last three years depended on food handouts from international relief agencies after chaotic government land reforms caused a 60 percent drop in farm production. Agricultural experts say the country could still require aid next year because of shortages of maize, fertilizer and other inputs.
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From The Daily Mirror, 20 October
Mnangagwa challenged
From Pamenus Tuso in Bulawayo
A gruelling encounter pitting parliamentary Speaker Emmerson Mnangagwa against his former election agent in the hotly disputed 2000 parliamentary polls, Retired Brigadier Benjamin Mabenge, is on the cards in Kwekwe, as it emerged that the soldier was challenging his ex-boss for that seat. The Daily Mirror was further told that another contestant, Lieutenant Colonel Abednico Undenge, was also eyeing the same seat, but he has not been considered a serious threat. Sources said the fight was between Mnangagwa - long considered President Robert Mugabe's protégé, as he always sits at the ageing leader's right-hand side during State functions while Vice-President Joseph Msika is on the left. Mabenge declared his interest in the Kwekwe seat after President Mugabe threw spanners into the works by announcing that all aspiring candidates should not be imposed but elected in primaries expected to be held later this year.President Mugabe - who has indicated a distant departure date - 2008 - on Monday reiterated his statement at a caucus meeting and urged the aspirants to devise ways to win the support of the electorate, but without elaborating on possible methods.
In the past, senior ruling party officials have either "imposed" themselves or been appointed to Parliament as non-constituency legislators by the 80-year-old leader, who seems to have now changed the ball game. Mnangagwa, regarded by critics as a shrewd politician, would for the first time since independence in 1980 be challenged from within his constituency by a junior party member for the seat he lost dismally to the Movement for Democratic Change's Blessing Chebundo in the unprecedented 2000 general elections. Mabenge, the source said, had emerged as the litmus test for Mnangagwa's political clout in the city, and was widely expected to give the "quiet man" of Zanu PF politics a run for his money. "I was the campaign manager for E D Mnangagwa during the 2000 elections, in which we lost," said Mabenge. "I have not lost interest in the people who supported us . . . I am ready to be the next Member of Parliament for the constituency," he said. The former army brigadier is reported to be enjoying the support of war veterans and other Zanu PF members in Kwekwe and the Midlands Province at large. Undenge confirmed he would contest the Zanu PF primary elections, but declined to elaborate further. "It's true I am interested in the constituency. Kana ndahwina ndiko kuti ndigokupaiwo minda," (If I win, I'll give you land) he said jokingly.
Zanu PF Midlands chairman, who is also Minister of Energy and Power Development, July Moyo, said he was not aware of party cadres vying for Kwekwe city. "I don't know the people involved in Kwekwe. Carry out your investigations and I will be very interested to know the people interested in the constituency," said Moyo. However, war veterans in the Midlands have shifted their support from Mnangagwa and were backing Mabenge. "Ngwena was our MP for 15 years and we, the war veterans, believe it's high time a young cadre took over from where our senior party leaders left off," said a member of the Midlands war veterans' association, who refused to be named. Mnangagwa is widely known in Zanu PF circles as "Ngwena" (crocodile). Repeated efforts to get a comment from Mnangagwa over the past week were in vain. Meanwhile, as the race hots up, gold panners, widely known as amakorokoza, have allegedly been reeled in. The panners, who have caused untold environmental damage in the city, have been accused of disrupting rallies organised by Mnangagwa's challengers and the MDC. Speaking during the installation ceremony of the city's executive mayor, Stanford Bonyongwe, early this year, Zanu PF senior officials, including Mnangagwa, literally fell over each other, praising the panners for supporting the ruling party's campaigns in the city.
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From IRIN (UN), 19 October
Govt hires retired teachers to counter strike
Bulawayo - The Zimbabwean government, battling with a strike action by teachers, has resorted to hiring retired educators to man classrooms and invigilate ongoing examinations. Long queues could be seen on Tuesday at the offices of the ministry of education in Zimbabwe's second city, Bulawayo, as retired teachers and unemployed graduates jostled for the job offers. "We have not yet been told how much we will be paid for our services during the invigilation of examinations, but I think it would be something worthwhile. I have not been employed since my graduation in 2002 and I think this is a grand chance for me to get a few dollars for myself, as you know how difficult life is these days," a job hopeful, Malvern Mavhaire, told IRIN. Teachers went on strike last week, demanding a review of their salaries from Z$670,000 (about US $119) to at least Z$1.4 million ($249). The Consumer Council of Zimbabwe calculates the minimum monthly expenditure for a family of four at around US$249. Raymond Majongwe, secretary-general of the Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (PTUZ), told IRIN that members of his organisation would not return to work if the government did not address their grievances. "We are requesting that an ordinary teacher be paid at least Zim $1.4 million ($ 249) per month and a 50 percent transport allowance to cushion them from the ever-skyrocketing cost of living, but government seems reluctant to bend to our demands. But we are also saying, as PTUZ, we are not going back to work if this is not done," said Majongwe. Authorities said the response to the recruitment advertisements placed last week had been overwhelming. "So far more than 100 personnel have been recruited here (Bulawayo) and I don't think the strike by teachers will in any way affect or disrupt the examinations," said a government official who preferred not to be named.
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From The Daily Mirror, 19 October
Zanu PF youths harass electorate
Takunda Maodza
Five months before next year's parliamentary plebiscite, suspected Zanu PF youths have begun intimidating the electorate to force them to attend ruling party rallies in the high-density suburb of Glen View and surrounding areas. The youths were seen yesterday in Glenview 8 moving door-to-door forcing residents to attend a ruling party gathering- at a time when President Robert Mugabe and Police Commissioner Augustine Chihuri have deplored the use of violence in the country as a political weapon. Politburo member and deputy secretary for youth, Saviour Kasukuwere, said he would investigate the reports and bring the culprits to book as such behaviour brought the party's reputation into disrepute at a time when Zanu PF was at pains trying to spruce up its image regionally and internationally. Kasukuwere said he would take up the matter with the Harare province leadership. One of the victims who refused to be identified said: "The youths were moving door-to-door writing down our names and ordering us to attend a rally which was being held in the area."
On Sunday, The Daily Mirror crew witnessed youths spotting Zanu PF regalia toy-toying and intimidating people at Tichagarika Shopping Centre in the evening to attend their rallies "or else." Kasukuwere asked: "Who sent them? We will investigate the situation and find out what is really happening. I will also communicate with the provincial leadership. As a party, we mobilise people not intimidate them." Last week, ruling party youths allegedly pounced on residents in Glenview 3and forced them to attend a rally there, a move residents said was likely to re-ignite violence as characterised during the bloody 2000 parliamentary elections. Political analyst Heneri Dzinotyiwei yesterday said politicians should concentrate on solving problems bedevilling the nation rather than make life difficult for the ordinary man. Said Dzinotyiwei: "The country is going to continue to experience problems of that nature (violence). No one condones behaviour of that nature. We hope that as elections draw near, Zimbabweans will develop a sense of maturity, put the country first and focus on national goals rather than petty differences." The University of Zimbabwe lecturer called for tolerance of diverse political opinions in the country and for peace and stability to prevail before, during and after the polls.
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From Sapa, 19 October
Foreigners fined for posing as Zimbabweans
Harare - Zimbabwean police have arrested 26 campers, including 13 South Africans and an Australian citizen, at a northern government-run campsite for failing to pay camping fees in a foreign currency, a police spokesperson said on Tuesday. The group, which had hoisted the South African and Australian flags at the site, were briefly detained on Tuesday and freed after admitting guilt and paying a fine of Z25 000 (R28) each. "Police picked up some 26 people. Among the 26 were 13 South Africans, one Australian and 12 Zimbabweans," said police spokesperson Oliver Mandipaka. He said the 14 foreigners arrested at Chirundu border town, were charged with contravening laws that make it mandatory for foreign tourists to pay in US dollars for entry and use of national parks' campsites. Members of this group, however, masqueraded as Zimbabweans and paid Z$6 000 (R6,37) which is the fee locals were charged. The group's leader, a Zimbabwean, was expected to appear in a local court on Tuesday for "misrepresenting the facts to the parks officials" facing fraud charges. "It was his duty to indicate to the parks officials that there were some foreigners among the group," said Mandipaka. "What attracted our attention at Chewora Camp in Chirundu was that they were flying South African and Australian flags next to their tents. We sought to make some verification and in the process it was discovered that they had not paid the appropriate fee," said the police spokesperson. He said the group arrived in the country on Thursday last week and proceeded to the camp "allegedly for a fishing tournament". Chirundu is situated on the banks of the Zambezi River on the border to Zambia, about 300 kilometres northwest of the capital. Fishing competitions for the country's most voracious predator, the tiger fish, are often hold around this time of the year.
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From AFP, 19 October
England safety probe enters second phase
Bulawayo - The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) probe into safety and security ahead of England's two-week tour of Zimbabwe enters phase two on Wednesday when the group travels to the capital Harare. So far investigatons have been centred for two days in the country's second city, the most likely location for demonstrations. It was here that church leaders demonstrated against President Robert Mugabe inside the Queens Sports Club grounds during last year's World Cup and dozens of arrests were made outside after whites and blacks waved anti-Mugabe placards. ECB director John Carr, players' chief Richard Bevan, and English security experts have held a sequence of meetings with provincial officials, ground staff, hotel management where the England group will be staying, local government officials, opposition party leaders and police chiefs. They will now move to the capital to hold talks with the Zimbabwe Cricket Union, police, and government ministers. "We have also been talking to private individuals, which is important," Bevan said. "We are now flying to Harare for the second leg of our visit. I am not prepared at this stage to tell you anything about these meetings and discussions except that they were most useful to us."
England pulled out of their Harare fixture on moral grounds prior to their World Cup match against Zimbabwe in February, 2003, and in doing so forfeited four points, which prevented them reaching the "Super Six" second stage. That match was the second of three due to be played in Harare. At the start of the first, against Namibia, Andy Flower and Henry Olonga held a black armband protest against the government and issued a statement deploring the "death of democracy" in Zimbabwe. Pre-publicity ahead of the England tour here, which begins with their arrival on November 25, has been minimal so far. England will play two one-day internationals in Harare and then three in Bulawayo before moving to South Africa for a series of five Test matches. Zimbabwe's Test status has been shelved for the last three months after Australia, England and Pakistan refused to play the full five-day game against a new and raw Zimbabwe side that replaced the one led by Heath Streak and 14 other white players who had gone on strike in his support and were sacked. The Zimbabweans will play two Tests in Bangladesh during January next year, after which their progress will be assessed.
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From The Daily News Online Edition, 23 October
CIO agents move in to finish off hospitalised students* leader
Harare-based lawyers on Wednesday had to move in to protect Philani Zamchiya, the president of the Zimbabwe National Students Union (ZINASU) after three suspected members of President Robert Mugabe's Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO) forced their way into his hospital ward and demanded information on their activities. Zamchiya was beaten up and left for dead by suspected CIO agents and policemen last Thurday ahead of the delivery of judgment in the high treason case of Morgan Tsvangirai, president of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC). The attack occurred while he was on his way home from the Zinasu offices at ZimRights House in Harare. He was admitted at the Avenues Clinic where he has been recuperating until this week. The suspected CIO agents claimed they had come to solicit information on the circumstances surrounding his attack by suspected policemen from the law and order section. "We suspect the plain clothes officers were members of the CIO who wanted to further harm Zamchiya," Arnold Tsunga, the director of the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights told the The Daily News Online yesterday. "When we heard that he had been visited by security agents and intelligence officers, we advised the hospital staff to closely monitor him while we made new arrangements for his security," said Tsunga.Tsunga said the suspected CIO agents claimed they wanted to investigate complaints against the police who had assaulted Zamchiya. He said they allegedly showed him some "reports" that he had allegedly made to the police against his unidentified assailants.
The security agents accused Zamchiya of allegedly organising youths to cause disturbances while Judge President Paddington Garwe delivered his judgment. The Zinasu president could hardly talk when The Daily News Online reporter visited him early this week. His body was heavily bandaged and his face was bruised. "He was in a heavy state of drowsiness when the suspected CIO agents went into his ward because of the drugs that had been administered on him," Tsunga said. "We are certain the agents were responsible for Zamchiya' s assault. I realised there was danger to his safety and had him transferred to a safe location. I have a strong belief the State agents were there to further harm him. They came at an hour when it was most appropriate to have him all on their own in seclusion. "At that time they were also aware that he now had legal representation. He felt exposed because the security agents had easy access to him. Zamchiya is now in the hands of capable doctors at a private location." The CIO has a reputation of murdering suspected government opponents by staged road accidents, severe beatings and torture through electric shocks, and other crude methods.
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From The Cape Argus (SA), 22 October
Zimbabwe voters' roll 'inflated by a million'
The voters roll for Zimbabwe's general election which will be held next year in March has been slammed for apparently excluding hundreds of thousands from opposition strongholds and massively boosted numbers in rural areas, traditional support base for the ruling Zanu PF. Opposition party officials say an analysis of a hard copy of the roll, which was released to them two weeks ago, has shown up a million bogus voters. This, they allege, is an overstatement of up to 25% above the census of 2002. Yesterday Movement for Democratic Change president Morgan Tsvangirai described the new voters roll as "scandalous". Despite the Africa-wide trend of urbanisation, replicated in Zimbabwe's last census in 2002, the new roll shows that all constituencies in large cities and towns lost voters and rural ones gained. Tsvangirai, acquitted of high treason last week, said: "The voters roll has been manipulated to secure even further reductions in urban seats. In the circumstances I demand that there be an immediate independent audit of the voters roll." In the latest voters roll, 22 689 voters have disappeared in constituencies in Bulawayo, where Movement for Democratic Change support is uniformly stronger than anywhere else in Zimbabwe. Registrar general Tobias Mudede was not available for comment. His deputy, B Mpala, who would not reveal his first name, said: "We cannot respond until we receive an official complaint."
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From The Daily Telegraph (UK), 22 October
Mugabe accused of erasing MDC voters from roll
The opposition in Zimbabwe yesterday accused President Robert Mugabe's regime of manipulating the electoral roll, saying almost 70,000 names had vanished from voting lists in Harare and Bulawayo. Both cities are strongholds of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change, which won all 27 of their parliamentary seats in the last election in 2000. The party leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, accused the regime of a "scandalous" attempt to prevent his supporters from voting in the general election due next March. He demanded an independent audit of the electoral roll and said: "I have also instructed our legal team to consider legal action to protect the interests of hundreds of thousands of Zimbabweans who will effectively be disenfranchised through the scandalous conduct of the registrar general's office." Tobaiwa Mudede, the registrar general, gave the MDC a copy of the latest electoral roll two weeks ago. Comparison with the lists used for the presidential polls two years ago disclosed a dramatic decline in registered voters in opposition heartlands. In Harare 878,715 voters were registered in 2002. Since then 46,780 names have disappeared, reducing the total to 831,935. Harare's population, like that of every other African capital, is growing strongly. The last official census showed it was up by 30 per cent, or 424,670 people, between 1992 and 2002.
Mr Tsvangirai said manipulation was the only possible explanation for the falling number of voters, which would allow the regime to damage his party's chances by reducing the number of parliamentary seats in the capital. In Bulawayo, the country's second city, 22,689 voters have disappeared. The roll had 361,790 voters for the presidential polls but this has dropped to 339,101. The MDC won all eight of the city's seats in the last election. Mr Mudede, who compiles the electoral roll, makes no secret of his support for Mr Mugabe's Zanu PF party. He benefited from the seizure of white-owned land when he was given a farm in Nyabira district before the last presidential election. His conduct of that election was heavily criticised by Commonwealth election observers. "Thousands of citizens were disenfranchised as a result of the lack of transparency in the registration process and the wide discretionary powers of the registrar general in deciding who is included or omitted from the register," they reported. Mr Mudede was not available for comment yesterday. An official at his office said: "We cannot respond until we receive an official complaint." The foreign minister, Stan Mudenge, yesterday accused unnamed western countries of "plotting" to discredit the elections "in which they want to inject their own ideas and preoccupations".
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From News24 (SA), 22 October
Zim to prohibit observers
Zimbabwe - The government will ban African observers from monitoring national parliamentary polls next year if they have close links with Western countries, state radio reported on Friday. President Robert Mugabe already has barred Western monitors from observing the elections scheduled for March. Foreign minister Stan Mudenge told state radio Zimbabwe had collected evidence of "maneuvers" by some countries and foreign organisations to include their allies in African monitoring groups. Some Western governments had tried to sway the views of observers of the 14-nation Southern African Development Community and the continent-wide African Union by producing reports with "preconceived opinions" questioning the fairness of the elections. He said African diplomats or monitors found co-operating with foreign governments would be barred from election observer groups, the radio reported. "SADC and African ambassadors should not be used to take up agendas of foreign missions or interests," he said. The European Union, meanwhile, urged the government to implement the SADC's regional election standards to enable free and fair elections to take place. The government has announced some electoral reforms that the opposition Movement for Democratic Change has dismissed as cosmetic and falling short of the regional standards. The opposition, citing intimidation and sweeping media and security laws that prevent fair campaigning, said it would not contest in the March election unless biased electoral laws are completely reformed.
In a statement on Friday, the EU said it hoped the acquittal last week of opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai on treason charges "would reduce political tension in the country and help improve the political environment" before the proposed polls. Tsvangirai was cleared in October 15 on charges that he plotted the assassination of Mugabe before presidential polls he contested in 2002. Mugabe narrowly won that election, condemned by independent observers as flawed by political intimidation and vote rigging. Tsvangirai still faces a second treason charge alleging that he called for mass street protests last year to topple Mugabe. Western nations have been among the harshest critics of the policies of Mugabe's ruling party, including the often-violent seizures of thousands of white-owned farms that led to political violence, economic turmoil and worsening human rights violations. The Zimbabwe government has repeatedly accused Britain, the former colonial power, the United States and the EU of backing Mugabe's opponents to bring about regime change in the southern African country. Zimbabwe has also accused Nigeria of siding with Britain and Australia in its dispute with the Commonwealth of Britain and its former territories.
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From The Times (UK), 22 October
Zimbabwe purges farms again
By Jan Raath in Nyabira
Black peasants are the latest victims of a new twist to Mr Mugabe's land reforms
Smoke rose above the savannah along a 15-mile stretch of the road, testament to the brutal conclusion to President Robert Mugabe's resettlement programme. The homes that lay smouldering across the cattle country in Nyabira district, 25 miles north of Harare, had housed peasant farmers, formerly the foot soldiers who had invaded white-owned land during the President's "revolutionary land reform programme". Now they too have been evicted by paramilitary police who burnt down the farms that Mr Mugabe had ordered them to invade in 2000. "Police came here and told me go away," said Edgar Pfupajena. "I thought they were joking. Then they burnt everything. We have been here for nearly five years. The President resettled us." Amnesty Internationl estimated that 60,000 people were driven from "resettlement areas" last month alone. Wayne Bvudzijena, a police spokesman, said evictions were being carried out "around the country" to "regularise resettlement patterns in the farming areas". He said some of the occupiers had "illegally settled themselves". John Nkomo, the minister responsible for land resettlement, referred questions to local officials, who would not comment. However, there is little doubt in the minds of those forced off the farms about the reason for their removal. Many have said in legal affidavits that their evictions were preceded by visits from ruling party "cheffes" - Mr Mugabe's nephew, Leo, has been named. The evictions have turned upside-down Mr Mugabe's emotive banner of "land to the people" when mobs of ruling party supporters began terrorising white farmers, thousands of whom fled. The agricultural sector lies crippled and the country is expected to suffer a third successive year of famine.
Munyaradzi Bidi, national director of the Zimbabwe Human Rights Association, said that five years after the lawless invasions began "the land imbalance is still there". "Peasants still don't have access to land and it's still in the hands of a small group of people, only this time it's greedy senior ruling party and military officers," he said. The new evictions have not only ignored all due process - without legal notice, court orders, or court messengers to effect them - they even violate the Rural Land Occupiers (Prevention of Eviction) Act passed by Mr Mugabe's Government specifically to stop white landowners evicting the settlers. Those evicted from the farmland have been left without water or sanitation and have little food. "It's a humanitarian crisis," Obert Chinhamo, Amnesty International's development officer, said. "No one is going to their assistance. The organisations that usually help people like this are too scared to do anything because they might be closed down by the Government or arrested." Charitable assistance is possible only with the approval of local government authorities, Mr Chinhamo said. "There is no way the Government is going to give permission for you to support people they are evicting." The original farm invaders had been stalwarts of the ruling Zanu-PF party. In the past, any grievance would have been taken directly to party officials for consultation. Now, however, settlers are turning to lawyers and human rights groups for help. About 20 High Court orders have been won ordering police and the Minister of Home Affairs to leave the settlers alone. Police have so far not stopped settlers returning to their plots, but authorities in one district said they intend to challenge the court orders. "These are the people who made Zanu PF win both elections since 2000," Mr Chinhamo said. "All of them feel cheated and betrayed by the Government. The land programme was an election gimmick."
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From News24 (SA), 22 October
Zim bans Cosatu visit
Johannesburg - Cosatu on Friday expressed its outrage at the Zimbabwe government's banning of a Cosatu fact-finding mission to Zimbabwe, days before its departure on Sunday, claiming the mission was "not acceptable". The mission was meant to hold meetings with representatives of all the people of Zimbabwe, to get an accurate picture of the situation in the country and make a contribution to the search for a settlement to the political, economic and labour crisis, acting Cosatu spokesperson Patrick Craven said. Cosatu on Thursday received a letter from the Zimbabwe ministry of public service, labour and social welfare stating that some of the civic society organisations which Cosatu was to hold meetings with were "critical about the government of Zimbabwe... and indeed most of these are quasi-oppositional political organisations". The letter went on to say that the mission was "predicated in the political domain" and that some of the organizations were involved in "the political discourse of Zimbabwe". The letter lists the Crisis Coalition, the National Constitutional Assembly, the Zimbabwe Election Support Network, Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights and the Zimbabwe Council of Churches.
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From The Zimbabwe Independent, 23 October
Tsvangirai gets passport back
Dumisani Muleya
Opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) leader Morgan Tsvangirai will now be able to lead his party's diplomatic offensive in the region over the Zimbabwe crisis after he got his passport back following his acquittal last week on treason charges. The passport was seized by the state when he was charged with high treason in 2002. "I got my passport this (Wednesday) morning after some resistance," Tsvangirai said. "Now I will be able to travel mostly in the region and across Africa to reinforce the diplomatic work that has been done by the party in the 20 months when I couldn't travel." The release of Tsvangirai's passport follows his acquittal on trumped-up treason charges in which it was claimed he had plotted to assassinate President Robert Mugabe in 2001. There were reports Tsvangirai might not get his passport back due to the second treason charge. However, the surrender of the passport was not part of the bail conditions on the current treason case. Tsvangirai is due to appear in court over the case on November 3. The first treason allegations were sparked by discredited Canadian businessman Ari Ben-Menashe after he held three meetings in London and Montreal in 2001 with MDC officials.
Tsvangirai, who narrowly lost the 2002 presidential poll to Mugabe, said plans were under way to arrange meetings with regional leaders to discuss Zimbabwe's political and economic crisis. "We are still in the process of organising meetings mostly in the region and in Africa because that is where we should now concentrate," he said. "As soon as that is done, I will start travelling to meet regional leaders to discuss the situation in Zimbabwe." MDC officials met President Thabo Mbeki last month in Pretoria and are expected to meet other regional leaders soon. Mugabe also met Mbeki in New York last month. Tsvangirai said it was important to have a free and fair election in Zimbabwe as that would enable the country to start a recover programme from extended periods of political instability and maladministration. He said a free and fair election was not only in the interest of Zimbabweans but also the region and Africa in general. Tsvangirai said the only way that this could be achieved was through forcing Zanu PF to comply with Sadc norms and standards on elections. Government is under pressure to comply with the Southern African Development Community principles governing democratic elections. The principles require the establishment of independent electoral institutions. Zimbabwe's electoral institutions are controlled by government. The standards also require government to adopt "measures and precautions to prevent the perpetration of fraud, rigging or any other illegal practices throughout the whole electoral process to ensure free and fair elections".
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From The Times (UK), 23 October
Tour to Zimbabwe seems set to go ahead
By Christopher Martin-Jenkins, Chief Cricket Correspondent
The delay in making public the findings of a delegation to check security arrangements for England's ten-day tour of Zimbabwe next month is unlikely to change the ECB's opinion that, like it or not, the visit should go ahead. John Carr, the ECB's director of cricket, and Richard Bevan, the England players' representative, returned from Zimbabwe yesterday evening after an inspection to assess the safety and security of players, officials, supporters and the media, but their verdict will not be made public until next week. The one-day team is due to leave for Namibia on November 15 to prepare for five one-day internationals, two in Harare and three in Bulawayo. During a four-day stay in the country's two main cities, Carr and Bevan met officials from the British Embassy, the Zimbabwe Cricket Union and the Zimbabwe Government. They will now report their findings to David Morgan, the ECB chairman, and to the England team management and the players. A statement next week is likely to make clear once again that the board intends to honour the tour, in line with the consistent but dubious ICC policy of refusing to make moral judgments on any regime. Despite their reservations, the indications are that the selected team will stick together and make the trip unless strongly advised to the contrary by Bevan, the chief executive of the Professional Cricketers' Association. A senior spokesman for Vodafone, England's sponsors, said yesterday that there would be no objection to Michael Vaughan's team wearing the company logo in Zimbabwe. Last week, an independent judgment found that there had been no racism but a tactless application of policies designed to integrate black players into the Zimbabwe team, leading to the withdrawal of most of the country's experienced international cricketers.
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From The Sunday Telegraph (UK), 24 October
Cricket protesters risk torture again to condemn Mugabe
Bulawayo - A teenage Zimbabwean protestor who was tortured and sexually assaulted by Robert Mugabe's secret police after waving a banner at an international cricket match has vowed to launch fresh protests during England's tour games next month. Kindness Moto, 19, and his friends are determined to use publicity offered by coverage of the games as a new chance to criticise publicly Mr Mugabe's regime. "If the England team come it looks as though they are supporting this government," Kindness said. "But it also presents us with a chance to show the outside world how we feel - that our country is dying under Robert Mugabe. Melusi Dube, another protestor, said: "The violence and intimidation have merely served to strengthen the resolve of all those who are against Mugabe." British cricket officials visited Zimbabwe last week to review security arrangements for visiting players, officials and fans. John Carr, director of the England and Wales Cricket Board, and Richard Bevan, the England Players' Representative, spent four days in Harare and Bulawayo meeting government and sports officials and will report back to the ECB chairman, the team management and players this week. The England team are due to depart for their winter tour of Namibia, Zimbabwe and South Africa on November 15.
It was during Zimbabwe's World Cup match against the Netherlands in February last year that Kindness and scores of other protesters shouted anti-Mugabe slogans from the stands and waved banners supporting the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC). Kindness was dragged from the crowd, arrested and held in police cells for four days. He was raped by officers, starved, electrocuted and beaten on the soles of his feet before being thrown from a moving car. "They wanted the names and addresses of the protest organisers, but I didn't tell them anything," he said. He was lucky to live, and spent two weeks recovering in hospital. He has been arrested, detained and beaten on three further occasions. When talking about his ordeal, he was nervous of every sound. His eyes flicked constantly round the room as he described how cricket matches in Zimbabwe have become a political charade, used both by Mr Mugabe's ruling Zanu PF and the MDC. Spies from Mr Mugabe's feared Central Intelligence Organisation have already started rounding up protesters who were arrested during the World Cup games in the MDC stronghold of Bulawayo.
Albert Sibanda was among those arrested last year. He was also tortured but after his release, fled to South Africa. Although his name is on a list of the CIO's "most wanted", he has secretly returned to Bulawayo. Last week, for the first time since their arrests, Mr Sibanda, 25, Kindness and Mr Dube decided to visit the city's Queens Sports Ground. They will return in a few weeks when England play three of their five one-day internationals at the stadium. Zimbabwe's traditional cricket supporters - whites and Indians - are unlikely to attend in great numbers for fear of trouble and out of contempt for the government. Instead, the ruling Zanu PF is expected to bus in school children to fill the seats. Mr Sibanda, who is masterminding the forthcoming campaign of protests, said that he and Mr Dube had started to recruit "the brave" - volunteers prepared to make their mark. Although there were more than 80 arrests during the World Cup games, and severe beatings meted out, they have had no difficulty finding activists. "We have nothing left to fear and are prepared to suffer the consequences," said Mr Dube.
Cricket internationals, with their widespread media coverage, are one of the last opportunities left for Mr Mugabe's opponents to publicise its views in a country where the free press has been crushed. England has named its touring squad, but a number of leading players, including Andrew Flintoff and Stephen Harmison, excluded themselves from selection. Other players, including Darren Gough, are said to have reservations about travelling. The England team has reluctantly agreed to go ahead with the tour because it could face tough penalties from the International Cricket Council if it withdraws without a "legitimate" reason. A spokesman said: "The ECB is not oblivious to what is happening in Zimbabwe - we have huge sympathy for what is occurring in that beautiful country, but this is an issue for governments. Our duty is to cricket in England and Wales, which will suffer potentially disastrous consequences if we don't go, and to the cricket community around the world. "That includes the cricket community of Zimbabwe, which will also suffer if we do not fulfil our touring commitments in November."
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From CNN, 23 October
Tsvangirai begins tour of Africa
Opposition leader accused of treason has passport back
Harare - A week after his surprise acquittal in a treason trial closely watched by the international community, opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai began a regional tour Saturday to canvass support from African leaders for electoral reforms in Zimbabwe, a spokesman said. It was Tsvangirai's first trip outside the country since early 2002, when he was arrested for allegedly plotting the assassination of authoritarian President Robert Mugabe. Tsvangirai was acquitted October 15 by Zimbabwe's High Court, which ruled the government's chief witness was not credible. Tsvangirai's passport, seized under bail conditions, was returned following the verdict, though he still faces a second treason charge for allegedly calling for mass protests to oust the government. Tsvangirai left Harare on Saturday for the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius, current chairman of the 14-nation Southern African Development Community, said spokesman William Bango. There he will meet Mauritian Prime Minister Paul Berenger before traveling to South Africa to confer with President Thabo Mbeki. "It is a diplomatic mission to see SADC leaders," Bango said. He said Tsvangirai will ask Berenger, Mbeki and other regional leaders to pressure Mugabe to implement electoral reforms ahead of parliamentary elections in Zimbabwe scheduled in March.
Mbeki, who is head of SADC's regional committee on defense and security, has pursued a policy of "quiet diplomacy" toward Zimbabwe he says is more effective than regional confrontation over the nation's deepening political and economic troubles. Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic Change insisted that charges he plotted to assassinate Mugabe before a presidential election in 2002 were trumped up to curtail his political activities. Mugabe narrowly won that election, condemned by independent observers as flawed by intimidation and vote rigging. Tsvangirai's party has said it will not contest the March election unless electoral laws are reformed to meet regional standards. The government has announced some reforms that the opposition has dismissed as cosmetic. The opposition also says it has been barred from fair media coverage by the dominant state newspapers and the sole government-run television and radio station. Zimbabwe is suffering its worst economic crisis since independence in 1980. Political violence, blamed mostly on ruling party militants and much of it triggered by the seizure of thousands of white-owned farms, has left more than 200 people dead and driven tens of thousands from their homes in the last five years.
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From The Sunday Times (SA), 24 October
Mbeki to hold talks with MDC
Sunday Times Foreign Desk
President Thabo Mbeki is to meet leaders from Zimbabwe's opposition Movement for Democratic (MDC), including party chief Morgan Tsvangirai, this week to discuss the political crisis there. Presidential spokesman Bheki Khumalo confirmed yesterday that Mbeki would meet the MDC in Pretoria "this coming week". The talks are to focus on Zimbabwe's general election in March. The meeting follows Tsvangirai's acquittal on treason charges last week. During September, Mbeki met the MDC in Pretoria and held discussions with Mugabe in New York. He is expected to travel to Zimbabwe shortly with Namibian President Sam Nujoma and Lesotho Prime Minister Pakalitha Mosisili as part of a Southern African Development Community committee on politics, defence and security. Zimbabwe is attempting to implement electoral reforms to comply with SADC election principles, but the MDC says any changes are cosmetic only. European Union envoys based in Harare said this week that the SADC election principles were not sufficiently tight to ensure a free and fair poll next year. The code did not "contain any enforcement procedures or specify penalties for failure to comply". SADC leaders adopted the election principles at a summit in Mauritius in August. Meanwhile, labour federation Cosatu has been banned from travelling to Zimbabwe on a fact-finding mission. "The Zimbabwean government has banned Cosatu leaders from entering the country, saying the trip would be political," a Cosatu spokesman said.
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From The Christian Post (US), 22 October
Zimbabwe church protests clampdown on relief agencies
The director of the justice and peace department of the Southern African Catholic Bishops' Conference made a statement in a magazine this month in response to a government bill to restrict the work of NGOs. The director of the justice and peace department of the Southern African Catholic Bishops' Conference has told churches to take action to ensure aid is delivered to Zimbabweans. According to a report by the Council for World Missions, Neville Gabriel made a statement in Challenge church magazine this month in response to a government bill to restrict the work of non-governmental organizations (NGOs). "If the bill is enacted, the poor will be condemned to an even more hopeless fate," Gabriel said in the statement. "Church communities need to urgently take concerted action at the highest levels to ensure that international humanitarian assistance is delivered to those who need it." The director added that churches must act so that Zimbabwean civil society organizations are free to work, that political transformation is urged and repression is stopped. "Our faith in Jesus Christ and identification with the suffering body of Christ in Zimbabwe demands no less." The NGO Bill, one of four controversial bills being tabled in parliament, seeks to repeal the Private Voluntary Organizations Act and establish new legislation that analysts have condemned as "patently unconstitutional, undemocratic and undesirable in a democratic country."
According to the Zimbabwe Independent news agency, the Bill would grant the government extended powers to close down NGOs perceived to be critical of its policies by imposing "restrictive registration formalities." NGOs dealing with human rights and governance would be denied access to foreign financial assistance in a bid to reduce their contacts with international organizations. The agency reported that NGOs found in breach of these regulations would be liable to criminal prosecution. Lovemore Madhuku, a constitutional law expert at the University of Zimbabwe told the Independent that the NGO law would criminalize democratic civil society activities. "The proposed NGO law will have the effect of criminalizing civil society organizations, especially those working in the field of human rights and governance by making them liable to prosecution for legitimate and peaceful activities of promoting human rights in Zimbabwe," Madhuku said. He added, "There is not much you can gain from legal challenges given that the government has already shown it will not obey court rulings that do not fit into its program." Meanwhile, the Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace (CCJP) has stated that the NGO Bill and three other new Bills expected to be pushed through parliament would effectively put the country under undeclared martial rule ahead of the critical general election.
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Comment from The Cape Times (SA), 22 October
Singing Bob's song
South African Foreign Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma has pounced upon the acquittal of Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) leader Morgan Tsvangirai as evidence of a healthy Zimbabwean judiciary. Speaking in The Hague this week, Dlamini-Zuma said of the Zimbabwe High Court decision to acquit him on charges of treason: "... it must indicate to everybody that there is a rule of law in Zimbabwe. There is a justice system that operates freely." Every other analyst has come to a different conclusion, most seeing the hand of President Robert Mugabe in the verdict. Tsvangirai was acquitted, they suggest, to conform with the Southern African Development Community's electoral guidelines - and because the case against Tsvangirai was so feeble. Why then Dlamini-Zuma's overly-generous interpretation of this event? And many will remember that it was the same minister who leapt to Mugabe's defence when he was floating the idea of registering journalists - hardly the stuff of democracy. Surely the South African government is not reduced to clutching at straws to justify its strange silence on its miscreant northern neighbour? If so, Dlamini-Zuma's comments are a depressing signal. They suggest that the failure of silent diplomacy - indeed, Mugabe has made South Africa's hand-wringing on this issue look like weakness - is not going to be replaced by anything with more substance. All of which raises once again the question that arises around South Africa's handling of the Zimbabwean crisis: on what is South Africa's policy based? Those who would suggest it is a matter of blind and unquestioning loyalty to a former comrade in the struggle against white dominance, will feel more than ever that their cynicism is well-founded.
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Comment from The Star (SA), 22 October
It's hard to believe Mugabe has become liberal
There is no road to Damascus conversion here
By Peter Fabricius
We would all love to believe that either Zimbabwean Judge President Paddington Garwe or the country's President Robert Mugabe experienced a Damascene moment last week. But perhaps it is too soon to proclaim peace in our time. The putative conversion experience was Garwe's decision to acquit Movement for Democratic Change leader Morgan Tsvangirai on treason charges. This is being widely hailed as either an heroic defence of judicial independence by Garwe or a sudden discovery of the rule of law by Mugabe. Logically it cannot be both. Though the Zimbabwe government's public response was at first ambivalent, Mugabe's propagandist Jonathan Moyo then, of course, hailed the decision as proof of the judicial independence which the country had enjoyed all along and therefore a sharp rebuke to those who had ever doubted it. There is also much speculation that President Mbeki must have put pressure on Mugabe, though his government has remained mum.
Perhaps the case against Tsvangirai was too weak even for Garwe to stomach. But Garwe's track record of Mugabe-friendly judgments - for which he has been rewarded with a stolen farm which could easily be taken back - do not suggest a heroic temperament. It seems more likely that he was given the nod from State House. And given Mugabe's own track record of complete contempt for the law, whenever it clashed with his own survival strategy, it is hard to imagine that he gave the nod because he had suddenly become a liberal democrat. It is surely more logical to see the move as part of a more refined phase of that survival strategy - very likely related to the legislative elections due by next March. The Southern African Development Community (SADC) adopted a set of guidelines for the conduct of elections at its summit this year with which Zimbabwe's electoral system is almost entirely at odds.
Apparently as a result - and maybe because of - regional pressure, Mugabe has begun to tinker with his electoral laws, including legislation to establish an ostensibly independent electoral commission. His tinkering so far falls well short of the guidelines, not only on how the actual elections should be conducted, but more especially on ensuring free and impartial electioneering for all parties, including equal access to the state's propaganda machinery. Mugabe has not, so far, touched the latter. But presumably even the indulgent SADC would not have condoned executing or imprisoning the leader of the opposition just before elections. Of course, Mugabe could still punish Tsvangirai on a pending second treason charge. But he is probably calculating that he has already inflicted enough damage on him and his party to beat them even in a relatively free and fair election. Polls indicate that he is way ahead. He may now be gambling on the big stakes of winning both the elections - and regional and perhaps even wider approval. The latter would mean a return of international institutions such as the IMF which could rescue the nosediving economy.
It is the degree of freedom and fairness of the election that is critical. Although the past five years of persecution of the MDC have already skewed the pitch irreparably, South Africa and the region must surely insist at least that from now on it is levelled. And that must include a truly independent - meaning bipartisan - election commission and the scrapping of extra-judicial security and media laws. The danger is that if SADC swallows a half-free election, the wider world - weary of the vexing and divisive Zimbabwe issue - might do so too, because it is increasingly looking to SADC for guidance on how to interpret the elections, as Mugabe is unlikely to allow in non-African election observers. It would be a terrible injustice if the world allowed Mugabe to get away with a strategy of beating the hell out of the MDC for five years and then righteously putting away his sjambok for the last few weeks before the poll.
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From The Mail & Guardian (SA), 22 October
Now war vets want to be MPs
Netsai Mlilo and Godwin Gandu
They spearheaded the liberation struggle in the 1970s and were at the forefront of land reform in 2000. Now Zimbabwe's war veterans are coveting parliamentary seats. Several senior members of the Zimbabwe War Veterans Association are keen to contest next March's poll on the ruling Zanu PF ticket, ostensibly to complete the gains of the liberation struggle. During the five elections held since independence in 1980, the former freedom fighters have been content to serve as foot soldiers and mobilise support for the party's senior politicians. War veterans' leader Jabulani Sibanda told the Mail & Guardian that a "reawakening of the revolutionary spirit" among his association's members is behind their surge for parliamentary office. "Zimbabwe is now a revolutionary nation, country and party. To us Parliament has become a means by which our revolution can be carried out and onwards through direct participation in the making of laws in our country." The resolution has unsettled senior Zanu-PF politicians and further strained relations in the party ahead of primary elections' scheduled for the end of the year. The former combatants are challenging senior Zanu PF officials, including Speaker of Parliament Emmerson Mnangangwa, Minister of Foreign Affairs Stan Mudenge, Anti-Corruption Minister Didymus Mutasa and Matabeleland North Governor Obert Mpofu. The interest of war veterans in Parliament is but one dimension of the election struggles within the ruling party. Senior officials led by Vice-President Joseph Msika are trying to elbow out young and ambitious members, known as mafikizolos. The party's supreme decision body - the politburo - is reported to have endorsed the formation of a committee to draw up stringent guidelines to vet party members who wish to contest the March plebiscite and to ensure that "johnny-come-latelies" are excluded.
Tensions are being whipped up further in Matabeleland, where allegations of tribalism, pitting Ndebele supporters against Shonas, are resurfacing. Zanu PF secretary for the commissariat, Sikhanyiso Ndlovu, has accused Sibanda of mobilising youth in Matabeleland to beat up former PF Zapu Ndebeles and firing Shona-speaking civil servants working in the region. Sibanda has refuted the allegations, dismissing them as "nonsense". Instead, he accused Zanu PF politburo members from Matabeleland of pursuing personal interests. "They have amassed so much personal wealth and they now forget where they came from," said Sibanda. Elsewhere in the country, several Zanu PF MPs are fighting to retain their seats. In Beit Bridge, Minister of Home Affairs Kembo Mohadi is embroiled in a two-pronged assault to fend off contenders. He has been accused of abusing his position to push his challengers out of the race. A week ago he was reported to have ordered the detention of war veteran Samuel Mlaudzi during a campaign rally. In August Mohadi was accused of ordering the arrest of acting Bulawayo provincial administrator, Edson Mbedzi. Mbedzi was acquitted of stealing farm equipment. In Masvingo Central, Eddison Zvobgo Jnr is pitted against the party's provincial chairperson, Daniel Shumba. Zvobgo is reported to enjoy the support of several senior party officials, including retired Air Marshall Josiah Tungamirai and national commissar Elliot Manyika.
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From The Star (SA), 25 October
Cosatu's planned fact-finding mission to Zimbabwe hits a snag
The Congress of South African Trade Unions still hopes to go ahead with a fact-finding mission to Zimbabwe, despite the government there banning its visit. Reports in Zimbabwe yesterday quoted Colin Gwiyo, the deputy secretary-general of the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU), which invited Cosatu, as saying: "We are expecting them despite the ban. They would arrive probably tomorrow morning." Cosatu spokesperson Patrick Craven, however, said yesterday the mission members planned to meet at Cosatu House in Johannesburg today to discuss the situation and announce its decision at a noon press conference. "We are still hoping to go to Zimbabwe," he said. A Cosatu delegation were due to arrive in Harare yesterday, but on Thursday they received a letter from President Robert Mugabe's government saying the visit had been called off. The letter from Zimbabwean Labour Ministry permanent secretary Lance Museka said the mission was unacceptable because of its political nature. The ministry's letter to Cosatu said the organisations on the union federation's agenda were critical of the government of Zimbabwe and most were quasi-opposition political organisations.
Cosatu on Friday expressed its outrage at the Zimbabwean government's banning of its mission. It was meant to hold meetings to get an accurate picture of the situation in the country and make a contribution to the search for a settlement to the political, economic and labour crisis, Craven said. The letter went on to say that the mission was "predicated in the political domain" and that some of the organisations were involved in "the political discourse of Zimbabwe". The letter lists the Crisis Coalition, the National Constitutional Assembly, Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights, the Zimbabwe Council of Churches and the Zimbabwe Election Support Network. Gwiyo, however, insisted that Cosatu had every right to visit Zimbabwe. "We were not asking for permission (from the government for Cosatu to visit)." "We have insisted that they have every right to be in a Southern African Development Community member state. It was a nonpartisan visit," said Gwiyo.
Wellington Chibhebhe, the ZCTU secretary-general, said the government's ban was "a non-event". "We invited Cosatu and it is not coming on behalf of the South African government, but of South Africa's trade unions, and there is no need for the government to ban it," he said. The action against Cosatu coincides with a visit to South Africa by Morgan Tsvangirai, the head of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change, for talks with President Thabo Mbeki. He is on a tour of Mauritius, South Africa and possibly Botswana following the end of a two-year travel ban forced on him by bail conditions for treason charges against him. His passport was returned to him on Wednesday. He was acquitted on October 15 of charges of plotting to assassinate Mugabe.
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From Zim Online (SA), 25 October
Cosatu leaders face stormy reception
Harare - The Zimbabwe government is understood to be planning to deport Congress of South African Trade Union (Cosatu) leaders as soon as they arrive in Harare later today against advice by the government not to visit the country, sources told ZimOnline. In a move likely to test relations between Zimbabwe and South Africa to the limit, state security agents will await Cosatu vice president, Joe Nkosi, and his 21-member delegation at Harare international airport and put them on the next flight out of Zimbabwe. "The plan is to intercept Cosatu officials at Harare airport and tell them politely that they are not welcome here (in Zimbabwe) and send them back with the next available flight," a senior government official said. Home Affairs Minister Kembo Mohadi, in charge of Zimbabwe's police and immigration departments could not be reached for comment on the matter. Nkosi could also not be reached for comment but Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions secretary general, Wellington Chibhebhe, yesterday said Cosatu would be visiting Zimbabwe despite Harare's objections. "The Cosatu mission is purely a trade union affair and it is none of the government's business to interfere with such issues," Chibhebhe said. Cosatu is visiting Zimbabwe chiefly to verify reports of repression against the country's labour movement and also to check on the human rights situation in the country in general. The powerful labour movement, which is part of South Africa's ruling tripartite alliance that also includes the African National Congress and the South African Communist Party, is expected to meet all stakeholders in Zimbabwe including, the ruling Zanu PF and main opposition Movement for Democratic Change parties. But the Zimbabwe government has objected to the mission saying the groups Cosatu plans to meet are anti-government and some of the issues the South African trade union leaders wanted to raise were political and should be handled through an agreed framework between Harare and Pretoria.
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From The Zimbabwe Standard, 24 October
Govt grabs plantations
By Rangarirai Mberi
The government has seized five plantations owned by Border Timbers, the country's largest timber producer, ignoring an earlier pact with Germany not to take over the land, and months after it announced that the official land grab was over. A Germany-Zimbabwe Investment Protection Agreement, signed in 1995, ostensibly protects Border Timbers properties from acquisition. Under that agreement, Zimbabwe gave assurances to Germany that Border Timbers' land would not be targeted for seizure. The acquired Border Timbers land totals just over 34 million hectares. The acquisition order was served on Tilbury, Cambridge, Imbeza, Mahugara and Walmer estates. Shares in Border Timbers swung lower on the news, down 16% on the week to Wednesday at $1100, setting a new downbeat tone for already distressed agro-stocks. This is the second time that Border has had its properties listed for seizure in as many years. In 2002, the Attorney General withdrew acquisition orders on eight Border properties after the firm appealed against listing, backed by the government-to-government pact.
Holders of land served with a Section 8 acquisition order are required to lodge an appeal against the order within five days of publication of the notice of acquisition. Failure to object within that period means the order would be confirmed "unopposed without any further notice". Occupants of such land would then be required to wind down operations and leave within 90 days. Standard Business understands that Border Timbers has lodged an objection to the acquisition orders, but Managing Director John Gahadzikwa was not immediately available for comment on the matter last week. Ken Schoffield, Chairman of Radar Holdings - owners of Border Timbers - was said to be away in South Africa when sought for comment last week. Border Timbers' sawmills reputably process more than 350 000 cubic metres of logs each year, and the firm also runs a veneer factory.
In addition to the timber plantations, the government has also taken over Aberfoyle Estates - a major tea exporter - and Eastern Highlands Plantations, one of Zimbabwe's few producers of washed Arabic coffee, which is mainly for export. The land seized from the two tea and coffee estates measure a combined 2,3 million hectares. More land has also been taken from Hippo Valley, which has lost more of its Mkwasine estates. Recently, government issued Section 8 orders on several sugar estates in the Lowveld co-owned by South African investor Tongaat Hullet and Anglo American Corporation. Government's latest swoop on land held by agro-industries is a flagrant violation of its own earlier pledges to leave such land untouched under its controversial land reforms. In May, Vice President Joseph Msika - chairman of a Cabinet land reform task force - told Interfresh that he would not support any seizure of land held by investors. Interfresh has 88% of its Mazoe Citrus Estates listed for acquisition, while Ariston and TZI have also had some of their prime businesses taken over. Property holding company Mashonaland Holdings now also has some of its land listed for seizure. Mashold Chairman Abner Botsch has said his company is negotiating with government to have its properties de-listed.
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Comment from The Sunday Mirror, 24 October
Govt bars three million Zimbabweans from voting
Whoever said Homelink would translate to "Votelink"?
Phillip Chidavaenzi
Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) Governor, Gideon Gono, had never been in doubt of the "patriotism" of Zimbabweans scattered in the Diaspora. This was particularly so after their enthusiastic response to the Homelink project through which they were meant to contribute to the country's economic healing after years of debilitating recession. In essence, these are people with their country at heart, and have expressed desire to play their role in ensuring that the economy regains its sound footing of yesteryear. The Homelink team was, however, met with sporadic protests in some instances, like in Dallas, Texas in the US, Johannesburg in South Africa, Birmingham and London in the UK. While it could have been argued that the protesters were not prepared to serve their country's best interests, their actions were not without basis. The RBZ's "great trek" to the Diaspora was held between May 24 and June this year, and was described as an "exceptional" success. Looked at in the context of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs minister Patrick Chinamasa's recent confirmation in Parliament that Zimbabweans in the Diaspora would not vote in the March 2005 parliamentary election, the act makes sense. In response to MDC lawmaker David Coltart's question regarding the Diasporan (postal) vote, which was adhered to in most SADC countries -among them Botswana and South Africa - Chinamasa said: "The law in our situation is explicit. Citizens of Zimbabwe who are resident will be allowed to vote." At a time when Mozambicans resident in Zimbabwe have already registered through their embassy as voters in the election scheduled for December 2004, Chinamasa's remarks are seen as an embarrassment to the government, which has ironically indicated that it would adhere to SADC guidelines for democratic elections.
Although in some countries, citizens who reside in foreign countries are allowed to vote through postal ballots with the assistance of their foreign missions, in Zimbabwe, only government staff at embassies can vote. At the height of the DRC civil war in which Zimbabwe was a significant player, Zimbabweans soldiers voted in the 2000 parliamentary election and the 2002 presidential election through postal ballots. The decision, in essence, has rendered all Zimbabweans in the Diaspora "non-citizens", as they can neither vote in their home country nor the countries in which they have settled, albeit contributing to the country's economic development through foreign currency remittances. The RBZ's highly-publicised Homelink is ironically dubbed Kumusha/Ekhaya, when Chinamasa's sentiments in effect mean the Zimbabweans abroad are homeless as they cannot vote anywhere in the world like any other citizens across the globe. An estimated 3 million Zimbabweans have left the country in search of the proverbial greener pastures. The Zimbabweans, scattered in the UK, the US, Canada and South Africa, have, however, expressed commitment to work towards the resuscitation of the country's waning economic fortunes. According to the RBZ advisory board's publicity sub-committee chairman, Herbert Nkala, as many as 60-70 percent of working Zimbabwean adults could be living in the Diaspora, based on current estimates. He said the most scientific estimates they had of the number of Zimbabweans in the Diaspora is 3,4 million. Economists contend that had it not been for the Zimbabweans earning foreign currency abroad and sending it back home, the country could have long collapsed owing to the unprecedented economic downturn that began in November 1997.
Although the Zimbabweans who met the RBZ team abroad expressed enthusiasm to contribute to the country's economic development, analysts believe that expecting those people to work towards that goal while at the same time denying them their democratic right to vote as Zimbabweans, is absurd. It may force them to reconsider their desire to participate in the economic turnaround programme espoused by Gono. It is the height of hypocrisy to preach the gospel of patriotism and nationalism to Zimbabweans who are in the Diaspora when, at the same time, they are stripped of the rights to which citizens are entitled. It is against that background that the highly idolised RBZ chief might find that failure, which he has always said is not an option, a painful reality, should the Zimbabweans in the Diaspora decide to hit back. Lovemore Chihota, who is also a member of the Central Bank's Board of Directors, indicated that the bank was aware of the pivotal role that Zimbabweans in the Diaspora, who had been described sell-outs in government circles, could play in the country's development.
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From The Zimbabwe Standard, 25 October
'Allow Zimbabweans abroad to vote"- poll
By Richard Musazulwa
Gweru - The majority of Zimbabweans including those in Zanu PF strongholds, want Zimbabweans living outside the country to be allowed to cast their votes in the forthcoming 2005 Parliamentary Elections, according to results of the Mass Public Opinion Institute (MPOI) survey. Also, the majority of people interviewed were against the appointment of the chairperson of the proposed Independent Electoral Commission by President Robert Mugabe. The survey on the Electoral Playing Field in Zimbabwe, which was conducted in August this year and released last week, says 64 percent of Zimbabweans want their brothers and sisters abroad to be allowed to cast their votes, with 54 percent against the appointment of the commission chair by President Mugabe. Speaking at an up-date meeting with the media on Thursday Tulani Sithole said this was hardly surprising considering that for many Zimbabweans their means of survival were relatives staying abroad. "This point takes on greater significance in the light of attempts by government to tap the foreign exchange from Zimbabweans abroad. Even provinces that are considered predominantly pro-Zanu PF subscribe to this view," Sithole said.
On the appointment of the chairperson of the Independent Electoral Commission by President Mugabe, Sithole said only two provinces, Mashonaland West and East were in favour of the proposal. "It is also significant to note that even in the two provinces, opinion was almost split. Quite clearly, this is an issue that government would have done well to consult on," says the MPOI report. Among other findings by the survey were that a significant 37 percent of potential voters are not registered as voters and that there was a worrying level of lack of the proposed electoral reforms with only 17 percent of the people interviewed aware of these reforms. The report said this was a disturbing figure considering that the registration exercise has been on going for some time. "It is even more disturbing considering the proximity of the 2005 Parliamentary Election. If the trend remains the same, what it means is that over a third of eligible voters will not cast their votes in the forthcoming elections," says the report.
The report also reveals another ominous sign for the electoral process in the country. Six months prior to the general election, 50 percent of eligible voters have not received any voter education. "One issue that immediately springs to mind is the capacity of the electoral commission to undertake voter education. These statistics take on greater significance in the face of proposals to make the electoral commission, the only body allowed to carry out voter education in the country," reads the report. The report also revealed that 64 percent of people interviewed were not in favour of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) boycotting the elections if their reform demands were not met and 54 percent of them were MDC supporters. According to Sithole, the MPOI survey was conducted in two districts of each of the 10 provinces in the country. He said his organisation initially wanted to sample 1 200 respondents but only ended up sampling 931 due to disturbances by so-called war veterans and ruling Zanu PF youths. He said a total of 46 percent of those interviewed were male while 54 percent were female and questions were asked in the local languages spoken in the areas sampled. MPOI is an independent, non-partisan research organisation that measures the social, economic and political atmosphere in the country. The institute is interested in what Zimbabweans think about conditions in their country and the pressing policy issues of the day.
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From The Financial Gazette, 21 October
Vic Falls bridge lifespan up
Nelson Banya
The Victoria Falls Bridge, the gateway to trade between Zimbabwe and other SADC member states such as Zambia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, is fast approaching the end of its lifespan and urgently requires reconstruction to avert a potentially disastrous structural failure. The bridge was constructed and opened to traffic in 1905 with a lifespan of up to 100 years, which ends in 2005. Officials in the National Railways of Zimbabwe's (NRZ) infrastructure division revealed that the bridge, which carries a railway line, a roadway and a pedestrian walkway, had for long been overburdened due to lack of load restrictions. The 1929 design load for the roadway was derived from two five tonne axles spaced about three metres apart. Two such lorries were allowed side by side to give an intensity of one tonne per foot (or 32.8 kiloNewtons per metre).
Documents prepared by the NRZ infrastructure department revealed that the bridge was being overloaded for the past 15 years, "due to no clear load limit being given." "There have been no loading restrictions operational on the bridge, thus the legal load limit on the roadway has been assumed to be the limit on the bridge by transport operators. The legal road limit for vehicles in Zimbabwe is 24.6 tonnes (241 kiloNewtons) for a triaxle combination 2.8 metres long. This gives a load intensity of 57.4 kiloNewtons per metre, which is 75 percent over the design load. Overweight vehicles have been measured and found to have weights of up to 37.9 tonnes for a triaxle combination, giving load intensity of 88.5 kiloNewtons per metre, which is 170 percent above design limit. There are excessive vibrations being felt whenever a heavy truck traverses the bridge," reads part of the document, prepared by the NRZ to lobby for Zambian support in imposing load restrictions. Zimbabwe shares the bridge with its northern neighbour, Zambia.
However, an official in the NRZ's infrastructure division said load restrictions, stipulating among other things 30 tonnes per vehicle, have now been imposed on the bridge. "We are now limiting traffic to one lorry at a time and there are boom operators from the ministry (of transport and communications). Plans are afoot to install robots and other automatic signals. "A structural analysis of the bridge is also underway, on the basis of which action to either reconstruct it or reinforce it will be taken. At the moment we are not quite sure what will happen," the official, who requested anonymity, said. The bridge's railway loading remained within stipulated levels, he said. Divisional head, engineer, a certain Dzino-tyiweyi, was not available for comment. It has also been established that the Zambian authorities have received World Bank funding for adjustments to be made to the bridge. Built by Freeman Fox and partners in 1905, the bridge was originally desgned to support two railway lines but was reconfigured in 1929 to accommodate one railway line, one roadway and a walkway.
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From Zim Online (SA), 26 October
Cosatu delegation muscles its way in
Harare - State security agents detained 14 Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) leaders at Harare international airport for close to two hours demanding they undertake not to meet some non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in Zimbabwe before they could be allowed to enter the country. Cosatu international relations secretary Simon Boshiel told journalists the delegation had stood its ground, forcing the agents to let them through without any guarantees they were not going to meet the NGOs during their four-day fact finding mission in Zimbabwe. Boshiel said: "They wanted us to guarantee them that we will not meet with Crisis Coalition of Zimbabwe (CCZ), National Constitutional Assembly (NCA) and the Zimbabwe Council of Churches (ZCC). We could not give them the guarantee because we did not know who they were and we did not understand why this was necessary." The CCZ groups together labour, churches, opposition political parties, media, civic and human rights groups working for a negotiated solution to Zimbabwe's economic and political crisis. The NCA is an alliance of several groups including political organisations that campaigns for a new and democratic constitution for Zimbabwe. And the ZCC is the biggest representative body for churches in the country.
Cosatu second vice-president Violet Seboni, who is leading the mission to Zimbabwe called the encounter with the security agents hostile and uncalled for. She said: "The hostile reception was uncalled for. We are Africans, ordinary workers and after all harmless." The delegation is in Zimbabwe on a fact-finding mission on the country's deepening economic and political crisis. Zimbabwe's Labour Ministry however wrote to Cosatu last week advising the powerful union not to visit Zimbabwe because it planned to meet anti-government organisations. And it was also feared immigration authorities would deport the COSATU leaders back to Johannesburg on arrival at Harare international airport. But Cosatu had vowed to proceed with the mission saying it did not need permission from the government of Zimbabwe to visit the country to meet with its colleagues at the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions and with other lawful organisations in the country. Speaking in Johannesburg earlier yesterday Cosatu spokesman, Pat Craven, said: "Cosatu did not need permission for a visit which aims to meet a broad range of organisations representing labour, civic society and government, get an accurate picture of the situation in the country and make a contribution to resolving some of the problems facing Zimbabwe, particularly its trade unions."
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From The Cape Times (SA), 26 October
Cosatu defies ban, gets into Zimbabwe
By Basildon Peta
A Cosatu fact-finding mission was admitted into Zimbabwe last night although it had refused to give guarantees that it would not speak to certain civic groups during its visit. The mission had been banned by President Robert Mugabe's government, which described it as "unacceptable", and it had been expected the group would be turned back at the airport in Harare. Several members of civic organisations gathered outside the airport building to watch the outcome of the delegation's transit through immigration and customs gates. After going through immigration, Cosatu leaders, led by the union federation's vice-president, Violet Seboni, were stopped by men who described themselves as security officials. They told the Cosatu members they would be admitted only after giving guarantees that they would not meet the Zimbabwe Crisis Coalition, the Zimbabwe Council of Churches and the National Constitutional Assembly, civic groups labelled anti-government by the Mugabe regime. The group refused, according to Zimbabwean trade union officials, because they did not know the men who were demanding the guarantees.
The Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) was happy that the group had been admitted into the country, despite the harassment, its deputy secretary-general, Collin Gwiyo, said. Cosatu spokesman Patrick Craven said group members hoped they would be allowed to do their work without hindrance. "We are being cautiously optimistic. We hope they will be able to carry their mission through without any problems," he said. Earlier yesterday Cosatu had declared that it would defy the Zimbabwe government's ban. Members of the group met in Johannesburg yesterday morning and considered a letter from the Zimbabwean government that said their mission was "not acceptable". The letter said some of the civic organisations Cosatu was to meet were "critical about the government of Zimbabwe ... most of these are quasi-oppositional political organisations". The letter said the mission was "predicated in the political domain" and some of the organisations were involved in "the political discourse of Zimbabwe".
The group had "expressed outrage at the Zimbabwean government's decision", Craven said in a statement. The group had "agreed that Cosatu did not need permission for a visit which aims to meet a broad range of organisations representing labour, civic society and government, get an accurate picture of the situation in the country and make a contribution to resolving some of the problems facing Zimbabwe, particularly its trade unions", he said. It had been resolved the mission would proceed in accordance with a Cosatu national congress resolution. "According to our comrades in the ZCTU, the workers of Zimbabwe are waiting for Cosatu. It was therefore resolved that we could not let those workers down and that the mission would go ahead," said Craven. Seboni said before leaving that if the delegation was deported, it would be the clearest indication yet that there was no democracy or rule of law in Zimbabwe. Cosatu president Willie Madisha said the federation did not need permission for the visit and was outraged at the Zimbabwean government's ban.
Meanwhile, with six months to go to the Zimbabwe elections, opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai of the Movement for Democratic change (MDC) kicked off a whirlwind tour of the region with a meeting with South African president Thabo Mbeki in Pretoria yesterday. "He will ask leaders in the SADC to get President Mugabe to adhere to the Mauritian Protocol," said MDC spokesman Paul Nyathi. Nyathi accused the ruling Zanu PF party of breaching the protocol,signed by SADC leaders earlier this year. There had been "no discernible willingness on the part of the Zimbabwe government to implement it", he said. The protocol outlines the minimum requirements for a free and fair election. Nyathi denied that the MDC was calling for a postponement of the elections. "But there has been a breach of the protocol and it makes sense that it is adhered to before the elections take place. The timing of the elections will depend on the speed (of) and political will (in) the protocol's implementation."
Nyathi said Tsvangirai would be meeting those who had the power to enforce its immediate implementation. Apart from his trip to South Africa, where he met Mbeki in his capacity as SADC chairman on politics, defence and security, Tsvangirai is to visit Mauritian Prime Minister Paul Berenger, Lesotho Prime Minister Pakalitha Mosisili, Namibian President Sam Nujoma and Botswana's President Festus Mogae. Berenger, the SADC's chairman, is to hand this post over to Mogae next year. Nujoma, Mbeki and Mosisili compose the SADC troika tasked with running the SADC election observer mission. The talks with Mbeki were veiled in secrecy. Refusing to divulge the time or name the venue for the talks, presidential spokesman Bheki Khumalo said: "They must be allowed to have their meeting in quiet." The meeting was part of continuing discussions with the MDC, Khumalo said.
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Comment from The Cape Times (SA), 26 October
Showing the way
By the Editor
The South African government's curiously muted approach to the crisis enveloping Zimbabwe has been the subject of much criticism, at home, in that beleaguered country, and abroad. Yesterday, however, President Thabo Mbeki showed that his government has not entirely lost its capacity for influence in Zimbabwe: opposition Movement for Democratic Change leader Morgan Tsvangirai travelled south for a meeting with the South African president. Indeed, there are not a few MDC members who believe that Mbeki himself holds the key to that country's future. They would surely have welcomed yesterday's meeting - the first in some time between Mbeki and Tsvangirai. That said, it does not seem likely that this event alone will signal a turning point. The South African government itself was quick to dampen speculation, saying raising expectations would do more bad than good. Meanwhile, tripartite alliance partner the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) last night embarked on a fact-finding mission to Zimbabwe. The Zimbabwean government had banned the visit, but Cosatu last night said it was going ahead anyway. This defiance was in line with a Cosatu congress resolution to get "an accurate picture of the situation in the country" and to assist in resolving Zimbabwe's problems. Cosatu's determination is apparently based on concern for the people of Zimbabwe and a recognition of the severity of the crisis that President Robert Mugabe has visited upon that country. This approach appears to be in stark contrast with that taken by the South African government, which has given every impression that it is happy to turn a blind eye to Mugabe's excesses, sometimes even defending or finding reason to excuse them. The wretched victims in Zimbabwe can only hope that Cosatu's approach prevails.
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From The Star (SA), 26 October
Mbeki to meet Zim's Tsvangirai today
Acquitted Zimbabwean opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai kicks off a regional tour to lobby Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) leaders with a meeting with President Thabo Mbeki in Pretoria this morning. Tsvangirai arrived in Johannesburg on Saturday for the meeting which should have been held last night but was postponed to today after Mbeki's arrival from Zambia was delayed. Mbeki's spokesman Bheki Khumalo declined to discuss the agenda of the meeting, preferring to only say it was part of the ongoing meetings between Mbeki and the Zimbabwean political leadership to help in the "Zimbabwean political process". MDC secretary-general Welshman Ncube said the whole purpose of the tour was for Tsvangirai to meet regional leaders and update them on the situation in Zimbabwe since he is now free to travel. Other meetings are being scheduled with leaders of Lesotho, Namibia, Botswana and Tanzania. Tsvangirai has not been able to travel abroad since February 2002 when he was arrested on trumped-up charges that he plotted to assassinate President Robert Mugabe. The Zimbabwe High Court found Tsvangirai not guilty of the charges which the Zimbabwe government had fabricated with the help of a shady Canada-based political consultant Ari Ben-Menashe. "Since he (Tsvangirai) is now able to travel, the idea is for him as leader of the party to be able to reach the SADC leadership on the situation in Zimbabwe," said Ncube.
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From IRIN (UN), 25 October
NGO calls for elections to be delayed
Johannesburg - Zimbabwe's parliamentary elections, scheduled for March next year, should be delayed, a local poll observer network told IRIN on Monday. Reginald Machaba-Hove of the Zimbabwe Election Support Network (ZESN) told IRIN that the implementation of new electoral reforms, such as voting in one day, transparent ballot boxes and increasing polling stations, "cannot be done in time by March". "There's no way we can have elections by March next year, and say the conditions were free and fair. We're calling for the elections to be delayed beyond March, so as to allow for sufficient time for all the necessary consultations to take place with all stakeholders, including the opposition and NGOs, and to make the adjustments [required by new legislation]. Our point is that it will take time to have adequate consultations," Machaba-Hove added. This follows doubts raised by the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) over the validity of the voters' roll, and news reports quoting Zimbabwe's foreign minister as saying that foreign powers were attempting to discredit the legislative poll before it was held.
Media reports quoted MDC president Morgan Tsvangirai as saying that analysis of a hard copy of the voters' roll indicated it "has been manipulated to secure even further reductions in urban seats". The roll was not consistent with the 2002 census, as it showed increased voter registrations in rural areas and a decrease in urban areas, where the MDC has traditionally been strong. Tsvangirai called for an independent audit of the voters' roll. The ruling Zanu PF party's secretary for information, Nathan Shamuyarira, rejected Tsvangirai's accusation, adding that "we [the government] are setting up an independent commission to conduct the elections and they [the MDC] can complain there". Machaba-Hove, meanwhile, said ZESN "have not seen any copy of the voters' roll, and our position has been and still is that, as far as we are concerned, a voter registration exercise is still to be done properly, and it is strange if the roll is completed already". He added that there "are fears that there could be gerrymandering". On Friday the official Herald newspaper reported that Foreign Minister Stan Mudenge believed some Western countries and organisations were attempting to discredit next year's parliamentary elections, and were trying to influence the composition of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) election observer team.
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From News24 (SA), 25 October
We are not broke: Zim's Newsnet
Harare - Zimbabwe's state broadcaster denied its news department, a key propaganda arm of the government, is unable to pay its journalists and faces bankruptcy, state radio reported on Monday. Chris Chivinge, head of Newsnet, the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Holdings news department, dismissed as false independent newspaper reports saying that Newsnet was broke and relying on loans from the only one of its four state radio stations that makes a profit to meet its monthly salaries. The sole state broadcaster has a television channel and four radio stations, with the biggest listenership and revenues from advertising held by Radio Zimbabwe, a service in the local Shona and Ndebele languages. The troubled state broadcaster has acknowledged in recent months that it is facing financial problems. Although the government still owns the main stake, it partially privatised the formally wholly state-owned Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation. Zimbabwe has also appealed to Iran and other donor countries to replace the broadcasters aging equipment. Broadcast staff have repeatedly complained that their salaries are paid late, sometimes having to wait several weeks.
The radio said Chivinge on Monday also defended Newsnet's decision to send five journalists to cover a cultural gala in neighbouring Mozambique earlier this month. The gala, at Chimoio, about 100km from Zimbabwe's eastern border, was held to honour Zimbabwean guerrillas who died at rebel base there during the Zimbabwe bush war was that led to independence in 1980. Chivinge said the state broadcaster always strove to remind Zimbabweans of their nation's liberation struggle against colonial rule. He said Newsnet's coverage of the Chimoio music and dance gala was "grossly inadequate." Lack of finances prevented Newsnet sending more than five journalists. The Information Ministry, which controls the state broadcaster, has been accused of wasting Z$2.7bn on a series of recent cultural galas used for government propaganda. After near five years of political and economic turmoil, Zimbabwe is facing its worst economic crisis since independence in 1980.
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From Zim Online (SA), 26 October
Top Zanu PF politician quits
Harare - One of the ruling Zanu PF party's most senior leaders from Zimbabwe's minority Ndebele tribe, Dumiso Dabengwa, has quit active politics. Dabengwa, seen by many as the de facto leader of the Ndebeles, after the death of the founder of Zimbabwean nationalism, Joshua Nkomo, told ZimOnline yesterday that he was quitting politics because he had "made sufficient contribution" and was leaving room for fresh blood to take over. The Ndebeles, the largest minority group in Zimbabwe, make up about 14 percent of the country's 12 million people. "I will not be participating in any future elections because I believe I have made sufficient contribution in parliament. I have people that can take over from where I left in the constituency," Dabengwa said. He however said he would remain a member of Zanu PF and would be available to assist the party if required to do so.But sources said, Dabengwa - who was once jailed in the early eighties by President Robert Mugabe and his government on trumped up charges of high treason - was leaving politics because of mounting frustration at what he saw as Mugabe's sidelining of himself and his colleagues from Nkomo's former PF Zapu party. Dabengwa was released in 1986 as part of the negotiations leading to the Unity Accord signed between PF Zapu and Zanu PF. PF Zapu and Mugabe's Zanu PF party merged in December 1987 which saw Dabengwa together with other former Zapu leaders being appointed into government. The agreement also saw the ending of an armed rebellion against Mugabe's rule in the Matabeleland and Midlands provinces, home of the Ndebele people. Dabengwa is also said to have been frustrated by the government's lack of urgency in implementing the Matabeleland Zambezi Water Project, an ambitious project to draw water from the Zambezi river down to arid Matabeleland. Trained in the old Soviet Union, Dabengwa was the feared intelligence supremo of Nkomo's armed wing the Zimbabwe People's Revolutionary Army, which together with Mugabe's Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army, fought for the country's independence.
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From The Mercury (SA), 26 October
Now Zimbabwe police ban toyi-toying
Harare - Zimbabwe police have now banned toyi-toying. In a letter written to Bulawayo South Movement for Democratic Change MP David Coltart, Supt A Ncube of Nkulumane Police Station said the police would allow him to hold a meeting on Sunday on condition that there would be "no toyi-toying" and that the meeting would be held in a hall, not in the open. Under Zimbabwe's Public Order and Security Act, police permission has to be granted ahead of a political gathering. "Toyi-toying has become an integral part of our meetings. It was festive, and the youth would toyi-toyi around the area ahead of our meetings, which was a way of advertising, given that the state press will not take our adverts," said Coltart, who is also the MDC Legal Secretary.
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