Daniel Molokele

AU Summit Poll Ends in an Anti-Climax With No Winner

2012-01-30T14:51:00.000+02:00

Addis Ababa – The African Union summit ended with an anti-climax today when neither of the candidates for the job of chairperson of the AU Commission succeeded.

Neither incumbent Jean Ping nor Home Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma managed to secure the two-thirds of votes needed to become commission chairperson – the administrative head of the AU.

Deputy chairperson Erastus Mwencha from Kenya will now act in the position of chairperson until the next AU summit in July in Lilongwe, Malawi. A new contest will be held then, but Ping will not be allowed to compete. His failure to secure two-thirds of the vote, despite being the incumbent, is seen as a vote of no confidence.

In a nail biting contest three rounds of elections were held. In the first round, Ping won by three votes, in the second, Dlamini-Zuma won by two votes. When Ping clinched the third round, Dlamini-Zuma had to withdraw from the race – according to the rules. But the rules determined that Ping still had to secure two-thirds of the votes, which he failed to do.

In the corridors outside the Large Conference Hall in the new AU headquarters, officials and ministers were on tenterhooks during the process.

When the results became known, Dlamini-Zuma emerged from a holding room on the sidelines of the conference hall and sang and danced with female delegates from South Africa and other African countries. They insisted that although she did not get the top job, they managed to get rid of Ping, whom South African officials believes to be in the pocket of the French. Ping hails from French-speaking Gabon.

Officials were not sure whether Dlamini-Zuma would contest the position in the next summit.

Said one: “It will be a decision of cabinet whether she tries again.”

With disappointment all round delegates and officials crowded the tea tables to eat their sorrows away – the fluffy pastries came out at just the right time to be served with the trademark Ethiopian coffee.

- City Press

Good News for Zimbabweans Living in South Africa!

2012-01-25T08:45:00.000+02:00

Good day to you all

We run a company known as Africa Diaspora Exchange and we distribute a product known as Imbongi Capital Transactional Accounts. We realised that there are a lot of migrants who are living and working in South Africa but don’t have bank accounts. This is due to many reason such as they are migrants and their documentation or lack of does not allow for them to open bank accounts or they are locals who are not able to produce the documents required to open a bank account. As a result they are paid their salaries in cash or in someone else’s account which has obvious risks like:

·         The risk of you or your employer being robbed
·         The cost of withdrawing cash to pay salaries for employers
·         Financial discipline if you have all your money in cash on hand
·         The risk of your money being spent if the money is deposited in someone else’s account

Our product effectively eliminates all of the above problems for companies and you, the employees. Imbongi Capital incorporates electronically ABSA bank as a deposit taker in the form of a 407 Systems Trust Account, they will handle all the cash. Mercentile Bank, which issues the Mastercard that you will use to transact, this card is a balance of payment card which is valid in 192 countries, including Zimbabwe. In the case of migrants, they don’t have to carry cash when they are going home. They would simply go to a Mastercard affiliated ATM in their home country and make withdrawals.

In South Africa you can use any Saswitch ATM, the costs to you, the employee are minimal. This system enables you to earn your salary directly into your own account and give you the dignity of having a safe and secure account. All migrants and locals are welcome. You can also take the card to your home country if you are supporting dependants and they would simply withdraw or swipe in any shop. No more going to the Malaisha’s who charge 20% and are very unreliable.

In the next few months we will also have a policy that if a worker should die at work, it will repatriate their body to their home country with regards to migrants as well as anywhere in the country for locals. It will also pay a lump sum amount to a beneficiary that is nominated by the account holder. In addition to this we will also have a 2 card system where and individual will keep 1 card and take the second to their family within or outside South Africa. From their cellphone they will be able to load the second card, and allow their dependants to make withdrawals, this will be free of charge. Think of it as a free and easy money transfer system.

Imbongi Capital is registered with the Payments Association of South Africa and that it has a Third Party Payment Processor Licence issued by the Reserve Bank of South Africa. That means your money is absolutely safe. Call: (011) 022 2929 or (011) 339 3629 alternatively E-Mail: azunga@adexchange.co.za to open an account or if you are interested in becoming a sales agent.

Kind Regards
-----
Allen Zunga
Chief Executive Officer
Africa Diaspora Exchange (Pty) Ltd
Tel: (+2711) 022 2929
Fax: (+2786) 542 9148
Mobile: (+2772) 745 8669
E-mail: azunga@adexchange.co.za
Web: www.adexchange.co.za

Finally! There is Now a Cure for the Dreaded January Disease!

2012-01-12T11:27:00.000+02:00

Finally! I Think There is Now a Cure for the January Disease!

It may not be a medical condition at all but it is still as feared as any other epidemic. It is normally dormant for most of the year but has an annual outbreak at the start of each year. No wonder why it is now commonly known as the dreaded January Disease!

As I have already alluded to it, the January Disease is neither clinical nor a medical in nature but it is in essence, a socio-economical phenomenon. As such, no amount of immunisation or vaccination can ever be able to prevent the disease from having its dreaded yearly wave of social upheaval and utter mayhem.

The origins of the dreaded January Disease concept are unknown. There is virtually no research that has been conducted to date to try and ascertain the concept’s origins.

However what is more commonly known are the possible reasons why at every start of each new year there is always a serious outbreak of this dreaded disease.

There may be several factors that influence the outbreak of the January Disease but there are at least three obvious reasons that can be easily ascertained.

Firstly, during the month of December, most employees normally get paid at least a week or two earlier than usual. In fact in most cases, salaries are normally paid out on or just before mid-December. This then creates an anomalous situation in which the period up to the next salary at the end of January is extended by about two weeks. As such it thus so happens, that it is only at this time of the year that the waiting period up to the next salary date is a bit longer than usual.

For those who get paid under a wages system, the period is also lengthened by the mere fact that most industries have their general annual shutdown from about mid-December till mid-January. This then automatically disrupts the rhythm of the regular weekly or bi-weekly income and expenditure system for the employees.

The second and perhaps the most influential reason is the high level of consumerism that affects society during the Christmas festive break. It is now a time honoured tradition that Christmas is a time of excessive celebrations that induce society to incur a lot of unbudgeted expenses especially at a retail level.

Traditionally, consumers indulge in impulsive expenditure during this festive period more than in any other time of the year. In fact most retailers now assume that December should always have the highest number of sales more than any other month of the year.

Unfortunately the excessive expenditure that occurs during the festive season also means that financial discipline is also thrown out of the window. Most people find themselves ignoring the obvious demands of their regular monthly payments. As such, by the start of the year, most people always wake up to the awful reality of unpaid bills and instalments.

The third reason is somewhat related to the preceding one. During the festive mood of December, a lot of people do their best to forget that when January arrives, it will bring with it some irregular expenses related to a completely new school calendar year. When schools reopen in mid-January, expenditure is normally higher that during the rest of the year.

Apart from the regular school fees, there are usually a lot of other expenses such as stationery, new uniforms and sports attire, among others that are required for the learners.

It is therefore by reason of the foregoing, among other factors that lead to a lot of budgetary shortfalls and cash-flow problems almost always for the majority of the people at the start of the year.

The recurrence of this very difficult period of financial hardships is now commonly known as the dreaded January Disease.

But then, the big question is whether there is any antidote that can be used against this exceptional disease?

It seems a lot of people suffering from the January Disease in their desperation have mistakenly assumed that the easy way out of the whole difficulty is to get a short term loan from the micro finance service providers who are otherwise also known as the loan sharks or ‘omatshonisa”.

They are a very popular option since they have very user friendly and highly flexible conditions for anyone who would like a quick loan. They also normally operate without much paperwork. This is a big pull factor especially when one considers the complicated bureaucratic loan application approval process that commercial banks also insist upon.

Unfortunately, there is always a big catch in this quick fix solution. The loan providers normally have a high interest rate and also demand some furniture items as part of their guarantee for the loan. They also normally increase the interest rates unilaterally especially if one defaults in their loan repayments process. At the end of the day, they often find themselves embroiled in a crippling debt trap that also ensures that they spend the rest of the year struggling to wiggle out of the vicious debt cycle process.

Others normally go for an overdraft option at the bank. This is a simple short term solution that for most people soon becomes a long term burden since most people always struggle to return their bank account to its normal condition of service.

Some use their credit cards to pay themselves out of the immediate expenses. But this then also means that they would also be digging themselves deeper into the debt hole.

Others also apply for some salary advance payments from their employers. This also affects their ability to pay their regular monthly expenses at the end of January and the resultant domino effect also affects their income for the rest of the year.

So after all has been said and done, is there any real hope for a more practical solution to this annual problem?

Yes.

There could be a partial solution that can go a long way into resolving the perennial problems of the dreaded January Disease. Well, sort of!

The answer may actually lie in the concept of the annual 13^th cheque that is popularly known as the ‘bonus’. It is proposed that instead of paying out the bonus during November or December as often is the tradition, employers must delay the payment process till after the 10^th of January.

This will ensure that for most people, the reality of their capacity to expend will not be blurred by the vision of the extra money that is normally deposited into their accounts in December. It could also help to tone down the high level of excessive consumerism during the festive break.

It would also mean that come mid-January when the whole Christmas spending spree madness has finally subsided, most people will still people be able to get the bonus and use it to cover the family related expenses especially at the start of the new school year.

But then, there are those who work for employers who do not have the bonus option at the end of the year. What then is the possible solution for such cases? It is proposed that every January, they must be given an option to join a special Christmas savings scheme that banks could provide via their own employers.

This would mean that during the course of the year, the banks will be effecting some monthly deduction on their salaries. The money will then be deposited into special high interest yielding savings accounts. At the start of the next year, the banks will then give the clients the option to withdraw the exact amount that may be needed to cover their expenses in January.

Any money left over from the mid-January expenditure would automatically be part of the initial savings for that year. This will thus ensure that come every January of each year, there are fewer and fewer employees who found themselves exposed to the January Disease.

Perhaps then, it might also mean the end of this problematic phenomenon known as the January Disease once and for all. Well, sort of!

Zimbabwe Rebranded – The Hope for the Future

2011-12-06T09:42:00.000+02:00

Daniel Molokele loves Zimbabwe. Even when he is in Johannesburg, a thousand miles away, his home remains special to him.

The International Co-ordinator of the Global Zimbabwe Forum, Molokele’s ambition is to return to a prosperous nation. He reckons that this could be achieved if he and millions of fellow exiles helped to restore the country’s status as the bread basket of Southern Africa.

The starting point, he believes, is to market it as an economic, rather than a political package.

“Zimbabwe will be great again,” he says with conviction. It took a decade to bring the country to its knees, but the lawyer is convinced that it would take less than three to revive it.
“We have many professionals outside the country. Our aim is to get them on board. We need to forget politics a bit and present a new economic package.”

The Hwange-born Molokele is confident that the GZF, an organisation that draws membership from across foreign bases, can best drive his agenda. Launched in December 2007 and headquartered in Geneva, the organisation wants to attract investment from both Zimbabwean exiles and international companies.

“Historically, Zimbabwe was never known to be a warrior nation, but drew much of its fame from trade. That is the status we want to revive.”
The country’s political situation has given it a “tarnished goods” status, but Molokele said this could be changed.

“We will re-brand and present it as a new country. My dream is for every Zimbabwean to feel proud that they come from this wonderful nation – the Great Zimbabwe. Once we take our country from the last name in the alphabet mentally, it will be easy for us to move forward,” he said.

Emulating his host country, where “Proudly South African” is a vehicle to promote trade and investment, he has steered the GZF into adopting “Great Zimbabwe” as the new brand.

“We are a great people from a great nation and we all have to believe that. From the days of Munhumutapa, Zimbabwe has been known to be a trading nation. Even its colonisation was done under the British South Africa Company as a way of advancing business interests. We have been down in the dumps for long and it is time we rise again.”

His activities are the continuation of a dream Molokele had as he grew up in the hot mining town of Hwange, 336 km north of Bulawayo.

“When I grew up, my parents taught me to appreciate who I am and take pride in it. That rubbed into love for my country and I will never hide my identity as a great Zimbabwean,” he adds.

Born Fortune Mguni on January 31, 1975, Molokele has risen to prominence as a pro-democracy human rights lawyer. He inherited leadership qualities from his now late father, Godfrey Majahana Mguni, a career trade unionist and prominent community leader in Hwange, being elected as the Workers Committee Chairperson between 1979 and 1994.

The elder Mguni, who was also a key leader of both the Associated Mineworkers Union of Zimbabwe and the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions, passed on in September 2003. Molokela's mother, Jane Mpofu, is a retired career educator who specialised in pre-school education.

Keen on reclaiming his original family identity, Molokele assumed his new name in 2000. His father's family only started using the Mguni surname after the death of his grandfather in the early 1970s.
The name-change helped him re-unite with his father's original people, the Molokele clan in Mafikeng, South Africa, in September 2004.

Molokele began his activism as a student leader at the University of Zimbabwe between 1995 to 1999. He is a former Secretary General (1995-96), Vice President (1996-97) and President (1998-99) of the Univeristy of Zimbabwe Students Union.

He also served as the Vice President of the Zimbabwe National Students Union (ZINASU) Execuitive led by the late Learnmore Jongwe in 1997-99.

He is respected for being a visionary and principled leader.

He is studying for his third law degree, but the quest for a successful Zimbabwe remains deep-rooted in his mind.

He is instrumental in the recently-launched Diaspora Education Support Initiative, which seeks to promote the active role of the Diaspora in pushing the country’s education system to world class status.

“The initiative was inspired and motivated by members’ patriotic duty and their appreciation and love for our beautiful motherland, Zimbabwe,” said Molokele.

“The initiative shall be a loose network of various organisations based in the Diaspora community. A Co-ordination Committee will also be a public interactive platform for the Ministry of Education to engage key stakeholders in the education sector, both in Zimbabwe and in the Diaspora.”
The forum will comprise radio, television, public meetings, debates, and internet-based social platforms.

A trust will be set up in Zimbabwe under the Ministry of Education. It will be the official public platform to link stakeholders and facilitate public donations from exiles to the education sector.

Features of the initiative include the Zimbabwe Adopt a School Project, meant to create support linkages between the Diaspora community and selected schools, which will receive financial and material support from the Diaspora community for a specific period.

“Some educators will be assigned to specific schools or colleges in Zimbabwe for some specific periods on a voluntary basis, there will be opportunities for those based in the country to be assigned outside to gain international exposure. The programme will be implemented in partnership with the relevant departments of the Ministry of Education and other key stakeholders in the education sector in Zimbabwe,” added Molokele.

Trade and investment programmes also remain in place, which if achieved will see a better, more prosperous country.

http://www.thezimbabwean.co.uk/comment/opinion/55105/zimbabwe-rebranded-the-hope-for.html

Canaan Sodindo Banana: To Err is Human But to Forgive is Divine!

2011-11-11T16:12:00.000+02:00

Oh how so much time flies! Today it was exactly eight years since he passed away. Canaan Sodindo Banana died on 10th November 2003. He was 67 years old at that time, having been born on 5th March 1936.

As we might all know by the time he passed away, he was by then regarded as one of the most controversial political leaders in Zimbabwean history! In fact I can also dare say that he was by then so discredited by the political establishment as a disgraceful villain.

To emphasise his very incredible fall from grace, he was denied any form of State recognition for his lifelong contribution to the people of Zimbabwe. Indeed was accompanied in his last journey by a very few of his comrades whom he had spent most of his adult life rubbing shoulders with while shaping our national discourse.

While I accept that he was not a perfect man. While I also accept he made some very serious mistakes. I cannot and will never accept the way his legacy to the people of Zimbabwe has been undermined and taken for granted.

I refuse to label Banana as a lonely forgotten hero. I also refuse to ignore what he did for my country. But i choose to appreciate him and also celebrate all that he did for Zimbabwe.

Specifically, one of his biggest contributions was his mediatory role in ending the selfish political fracas between (PF) Zapu and Zanu (PF). I choose to fondly remember that fateful night on 22nd December 1987 when he stood at the centre of the two fighting giants, Joshua Nkomo and Robert Mugabe.

On that night when he was not a referee but a mediator of the national Unity Accord that ended more than five years of senseless loss of thousands of civilian life in both Midlands and Matabeleland. On the very same night that through his patient but determined mediation, the terror filled years of the Gukurahundi genocide ended officially.

I do recall that as a child when I was growing up in the coal mining town of Hwange, I used to be fascinated by a message written in a barbershop that I used to get my hair cuts at. It read thus, ‘When I do well no one remembers but when I do wrong, no one forgets!’

That saying aptly sums up how we as the people of Zimbabwe have treated the Banana legacy. We have clearly applied a selective memory when it comes to the need to appreciate his true value to our national development.

We have chosen to conveniently forget all the good things that Banana did for us but fully remember the mistakes that he made. Yet we all know that no one can ever be perfect. Indeed we all know that to err is human and to forgive is divine.

And so I take this opportunity to apologise for all the mistakes that Canaan made in his life but also to celebrate all the good things that he did for our country.

I pray for the day when a balanced view of Banana’s true legacy will be given to our posterity. I continue to pray for that day when the people of Zimbabwe will accept that while he may not have been a saint, he was no doubt a patriotic son of the soil. May that day dawn sooner than later!

GZF SA Hosts Successful Consultation Meeting

2011-11-07T09:57:00.000+02:00

The Global Zimbabwe Forum South Africa chapter managed to host a successful meeting on Saturday 5th November 2011.

The meeting was held at the Braamfontein Centre in Johannesburg

About 15 representatives from various civil society organisations based in South Africa such as the Peace and Democracy Project, Zimbabwe Youth Wing, Tree of Life Project, among others managed to attend the meeting.

The meeting had various discussions on such issues as the activities from all the represented organisations; issues around the dispensation and deportations of Zimbabweans from South Africa.

There was a discussion on other possible challenges for 2012 especially those related to the possible referendum and elections in Zimbabwe

The partnerships that the GZF is forging with other organisations such as the local chapter of Amnesty International also came under spotlight

In the end, the meeting also agreed to have some co-options into the depleted national Co-ordination Committee for the GZF in South Africa.

The Committee now consists of the following members:

1. Solomon Sox Chikohwero (Chairperson)

2. Doctor Ncube (Vice Chairperson)

3. Chibi Chauruka (Treasurer)

4. Lilian Samson (Committee Member)

5. Sipho Moyo (Committee Member)

6. Luke Zunga (Committee Member)

7. Godfrey Phiri (Committee Member)

8. Gilbert Moyo (Committee Member)

Nora Tapiwa will continue with her role as the voluntary National Co-ordinator.

GZF South Africa to Host Open Meeting

2011-10-31T11:17:00.000+02:00

Dear All
The Global Zimbabwe Forum South Africa chapter kindly invites you to an open consultative meeting

Venue: Amnesty International Board Room, 10th Floor Braamfontein Centre, Johannesburg

Date : Saturday 5th November 2011

Time : 10am to 1pm

RSVP: Nora Chengeto Tapiwa on +27 79 138 3896

Human Rights Are Not Only For the Majorities!

2011-10-25T22:20:00.000+02:00

by Daniel Molokele

Why is it that in our quest to realise the full attainment of our own human rights, we often find it so difficult to appreciate the fact that there are others out there too who are in the same journey with us? Why is it that we find it so hard to accept that it is not just us who deserve the full realisation of our own human rights?

My simple point is that human rights are not just universal but are also very individualistic in terms of practical application. In other words, human rights are a very personal experience.

Put in other terms, no one has the right to decide which rights can be enjoyed by another human being to the exclusion of other available rights. Absolutely no one!

This is more so in particular in cases where there is a dominant and vocal majority in question. It is just that when it comes to the realisation of human rights, the majorities are not always right!

Ideally, it is such a very sad scenario when a powerful minority group imposes its own interpretation on the practical application of human rights over the majorities. Such was the case during the colonial era when the minority white races originally from Europe, managed for hundreds of years to enjoy a much larger chunk of human rights at the expense of the marginalised black majorities. Colonialism was and remains a totally unacceptable and very indefensible system of government.

Related to that, the world has also experienced another form of racial injustice that ensured that for almost fifty years, a small minority white group enjoyed more human rights than a black majority group. Such was the abominable case with regards to the Apartheid system in South Africa from 1948 to 1990.

However, it must be pointed out in no uncertain terms that what is good for the goose is also equally good for the gender! In as much as we must all abhor and condemn any form of human rights applications in society that excludes the majorities, we must also be loud and vocal in deriding similar practices that marginalise the minorities in our midst.

In other words, we must not be reluctant to challenge any populist view however moralist it may sound, as long as it is seeks to practically deprive the full realisation of human rights for minority groups.

In an ideal democracy, the full attainment of human rights must always hinge on every individual citizen. Both the state and the government must be keen to equally protect both the rights of the majorities and those of the minorities in that country.

No state law or government policy must be accepted if it seeks to derogate any rights of the minorities under whatsoever circumstances! This is crucial especially when it comes to the country supreme law of the land, the national Constitution.

We must also seek to ensure that the Bill of Rights in every Constitution primarily seeks to protect the individual rights of every citizen and not to withhold any of their human rights entitlements.

This principle must apply to all the nations, including Zimbabwe among others.

Amnesty International to Host Consultation Meeting With Zimbabweans in SA

2011-10-14T14:05:00.001+02:00

Amnesty International will host a consultative meeting on human rights issues with some representatives of the Zimbabwean community in South Africa soon.

The representatives will be drawn mainly from the various Zimbabwean civil society and community based organisations that are operational in the country

The meeting will be held at a venue in Johannesburg on Saturday 22nd October 2011

Global Zimbabwe Forum (South Africa) is actively assisting with the preparations for the event.

Arsene Wenger: A Tribute to a Football Legend

2011-09-30T12:50:00.000+02:00

Arsene Wenger: A Tribute to a FootballLegend

Arsene Wenger this weekcelebrated his 15^th year as the manager of Arsenal Football Club. Thisis a really enviable achievement when one considers the mere fact that he isalready officially recognised as the London’s club longest serving coach in itsentire history.

Added to that, the club itself isalso celebrating a remarkable 125 years of competitive existence.

Being a football coach is certainlynot one of the most secure jobs in the career market. In fact it is one of themost unreliable jobs in terms of tenure and longevity. This is more so in thehighly competitive English premier football league. The competition is toughthat annually, at least a third of the coaches in the league have to leavetheir jobs under very unceremonious circumstances.

In spite of all this, Wenger hasstill not managed to retain his high pressure job but also set a high standardfor success like no other coach in its 125 year old history. In so doing,Wenger has set a new yardstick for success at the club both in terms of longevityof tenure and also the magnitude of success.

He has now surpassed yet anotherof Arsenal’s coaching legends, Herbert Chapman who until then held both therecords for the longest serving and most successful coach in the club’s proud history.

Chapman was the coach of the clubbetween 1925 and 1934.

But like Wenger, Chapman was a visionarywho was way ahead of his time. Like Wenger, he was also a peerlessrevolutionary. It was during his tenure that Arsenal sealed its lofty status asone of England’s elite football clubs.

However, Wenger has not onlymanaged to match up to the legendary Chapman’s lofty standards but has also surpassedthem in a spectacular manner. Today, Arsenal is not just one of the most eliteclubs in England but it is now an acclaimed football brand in both Europe andthe rest of the world.

In Africa for example, Arsenal isnow the most supported football club in the entire continent. Under Wenger, theclub has grown in the football crazy continent and easily surpassed bothManchester United and Liverpool in mass popular appeal. This is largely due tothe fact that inherent in Wenger’s legacy at the Arsenal, is a series of Frenchspeaking football stars who helped him garner so much success over the years.

It was Wenger who was braveenough to recruit little known African footballers who have now grown to becomehousehold names like George Weah, Emmanuel Adebayor, Kolo Toure and AlexanderSong.

This enabled Arsenal to have across-cultural and linguistical appeal to both Anglo and Franco phone Africa; afeat that other great English clubs like Chelsea, Liverpool and ManchesterUnited have so far failed to surpass or let alone match.

However, it was also hispreference for buying players from his native France that went a long way inhelping Arsenal build its large base of fans across Africa. For example, hebrought to London such legends as Thierry Henry who very much like Wenger, wasa ‘nobody’ when he first arrived in England but grew in stature so much till hebecame a global soccer icon.

Today, Henry is regarded asArsenal’s greatest football player ever. Need I mention the likes of PatrickViera, Nicholas Anelka, Robert Pires, Emmanuel Petit, Sylvain Wiltord and morerecently, Samir Nasri?

Outside Africa, Wenger has alsohelped Arsenal to develop a global appeal. It may not yet be the world’s mostfamous football brand but Arsenal is now definitely up there with the eliteclubs like Manchester United, Barcelona and Real Madrid.

So what have been Arsene’sbiggest achievements during his record breaking tenure in North London?

I think his greatest achievementso far is a close tie between his decisions to give the little known Juventusflop Henry, a chance at the Arsenal orthe 49 match unbeaten run by his 2003-4 team now known as the ‘Invincibles’.

In so doing, he also evolved theteam’s style of play into one of the most entertaining ones in the world offootball. Just like Brazil, Arsenal has now become every football fan’s secondfavourite team!

The other possible contendercould be his overseeing the visionary move from the old iconic Highbury stadiumto the new one at the Ashburton Grove. This move was part of the variousaspects that Wenger he invested in to ensure that the club not only moderniseditself but strategically positioned itself as a global football icon.

And of course, Wenger has led theGunners to a lot of trophy success! He has won the league title three times andhas won the FA cup four times. He has also led the team to its only ever UEFAclub Champions League final in 2006.

It is on this highly emotivesubject that I end my well-deserved tribute to this great man. It is true thatsince 2005, Arsenal has not yet one a trophy but this should not be used as alegitimate excuse to undermine the legacy of his spectacular success over theyears.

Wenger has paid dearly forputting the long term interests of the club by his financial prudence that hasled to Arsenal being regarded as one of the best run clubs in the world today. Theclub has multiple-ownership and prides itself in a long term self-sustainingoperational model. This will ensure that the club not only celebrates its 125years anniversary but lives long enough to be competitively existent in theyear 2136 when it will celebrate its 250 years anniversary!

This is no mean feat especiallyif one considers that Wenger had not yet proved himself when he landed in Londonon that fateful day in September 1996. He was such a NOBODY at that time enoughto inspire a derogatory headline one of the leading newspapers in England thatscreamed aloud the big question, ‘ARSENE WHO?’

Well we do now know who ArseneWenger is today! He is a revolutionary, visionary and peerless football legend!There is only ONE Arsene Wenger!

Swaziland Activists Thank Global Zimbabwe Forum For Solidarity

2011-09-12T14:19:00.001+02:00

"SUDF/SCCCO Salutes Global Solidarity, Condemns Police Brutality"

The Coordination Team comprising the Swaziland United Democratic Front (SUDF) and the Swaziland Coalition of Concerned Civic Organizations (SCCCO) hereby acknowledges and salutes Swaziland Civil Society (CS) in its entirety and our international solidarity partners for once again duly heeding our call to participate in the ongoing Global Week of Action on Swaziland (GWoAS) in and outside our borders.

We wish to express our indebtedness in particular to COSATU and its affiliates, particularly SAMWU, NUMSA, SATAWU, SACCAWU for continuing the trend they set last year by actually gracing us with their presence despite the risks to their membership of defiantly re-entering the borders of Swaziland following their unwelcoming and humiliating treatment by the Swaziland police during last year's GWoAS. Comrades, you have once more demonstrated your unflinching commitment to the cause of multiparty democracy in Swaziland by actually putting your money where your mouth is.

We say a big THANK YOU!

We cannot leave out the Global Zimbabwe Forum who, have continued to ensure that Comrade Solomon Sox Chikohwero represents them among the throngs of pro-democracy Swazis in the streets of Mbabane, Manzini, Nhlangano, Siteki, etc.

To the South Africa Chapter of the Swaziland Democracy Campaign (SDC), we say we note your invaluable contribution in profiling the pro-democracy struggle worldwide, resulting in SDC chapters proliferating in Africa and beyond. We do not underestimate the value of the Swaziland Chapter, which forms the anchor and thread for the entire pro-democracy campaign.

We realize that it is through this chapter's determined work in the dangerous political terrain inside Swaziland that 37 countries of the globe are commemorating GWoAS in solidarity with us this week. Finally, we welcome and appreciate the thousands of people and organizations all over the world who continue to stand by us during such trying times, including the work of the SSN forum in raising our issues.

In this regard, we wish to acknowledge and warmly accept messages of solidarity from the WFTU, Africa Contact (AC), the SACP, the ANCYL, Botswana National Front (BNF), Action Support Centre (ASC), National Union of Mineworkers of South Africa (NUMSA), Swaziland Student Union (SSU), NEHAWU, Communication Workers Union of South Africa (CWUSA), ITUC, WFTU, Action for Southern Africa (ACTSA), ITUC, and many others, for their untiring support.

The SUDF/SCCCO Coordination takes this opportunity to condemn in the strongest terms the uncalled for brutality meted out to demonstrators and students in Siteki and Mbabane respectively yesterday. We are appalled at the arrest and forceful removal of visiting COSATU Deputy President, Comrade Zingiswa Losi and COSATU Deputy International Secretary, Comrade Zanele Matebula in Siteki.

We say to the SA government and the international community, here is once again evidence of the intolerance that reflects absence of democracy against which we have been struggling all along. How much more brutality do you need to convince you that Swaziland suffers foremost from a political sickness that unconditional economic bailouts will never remedy? We therefore insist on stringent political reforms attached to any such bailouts from whatever source.

Forward with the spirit of non-surrender forward! The actions continue and conclude in Mbabane on Friday. Amandla!

For more information, kindly contact:
Mduduzi Gina (SUDF)
comfortmgina@yahoo.com
+26876119211

Musa Hlophe (SCCCO)
sccco@swazi.net
+26876048988

Life in Exile Under the Rule of the Malemas!

2011-09-02T10:40:00.000+02:00

by Ishmael Kauzani

On behalf of the Zimbabwe Youth Wing Organization, i would like to express our social, economic and political statement. An overview opinion in regards to Malema's issue and the current state of affairs in South Africa since his disciplinary hearing started on Tuesday.

Firstly, i would like to justify our standing point, reassuring those in power (ANC) that we do not intend to neither incite violence nor intervene directly since we are restricted by your Constitutional mandate upon foreign nationals.

We strongly feel, it is too late to reprimand Malema and his allies accordingly because the consequences are likely to affect industrial growth, harmony in social relations and business prospects in this country and the SADC region at large.

Whatever decision they will take and the outcome too; that is, if there is one! ANC will never be the same again because it seems they are many political heavy-weights involved in this saga.

Certainly, some unfortunate individuals will be sacrificed in the process despite the possibility of Zanu PF involvement and influence since President Jacob Zuma started pushing for the implementation of SADC Election Road Map in Zimbabwe.

Why is the outcome of the hearing is taking too much time? It is a huge burden to the tax payers in terms of the remuneration to the task team involved before engaging other costs. Not to mention the loses by traders who were affected by riots and looting in the streets of Johannesburg.

Surprisingly, these are the same politicians who humiliated former President Thabo Mbeki after the famous Polokwane Conference and the very same Julius Malema was on the forefront in recalling him!

Personally, i am not Mbeki's fan because he betrayed Zimbabweans living in exile through biased mediation during his tenure as SADC mediator by giving Zanu PF a lifeline in the Government of National Unity also known as (GNU) in Zimbabwe.

The repercussions of the decision are likely to be felt at both domestic and the reginal level, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) was supposed to investigate Malema's alleged dealings before this seating and ANC would have a better solid ground to fire him.

Somehow, Advocate Thuli Madonsela has suspended the NPA investigations on Malema's empire because of inadequacy resources?

The motivation seems to add rather than subtract from the lawlessness prevailing in the SADC region as Zimbabwe, DRC (Congo) and Madagascar are now known as high risk areas. They are now among five hot spots in the region including Swaziland and Malawi, according to a survey done by some SADC analysts.

The indefinate closure of SADC Tribunal in August 2010 was also unacceptable since it prevents the citizens of SADC from accessing the very mechanism created to ensure compliance with with the law and provide redress for wrongs suffered.

We will consider a court action against the ANCYL at the SADC Tribunal once it is functional again for calling opposition parties in Zimbabwe imperialists fronts. This is sadly, a prejudicial stance which unfortunately may incite xenophobic attacks on Zimbabweans living in South Africa.

Aluta Continua!

* Ishmael Kauzani is a Johannesburg based Zimbabwean pro-democcracy youth activist.

Luxury Gate and the MDC’s False Sense of ‘Arrival’

2011-09-01T10:01:00.000+02:00

By Tabani Moyo

The dust of the government’s hollywood lifestyle is refusing to settle down. It cannot settle down especially when the people are living in such a sea of poverty. However, the development has shown beyond reasonable doubt that the MDCs are stuck in an omnibus syndrome to governance. The mimicry politics have taken over the voice of reason as the so called ‘democratic change merchants’ stampede for the gravy train.

I happened to bump into three ministers one from the MDC and two from the MDC-T riding in their new filthy lucre. The windows where lowered, music loud as if to attract attention from the public in the exhibition of a newly acquired status. The status of a polished league of gentlemen/women I guess. I said god forbid. These are not business people who have the leeway to do whatever they want with their profits, but public officials ridding on the poor taxpayers’ hard earned income.

What happened to the so called paragons of virtue, those who saw everything wrong about public officials abusing state funds on luxuries? The virtue seems to have sublimated during the ‘opposition’ times, as the train gets more gravy laced, the elements of virtue are crucified on the altar of public suffrage.

As we stand no single minister has declined the offer of these fuel guzzlers, their consciences are clean and their declaration of intent manifest that they are still in a struggle for a better Zimbabwe!

Personally, I don’t have a problem with ZANU PF being implicated in this bangle, we as a people know of its heinous deeds. That’s why the people of Zimbabwe risked limb and life in forming and supporting an alternative vehicle to rid the rot in ZANU PF. It becomes confusing when the line between ZANU PF’s actions and those of the MDCs becomes blurred.
20 million on luxuries!

The Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (ZESA) is set to increase the utility cost of delivering energy. The public hospitals have collapsed, children this summer shall die of mosquito bites, the industry performing below 30%, women failing access basic sanitary facilities and our education system turning into an elitist platform among other things.

With the above cacophony of problems, we have learnt that ZANU PF and the MDCs can actually unite in ‘looting’ from the poor. The current blame shifts between Minister of Transport, Infrastructure Development and Communication Nicholas Goche and the Minister of Finance Tendai Biti should not be tolerated to continue stealing our intellectual space in the papers.

The decision to purchase the goodies is a collective one from the cabinet which the three parties are represented.

In this process there is no room for afterthought. The three parties could not agree at cabinet level on the need to increase civil servants salaries but unanimously agreed to squeeze harder the drying pockets of the taxpayers.

As I stated before such are the pitfalls of proximity to state power it exposes the cravings which were going to manifest themselves soon after the ‘opposition’ takes total control of state power. We are better off with some of these happenings are unfolding at this juncture of our cultivation as a people.

The MDCs only got into office two years ago; they are already leaving the lives of movie stars or the English premier soccer stars.

One can only remind the MDCs of the calamity of approaching this ‘struggle’ with omnibus gloves. It gives the impression of a false sense of ‘arrival’, a false sense of destiny. The ministers believe, their yearnings have been achieved, hence the need to amass as much as they can before sporadic cabinet reshuffles.

These state trappings are dangerous for the same people who came up with these platforms or movements can still do the same and push aside primitive ‘accumulativists’ into political dustbins.

Tabani Moyo can be contacted at rebeljournalist@yahoo.com

Open Invitation to a Report Launch Event From CIVICUS and OSISA

2011-08-31T14:55:00.000+02:00

You are invited...

CIVICUS: World Alliance For Citizen Participation and the Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa (OSISA) are very pleased to invite you to the launch of the 2008-2011 Phase of the Civil Society Index (CSI) findings and summary report: Bridging the gaps: Citizens, organisations and dissociation.

Discussion Topic:

“Are    citizens disconnected from civil society organisations?”

When: 02 September 2011 from 14:00 – 16:00 hours

Where: Ground Floor, President Place, 1 Hood Avenue / 148 Jan    Smuts Avenue
    Rosebank, South    Africa.

Snacks    will be served.

RSVP by 01 September 2011 to   Mariatu Fonnah, at mariatu.fonnah@civicus.org. If you have    already RSVP'd, this is for information purposes only. Please feel free to  invite your networks!

Meeting on the Diaspora and Zimbabwean Education a Huge Success!

2011-08-25T15:00:00.000+02:00

Dear colleagues and friends

I am so happy to let you now that several organisations in the Diaspora have just hosted a successful initial skype meeting whose agenda was the possible supportive role of the Diaspora in the education sector back home in Zimbabwe.

We will be sharing with you some of the key resolutions of the meeting in the next few days.

The skype meeting was attended by the following persons:

1. Daniel Molokele (skype host) – SA

2. Dewa Mavhinga (chairing) – SA

3. Michelle Hakata – UK

4. Whiteboy Tembo – Australia

5. Stan Mukasa – USA

6. Jerry Bungu – Botswana

7. Solomon Chikohwero – SA

8. Grace Mupfurutsa - UK

9. Lenox Mhlanga – Botswana

10. Linos Mapfumo - SA

11. Walter Mpofu - UK

Daggers Drawn OutAgainst Malema and the Youth League

2011-08-22T15:57:00.000+02:00

Julius Sello ‘Juju’ Malema whowas born on 3rd March 1981 in the northern Limpopo province, hassuddenly become the new bold face of South African politics.

The African NationalCongress (ANC) Youth League President has in the past five years experienced ameteoric rise to national, if not international recognition.
So love him or hatehim, you simply cannot ignore him at all.

In a country that is at crossroads in terms of being decisive in terms of both its identity and itsmorality, Malema appears to be slowly emerging as a compass for the country’snext future direction.

Just a few months ago, he wasoverwhelmingly given a new mandate to be the leader of the highly vocal YouthLeague at its major conference in June at Midrand.

But perhaps what is moresignificant is the manner in which he retained the presidency of the youthmovement. Unlike at the previous congress at Mangaung during April 2008, wherehe won a hotly disputed contest against Saki Mofokeng, this time Malema rompedto victory virtually unchallenged.

The ANC Youth League Chairperson for theGauteng province Lebogang Maile was rumoured to be the only possible credible challengerto Malema but when even his own province nominated his would be rival as itspreferred candidate, the race was immediately declared a no-contest.

So as fate would have it, Malema was re-elected unopposed after being resoundingly backed by all the provincesof the youth movement.

Traditionally, the Youth Leagueis highly regarded as a serious kingmaker in the higher echelons of ANCpolitics and Malema has moved fast to reassert its role in this regard. In athinly veiled threat to the ANC President Jacob Zuma, he declared during hisvictory speech on 16th June that the Youth League would only backcandidates who also publicly backed its policy positions.

Pointedly the two major positionsthat the youth movement are already pushing for seem to be at logger heads withZuma’s interests.

Firstly, the youth league ispushing for a radical leadership renewal at the centenary 2012 conference inMangaung. Specifically they are calling for youth candidates to dominate thenew leadership that will be elected at the congress. According to the plan, theYouth League will ensure that most of the old guard will be challenged byyounger candidates who will be fully backed it.

In particular, they are seekingfor the election of their former leader, the firebrand known as Fikile Mbalulaas the new Secretary General. In so doing, they find themselves at directloggerhead with the Young Communist League (YCL), the South African CommunistParty (SACP) and potentially the Congress of South African Trade Unions(COSATU) who are most likely to re-affirm their support for the incumbent,Gwede Mantashe.

Unenviably, Zuma has to decidewhether to side with the Youth League or the traditional Alliance partners.This is a very tough call for him to make since it could make or break him atthe 2012 Congress if he backs the losing horse.

Secondly, the Youth League appearsmore determined than ever to continue on their unequivocal stance onnationalisation with the racially skewed mining industry as it primary target.Under Zuma’s leadership, the ANC appears to be more diplomatic and ambivalenton its stance. This is in direct contrast to the decisive position that theYouth League has taken already.

Curiously though, while the YouthLeague stance has been dismissed as populist by many critics, it is actually amore realistic approach from a broader national perspective. A lot of SouthAfricans especially the black majorities are most likely to be swayed by theYouth League’s radical rhetoric as it is. Significantly it is the black youthwho are wallowing in the muddy waters of ever growing unemployment who are mostlikely to prove to be the most vocal supporters of the Youth League.

So it appears that on thismatter, Malema and his colleagues are definitely gauging the restless and volatilemood in the country. In this regard, it appears that the Youth League hassuccessfully out manoeuvred the supposedly leftist elements in the Alliancesuch as the YCL, SACP and COSATU.

And so it happens that instrategically positioning itself as the most relevant political institution atgrassroots community level, the Youth League (read Malema!) has also createdseveral other enemies in the same process.

A mere glance at the political dynamicswithin the Alliance politics, clearly suggests that the relationship betweenthe Youth League and the partners has soured in the last few years. There is nolove lost between the Youth league and the likes of YCL, SACP and COSATU.

The mood in the top brass alsoappears opaque and less crystal at the moment. However it appears that theYouth League also has a lot of backers there. In particular it seems Mbalula and the Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe have both emerged as the youthmovement’s point persons.

Another dark horse, the veteran WinnieMadikizela-Mandela has also been a close ally for Malema of late. She was seenon his side and even kissed him in public in spectacular show of strong supportduring the ‘hate speech’ trial that emanated from his controversial song ‘DubulaIbhunu’ (literally, shoot the Boer!)

Outside the ANC and Alliance politics,the Youth League has obvious enemies such as a hostile media which the youthmovement perceives to be largely dominated by the conservative and patriarchal whiteestablishment.

The Youth League appears to haveno sympathisers in the opposition parties ranks with the Democratic Alliance asits most vocal nemesis.

It is in this context that Malemaand the Youth League find themselves in the heat of battle at the moment. This isthe battle for the soul and future of the ANC that will culminate in the electiveMangaung conference in 2012.

The rise in the number of attackson both Malema and the Youth League are mere symptoms of a bigger politicalbattle as in the case of Zuma in the run up to the Polokwane conference in2007.

The big question now is whetherMalema has the same level of conviction, dexterity and may be luck, to survivethe onslaught just as Zuma did with both the serious rape and corruptioncharges in 2005.

As they say the more thingschange, the more they stay the same. Indeed history keeps repeating itselfespecially when it comes to the politics of the ANC.

These are very interesting timesto live in South Africa. Watch this space for more updated analysis as thepolitical drama continues to unfold as the race hots up for electoral glory at Mangaung in 2012.

Nora Tapiwa: Warrior for Peace and Social Justice

2011-08-18T15:11:00.000+02:00

What inspired me the most about Nora Tapiwa was how she still manages to keep hope alive – against all odds.

Zimbabwe was liberated by people in the diaspora in 1980, says Nora Tapiwa.

You may not have heard about this amazing woman - because she is not a diva activist. But her diminutive appearance masks a larger-than-life activist within. When she begins to speak, she is transformed into a warrior for peace and social justice.

Norah is a family-oriented person who describes herself as a mother, grandmother, widow, banker by profession and last but not least an activist by passion. She works tirelessly with an unrelenting enthusiasm – and draws no salary.

“I survive by God’s grace and handouts,” she said when I asked about her lifestyle. She was widowed and left to raise two children on her own.

“It’s tough living as a parent in a foreign country, with no salary or school fees for your children,” she said. I’m startled to realise that her voice does not have a single trace of self pity. She is not looking for people to throw her a pity party. Rather, she is looking for honest and sincere ways of resolving the crisis in Zimbabwe.

Tapiwa is one of the many unsung heroes in the struggle for a democratic Zimbabwe.

“I get value from making a difference to other people’s lives, especially those at grassroots levels,” she said. It is obvious that she is not looking for any particular recognition for the work she has done.

“Recognition for what? We are not in this for the recognition. I don’t blow my own trumpet,” she says.

Far away from newspaper headlines and television appearances, Tapiwa has led the fight for exiled Zimbabwean teachers. She was hugely involved in discussions with the South African government that culminated in the documentation programme run by the Department of Home Affairs.

She is reluctant to answer a question of whether she feels robbed that she has fought the struggles of other professions but no one seems to be fighting for her.

“We have a leadership vacuum in Zimbabwe which must not be exported to the diaspora. Teachers were being de-professionalised in the diaspora and we could not just sit by and watch so we engaged the South African government and they were allowed to teach at some schools. Teachers are the backbone of society,” she says.

This kind of activism did not spring to life in South Africa for Norah. “I was part of the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Union (ZCTU), and whenever we led a strike action, we would not get paid but I did it anyway because it was a small price to pay to improve our working conditions,” she reveals.

She also believes that activism is a calling and that it’s not for everyone, but insists that every Zimbabwe has a part to play in its liberation. “We are like a bicycle wheel, one spoke cannot sustain the whole tire. So each Zimbabwean has a role to play in the fight for our restoration,” she says.

She maintains that Zimbabwe was liberated by people in the diaspora in 1980 and that Zimbabweans in the diaspora have the power to liberate their country again.

Nora left home in 2003 because she feared for her life and that of her two children. As she describes the situation that drove her from her house, tears well up in her eyes.

“I was not part of any political organisation but black-suited man came to my house and threatened me,” she speaks quietly. We can only speculate that is was her work in the unions that gained her notoriety with the state. She hasn’t been back since she left.

Within spaces of activism, it is usually forgotten that there are lives that have to be lived, families to take care of and homes to sustain. These suffer the moment you give yourself to the struggle. But with the culture of activism changing - and people putting more emphasis on travel and per diems at the expense of work that transforms lives - those who still stand on hope alone, or on the grace of God , may feel a sense of betrayal.

Yet, women like Nora will always stand as beacons of inspiration to those who have lost everything and have been victims of politically motivated violence.

On the occasion of Women’s Month in South Africa, Nora is disillusioned. Her hope for women is that there will come a day when there won’t be a need for Women’s Day or Women’s Month. She believes that women are more passionate than men, and if they are empowered then a nation is better off.

It is the woman who makes a house a home. She does not see the relevance of commemorating days like these because there just hasn’t been sufficient awareness to stop violence against women in all its ugly forms.

Rather, she argues for more sustained resource mobilisation targeted at women to help them start their own enterprises and thus liberate themselves from poverty. “Women should not wait for things to happen but should make things happen,” she concluded. -

By Regina Pazvakavamba, Media & Communications Assistant in the Crisis in Zimbabwe regional office. Additional reporting by Levi Kabwato.

Solomon Mujuru is Dead

2011-08-16T09:56:00.000+02:00

RETIRED army general Solomon Mujuru died last night in a suspicious fire accident at his farm in Betrice in what sources claimed on Tuesday was both political and domestic motivated.

The sources, speaking strictly on condition that they would not be named, said Mujuru, the husband of vice president Joice Mujuru, died in an interno together with his girl friend.

* Radio VOP

SPEED Appears to the Password to Arsenal's Trophy Success in the New Season

2011-08-10T11:39:00.000+02:00

SPEED appears to be the main password to Arsenal football club's pathway to trophy success in the new season.

A panoramic view of the pre-season transfer strategy that Arsene Wenger has been employing clearly reveals his keen focus on buying speedy but highly technical players bustling with so much creative attack in their attributes.

The purchase of Gervino, Alex and the inclusion of Ryo seems to emphasise that point of the transfer strategy.

This becomes more pronounced when one considers the fact that contrary to popular expectations especially from the unsettled fans, Wenger hs up to now not purchased a strong and tall central defender.

Wenger seems to be reamining firm in his philosophical conviction that attack remains the best form of defence.

What has changed slighly during the long summer break is that Wenger seems to be more emphatic on the use of the counter attack as a potential weapon to unlock difficult games for the Gunners.

This then explains the obsession with speedy wingers in his present transfer strategy.

Wenger has noted that the Gunners conceded less goals from open play. However, most of their goals were from set pieces and counter attacks.

So the new strategy will be to draw the opposition towards the Arsenal side of the pitch and then unleash a speedy counter attack.

This may happen when there is a set piece for Arsenal to defend like a corner kick, and then straight from the dead ball situation, the Gunners will unleash a quick counter attack using its speedy wingers like Theo, Gervino, Alex and Ryo.

This will also have the added vallue of unsettling the tall defenders from the opposing teams who normally venture to the Arsenal half only when there is a dead ball situation.

A good example of that would be defenders like Rio Ferdinand from Manchester United, John Terry from Chelsea and Christopher Samba from Blackburn Rovers.

It seems that during the last few years, Wenger has noted that most opposing teams stay up on their side of the pitch and allow Arsenal to keep posession without any direct impact.

This is called 'parking the bus'

This season the Gunners will play less on the opposition side of the pitch and by so doing force their opponents to be drawn out towards them.

This will allow for long balls to be sent from the Arsenal backside and give the speedy wingers a chance to run behind the back of the oppositon defence with a deadly impact.

This is something we have already seen Gervino do with so much destructive effect in the pre season games.

So it appears that Wenger as an Alsatian, has managed to borrow a leaf from the military strategy thatw as used by the generals from the NAZI Germany war years.

It is called the blitzkrieg or the lightning war strategy.

Be afraid. Be very afraid!

Beitbridge Border Post Set for a US$97 million Facelift

2011-08-04T13:29:00.000+02:00

THE Beitbridge Border Post is set for a US$97 million facelift which promoters of the project say will cut by up to 75 percent transit delays that currently last as long as four hours.

Beitbridge is one of the busiest border posts in the SADC economic region, handling more than 12,000 travellers and 3,500 vehicles a day in the festive season.

Annually, this amounts to four million people, one million vehicles and millions of tons of freight.
But with traffic flows hitting record levels in recent years, facilities at the Post have proved woefully inadequate.

It can take up to four hours to transit the Post with the delays particularly worse during peak holiday periods.

However, Standard Bank -- lead financiers of the upgrade -- say the delays would be reduced by up to 75 percent after the upgrade which will be completed within 18 months.

“The BBP has long been identified as a major bottleneck in the smooth flow of traffic along the North-South Corridor (NSC) which links South Africa to Zimbabwe, Northern Mozambique, Eastern Botswana, Zambia, the DRC and Malawi. Alleviating this bottleneck is an imperative for improved regional economic integration and development,” Ziyaad Sarang, Investment Banking head of Infrastructure Finance at Standard Bank said in a statement on Wednesday.

“To this end the Government of Zimbabwe is pursuing the objective of reducing the time to transit and the number of stops incurred in a cross border process.”

Modelled along the lines of the One-Stop concept implemented successfully at the Chirundu Border Post between Zimbabwe and Zambia the upgrade project is a Build-Operate-Transfer project under which the promoters will run the facility for 15 years to recoup costs and a profit before handing it back to the authorities.

The promoters will recover their investment through revenue from toll fares charged to travellers and transporters using the upgraded border post infrastructure and related services.

Sarang said the upgrade underlines the strategic importance of the border post to Zimbabwe and the wider region.

* New Zimbabwe.com

The Rome Statement for an HIV Cure

2011-08-04T12:48:00.000+02:00

Members of the Advisory Board for a global scientific strategy “Towards an HIV Cure” today launched the Rome Statement for an HIV Cure calling for an acceleration of HIV cure research. The announcement was made at the 6th IAS Conference on HIV Pathogenesis, Treatment and Prevention (IAS 2011) currently being held in Rome.

Recent scientific advances in HIV research have led to a re-emergence of interest and optimism in prospects of at least a functional cure for HIV. The development of a functional cure which, without completely eliminating the virus from the body, would permanently suppress its replication and considerably diminish viral reservoirs, possibly leading to the long-term remission of patients.

Under the auspices of the International AIDS Society, a group of internationally recognized scientists and stakeholders is guiding the development of a global scientific strategy “Towards an HIV Cure”. The strategy aims at building a global consensus on the state of HIV reservoirs research and defining scientific priorities that need to be addressed by future research to tackle HIV persistence in patients undergoing antiretroviral therapy. The strategy will be presented at the XIX International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2012) which will be held in Washington DC from 22-27 July 2012. (1)

The International Scientific Working Group is co-chaired by Professor Françoise Barré-Sinoussi, IAS President-Elect and 2008 Nobel Laureate for Medicine, and Professor Steve Deeks, University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) and Positive Health Program (AIDS Program) at San Francisco General Hospital. The working group works closely with an advisory board composed of leading advocates and major research stakeholders in HIV cure, including representatives of people living with HIV and funders and clinicians from high prevalence settings. The Advisory Board is co-chaired by Prof. Barré-Sinoussi and Dr. Jack Whitescarver, Associate Director for AIDS Research and Director of the Office of AIDS Research at the National Institutes of Health.

“While there is certainly a high level of interest being expressed about finding a functional HIV cure (2), it can only be achieved through an increased and concerted international effort engaging not only the scientific community but all stakeholders involved in the HIV/AIDS response and global health,” said Professor Barré-Sinoussi.

“Partnership and collaboration are critical to the efforts to find an HIV cure,” said Dr. Whitescarver. “We need not only the finest minds but the very best in scientific alliances.”

Today’s Rome Statement for an HIV Cure lists the following three key objectives:

recognizing the importance of developing a safe, accessible and scalable HIV cure as a therapeutic and preventive strategy against HIV infection and to help control the AIDS epidemic.
committing to stimulating international and multidisciplinary research collaborations in the field of HIV cure research.
encouraging other stakeholders, international leaders and organizations to contribute to accelerating HIV cure research through their own initiatives and/or by endorsing this statement and supporting the alliance that the Advisory Board is building.

Board members, including co-chairs Professor Barré-Sinoussi and Dr. Whitescarver, have officially endorsed the statement.

Diaspora Has a Role to Play in the Revival of Zimbabwe's Education Sector

2011-07-27T15:11:00.000+02:00

The state of education in Zimbabwe is very sad when one considers what it was when the nation attained its independence on 18th April 1980. Indeed the past 30 years has seen a systematic decline in the quality of service delivery in the education sector.

To make matters worse, the education sector has also had to endure a huge loss of most of its experienced personnel. A large number of them are now in different fields or have left the country in search for greener pastures in the Diaspora.

The all-inclusive government has on its part tried to slow down the rot but due to limitations with budgetary resources, nothing much will be achieved for the foreseeable future.

This then calls for an urgent intervention. By this, we should start talking about the Ministry of Education hosting a major international Indaba on education with particular focus on the prospective role of the Diaspora community.

I am confident that organisations such as the Global Zimbabwe Forum among others, are strategically placed to partner the Ministry of Education in hosting such an important platform. I can foresee it being held in such cities like Johannesburg or London for example.

However we should also start talking about how individuals in the Diaspora can start mobilising themselves to make some personal contribution towards the revival of the education sector back home in Zimbabwe.

In this regard, the starting point should be on how we can harness the potential of old students associations in playing a direct role in supporting their specific former schools.

The particular contributions do not need to be big at the initial stage but may progressively grow over time. This may mean such aspects as sponsoring book prizes for the best students, repair of school infrastructure and equipment, donations of such things as second hand computers and laptops et cetera.

I am thus encouraging all Zimbabweans who are living outside the country to start looking at ways of setting up branches of their former schools associations. These will then link up with those based in Zimbabwe and start to do joint initiatives in support of their former schools. This principle should be able to apply at all levels starting with our former primary, then secondary until high school levels.

I am involved at the moment in a process with my classmates who graduated from the John Tallach secondary school near Bulawayo in 1992, in efforts to play some part in supporting our former school. In particular, we are planning to host a 20th anniversary reunion event at our former school towards the end of 2012. Preparations for the event are already underway and a Co-ordination Committee has been set up to facilitate the process.

I am also hoping that sooner than later, i will be also involved in some more or less similar initiatives with regards to St Ignatius, my former primary school in Hwange and also Fletcher, my former high school in Gweru.

In fact this principle could also be eventually extended to the tertiary institutions such as the University of Zimbabwe. This is more so with regards to concept of the Allumni associations. We could set up international branches that could work in partnership with those back home in Zimbabwe. i can foresee a possible symbiosis in terms of joint initiatives emerging especially at a faculty level.

I do remember that about two years ago, i met Professor Levi Nyagura at a conference in Johannesburg who asked me as to how i could play a role in supporting the full revival of the university's Allumni association from the Diaspora community's perspective. This is one matter i feel can be revisited.

Professor Nyagura is the current Vice Chancellor of the University of Zimbabwe but i worked a lot with him in the late 1990s when he was the Pro Vice Chancellor in charge of the student affairs. At that time i was serving in the student leadership at the college.

In conclusion, i will end by deliberately misquoting the late United States leader, President John Fitzgerald Kennedy from his inauguration speech in 1961 who said that; "Ask not what your country can do for you - ask what you can do for your country"

"Ask not what the all-inclusive government is doing about the decline in the Zimbabwean education sector; but rather ask your former classmates as to what you can all do together to support your former school!"

Halala Madiba! Halala!

2011-07-18T14:27:00.000+02:00

Happy happy birthday Tata Madiba!

We thank you so much for your lifelong contribution towards the betterment of humanity!

May God bless you so much!

More to Follow . . .

2011-07-13T21:07:00.000+02:00

Dear friends

Please do take note that the article below on abductions is still yet to be completed. I am stuck up at a conference in Cape Town but intend to upload the complete version in the next day or two.

The Mysterious Story of Abductions in Zimbabwe

2011-07-12T22:45:00.000+02:00

Eish! I have just been re-reading SW Radio Africa's Lance Guma's interview with Jane Dongo over 1999 murder of Lutheran World Federation employee Strover Mutonhori. Dongo, is a niece to the late Mutonhori.

She talks about how Mutonhori was ‘set up’ on the night he was kidnapped and how his remains were only found some 5 months later!

This is one of the saddest personal stories in post-independence Zimbabwe! Apart from this one, we have the others like that of Patrick Nabanyama, Cain Nkala, Rashiwe Guzha, Captain Edwin Nleya, who also disappeared under very suspicious circumstances.

May God one day help us to expose the truths behind their murders! May the murderers be brought to the book of justice one day! My heart goes out to all the affected families and I pray that peace and comfort of God be with you all!

The sad thing is that the notorious cases of abductions go a long way back because there are other recorded incidences in pre-independence Zimbabwe. The most notorious of these cases is that of the nationalist Eddison Sithole.

He was a lawyer by profession, who had initially obtained a BA in Law from University of London while in detention in 1962. In so doing, he had become the second black person in Zimbabwe to be a lawyer after veteran nationalist and hero, Herbert Chitepo. However, in 1965 he obtained a Master of Law (LLM) and later an LLD, making him the first black person in the entire southern African region to attain that qualification.

Like the situation in most similar cases, Sithole’s remains were found so many years later.

However it must also be pointed out the in such cases as those of Nabamyama and Guzha, the remains are still yet to be found up to this day. Infact it appears the police have already given up and closed the official investigations around their abductions.

From a personal point of view, I must also add that I was once abducted when I was still a student leader in Harare. This was in early June 1998. At that time I was both the President of the University of Zimbabwe Students Union and also the Vice President of the Zimbabwe National Students Union (ZINASU).

I had led the University of Zimbabwe students, in partnership with the Harare Polytechnic students body in campaigning for President Robert Mugabe to step down as the head of the state. Our view at that time was that we could emulate the students in Indonesia by camping outside Parliament until Mugabe stepped down.

However, Mugabe outwitted us by forcibly closing down both colleges on the 2^nd June 1998. So we only managed to sleep outside the Parliament just for one night.

GZF Commemorates Zimbabwe's 31st Independence Day Anniversary

2011-04-19T12:13:00.000+02:00

The Global Zimbabwe Forum (GZF) would like to join the rest of the Zimbabwean nation in the commemoration of the 31st anniversary of our independence day.

However, it is with a deep sense of sadness and disappointment that we mark this important day.

In particular, we note with serious concern the on-going suffering of millions of Zimbabweans both at home and abroad due to the never ending socio-economic and political crisis in Zimbabwe.

In this regard we call upon all the leaders of the political parties in Zimbabwe to set aside their personal differences and seek for a common resolution to address all the myriad of problematic issues that have been afflicting our nation for too long now.

Even more importanly, we further note with concern the apparent failure of the all-inclusinve government to harness the developemnt potential of the millions of Zimbabweans living in the Diaspora.

We once again call for a meaningful engagement between the government and the Diaspora community.

On our part as the GZF, we remain committed to supporting the government in its efforts to contructively engage with the Zimbabweans in the Diaspora.

Skillshare Offers Volunteer Opportunities for Young Zimbabweans

2011-04-11T12:46:00.000+02:00

Dear All
I work for an international development charity called Skillshare International. We're based in Leicester and have recently launched a new volunteering programme that may be of interest to you, your organisation and networks.
International Citizen Service (ICS), which is funded by the UK government's Department for International Development, was launched by David Cameron on 9th March 2011.

As part of this initiative, Skillshare International is offering volunteers aged 18-22 the opportunity to spend three months working on development projects and helping to reduce poverty and injustice in Botswana, India, Lesotho, South Africa, Swaziland and Tanzania.

The scheme is open to young people from all backgrounds and those with lower family incomes are able to take part for free. There are also some placements available for volunteers aged 23+ to take part as team leaders. The programme will give young people the chance to work on real development projects alongside other young people from developing countries.

They will be given training before, during and after their placements overseas and will gain loads of new skills that will set them up for the future, e.g. team work and communication. This is beneficial to the youths as they embark on their future careers or proceed to university or college.
We are expecting a lot of interest so we really recommend that interested people apply as soon as they can. If anyone is interested in doing a placement this summer, they need to apply by mid-April at the very latest.
To find out more about Skillshare International's ICS placements and apply online, please visit www.skillshare.org/ICS - and if you know anyone who might be interested in taking part, please pass the link on!
We're keen to engage young people from the Midlands and anywhere else in the United Kingdom in the programme and I'd be very grateful if you could share this with your friends, organisations and colleagues. If you need any further clarification please do not hesitate to contact me at the above email address and telephone number below.
Best wishes!
Musi Gloriosa Katerere
International Programmes Officer
Skillshare International
Direct + 44 (0) 116 257 6602
Tel + 44 (0) 116 254 1862
Skype musikaterereski
www.skillshare.org

Scholarship Opportunity Available for Zimbabweans

2011-04-04T17:04:00.000+02:00

Scholarship Opportunities Available for Zimbabweans!

Under the African Engineering Educators Association (AEEA) programmes, the Republic of China has offered 22 Master’s and Doctoral Degree Scholarship for September 2011.

The closing date for applications is 6 April 2011 and there is no age restriction.

At this stage, interested persons are required to send their CVs and motivational letter to wilson@zie.co.zw and copy it to prisca@zie.co.zw

Zimbabwe: When a State Turns Against Its Citizens

2011-03-29T16:15:00.002+02:00

Book Launch in Cape Town and Johannesburg

When a State Turns Against Its Citizens

Institutionalized Violence and Political Culture

Lloyd Sachikonye

Thursday 31 March 2011, 17:30 for 18:00

Lobby Books (Idasa), 6 Spin Street, Cape Town

OR:

Friday 1 April 2011, 17:30 for 18:00

Constitution Hill, 1 Kotze Street, Braamfontein, Johannesburg

Please join us at the launch of this exciting book with guest speaker in Johannesburg

Judge Azhar Cachalia, post '94 Secretary for Safety and Security and who has been monitoring human rights cases in Zimbabwe for the International Commission of Jurists

The author is available for interviews at the event, or beforehand.

Please RSVP and contact Emily Wellman on 072 236 2712 or on info@sugaractivism.co.za for further information

'Zimbabwean politics are embedded in a tradition and practice of violence that

began more than half a century ago.'

Lloyd Sachikonye traces the roots of Zimbabwe's contemporary violence to the actions of the Rhodesian armed forces, and the inter-party conflicts that occurred during the liberation war. His focus, however, is the period since 2000, which has seen state-sponsored violence erupting in election campaigns and throughout the programme of fast-track land reform.

The consequences of this violence run wide and deep. Aside from inflicting trauma and fear on its victims, the impunity enjoyed by its perpetrators has helped to mould a culture within which personal freedoms and dreams are strangled.

At a broader social level, it is responsible - both directly and indirectly - for millions of Zimbabweans voting with their feet and heading for the diaspora. Such a migration 'cannot simply be explained in terms of the search for greener economic pastures. Escape from authoritarianism, violence, trauma and fear is a large factor behind the exodus.'

Sachikonye concludes that any future quest for justice and reconciliation will depend on the country facing up to the truth about the violence and hatred that have infected its past and present.

Lloyd Sachikonye (1954) was born and educated in Zimbabwe. After attending Ahmadu Bello University in Nigeria where he did his M.Sc. in Political Science, he acquired a Ph.D. from Leeds University in the UK. He is now Associated Professor at the Institute of Development Studies, University of Zimbabwe where he has worked as a researcher and lecturer since 1983.

On the Board of five professional international journals, he had also been widely published within his research field of the politics of labour movements, democracy, and civic society. (A complete list of his publications will be found at the back of the book.)

These events are hosted by the Southern African Liaison Office (SALO), the Southern African Centre of Survivors of Torture, JACANA the publisher and Lobby books.

Thanks,

Francisca Mdleleni

Southern African Liaison Office

Tel: 021-6805306

Cell: 083 684 8267

And so the 2011 Roller Coaster Ride Begins!

2011-01-10T11:02:00.000+02:00

Happy new year and warmest greetings to you all!

It is a very special day for me today. Why? It is so, simply because that i returned to work after almost four weeks on my annual leave.

I am so pleased to confirm that i feel so rested and confident to face the tasks and challenges at my workplace in the year ahead.

This situation is of course a far cry from the one i was in, at around the same time last year. This was simply because i had not manage to secure enough leave days for my annual break since i had started my new job during the middle part of 2009.

And so here i am now, ready to start the annual roller coaster ride that will see me rock and roll up and down right through the year till December 2011!

As i begin the new year, i must say i feel so excited and hopeful that things will continue to get better for me. Last year was a good year for me and so here is to hoping that my momentum of success will continue this year.

I will continue to run this blog but on a much more personal level. This means that i will dramatically reduce the number of articles that i have been uploading from various news websites over the years. Instead, they will be more emphasis on my own personal writings.

I will be making regular comments on any topical issues that come across my mind! In this regard, i will encourage any of my blog readers to write to me on my Gmail address and suggest topics for me to write about.

I think that is about all for now folks.

May i wish you all one hell of a wonderful roller coaster ride throughout 2011!

Compliments of the Season!

2010-12-22T09:20:00.000+02:00

Compliments of the season to you all!

Here is to wishing you a merry Christmas and a very happy new year!

SA Based Zimbabwean Youths Call for Mugabe's Arrest

2010-12-16T20:03:00.000+02:00

JOHANNESBURG - A South African-based human rights organization is calling for the arrest of the Zimbabwean President and his cronies.

The Zimbabwe Youth Wing on Monday handed over a petition to the United Nations Security Council Office in Pretoria. In their demands the Zimbabwe Youth Wing calls for the arrest of Zimbabwe’s JOC (Joint Military Command). This comprises of the high ranking officials from the army, the police, the air force, the prison and the Central Intelligence Organization. The organization further calls for the arrest of the President Robert Mugabe, some war veterans and the Zanu (PF) militia for human rights abuses.

The group’s president, Ishmael Kauzai, said: “The Zanu (PF) regime perpetuates the abduction, torture and killing of Zimbabwe's citizens to this very day. Those responsible remain unaccountable. We want these people to be arrested and tried in the International Curt of Justice. They have been doing this for a long time. They committed human rights abuses during the Gukurahundi era, land invasion, operation Murambatsvina and when the Movement for the Democratic Change was formed. They continue to do so. This will increase next year as we approach the elections.”

The organization accuses Mugabe of militarizing the parastatals. Former military personnel aligned to the president have been appointed to head parastatals like the Grain Marketing Board, National Railways of Zimbabwe, Air Zimbabwe and Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation.

Ishmael said the youth had lost faith in the regional organizations like Southern African Development Community (SADC) and African Union (AU). He accused SADC and AU of inactivity when the Zimbabwean government was butchering their citizens and called on the UN Security Council to intervene in the Zimbabwean crisis.

* The Zimbabwean

Zimbabwean Leaders Differ on Cause of Foreign Direct Investment Drought

2010-12-14T10:18:00.000+02:00

Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai officiated Monday at the opening of a so-called one-stop investment center meant to encourage foreign capital inflows, Mr. Mugabe blaming Western sanctions for the scarcity of such investment while Mr. Tsvangirai blamed political volatility in the country.

VOA Studio 7 correspondent Thomas Chiripasi reported from Harare that Mr Mugabe called for an end to sanctions saying this would encourage potential investors. He and about 200 of his closest associates are the target of travel and financial sanctions.

Economist Eric Bloch said that while the opening of a center to simplify red tape should ease the pathway for foreign capital through the bureaucracy, foreign direct investment decisions are largely driven by political and economic factors, not paperwork.

Bloch dismissed remarks by President Mugabe that potential foreign investors have been discouraged by Western sanctions.

He said targeted sanctions imposed by the West and the European Union are only affecting President Mugabe and his inner circle.

Like Prime Minister Tsvangirai, Bloch said Zimbabwe will only attract meaningful new investment if the political environment significantly improves.

The Zimbabwean economy has mended considerably since the current government of national unity was put in place in 2009, but it remains fragile and there remains a lot of uncertainty as to how the government's ongoing indigenization initiative intended to put control of large enterprises into black hands will affect new investment.

* Studio 7

The Arsenalisation of Daniel Molokele

2010-12-14T10:15:00.000+02:00

Soccer like politics runs in my family blood. In as much as I was born into a family thriving with political zeal, it was also one that was so passionate about football. And so it happened when I was born in early 1975, it was out of a family in which both my parents were well known activists and an integral part of the local town political leadership under the auspices of the Joshua Nkomo led Zimbabwe African People’s Union party. (ZAPU)

I remember vividly that when I was growing up as a boy in the coal mining town of Hwange in south western Zimbabwe, both soccer and politics completely dominated my daily life.

Take the walls of the family lounge as a good example. They were filled with several picture frames all around that did not have family photos. Instead most of them contained pictures of either Joshua Nkomo or group portraits of Zulu Royals football club.

The team was led by my father who at one stage was also active player and captain, before retiring into the role of coach and eventually becoming the chairman of the committee that managed the club.

I clearly remember that by the time I was slightly over five years old, I was already attending the team’s half time discussions during its league matches. I also had the enviable privilege of travelling with the team for its away games in the neighbouring townships such as Madumabisa (Number Two Colliery) and Makwika (Number Three Colliery). The team was based in the original and biggest township of Lwendulu (Number One Colliery).

In fact, my father’s team was one of the leading teams in the local amateur football league that was known as the Wankie Football Association. (WAFA) The team used to fight for the local leadership mettle with the likes of Kabwe Warriors, Giant Killers, Raylton and Rufaro Rovers.

The league was part of the sustainable sports and recreation strategy of the local Wankie Colliery Company (WCC) and very professionally administered. It also had the dual role of being the breeding ground for potential future players of the more famous Wankie Football Club (Chipangano) that was also one of the leading clubs of the elite national soccer league of Zimbabwe.

It was thus inevitable that my siblings and I grew up playing lots of soccer. And almost inevitable we played so much of the beautiful game in the hours after school and during weekends. In those days, each section of the township used to have its own team and local dusty playing field. I remember that most of these fields had such fancy names as Japan, Swaziland, China, and Brazil to mention but a few.

By the time I was reaching the end of my primary school years, I was a very active footballer. I normal used to play the role of a central defender in a libero role that was made famous by the legendary Italian Franco Barresi.

I used to play for my Saint Ignatius primary school class team in those years. But even more crucially at home, we eventually built a team of fearsome repute that derived most of its players from our local M section. And so it happened that between the 1980s and the early 1990s, I could be found regularly featuring for my home team.

It was also during those years that a local junior league for our township was set up. The league was known as the Lwendulu Football Association. (LIFA) My young brother Lovemore Mguni showed his immense leadership pedigree by forming a glorious team that played in that league. The team was known as Skyline Football Club. It was very successful so much that even attracted excellent players from other neighbouring sections.

After my primary school years, I continued to play the beautiful game at John Tallach secondary school. I used to play as a right back for my house team called Radasi but I never really made it into the main school team. A similar trend also occurred when I went to Fletcher High school in Gweru. I continued to play soccer but mostly for my house team and never really broke into the school’s main team.

Unfortunately it so happened that when I was admitted to the law faculty of the University of Zimbabwe in Harare my soccer playing days ended prematurely. Instead it was politics, my other dual passion that completely took over the centre stage from soccer.

The fact that I was elected as the students union Secretary General in my first year at law school meant that I was never really able to continue as a soccer player. This was in spite of the fact that the university had its own highly competitive social soccer league and also a semi professional team that played in the second division of the national league.

The only serious soccer match I played in at university was a special friendly match between the leaders of the students union and the lecturers union in my last year at the college. I remember that I had to borrow some soccer boots from one of the players from the main university team who later became a famous international soccer star. His name was Benjani Mwaruwari!

Be that as it may, I may need to add that I was nominally involved in one of the most successful soccer teams to ever come from the university in the late 1990s. This happened in the years when the former President of Zimbabwe, Professor Canaan Banana was heavily involved n supporting the team. He is the one who approached me and persuaded me to be the chairperson of the university soccer team’s disciplinary committee.

And so it happened that during those years at the university I devolved from being an active soccer player to a very passionate soccer fan. In my primary school years, I had dual loyalty to my local team Wankie FC together with the legendary Bulawayo based team, Highlanders Football Club (Bosso)

I had also been an avid fan of Liverpool Football Club in England largely due the influence of its famous Zimbabwean goalkeeper, Bruce Grobbelaar. It was during those successful years in which the mighty Reds boasted with such talents as Kenny Dalglish, Kevin Keegan, Peter Beardsley, Ray Houghton, Ian Rush, John Barnes, among an array of skilful soccer stars.

But as fate would have it, by the late 1990s, Liverpool had lost its stranglehold on the English soccer league to the Sir Alex Ferguson led Red Devils, Manchester United Football Club. Naturally, I developed a very strong dislike to the league upstarts that has unsurprisingly lasted up to this day.

It was during those years of despair for Liverpool when a new challenger emerged in the English soccer league, Arsenal Football Club.

Until then, the Gunners had remained in relative obscurity but it was the arrival of the legendary Arsene Wenger in September 1996 that galvanised the team to be a force to be reckoned with. It was during those early years of Wenger that I began to slowly but surely, gravitate from Anfield to Highbury, the famous old home of the Gunners in north London.

And when Wenger led his team to his first league title in the 1997-98 season; everyone including myself, was forced to recognise his team’s competitive edge.

But it was Wenger’s signing of the most famous footballer to ever don the Gunners red and white shirt, Thierry Henry in 1999 that proved to be a decisive turning point for me. It was Henry, who I now highly regard as my favourite footballer of all time, who completely swayed me to become an Arsenal fan.

From that time onwards I continued to grow from strength to strength in my passionate support of the Gunners. My evolution into a life-long Arsenal soccer fanatic reached its full cycle during the 2003-4 season. That was the year of the legendary Invincibles.

Inspired by a Henry who was now on the peak of his English soccer career, the Gunners managed to start and end that season without a single defeat. This was a very rare achievement that may never be repeated in the history of professional football not just in England but also anywhere in the world for that matter!

By 2005, I was then fully transformed into a fully fledged Gooner and have been actively supporting Wenger as he led the modernisation of the Arsenal. This is a process that among its highlights included the move to a new 60 000 seater stadium at Ashburton Grove, still in north London.

So for many years I have continued to support the Gunners passionately and followed their games on television. However, I always felt that my initiation as a lifelong Arsenal fan would never be fully completed unless and until I had got the privileged opportunity to watch the Gunners play in person.

It was always my wish that a chance like that would come my way, sooner than later!

And then it happened by chance in July 2010. Wenger normally prefers to take his team for a pre-season training camp in Austria. And so it happened that this time around, I had also travelled to Vienna to attend the 18^th International AIDS conference that was hosted by the International AIDS Society.

When I learnt that the first friendly game that the Gunners would play would be around the same time as the AIDS conference, I was so excited. While in Vienna I inquired about the distance of the capital city from Graz, the venue of the Arsenal game against the local team. I was told that Graz was about 200km away from where I was.

I inquired about the price of the air tickets first and when I realised that I could not afford them, I then turned to the railways as a more pragmatic option. And so it happened that on Wednesday 21^stJuly 2010, I travelled by train to Graz. The train had some problems and so we had a delayed arrival.

But I managed to take my seat at the UPC Arena slightly over five minutes before half time. The score at that time was tied at nil-nil. Tears flowed from eyes when for the very first time in my life; I saw the great Wenger and his talented team in person!

As if to celebrate that awesome moment with me, Samir Nasri scored a beautiful goal from a free kick that sent all the Arsenal fanatics, including myself into some frenetic delight.

I will never forget that game for the rest of life because it was on that very same day, that I really felt that I was a full fan of Arsenal football club at last. And now the Emirates stadium experience beckons for me. It just a matter of time.

Come on you Gunners! Victory through harmony! Victoria Concordia Crescit!

GZF to be Represented at the Victoria Falls Conference

2010-12-13T17:38:00.002+02:00

The Global Zimbabwe Forum is set to attend the first ever diaspora conference to be held within Zimbabwe. The conference will be hosted by the Development Foundation for Zimbabwe (DFZ)

The conference will be held between 16 and 19th December at the Elephant Hills hotel in Victoria Falls.

The GZF International Co-ordinator, Daniel Molokele, GZF Europe Co-ordinator, Promise Mkwananzi and the GZF Patron, Prof Ken Mufuka are among those expected to attend the conference.

For more details, please kindly visit dfzim.com

Mugabe Expects Positive Growth for the Zimbabwean Economy

2010-12-13T17:33:00.000+02:00

Zimbabwe’s economy will expand by about 8 percent this year and growth may accelerate to more than 10 percent for the next five years, President Robert Mugabe has said.

The government’s economic program that started last year reversed a decade of contraction and the recovery is continuing, Mugabe said in a speech at an opening ceremony for an investment promotion agency today in the capital, Harare.

“At this rate, we should achieve double-digit growth between 2011 and 2015,” he said.

The southern African nation scrapped its dollar in 2009 and adopted the use of multiple currencies, resulting in inflation plummeting from 500 billion percent and for shops to start restocking shelves with products. Annual inflation was 3.6 percent in October, according to the state statistics agency.

While a new unity government between Mugabe’s Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front party and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic Change helped end the recession, foreign donors haven’t committed money and investors have been slow to return. The European Union and the U.S. have maintained asset freezes and travel bans against Mugabe and some of his party’s officials, demanding more proof of their commitment to democracy and human rights.

More reforms are needed to attract investment and keep the recovery going, Tsvangirai said today. Differing opinions within the government undermined investor confidence, he said.

The expanded Zimbabwe Investment Authority will now link the investment promotion, immigration, tax, exchange control and company registration departments to cut the period it takes to register a business from about three months to five days, the government said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Nelson Banya in Harare via Johannesburg atngbanya@bloomberg.net

Zimbabwe PM Says No Election Without Referendum

2010-12-07T16:51:00.000+02:00

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Zimbabwe's Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai said on Monday that elections could not take place in his country without reforms and a constitutional review, despite President Robert Mugabe's threat to call one next year.

Tsvangirai formed a power-sharing government with Mugabe after disputed 2008 elections, and both promised to work together to reform the constitution and organise a referendum to approve it before new elections.

The power-sharing deal ended months of crisis in the southern African country which had been on the brink of collapse, but it has since been plagued by rifts following Mugabe's refusal to consult Tsvangirai over key appointments and policy decisions.

Mugabe has said there is no need to extend the life of the coalition, which is up for review in February, and looks likely to call elections in mid-2011 without the new constitution that Zimbabwe's Western donors are asking for.

"It is not possible to have elections in June next year because we need to have a referendum first," Tsvangirai told Reuters in an interview in Brussels.

"I don't think at the moment you can conduct an election," he said, adding that the country could slide back into the crisis and violence seen in 2008.

Analysts say a rushed election without political reforms, including a new constitution guaranteeing basic rights, would unfairly favour Mugabe and his ZANU-PF party, who have held power since independence from Britain in 1980.

"One of the fundamental issues we need to handle is the issue of violence. All elections so far have been conducted in a manner that is very violent ... this is violence that is state-sponsored," Tsvangirai said.

"When the police, army, militia, war veterans are used to intimidate, coerce, and cause torture and death to the people, that is the kind of violence we need to contain," he added.

Tsvangirai said before any elections are held, the parties must accept a roadmap, agree on a constitution, organise a referendum and set up a functioning electoral commission.

"Once the roadmap is there, it will define the end of the coalition. The sooner we have one party in power with a clear mandate from the people, the better," he said.

Zimbabwe Says It Will Sell Its Marange Diamonds

2010-12-07T16:43:00.000+02:00

Zimbabwe will sell diamonds from the Marange diamond fields because it can’t be stopped by “hostile nations,” the state-controlled Herald, said, citing Mines Secretary Thankful Musukutwa.

The Kimberly Process, an international body that rules on conflict diamonds, “cannot go political in its dealings,” the Harare-based newspaper cited Musukutwa as saying. Zimbabwean authorities are surprised about allegations of human rights abuses at Marange, Musukutwa was cited by the Herald as telling a visiting delegation from the Norwegian government.

The government denies allegations of human rights violations and says it has complied with all Kimberley Process demands, the Herald reported on its website.

To contact the reporter on this story: Brian Latham in Durban at blatham@bloomberg.net.

Zimbabwe to Host Diaspora Coference at Victoria Falls

2010-12-06T18:26:00.000+02:00

Business leaders, civic society, politicians and Zimbabweans living in the Diaspora, meet in Victoria Falls for the first ever multi-stakeholder Diaspora conference to take place within Zimbabwe’s borders.

The conference is the first in a series of high profile meetings which will consider ways in which the Diaspora and key players within Zimbabwe can work together to promote development. An estimated 4.5 million Zimbabweans live outside the country the majority of them in South Africa.

Delegates to the conference, have been drawn from Australia, Botswana, Ethiopia, The Netherlands, South Africa, United Kingdom and the United States. They also include representatives of the country’s labour movement, opinion leaders from the key political formations, religious leaders and Zimbabwean professionals some whom are considering investing in Zimbabwe or returning home.

The theme of the conference which takes place from the 16 to 18 December is “Engaging the Diaspora toward Zimbabwe’s Economic Reconstruction”. The conference will chart a process of engaging the inclusive government and stakeholders in selected key sectors, to explore ways in which the skills of the Diaspora can be harnessed.

Conference organisers, Development Foundation for Zimbabwe (DFZ) said the huge developmental potential of Zimbabweans in the Diaspora remained largely untapped. DFZ is a non-political, non-profit organisation set up by Zimbabweans in the Diaspora.

DFZ Executive Director, Nokwazi Moyo said a conscious decision had been made to hold the conference in Zimbabwe to allow for broader participation by key actors within the inclusive government.

“There are several individuals that may feel afraid, threatened or otherwise constrained to return home for this conference, the restrictions on sections of the government to travel to certain countries, the sheer expense of doing so, justifies that the conversation forming the basis of this evolving partnership should take place on home soil closer to both the problems and opportunities,” Moyo said in a statement.

He said the inclusion of Zimbabwe’s Diaspora community in any national dialogue was critical to the promotion of national cohesion and the success of any national projects.

He stressed that DFZ was not advocating a mass return to Zimbabwe adding “It is vital to underscore the point that in an age of technological advancement ‘returning home’ can take various forms beyond the physical movement of persons. ‘Returning home’ can be through the Diaspora deploying their financial investments in the home market. The DFZ is opening up dialogue between all key stakeholders to devise ways and means of capitalising on this important resource represented by the Diaspora.”

He said one of the objectives of the conference is to ensure that the Zimbabwe government and other stakeholders' engagement with the Zimbabwean Diaspora is institutionalised within a coherent policy framework.

“We hope to be able to strengthen Zimbabwe Diaspora networks and increase their ability to contribute towards comprehensive national recovery and development. We are also keen to engage co-operating partners, all stakeholders and relevant institutions on supporting Zimbabweans recovery and development,” said Moyo.

During the conference there will be special sessions on economic development and investment, social services, reconstruction and other key areas such as citizenship, property rights and migration.

* radio VoP

PASSOP to Launch IDP Report in Cape Town

2010-12-06T18:10:00.002+02:00

OFFICIAL REPORT LAUNCH AND PANEL DISCUSSION:

LESSONS LEARNED AND RECOMMENDATIONS FOR IDP SAFETY SITES IN THE SOUTH AFRICA

DECEMBER 9TH, 2 – 4:00 PM

(IDASA) Democracy Centre 6 Spin Street Cape Town

Dear Colleagues,

On Thursday, December 9th from 2 – 4:00 pm PASSOP would like to invite you to the official report launch and panel discussion on the lessons learned from Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) Safety Sites established in the Western Cape over the last two and a half years as a result of the outbreak of xenophobic violence.

The recently-completed monitoring reports that will be launched concern both the Blue Waters and De Doorns IDP Safety Sites. (Please see the attached document for a short summary and recommendations of each report.)

The event will be structured around a panel discussion including Shari Eppel (Director, Solidarity Peace Trust), Miranda Madikane (Director, Scalabrini Centre), Charlene May (Attorney- Blue Waters Case, Legal Resource Centre), Mike Moyo (former De Doorns Camp Committee Chair) and Braam Hanekom (Director, PASSOP). The following is the provisional program of the event:

Program and Topics

14:00 - 14:15: Braam Hanekom -- Opening and Introductions

14:15 - 14:30: Mike Moyo – Reflections on life in an IDP Safety Site.

14:30 - 14:45: Miranda Madikane – Responding to xenophobic violence: Lessons from De Doorns.

14:45 - 15:00: Shari Eppel -- Displaced over and over again, how to deal with human suffering.

15:00 - 15:15: Charlene May – The Blue Waters Case: Lessons moving forward.

15:15 - 15:45: Questions to Panel and Closure

We hope to see many of you in attendance. For any further questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact the PASSOP office at 021 762 4638 or David on 0766142743.

European Union Rebuffs EU-African Summit Pressure on Zimbabwe Sanctions

2010-12-01T10:21:00.000+02:00

Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe and fellow Southern African leaders attending an African Union-European Union summit in Libya urged the European Union on Tuesday to end targeted sanctions imposed on Mr. Mugabe and his inner circle.

Presidents Jacob Zuma of South Africa, Hifikepunye Pohamba of Namibia and Bingu wa Mutharika of Malawi, currently holding the African Union chairmanship, spearheaded the latest bid to pressure the European Movement to lift travel and financial sanctions.

Sources privy to developments the summit, which concluded Tuesday, saide EU leaders repeated that Mr. Mugabe and his closest associates must take reform seriously.

The British-based All-Africa Parliamentary Group on Zimbabwe meanwhile lobbied EU leaders not to adopt what it termed a policy of "appeasement" in Zimbabwe.

The group issued a statement saying it was wrong for the European Union even to invite President Mugabe to the summit, saying that “he and his ruthless military will revel in this opportunity to strut the international stage with EU leaders."

David Banks, coordinator of the British parliamentary group, told VOA Studio 7 reporter Blessing Zulu that European leaders must force reform in Harare.

Reuters reported that Mr. Mugabe called on the International Criminal Court Tuesday to indict former US President George W. Bush and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair for war crimes instead of prosecuting Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir.

Mr. Mugabe accused the ICC of double standards. "Why does this court not do the same with Tony Blair and George W. Bush, both of whom occupied Iraq and killed hundreds of thousands of Iraq people," Reuters quoted the Zimbabwean president as saying.

Sudan boycotted the summit after the EU pressured Bashir not to attend.

* VoA

Zimbabwe Police Arrest Newspaper Editor

2010-12-01T10:19:00.000+02:00

Zimbabwean police arrested Nevanji Madanhire, editor of the Sunday Standard newspaper, the paper’s owner said today, the second journalist from the weekly to be detained this month.

“Nevanji Madanhire is in police custody in Harare," Trevor Ncube said by phone from Sun City in South Africa.

The arrest follows the detention of Standard reporter Nqobani Ndlovu on Nov. 17. Ndlovu was released 10 days later on orders from Zimbabwe’s High Court on $100 bail. Both arrests were made over a story, written by Ndlovu, alleging irregularities in police recruitment, Ncube said.

“The police haven’t disputed the veracity of the Standard story and last week a High Court judge said the police’s action was a waste of the court’s time,” Ncube said. “We are concerned about this continued harassment of journalists.”

Police spokesman Wayne Bvudzijena said he was “not yet aware” of the arrest of any journalists when Bloomberg News called seeking comment.

To contact the reporter on this story: Brian Latham in Durban at blatham@bloomberg.net.

Mugabe Leads New Elite Group of Land Barons in Zimbabwe

2010-11-30T11:11:00.000+02:00

HARARE - President Robert Mugabe, his loyalists in ZANU-PF, cabinet ministers, senior army and government officials and judges now own nearly 5 million hectares of agricultural land, including wildlife conservancies and plantation land, seized from white commercial farmers since 2000, investigations by ZimOnline have revealed.

This means that a new well-connected black elite of about 2 200 people now control close to half of the most profitable land seized from about 4 100 commercial farmers.

Even though Mugabe has consistently maintained that his land reform programme is meant to benefit the poor black masses, it is him and his cronies who have got the most out of it, according to our three month long investigations.

ZimOnline can conclusively state that Mugabe and his second wife Grace, now own 14 farms, worth at least 16 000 hectares in size.

All ministers from Mugabe's ZANU PF in Zimbabwe's coalition government and ZANU PF deputy ministers are multiple farm owners. That probably explains why Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's determined push to have a new land audit done to uncover multiple farm owners has persistently hit a brickwall.

Mugabe's deputy Joyce Mujuru, alongside his influential husband, former army general Solomon Mujuru, and their relatives, own at least 25 farms with a combined hectarage of more than 105 000.

Critics who have consistently dismissed Zimbabwe's emotional land reforms as a political patronage programme by the octogenarian Mugabe to reward supporters who have kept him in power are right after all.

But the veteran leader insists the programme is meant to redress colonial imbalances and benefited the povo. Mugabe, whose agrarian reforms have been criticised by the West, says some 300,000 people have benefitted from the programme.

* Zimonline

Zimbabwe Leaders to Resume Talks Following Zuma Mediation

2010-11-30T10:56:00.000+02:00

Following a mediation trip to Harare by South African President Jacob Zuma, the senior leaders in Zimbabwe's power-sharing government are to resume meetings after a two-month breakdown.

South African President Jacob Zuma said he had persuaded Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai to begin talking to each other after four hours of meetings with the leaders Friday in Harare.

Zuma told reporters there had been a breakdown of communication between the leaders, but this had been resolved. He said they would restart their weekly meetings which had been suspended for two months.

"The meetings are going to resume," said Zuma. "And therefore all the issues that need to be discussed and resolved will certainly find a platform. And we are very happy. The consultation has been very good."

Zuma said there was a general understanding on the need to move forward and implement decisions made in the negotiations.

He declined to provide further details saying he would first have to brief leaders of the Southern African Development Community, which has been mediating the Zimbabwe dispute. The Zimbabwean leaders declined to comment.

Mr. Tsvangirai had accused Mr. Mugabe of breaking their power sharing accord by appointing allies to provincial governorships and other senior positions with consulting him.

Mr. Mugabe said there would be no further talks until Mr. Tsvangirai fulfilled his pledge to persuade Western governments to life sanctions against him and senior leaders of his ZANU-PF party.

Mr. Mugabe has said the unity government would come to an end in February, on its second anniversary, and the country would hold new elections next year.

But Mr. Tsvangirai said the unity government does not have a deadline and the power-sharing accord says elections can only be held after a new constitution is drafted and voted in a referendum.

Popular consultations on a new charter have been held and experts are due to begin drafting the document, but this step reportedly has been delayed by a lack of funds.

* VoA

SA Reintroduces Zimbabwe Visa

2010-11-29T16:28:00.000+02:00

THE South African government has reintroduced a visa for Zimbabweans who stay in that country for more than 90 days.The new measure, however, does not affect students who have study permits.

Those with jobs will be required to produce work permits when asked to do so by the authorities.

This means a Zimbabwean looking for a job or education placement in South Africa must do so within 90 days or secure a visa.

Anyone who fails to secure a visa after three months will be deported.

Pretoria scrapped visa requirements earlier this year and has been working with Harare to ensure Zimba-bweans who are there illegally regularise their stay.

A December 31 deadline has been set for regularisation and anyone who fails to get the documents by then will also be deported.

In an interview last week, South Africa's deputy director-general for immigration, Mr Jack Matei, said the scrapping of visas had seen many Zimbabweans illegally living and working in South Africa.

He said this had prompted them to re-introduce visas for anyone who stays for more than 90 days.

"We are very clear on the matter, if a Zimbabwean travels to SA he or she is supposed to have a study or work permit for him to stay in the country legally.

"In the event that one enters the country saying they are just visiting, they will be given 90 days to stay.

"When the days lapse they will be required to have a visa or else face deportation," said Mr Matei.

In another interview, South Africa's Home Affairs Ministry spokesperson, Mr Ronnie Mamoepa, said the issuing of visas was necessary for data keeping.

* Herald

Zimbabwe’s Biti Says Size of GDP Understated, Newsday Reports

2010-11-29T15:57:00.000+02:00

The size of Zimbabwe’s economy is understated and if revised nominal gross domestic product would probably reach $8 billion next year, Newsday reported, citing Finance Minister Tendai Biti.

That would be three years ahead of the forecast in the country’s Medium-Term Plan announced this year, the Harare-based newspaper said on its website, citing Biti. Newsday said GDP is currently measured at a little more than $5 billion, according to the International Monetary Fund.

A recovery in taxes, high credit demand and a large informal sector show the size of the economy is understated, it said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Gordon Bell in Johannesburg at gbell16@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Antony Sguazzin in Johannesburg atasguazzin@bloomberg.net.

UK Expresses Reservations Over Zimbabwe Elections

2010-11-23T17:21:00.000+02:00

HARARE - The political climate in Zimbabwe is not yet conducive to a free and fair general election, which President Robert Mugabe is aiming for by-mid 2011, Britain's top envoy in Harare said on Tuesday.

A severe economic crisis forced Mugabe's ZANU-PF party after a disputed vote in 2008 into a unity government with rival Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) and a smaller MDC faction led by Arthur Mutambara.

But the crisis has since eased and an increasingly confident Mugabe says he sees no need to extend the life of the coalition, and wants a referendum on a new constitution early next year and general elections by mid-year.

At a press briefing on Tuesday, British ambassador Mark Canning said although the economy was improving, Zimbabwe needed time to work on political reforms, including repealing repressive legislation, opening up the media, introducing new electoral laws, and updating the voter register.

* Reuters

SA's President Zuma Expected in Harare This Week

2010-11-22T09:43:00.000+02:00

President Jacob Zuma is expected to visit Zimbabwe this week to meet the leaders of the ailing unity government in a bid to iron out long-standing differences over power sharing.

Zimbabwe's power-sharing government, which was launched in February last year, has been dogged by sniping between the two main protagonists — President Robert Mugabe, of Zanu (PF), and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC).

Mr Zuma's planned visit comes after a Southern African Development Community (Sadc) troika meeting in Gaborone at the weekend failed to discuss Zimbabwe after Mozambique's and Zambia's presidents did not turn up.

The troika are three states that, in rotation, run Sadc's Organ on Politics, Defence and Security. The current troika members are SA, Zambia and Mozambique.

Sadc executive secretary Tomaz Salamao told reporters Mr Zuma was expected to go to Harare by the end of the week to continue with mediation efforts.

"After the troika summit failed to take place, it was agreed that President Zuma should go to Harare again where he will hold talks with the three parties (in the political agreement)," he said.

Mr Salamao, said that after the visit, Mr Zuma would be expected to recommend a date for another troika summit.

MDC spokesman in SA Sibanengi Dube said Mr Zuma's visit to Zimbabwe would be "worth it".

"As the MDC we still hope that Sadc will be able to make sanity prevail in Zimbabwe ... I also think that the leaders have realised that Mugabe does not respect Sadc."

Mr Dube said Mr Zuma was under pressure to mediate in the crisis and this had been worsened by the "fact that he has been constantly betrayed by Mugabe".

"Mugabe really does not take Zuma seriously. The problem is that Mugabe is regarded as an elder statesman in the region and Zuma ... is seen as a small boy."

Political analyst Prof Steven Friedman said the problem was that Mr Zuma is working within the Sadc framework. He said there was little hope that the unity government would ever work and there was little doubt that conditions for a free and fair election "are nonexistent".

"Mr Zuma will obviously try and patch things up and put pressure, but that will not deal with the problem. What should be done is to put pressure on the elite in Zimbabwe to create conditions for free and fair elections," Prof Friedman said.

Meanwhile, the Sadc headquarters in Gaborone was officially inaugurated by heads of state and government during the summit held in Botswana over the weekend.

* Sapa

UNAIDS Welcomes Pope Benedict's Support to HIV Prevention

2010-11-22T09:40:00.000+02:00

GENEVA — UNAIDS welcomes the reported statement of Pope Benedict XVI calling for “a humane way of living sexuality” and that the use of condoms are justified "in the intention of reducing the risk of HIV infection".

“This is a significant and positive step forward taken by the Vatican today,” said UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidibé. “This move recognizes that responsible sexual behaviour and the use of condoms have important roles in HIV prevention.”

UNAIDS has worked closely with the Vatican, in 2009 Mr Sidibé held far-reaching discussions with Archbishop Zygmunt Zimowski on HIV prevention issues including the prevention of mother-to-child transmission, protecting young people and reducing sexual violence against women and girls. “This will help accelerate the HIV prevention revolution, in promoting evidence-informed and human rights based approaches to achieve universal access goals towards HIV prevention, treatment, care and support,” said Mr Sidibé. “Together we can build a world with zero new HIV infections, zero discrimination and zero AIDS-related deaths.”

With more than 7000 new HIV infections each day, UNAIDS advocates the use of a combination HIV prevention approach that utilizes all proven methods for HIV prevention including use of male and female condoms, choosing to have sex later, having fewer multiple partners, male circumcision, reducing stigma and discrimination, and the removal of punitive laws. The male latex condom is the single, most efficient, available technology to reduce the sexual transmission of HIV and other sexually transmitted infections.

Contact

UNAIDS Geneva | Sophie Barton-Knott | tel. +41 22 791 1697 | bartonnkotts@unaids.org

KP Members to Meet on Monday Over Zimbabwe Diamonds

2010-11-22T09:37:00.000+02:00

KIMBERLEY Process (KP) members will gather in Brussels today (Monday) to try reaching an agreement over Zimbabwe’s rough diamond exports from the Marange region of Manicaland province.

At the Plenary Meeting in Jerusalem earlier this month, representatives from the diamond industry and a number of member countries tried to find a mutually agreed solution.

U.S. and Zimbabwe have drafted terms for allowing Zimbabwe to resume full exports. However, Canada and Australia opposed it.

Meanwhile, Zimbabwe has stuck with the KP monitor’s work guidelines and his greenlight that the country had satisfied the minimum conditions required to export the gems under the KP process.

Last week some US$160 million worth of diamonds were exported, despite the opposition from Australia and Canada.

Mines and Minerals Development Minister Obert Mpofu indicated that whatever the outcome of the KP meeting Zimbabwe will sell its diamonds.

He said the KP process stands to lose credibility if it bans Zimbabwe from exporting its gems over unproved claims.

* Zimbabwe Guardian

Zimbabwe's Finance Minister to Announce 2011 Budget Next Week

2010-11-18T10:50:00.000+02:00

Finance Minister, Tendai Biti will announce his 2011 National Budget on Thursday next week despite limited fiscal space due to lack of significant lines of credit.

Minister Biti is expected to come up with measures to unlock internal resources to finance the 2011 budget to reduce over reliance on foreign funding, which Government has no control over.

The country has suffered from lack of foreign direct investment and a serious debt over hang of more than US$6 billion that has made it difficult to source fresh capital.

In his 2010 National Budget, Minister Biti had estimated a vote of credit of about US$810 million which was later revised downwards to less than US$500 million.

Minister Biti had budgeted US$2,5 billion and predicted an 11 percent deficit for the current year and for 2011, he is likely to reduce to about US$2 billion as Government embraces the performance-based budget

The 2011 National Budget comes on the back of nationwide consultations by the minister after industry and civil society complained that the he was not consulting them.

* All Africa

Zimbabwe 12-Month Inflation Eases to 3.6 Percent in October, Up 0.1 Percent Monthly

2010-11-17T15:20:00.002+02:00

Zimbabwean 12-month inflation eased to 3.6 percent in October compared with 4.2 percent in September despite a 0.1 percent monthly rise in the cost of living.

The significant decline in the year-over-year inflation rate was mainly due to the 0.8 percent surge of October 2009 dropping out of the 12-month calculation.

The Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency said the 0.1 percent monthly rise in prices was mainly the result of higher prices for food and non-alcoholic beverages.

Analyst Patrick Smith says the drop from 4.2 to 3.6 percent also reflected the strengthening of the South African rand against the U.S. dollar in recent months.

Smith told VOA reporter Tatenda Gumbo that what the Zimbabwean economy most needs is a return to high levels of production in the key agriculture and mining sectors.

* VoA

Zimbabwe Passport Bottleneck Bodes Crisis for Migrants in South Africa

2010-11-17T14:42:00.000+02:00

Zimbabwean Registrar General Tobaiwa Mudede has warned that the estimated 1.4 million Zimbabweans living illegally in South Africa are unlikely to have regularized their stay by the December 31 deadline set down by authorities in that country.

Speaking before Parliament's committee on defense and home affairs on Monday, Mudede said his office was unable to cope with demand for passports by Zimbabweans in South Africa who need a valid passport to apply for South African residency papers.

Mudede said that as of October 31 some 7,500 passports had been issued.

Elsewhere, the International Organization for Migration said it is preparing to support Zimbabwean migrants facing mass deportation from South Africa after year end.

Ngqabutho Dube, secretary of the Movement for Democratic Change formation of Deputy Prime Minister Arthur Mutambara in South Africa, said South African authorities are not willing to compromise on the deadline following which deportations will resume.

* VoA

Shock as KP Monitor Chikane Clears Up Sale of Zimbabwean Diamonds

2010-11-17T14:17:00.000+02:00

There has been a shocked reaction to news that the monitor appointed to Zimbabwe by the international diamond trade watchdog, the Kimberley Process (KP), has gone against the body’s standards by unilaterally certifying Chiadzwa diamonds for sale.

The monitor, South Africa’s Abbey Chikane, reportedly returned to Zimbabwe last week and has cleared a batch of Chiadzwa stones for export. This is despite the deadlock reached over Zimbabwe’s trade future that means the KP has not sanctioned Chikane’s mission or authorised the certification.

A recent meeting of the KP in Jerusalem failed to reach a decision on Zimbabwe, which was last year barred from international trade over human rights abuses at Chiadzwa. The KP had given Zimbabwe almost a year to fall in line with the minimum international standards of diamond trade, but there are ongoing reports of brutal military control of the diamond fields and smuggling.

Most recently, six directors of one of the mining firms mining at Chiadzwa with the government’s approval have taken the fall for corruption, said to be widespread at the site. Rights groups have warned that top ZANU PF officials involved in the mining groups are driving the plunder of the area, with some reports suggesting that more than half of the diamonds mined are being smuggled out of the area for ZANU PF’s gain.

Regardless of the situation, the Mines Ministry has insisted it has met the international standards, and has been piling pressure on the KP to allow full diamond exports to resume. Mines Minister Obert Mpofu has already threatened to sell the stones without KP approval, which some observers have said is an intimidatory tactic to force the KP’s hand.

Chikane’s reported unilateral decision to certify Chiadzwa diamonds, without approval from the KP, is now a worrying development. Alan Martin from the pressure group Partnership Africa Canada (PAC) told SW Radio Africa on Tuesday that the development is “shocking and troubling.”

“People expected Zimbabwe to be upping the ante in trying to force the KP to fold like an old tissue,” Martin said. “But I don’t think anybody expected Chikane would be brought in to be aiding and abetting Zimbabwe in this way.” Martin added: “The situation presents him (Chikane) as being Harare’s boy.”

Questions have previously been raised over Chikane’s credibility as the monitor for Zimbabwe. He was implicated in the arrest of diamond researcher, Farai Maguwu. Maguwu, who has played a pivotal role in exposing the rights abuses at Chiadzwa, but was arrested shortly before a KP meeting earlier this year.

He has since said that Chikane “shopped” him to police, after a private meeting between the two, where Maguwu tried to detail the ongoing abuses at Chiadzwa.

Meanwhile, the situation has also thrown the KP’s crumbling credibility into sharp relief. PAC’s Martin said on Tuesday that the KP needs to take “tough and unified” action against Chikane, and also seize any diamond shipments from Zimbabwe. “This is indeed crunch time for the KP to prove that they can enforce the certification regime they have boasted,” Martin said.

* Sw Radio Africa

Zimbabwean Deportees Who are Now Based In SA Needed by a UK NGO

2010-11-15T13:44:00.000+02:00

Dear Colleagues

Do you ever come across any Zimbabwean asylum seekers in South Africa who were forcibly removed to Zim from the UK?

Or any who returned voluntarily to Zimbabwe (with programmes like the International Organisation of Migration voluntary return scheme) but then had to leave Zimbabwe and ended up in South AFrica?

We are very short on information about what has happened to returnees from UK to Zimbabwe. Any such information covering returns from the UK over the last 5 years would be incredibly helpful in the ongoing court case re asylum seekers.

Would it be possible to ask around your networks?

All the best,

--
Sarah Harland
Zimbabwe Association
Development House
56-64 Leonard Street
London EC2A 4LT

Tel: 07846859200
Fax: 020 7549 0356
www.zimbabweassociation.org.uk

Please Sign The Petition on Behalf of Roy Bennet

2010-11-15T11:59:00.000+02:00

I write to let you know of an online petition in support of Hon. Roy Bennett of Zimbabwe, which will be posted until December 24, 2010 and which can be found here:

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/263/justice-for-Roy-Bennett/

I kindly urge you to review it, sign it, and to share it in any way you can, asking others to do the same. Signatures can be anonymous by checking the 'Don't display my name' box under the name fields. Our goal is to achieve 10.000 signatures. Our dream is to surpass that goal.

A blog was also opened in support of our petition and can be found here:

http://www.digitaljournal.com/blog/9412

In the name of all who have contributed in the creation and dissemination of this effort, I thank you in advance for any support you can provide. Like one of the undersigned wrote, "I know it takes a village. But ONE person can make a difference. One at a time!"

South African Mediators Say Zimbabwe Needs Roadmap to Free, Peaceful Elections

2010-11-14T10:17:00.000+02:00

The South African government is downplaying talk of elections in Zimbabwe in 2011, saying it will insist that the three principals in the Harare unity government implement a roadmap to elections as mandated by the Southern African Development Community, a guarantor of power sharing with the African Union.

Lindiwe Zulu, a top aide to President Jacob Zuma of South Africa, SADC's mediator in Harare, said Friday that Pretoria will not bless an election marred by violence and intimidation.

She said Mr. Zuma will discuss the election roadmap with the three principals - President Robert Mugabe, Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and Deputy Prime Minister Arthur Mutambara, respectively head of the long-ruling ZANU-PF and rival formations of the Movement for Democratic Change.

A roadmap has to be established first, that will involve [2008 Global Political Agreement] principals, SADC and relevant people to ensure that any elections that will be held will be free and fair," Zulu said.

"President Zuma is of the view that if elections should be done there should be no violence, no intimidation and there should be a free media environment,” she said.

There have also been calls from a number of directions for the reform of repressive laws such as the Public Order and Security Act and the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act which critics say curtail freedom of association and assembly in the case of POSA, and restrict the media, in the case of AIPPA.
SADC leaders are increasingly concerned at the deteriorating political climate in Harare and want Mr. Zuma to be firm with Mr. Mugabe, saying the crisis stands to have a negative impact on the entire region, sources say.
Mr. Mugabe recently declared that has relations in the unity government have deteriorated so badly that the power-sharing arrangement must end by June of next year, triggering a new round of elections.

But talk of elections has escalated tensions in the country with reports of liberation war veterans, soldiers and ZANU-PF youth militia terrorizing rural inhabitants in Manicaland and Masvingo provinces.

Both MDC formations welcomed Pretoria's call for an election roadmap.

ZANU-PF spokesman Rugare Gumbo referred all questions to Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa, chief negotiator for the party in power-sharing talks since 2008. But Chinamasa was not immediately available.

Zulu said Pretoria has not been officially informed on the tension in Harare, but is closely following developments.

* VoA

Learnmore Judah Jongwe: We Simply Cannot Afford to Continue to Throw Away the Water and the Baby!

2010-11-14T10:04:00.000+02:00

A few years ago, I wrote a controversial article in defence of the political legacy of the late Learnmore Judah Jongwe. The furore that followed up on the said article was somewhat expected given the nature of the last days of Jongwe before his untimely death. But what was rather unexpected is some of the very personal attacks that I got for daring to highlight some of Jongwe’s major contributions to the national political landscape.

In one instance, I was brutally attacked for defending a heartless and remorseless murderer largely due to my political bias in his favour. The person further claimed that I was wrong even to dare write anything good about Jongwe since his act of shame necessitated that everyone avoid glorifying him in the national domain. My rabid critic insisted that Jongwe was a disgraced fallen hero who could not be regarded as a role model under whatever circumstances.

Be that as it may, I need to ensure that first and foremost, I do not get misunderstood as to exactly reason why I have once again dared to venture into the potentially murky waters that always surround the debate about the Jongwe legacy.

It is an indisputable fact that Jongwe deserved all his reputation as an astute and charismatic leader both at the University of Zimbabwe and later on in the opposition party trenches with the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC).

However despite of his evident leadership potential, he has his own personality flaws to contend with. But perhaps what eventually proved to be his achilles heel was his fiery temper. Those who were privileged to be close enough to the youthful legend like I was; then they will know for certain that at most times, Jongwe was a very sociable and affable fellow. He always strove to maintain a jovial mood and sought to be as happy as possible.

And as fate would have it, it was Jongwe’s failure to control his temper on that fateful night in August 2002 that led to him angrily severely assaulting his wife with a knife leading to her untimely death. This was indeed the lowest point of his rather short life that sadly he never got the chance to recover from till his own death.

Yet we must give credit where it is due. I had the privilege of visiting Jongwe at the Harare remand prison less than 12 hours before he passed away. It was a lunch hour visit in which I was accompanied by my wife and sister in law.

All the three of us agreed after we had left the prison precincts, that Jongwe seemed to have been fair enough and accepted full responsibility for his wife’s gruesome death. The man we met that day was so remorse and was so filled with so much regret that it broke my heart.

He appeared to fully admit his mistake and was ready to face the wheels of justice. At no stage did he ever attempt to defend his deed.

Added to that, he clearly understood that he had let down not only his wife and baby girl, but also his broader family and the nation, especially the MDC. He asked for forgives from us for his mistake and regretted that it was too late to beg his late wife for forgiveness. My last glimpse of him was a clearly remorsefully person whom i left with a face flowing with so much tears of sorrow and regret.

It is therefore a very sad story that the nation never got that opportunity to see Jongwe in the court room. I am very confident that if he had managed to go through his murder trial, he would have used the judicial process to express his full regret and apologised not only to his in-laws but the rest of his family, colleagues and the nation at large.

But still the million dollar question still remains to be answered. Why in the name of goodness am I still harping about Jongwe almost a decade after his passing away?

I am still determined to ensure that Jongwe’s legacy, even though tainted by his last days, should not be completely forgotten. Jongwe’s selfless contribution to the national discourse both as an outstanding student leader and also as an opposition party leader should never be easily brushed and completely forgotten.

Up until Jongwe made his fatal mistake, he had been highly regarded by his friends and foes alike. He was seen as a role model and was a source of inspiration for many people especially the youths and students. A lot of people never doubted that he had a very bright future in the field of politics. But alas, it was not to be.

It is my strong view that Zimbabweans when judging the legacy of their fallen heroes; always make the mistake of not giving them their due credit. At times we are way too moralist in our judgement of our own fallen heroes. No one is perfect. So it is unfair to know that no matter how hard you work hard to make a contribution to the national development, then whenever you make a big mistake; the nation does all it can to erase you from their memory.

In this regard, Jongwe is not alone since we have some outstanding national heroes such as the late Canaan Banana, who incidentally I have also been heavily involved in a desperate attempt to salvage his own legacy.

Zimbabweans need to learn from the South Africans, Europeans and Americans who always try their best to differentiate between a person’s contribution to the nation’s development and mistakes they have made in their own personal lives.

If this trend continues, our history archives will end devoid of any proper records of the various people who devoted most of their lives to make a sterling contribution for the good of our nation. We really owe this to the whole lot of them.

We simply cannot afford to continue to throw away the water and the baby!

* Written by Daniel Molokele

The Zimbabwe GNU at Two Years: The Struggle is Very far From Over!

2010-11-14T09:57:00.000+02:00

Monday 15^th September 2008. No matter what else ever happens in my life, one thing will remain for sure, I will never forget that day. Never!

The unforgettable day dawned upon while I was still resident in Geneva, Switzerland. I remember all the drama that happened on that day so vividly as if it were yesterday. Indeed, I may never have had the inimitable privilege to have been a witness of the event in person but mark my words; I was definitely part of the event in spirit. 100%!

On that day, I was so glued up to both my laptop and the television screen. On the laptop, I was reading every news item I could get hold of on the internet about the stupendous event that was unfolding at the former Sheraton Hotel in Harare. On the television I was switching from one channel to the other looking for the best form of news coverage of the big story emanating from Harare.

Indeed on that day, the unthinkable happened! It was all there for all to see before thousands of witnesses packed up at the Harare International Conference Centre. Not to mention the special witnesses from the SADC hierarchy and the diplomatic community!

The world could not believe its own eyes, as tow former great antagonists, who until then were notorious for their decade long political fierce rivalry seemed more than read to bury the hatchet. It was as if they had all of a sudden decided to let bygones and bygones and start on a very clean slate.

Since the late 1990s, Morgan Tsvangirai had staked his claim towards the leadership mantle of Zimbabwe with so much vigour and rigour last seen in the days of Joshua Nkomo prior to the Unity Accord of December 1987.

Yet on his part, Robert Mugabe had shown an equally resulted determination not to let go of his strong grip of political power in Zimbabwe. He may have grown a bit old over the years, but his thirst remained unquenched and his hunger for more power remained largely unsatisfied.

Yet there, they were, with all the broad smiles and big hugs, apparently ready to go beyond the polarisation and usher in a new era of political peace in the country. They both seemed ready for the requisite paradigm shift from a very confrontational to a much more co-operative form of engagement for the benefit of the long suffering millions of Zimbabweans both at home and abroad.

What a momentous occasion that was! Or so it seemed.

Using the benefit of hindsight, it is now clear that all this was such a big farce. It was very deceptive political mirage of the worst order! They may have seemed so close in the eyes of the gullible but in reality they were even much more polarised than ever. The two men remained so far apart, just like the North Pole is from the South Pole.

This was not a partnership of two committed individuals. No, far from it! This was instead a well choreographed political opera that was virtually imposed upon the two protagonists buy other forces that were at play. What one in the language of broadcasting was known as the crew behind the scene.

One of the forces behind all the charade was none other than the then President of South Africa, Thabo Mbeki. He was clearly the match maker in this unexpected marriage of convenience.

The jury is still out as to what really where his personal motivations in the entire discourse. However, what was clearly evident on that day was that he was even more delighted than the two bitter rivals themselves at this ceasefire process. It was evident that he clearly hoped to create some political capital out of all this.

Another glaring clue as to apparent insincerity of the principals in all this was also brought up into the public domain by both the tone and some of the words of Mugabe’s speech on that day.

Mugabe clearly pointed out that while he had signed the Global Political Agreement document, he was definitely uncomfortable with some of its key provisions. He tried desperately to hide his displeasure but not so successfully so.

And now more than two years later, it is now very evident as to why he said those pessimistic words on that day. More than two years later, Tsvangirai is now so disillusioned at the apparent failure of Mugabe to honour both the letter and spirit of the agreement.

Specifically, his MDC is now calming that Mugabe’s Zanu (PF) has acted in bad faith in the past two years. It insists that there are over twenty outstanding issues related to the agreement that the other party has not bothered to honour until now.

On the other hand, Zanu (PF) claims that it is all the fault of the MDC because it has failed to convince its allies in the West to remove unconditional the special sanctions on some of the leaders of the former ruling party.

The matter has by now been referred to every available SADC organ or summit but to no avail.

Two years later, it is now clear that the signatures of the two principals are not worth at all the paper they were written upon. It is no wonder that the other not so influential signatory, Arthur Mutambara has lambasted both men for lacking seriousness and for sacrificing national interests at the altar of political expediency and personal aggrandisement.

The bottom line of this entire matter is that as long as both Tsvangirai and Mugabe cannot come to a mutual understanding, the full implementation of the agreement will never happen. Come rain or thunder!

The truth is that the people of Zimbabwe have abrogated their responsibilities and left the two men with the onerous task of talking the nation forward. Sadly without any form of public pressure from the millions of the long suffering Zimbabweans both at home and in the Diaspora; no concrete political change will ever happen in the country. Not now, not ever!

True and meaningful democratic change will not fall like manna from heaven in Zimbabwe. We as the citizens of the country need to go back to the basics. We need to go back to the years of the late 1990s when we decided to create a mass backed movement consisting of all the progressive forces of democracy in the country. The same forces that helped form the MDC in September 1999.

The reality we all have to face is that the struggle for a new democratic and prosperous Zimbabwe is far from over! Aluta continua!

UK Urges Zimbabwe to Comply With Diamond Regulations

2010-11-11T16:48:00.000+02:00

LONDON (Reuters) - British officials urged Zimbabwe on Wednesday to comply with global diamond trade regulations and said most of the finest stones are being smuggled out of its rich Marange fields.

Zimbabwe said last week it would soon start selling millions of carats of diamonds from the Marange fields, even though the global body that regulates conflict diamonds, known as the Kimberley Process, said it had not yet approved the sale.

"I would urge the Zimbabwe government to do all it possibly can to become compliant with Kimberley and that will mean that we will get much more money coming into the Zimbabwe Exchequer," Britain's Africa minister Henry Bellingham said, speaking at London's Chatham House think tank.

He said the rich diamond deposits at Marange were funding "hardliners" when they should be benefitting the people of Zimbabwe.

Britain's Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Mark Canning, said most high-grade diamonds from Marange were "going out of the back door."

"The composition of Marange diamonds is very distinct ... If you tip a pot of them on the table ... you don't see many of the top 14 percent on the table," he said at the same event.

CONFUSED RESULT

Officials of Zimbabwe and of the Kimberley Process, the regulator that certifies diamonds to ensure they are not used to finance wars, gave conflicting views on the outcome of a closed-door meeting in Jerusalem last week.

Boaz Hirsch, chairman of the Kimberley Process, said no agreement had been reached on exports from Marange.

But Obert Moses Mpofu, Zimbabwe's mines and mining development minister, said there was an agreement for Zimbabwe to sell diamonds from Marange.

Mpofu told Reuters Zimbabwe had a stockpile of as much as 4.5 million carats of diamonds to sell.

In June, Zimbabwe's government agreed that diamonds from Marange would be sold only under the Kimberley Process.

A Man of All Seasons: A Tribute to Canaan Banana

2010-11-11T16:41:00.000+02:00

I will never forget the very first day I had my own personal encounter with this very enigmatic man. It was one of those afternoons when I was relaxing in my office. At that time I was the President of the University of Zimbabwe Students Union in Harare. This was sometime in 1998.
The student body’s lady administrator Thandiwe, came to my office and informed that I had an important visitor who wanted to meet me. I then duly gave her the green light to allow the visitor to walk into my office. A few moments later I had one of the most unforgettable moments of my entire life.
This was so because when my eyes looked up to see who had just entered into my office, I was so shocked to see the smiling face of a very familiar person. This was none other than Canaan Banana, the first President of the independent republic of Zimbabwe!
Throughout my childhood, he was more of a larger than life figure to me. I saw his face everywhere. I saw it on television, magazines and newspapers. But up until now, when I was a final year law student, I still had never met the man in person.
Still in a state of shock and rather a bit stupified by this unexpected experience, I then sheepishly welcomed him into my office and asked him to take a seat. When I return to my own seat behind the desk, I could not even muster enough courage and resolve to look him straight in his eyes. He must have realized how I was so overwhelmed by his surprise visit so much that he coughed up a little bit and initiated our conversation with such a broad smile and very excited eyes.
After a few moments of chatting to him, I soon found myself in top waffling gear and at my talkative best! He was such a free person and so easy to relate with. He was such a very friendly person. I was also taken up by his very so down to earth disposition. To say that he struck me as a humble person is such a huge understatement!
Out first ever meeting might have lasted a little over an hour but to me it seemed to have lasted a much less period. We spoke about a lot of varied subjects. We spoke about my childhood experience in the coal mining town of Hwange where Banana had once stayed there and shot to national fame after he courted controversy with his highly politicized sermons as a local churchman.
We spoke about his political experiences such as his detentions, his time as the President, his passionate commitment to soccer and his role as a peace maker across Africa after his retirement from State House.
But what was the most poignant aspect of my entire first meeting with him was the whole talk about the failure of the liberation movement to develop a clear succession plan that would have allowed it to embrace emerging leaders like myself from the younger generation. He seemed to be so passionate about this issue a lot.

From that day onwards, it seemed he had resolved to take it upon himself to be my kind of mentor. We would meet again and again later that year. He also asked me to be the chairperson of the Disciplinary Committee of the highly successful University of Zimbabwe soccer team that included such stars as Nkululeko Malaba and Benjani Mwaruwari, among others.
Being a passionate soccer fan like him, he also surprised me with a complimentary VIP ticket that enabled me to watch one of the national soccer team matches I Harare where I had the privilege of watching the legendary Peter Ndlovu at the peak of his excellent soccer career. In fact Banana has never got credit for the support he provided not only to lots of soccer stars but also to Zimbabwean soccer in general especially in his role for many years as the ZIFA Patron.
Then one day he invited me over to his home in Mount Pleasant. I managed to walk over there from my campus residence with my then girlfriend and my wife, Samukeliso. When we got to his home, we were both fascinated by his home. It was like a mini museum. It had a lot of books, portraits, artifacts and gifts that Banana had collected over the years.
I was so inspired by that visit to his home so much that I felt that the man’s contribution not only to the people of Zimbabwe but to also the people of Africa and the world at large had not been given some due recognition. I really felt that he had become somewhat of a forgotten hero. There was thus a genuine need to document his contribution and highlight all those many aspects of his illustrious long public career.
I then resolved to help preserve his contribution by writing down the story of his life. When I approached him about my idea he took to it like a duck to the pool waters. This was how I got his express permission to write the book about his public career; his own authorized biography.
I actually expected to finish the book with a two year period. According to my estimations at that time, the book would have hit the shelves by the end of 2000. However this was not to be, a few months later the sodomy court trial against him broke out and completely disrupted all our plans for his book. He then had to endure a jail term and afterwards we reconnected again when I was now in legal practice in Bulawayo and later on when I was at the National Constitutional Assembly regional offices.
Work on the book was then resumed in earnest and a new target of by the end of 2002 was set. But as fate would have it, it was not to be. The strain of the difficult experiences he had endured in the previous two years had had their toll on him. His health started to fail him. Our plans to launch his book were completely derailed yet again.
Sadly for us, he never recovered from the illness and he passed away on 10th November 2003. He was 67 years old. This was a relatively young age when compared to the longevity of his nationalist peers such as Robert Mugabe, Joshua Nkomo, Abel Muzorewa, Ndabaningi Sithole, Simon Muzenda, Joseph Miska, among others.
To add more salt to injury, the Zanu (PF) government showed some extreme levels of determination to underplay his lifelong contribution to the people of Zimbabwe. Banana was not declared a national hero. He was eventually laid to rest as a national outcast somewhere in his rural home in the Matabeleland South.
And since then, he has become such a pariah so much that his name has become such a by word in the corridors of power in Harare. Today Banana’s name is now simultaneous with his infamous conviction and jail term as a result of the controversial sodomy case. All that he worked for throughout his long public career has now been conveniently forgotten.
To put it more bluntly and in no uncertain terms, Banana is now a fully accredited forgotten national hero.
But all this will not last for long. The good news is that his good works will soon allow him to speak from his grave. His life story will soon be read and talked about not only in Zimbabwe and Africa but also in the rest of the world that he served so tirelessly throughout his life.
If all goes according to my plans, then by the end of 2010, exactly ten long years after the initial set deadline for the publication and launch of his book, the inevitable will happen at last!
Do all watch out for his authorized biography that will soon hit the bookshelves; A Man of All Seasons.

Zimbabwe Economy Buoyant, More Reform Needed: IMF

2010-11-08T17:43:00.000+02:00

HARARE (Reuters) - Zimbabwe's economy will grow for the second successive year in 2010 due to positive policies and strong commodity prices, the International Monetary Fund said on Monday, while calling for more reforms to sustain the recovery.

The southern African country's economy, battered by hyperinflation which reached 500 billion percent in 2008, grew 5.7 percent in 2009 -- the first time in a decade -- under a power-sharing government set up by bitter foes President Robert Mugabe and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai.

An IMF team that visited between Oct 25 and Nov 3 for routine discussions with government and the private sector said Zimbabwe would have a budget surplus this year, among other signs of improved economic conditions.

"Supported by renewed efforts to strengthen policies and favourable shocks, the Zimbabwe economy is completing its second year of buoyant economic growth after a decade of economic decline," the IMF said.

"The budget is projected to generate a cash surplus in 2010, governance at the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe is improving, and the government is working toward strengthening the business climate."

The IMF has projected the economy to grow by 2.2 percent in 2010, while Finance Minister Tendai Biti says it is on course for 8.1 percent growth this year and 10 percent in 2011.

The IMF said there should be more funding for infrastructure and social needs in the 2011 budget and recommended that the government cap cash budget expenditure at $2.5 billion.

Higher gold and platinum prices have boosted exports and government revenues in 2010, while favourable weather conditions contributed to higher agricultural output

US Government Expands HIV/AIDS Support to Zimbabwe With US$50 Million Program

2010-11-05T09:19:00.000+02:00

The Strengthening Private Sector Services for Health program seeks to leverage government and non-governmental resources and activities to counter the still-devastating HIV/AIDS epidemic

U.S. officials in Harare, Zimbabwe, on Thursday rolled out an additional initiative to strengthen the country's HIV/AIDS prevention and care efforts with funding of US$50 million over five years.

The Strengthening Private Sector Services for Health program seeks to leverage government and non-governmental resources and activities to counter the still-devastating HIV/AIDS epidemic.

Launching the program today in Harare in a ceremony attended by officials of the U.S. Agency for International Development, the Ministry of Health and NGO representatives, U.S. Ambassador Charles Ray said the program will improve the quality of life for many Zimbabweans.

But he said more action is needed to combat the disease in Zimbabwe, pledging that the American government will do all it can to help people in the country access quality health services.

Dr. Gibson Mhlanga, representing Zimbabwean Minister of Health Henry Madzorera, commended the United States for its role in the battle against HIV/AIDS. He observed that the government in cooperation with organizations funded by USAID had lowered the HIV prevalence rate to 13.7 percent last year from a shocking 29.3 percent in 1997.

The new funding comes on top of money provided under the U.S. President’s Emergency Program for Aids Relief which will funnel nearly US$56 million to Zimbabwe in 2011.

It includes a small grants program distributing US$40,000 to HIV/AIDS community groups in need of additional resources, program coordinator Dawn Anderson of the U.S. embassy told VOA's Tatenda Gumbo.

* VoA

Zimbabwe Thumbs Nose at Diamonds-Control Regime

2010-11-05T09:16:00.000+02:00

Zimbabwe is vowing to push ahead with a massive export of controversial gems from its violence-plagued diamond fields, despite its failure to win approval from a global regulatory scheme.

The threat from close allies of President Robert Mugabe is a major challenge to the Kimberley Process, the global certification system that aims to prevent the trade of “blood diamonds” from war zones.

Despite four days of meetings this week, the 75-nation Kimberley Process was unable to reach agreement on whether to allow exports of Zimbabwe’s diamonds, which could represent up to 25 per cent of the world’s diamond exports within the next two years.

The Zimbabwe diamonds are one of the richest discoveries in decades, and Zimbabwe could become the world’s biggest diamond producer. But hundreds of people have been killed or beaten by Zimbabwe’s military and police as they seized control of the diamonds, according to human-rights groups.

Zimbabwe’s Mines Minister Obert Mpofu said his government would “immediately” begin selling its diamonds. “Zimbabwe will sell diamonds without any conditions,” he vowed on Thursday, according to Reuters news agency.

Canada was one of the earliest architects of the Kimberley Process, and it was a key player at the meetings this week in Jerusalem. Canadian officials, along with European and Australian representatives, are still unwilling to allow Zimbabwe to export its diamonds freely on world markets, sources said. Since the system requires a unanimous agreement, no deal was possible when Canada, Europe and Australia objected.

Zimbabwe might now push ahead with exports in defiance of the Kimberley Process. It has already won support from India, China, Russia and most African countries. Because of the failure to reach agreement this week, and because of ambiguities in international trade rules, Zimbabwe might now legally have the right to export its diamonds.

* Globe and Mail

Zimbabwe Rated One of the Worst Countries to Live In

2010-11-05T09:12:00.000+02:00

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Oil-rich Norway remains the best country in the world to live in, while Zimbabwe, afflicted by economic crisis and AIDS, is the least desirable, according to an annual U.N. rating released on Thursday.

The assessment came in a so-called human development index, a measure of well-being published by the U.N. Development Program for the past 20 years that combines individual economic prosperity with education levels and life expectancy.

The UNDP placed Norway, Australia and New Zealand at the top and Niger -- last year's back-marker -- the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Zimbabwe at the bottom, as Western countries again led the list while sub-Saharan African nations trailed.

Japan headed the field in life expectancy, at 83.6 years, with Afghanistan last at little more than half of that -- 44.6 years. The tiny Alpine state of Liechtenstein had by far the highest per capita annual income -- $81,011, 460 times higher than last-placed Zimbabwe on $176.

Overall, the index contained some significant changes near the top compared with last year, with the United States rising to fourth from 13th and Iceland -- hard hit by the global financial crisis -- plummeting to 17th from third.

But UNDP officials said the figures were not fully comparable due to changes in calculation methods this year.

ICG Report Issues Serious Warning on Zimbabwe Crisis

2010-11-04T12:28:00.000+02:00

HARARE – An international conflict prevention group has warned that Zimbabwe is one of three countries sitting on knife-edge and should be watched closely because of their worsening political situations.

International Crisis Group (ICG) said in a report that political undercurrents in the three African nations of Zimbabwe, Nigeria and Guinea were threatening the stability of these countries and could easily explode into full crises at any time.

“Zimbabwe's inclusive government looked increasingly unstable, threatening to fracture over differences on implementation of the 2008 Global Political Agreement and elections,” ICG said in the October issue of its monthly bulletin CrisisWatch.

Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's MDC-T party last month said Zimbabwe was sliding into a constitutional crisis and urged the Southern African Development Community (SADC) to urgently intervene to force President Robert Mugabe to respect the country’s Constitution.

Tsvangirai accused Mugabe of violating Zimbabwe’s Constitution and a 2008 power-sharing pact through the “illegal” appointments of his close friends to senior government positions since November 2008.

The contested appointments included those of the central bank governor Gideon Gono, Attorney General Johannes Tomana, provincial governors, ambassadors, judges and a commission to oversee operations of the police force.

Mugabe is accused of unilaterally making appointments of these officials without consulting the Prime Minister as required under the power-sharing pact – commonly referred to as the global political agreement (GPA) – that the two leaders signed in September 2008.

Tsvangirai said the MDC-T national executive had resolved not to recognise all unilateral appointments by Mugabe who has also refused to swear in the party’s treasurer-general Roy Bennett as deputy agriculture minister.

Mugabe has linked the implementation of outstanding GPA issues to the lifting of restrictive measures imposed on him and senior officials of his ZANU PF party in 2002.

Tsvangirai urged SADC to deploy observers before a constitutional referendum scheduled for next year in order “to help protect the rights of Zimbabweans to express their views freely and without violence or intimidation”.

An outreach programme to gather pubic views on a proposed Constitution has been marred by political violence, with meetings for Harare postponed in September after inter-party clashes left at least five MDC-T supporters injured.

* Zimonline

Directors of Zimbabwe Diamond Venture Held for Fraud

2010-11-04T12:23:00.000+02:00

HARARE (Reuters) - Zimbabwe police have arrested six directors linked to a joint venture mining diamonds in the controversial Marange gem fields on allegations of fraudulently acquiring the concession, state media reported on Thursday.

The arrested executives include five officials from the state-owned Zimbabwe Mining Development Corporation (ZMDC) and a Zimbabwean representative of its South African partner, Core Mining and Minerals, in the 50-50 diamond mining joint venture, Canadile Miners.

The directors were facing charges of misrepresenting to government that the joint venture firm had the capacity to fund mining operations at its Marange concession, the state-controlled Herald newspaper said.

The newspaper said Canadile has since been barred from Marange, with the ZMDC now running mining operations on its own.

Police and ZMDC officials were not immediately available for comment.

Apart from Canadile, two other firms currently operate in the Marange fields in 50-50 partnerships with Zimbabwe's government.

The other two are Mbada Diamonds, jointly owned by South Africa's New Reclamation Group, and Anjin, a Chinese joint venture.

Human rights groups are pushing for a ban on stones from the 66,000 hectare Marange fields in eastern Zimbabwe over alleged atrocities committed by security forces as they clamped down on 30,000 illegal diggers who descended on the then poorly secured area in 2008.

Zimbabwe, which has held two auctions under the supervision of industry watchdog Kimberley Process Certification Scheme and says it still holds some 4.5 million carats in its stockpile, has said it will soon resume gem sales as it has met the standards demanded by the global regulator.

Zimbabwe Economy to Grow Close to 10 Percent in 2011

2010-11-04T12:22:00.000+02:00

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Zimbabwe's economy is on track to grow by 8.1 percent this year and close to 10 percent in 2011, the finance minister said on Thursday.

Zimbabwe was battered by a decade of economic contraction and hyperinflation, which reached 500 billion percent in 2008 at the peak of the country's political and economic crisis.

The country's economy has begun to recover after a unity government set up last year dumped the worthless local currency for foreign currencies and after a revival in the agriculture sector.

"We are on track (for 8.1 percent). Poised for 10 percent next year," Finance Minster Tendai Biti told Reuters on the sidelines of a conference in Johannesburg.

Biti told conference delegates earlier that Zimbabwe had approved 1.1 billion dollars in foreign investment in the period January 2009 to May 2010 for 199 projects in the country with 90 percent of those in the mining sector.

"This train is moving", he said, referring to the economy.

* Reuters

Zimbabweans in UK invited to Meet British Govt

2010-11-03T17:29:00.000+02:00

The British Government is, through the Zimbabwe Diaspora Focus Group, (ZDFG), the primary contact for any stakeholder seeking to engage Zimbabweans in the UK, inviting UK based Zimbabweans to a meeting on the politics and situation in Zimbabwe Monday, 8 November in London.

Speakers include the FCO Minister for Africa, Henry Bellingham, MP, and the British
Ambassador to Harare, Mark Canning. The two are expected to give their view of the political, economic and humanitarian situation in Zimbabwe and an outline of Her Majesty’s Government (HMG) policy towards Zimbabwe. Most of the time allocated is open to questions and comments from the Zimbabwean
audience.

On the 27th October, there was a meeting at Lancaster House where officials from the UKBA
and FCO announced to some Zimbabweans, the Written Ministerial Statement of resumption
of enforced removals to Zimbabwe after the discharge of the country guidance case before
the courts.

In that Lancaster House meeting, the ZDFG asked HMG to commit to a meeting with the
portfolio of immigration and asylum, made up of all UK based Zimbabwean organisations that
deal with immigration and asylum issues, led by the Zimbabwe Association (ZA).

The UKBA agreed to have the special meeting specifically to address the removal policy after
ZDFG has had an opportunity to consult all Zimbabweans affected by this policy change.

The meeting of the 8th November with Minister Bellingham and Ambassador Manning should
not be confused with the special immigration meeting that is to be held as soon as
consultation is complete. This consultation is being co-ordinated by the ZDFG immigration
portfolio lead, the ZA through Sarah Harland and Patson Muzuwa, and Linda Bikinesi in the
ZDFG secretariat.

The meeting of the 8th November is therefore not intended as the follow-up meeting on
enforced returns, as this will take place later in the month at the Home Office.

This meeting on the 8th November is open to all Zimbabweans, and others who have a specific
interest in Zimbabwe.

The FCO has assured the ZDFG that the room booked in the FCO can seat over 100 people so
there should not be an issue over lack of space. Zimbabweans are encouraged to attend.

As participants will need to be issued with a security pass on arrival at the FCO, HMG is
strongly urging attendees to send their name to me (Margaret.belof@fco.gov.uk so that these
can be prepared in advance.

Attendees are also urged to arrive 10-15 minutes in advance to ensure they can be present at
the start of the meeting, which will begin promptly at 14.00

ZDFG chairperson, Lucia Dube said: “At times like these, it is important that Zimbabweans
attend these forums to engage our hosts directly.

“We should move away from the unacceptable situation where a few people have always
claimed to speak on behalf of Zimbabweans without consulting them.

“As the ZDFG, our aim is to ensure that every Zimbabwean voice is heard, no-matter how
small or diverse. This is about people’s lives.”

EU Promises €4.9 million for Zimbabwe’s Land Audit

2010-11-03T17:09:00.000+02:00

Harare -The European Union will provide €4.9 million (about US$6.9 million) towards a long-awaited audit of Zimbabwe’s controversial land redistribution programme, the EU ambassador to Zimbabwe Aldo Dell’Ariccia said Wednesday.

Dell’Ariccia told reporters that the funds were the EU’s contribution towards the implementation of a National Land Audit Programme.

A 2008 political agreement between President Robert Mugabe’s ZANU PF party and rival Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) factions that led to the formation of the country’s power-sharing government calls for a land audit to establish who owns which land in order to eliminate multiple land owners.

The land audit has failed to take off because of a shortage of funds and resistance from senior ZANU PF officials who are multiple farm owners.

Land remains a divisive issue in Zimbabwe after Mugabe over the past decade drove most of the country’s about 4,500 large-scale White landowners off their farms which he went on to parcel out to landless Blacks.

Critics say Mugabe’s cronies – and not ordinary black peasants – benefited the most from the land reforms, with many ending up with up to six farms each against the government’s publicly stated one-man-one-farm policy.

Mugabe has often rejected calls by Prime minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s MDC for a review of the land redistribution programme, saying those behind the calls want to return expropriated farms to their White former owners.

* Zimbabwe Mail

KP Chairman: Let’s Avoid Stalemate on Zimbabwe Diamonds

2010-11-03T16:48:00.000+02:00

Another impasse between the Kimberley Process and Zimbabwe would be “very costly,” KP chairman Boaz Hirsch warned a group of journalists Monday on the first day of the organization’s plenary in Jerusalem.

“An impasse would mean uncertainty,” he said. “We are looking for a consensus based agreement.”

Exports from the Marange diamond fields in Zimbabwe have been barred pending a report from the organization’s Working Group of Monitoring, which sent a review mission to the area in September.

Hirsch predicted late night negotiations as Zimbabwe haggled with its critics within the organization over a plan to resume exports.

“The Kimberley Process is a roller-coaster,” he said. “Sometimes you are up. Sometimes you are down. Sometimes you enjoy the ride. Sometimes you don’t.”

On Monday, Obert Mpofu, Zimbabwe’s minister of mines, threatened to leave the organization if full exports aren’t granted.

Hirsch said that “some of the rhetoric deeply bothers me, but what matters most are actions. The Kimberley Process is still the optimal place to be if you are a player in the diamond field.”

He said the organization needs to consider human rights as a factor going forward.

“This is not an issue we should shy away from,” he said.

But he added that the Process ultimately has limitations.

“I am not the U.N. Security Council, that can send convoys and airplanes,” he said.

Still, he said its strong points have been underestimated.

“The KP has strength, and it has proven it,” he said. “What other mineral has a successful regulatory regime?”

New Zimbabwe Diaspora Group Launched To Promote Recovery, Development

2010-11-02T07:08:00.000+02:00

Expatriate Zimbabweans recently launched a new organization aiming to bring the resources of the so-called diaspora to bear on the economic recovery and development of their country.

The Development Foundation of Zimbabwe, based in Cape Town, South Africa, aims to harmonize and strengthen diaspora networks to contribute more effectively contribute to Zimbabwe's return to prosperity.

Group spokesman Alex Magaisa said the initiative emerged from a December 2009 conference hosted by the Institute for Justice and Reconciliation in Cape Town. Among other objectives, it seeks to ensure the Zimbabwe government’s engagement with the diaspora take place within a coherent policy framework, he said.
Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai spoke at the Cape Town conference and urged the diaspora community to seek ways to unite and work to help Zimbabwe recover its former economic strength.

Graca Machel, wife of former South African President Nelson Mandela, officially launched the initiative. She challenged Zimbabweans in the diaspora to help their country regain its place as a regional economic power.
“I wish Zimbabweans in this room a progressive and developmental citizenry that contributes genuinely to the reconstruction of their country – a country that must by all means regain its stature in the region.”

Machel said most communities in Africa are still struggling to meet basic human rights such as water, health care and education – challenges she hopes the group will tackle with its partners in Zimbabwe.

Magaisa told VOA that the Development Foundation, which draws on top minds from various sectors, also seeks to engage the Harare unity government on issues of concern to the diaspora, such as dual-citizenship.

“ While the pace and degree of [the current political] transition is evidently a source of pain and frustration for most Zimbabweans who wish the country to move speedily towards sustainable recovery and economic development, it is evident that this transition is irreversible," so the diaspora must better coordinate resources, Magaisa said.
Global Zimbabwe Forum International Coordinator Daniel Molokele said his group, established in 2007, will be working closely with the Development Foundation of Zimbabwe.

The Development Foundation will organize a multi-stakeholder conference in Victoria Falls later this year to promote an efficient and effective role by Zimbabwe diaspora communities in the country's recovery.

"We need to move beyond remittances and get the diaspora to engage directly with stakeholders in country hence the decision to hold this conference,” Magaisa said.

* VoA