(HERALD) Govt complies over Chiadzwa

Govt complies over Chiadzwa
From Cletus Mushanawani in Chiadzwa

THE Government has finalised negotiations with two partners to exploit diamonds at the Chiadzwa diamond fields on a large scale.

Speaking during a tour of the diamond fields with a delegation from the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme team on Thursday, Deputy Minister of Mines and Mining Development Murisi Zwizwai said the Government was doing its best to comply with the recommendations by the KP review mission team that visited the country from June 30 to July 4.

"Although we are facing very serious financial challenges, we have managed to identify two partners that will help us in exploiting diamonds here at Chiadzwa. The partners will also help in addressing the issue of security concerns that was raised by the Kimberley Process review mission.

"We decided to invite the KPCS team following reports from Newman Chiadzwa, who alleged that he had been forcibly removed from his homestead and had some of his property destroyed by security forces.

"Some non-governmental organisations had even written to the United States Secretary of State, Mrs Hillary Clinton, citing ‘gross human rights abuses’ at Chiadzwa and we saw it fit to invite this team (KPCS) for them to come on the ground and verify the so-called allegations.

"We have nothing to hide as a Government and that is the reason why we even invited the chairman of the KPCS process, Honourable Bernard Esau, to come in person for him to have first-hand information of what is happening on the ground," Mr Zwizwai said.

In an interview on Thursday, Mr Esau said their visit was prompted by a report of the review mission team that was in the country at the beginning of last month.

"We are here to see what is happening on the ground in terms of mining and beefing up the security measures at Chiadzwa.

"We also have reports that Newman Chiadzwa was forcibly removed from his home and we visited his place and everything was intact," he said.

Mr Esau said they met the Cabinet Taskforce on Mining as well as Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai.

The team, which is made up of Mr Kenneth Hamutenya (the chief diamond commissioner from Namibia), Ms Cecilia Mbunda (KPCS co-ordinator from Namibia) and Ms Violet Atarota (KPCS secretary) will wrap up its visit today.

Newman Chiadzwa, who confessed to being a bogus chief, has been peddling reports of alleged human rights abuses at Chiadzwa diamond fields and that all the people who provided information to the KPCS team during its initial visit were being persecuted by State security agents.

However, his reports have been found to have been fabricated.