Ministry to rule on non-complying mines
By: By Prof Tshuma, Business Reporter
Posted: Friday, February 4, 2011 4:47 pm
MINERS have been refusing to comply with the indigenization policy citing that they were already indigenized as they were into corporate social responsibilities as well as mobilizing foreign revenue inflows especially the international banks.
In response to this move, the Minister of Youth, Development, Indigenization and Empowerment, Savior Kasukuwere has given a statement that government was finalizing consultations as to what steps to take on the issue of miners who were making the claims.
“Currently work is at an advanced stage to finalise consultations on the mining sector with a view to publish the gazette for the sector not later than the end of February 2011,” said Kasukuwere.
He said business entities were grouped according to their sectors and were asked to send their proposals for considerations in line with the indigenization policy.
Thirteen sectoral committees were created in August 2010.
“The mining sector committee report has since been analyzed and presented to cabinet for consideration and we agreed that the percentage of indigenous shareholding be as follows: 100% for alluvial diamonds; 51% for other diamonds and minerals and 51% for all new investment in the mining sector.
“The share ownership trusts be entitled to 10% of profit before tax for reinvestment in the community in accordance with section 14B of the Indigenization and Economic Empowerment (General) Regulations 2010 as amended, defer implementation of empowerment of empowerment credits pending further reflection.
“We also agreed that a sovereign fund be created for the mining sector and to approve the proposed timeframes, thresholds and lesser shares,” he explained.
The grouped sectors were as follows manufacturing, tourism, finance, mining, transport, communication, agriculture, energy, construction, agriculture, retail/trading, property/real estate, services and others.
The Indigenization and Economic Empowerment Act creates an enabling environment that results in increased participation and empowerment of indigenous people in the Zimbabwean economy and concurrently address issues of employment creation, economic growth and poverty alleviation.
Labels: INDIGENIZATION AND EMPOWERMENT ACT (ZIMBABWE), MINING
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Mugabe must hear our case: Ncube
by Staff Reporter
05/02/2011 00:00:00
MDC leader Professor Welshman Ncube says he plans to hold a meeting with President Robert Mugabe over the disputed deputy premiership post amid reports the party may pull-out of the coalition government over the issue.
President Mugabe has insisted Ncube cannot become Deputy Prime Minister unless Professor Arthur Mutambara – replaced by Ncube as leader of the MDC in January – quits the post. But Ncube said Mugabe could not take a position on until the matter is officially presented to him.
“We do not believe he can have any official position before he has heard us. If you were a lawyer, you would understand that. A judge cannot make a determination before the case has been formally placed and argued before him,” Ncube told the privately-owned weekly newspaper.
“The President must hear our case first. We will not therefore engage in any speculative debate. We cannot cross the bridge we have not arrived at.”
Following the MDC’s January congress the party reshuffled its representatives in the coalition administration with Ncube set to take over as deputy premier from Mutambara who was re-assigned to the post of Regional Integration Minister.
However, Mugabe said removing Mutambara from the deputy premiership was easier said than done
“They were able to remove him politically, but legally he was sworn in as a Member of Parliament,” Mugabe was reported as saying.
“I swore him in as Deputy Prime Minister. It’s up to him if he wants to resign, but if he refuses, well, we are stuck, but the Global (Political) Agreement (GPA) will go ahead.”
Mutambara -- who has been out of the country – has not commented on the developments with local media reports indicating he would not resign.
Sources told the Financial Gazette that Mutambara was keen to remain in place to complete his projects that include the rebranding of the country and the promotion of public-private sector partnerships in infrastructure rehabilitation and development.
“Mutambara said he should be allowed to remain as the Deputy Prime Minister to see through two of his initiatives: rebranding Zimbabwe and the triple Ps. He said in return for that Ncube would have all the powers and would have the ultimate say on everything,” the newspaper quoted a source close to him as saying.
Ncube however, warned Mutambara – who said he was now an ordinary MDC member -- that “instruction(s) of the party” must be obeyed.
“Here we must always understand that loyal party cadres obey the instructions of the party when they are given,” Ncube said.
“In our view, as a party, it’s never about an individual stepping down from this or that post, it’s always about accepting the deployment, the command or the instruction of the party.”
Labels: ARTHUR MUTAMBARA, GLOBAL POLITICAL AGREEMENT, MDC, NATIONAL UNITY GOVERNMENT, ROBERT MUGABE, WELSHMAN NCUBE
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France ‘pressed’ for sanctions removal: WikiLeaks
by Staff Reporter
05/02/2011 00:00:00
UNITED States diplomatic communications released by the whistle-blower website WikiLeaks appear to indicate divisions within the European Union (EU) over Zimbabwe with France said to have called for the removal of sanctions imposed against the country.
France’s apparent change of heart came after the coalition government was appointed in February 2009 following a disputed election fight-off between President Robert Mugabe and long-time rival Morgan Tsvangirai, now the country’s Prime Minister.
The French Deputy National Security Advisor Bruno Joubert put his country’s position to UK Foreign Office Minister for Africa Lord Malloch-Brown during a meeting in Paris in April 2009.
“Joubert (and other officials) all "pressed hard" on UK Foreign Office Minister for Africa Lord Malloch-Brown to support lifting EU sanctions on Zimbabwe,” the cable read.
France also warned that the “EU will begin considering lifting sanctions ‘with or without the UK,’ but would prefer the UK to lead the process”.
Malloch-Brown reportedly conceded that “it was time to begin looking at Zimbabwe as a glass half-full” but claimed that the coalition government had not done “enough yet to merit lifting sanctions”.
Still, senior figures in the British government were also said to still leaning towards hard-line positions on Zimbabwe.
The then Prime Minister, Gordon Brown is said to have told his “Italian (counterpart) Romano Prodi that the UK "(would) not support the Government of Zimbabwe until President Robert Mugabe is gone."
The EU imposed the sanctions following allegations of rights abuses and electoral fraud.
However, Mugabe says the sanctions – which he claims were imposed as punishment for his land reforms – are hurting ordinary people adding they were also responsible for the country’s economic collapse over the last decade.
Officials add that the sanctions are holding back efforts to drive the country’s economic recovery.
Labels: EU, GORDON BROWN, MARK MALLOCH-BROWN, SANCTIONS
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COMMENT - This is the clear and corrupt abuse of the Kimberley Process to starve governments they don't like - and their people - of funds. There are many economic sanctions against Zimbabwe, the credit freeze sanctions in Section 4C of ZDERA are just the sanctions that are a matter of record for all to read.
UK coordinated Marange diamond ban efforts: WikiLeaks
by Staff Reporter
05/02/2011 00:00:00
THE British government coordinated a campaign by Western governments and some non-governmental organisations to have the Kimberly Process (KP) ban diamonds from Marange, previously secret diplomatic cables revealed by WikiLeaks have shown.
The cables, which were released by WikiLeaks on Friday show
the United States and the British governments planning "separate but coordinated" efforts to get the KP to ban imports of diamonds from Marange.
Mark Malloch-Brown – who was minister for Africa in Gordon Brown’s government – was at the centre of the campaign according to a US embassy communication from January 2009.
“Malloch-Brown has instructed the Foreign Office to push the Kimberley Process (KP) to investigate Zimbabwe's KP eligibility and issue a statement about Zimbabwe's trafficking of conflict diamonds.
“In the interim because KP "is so slow," Malloch-Brown has requested NGOs like Global Witness and Partnership Africa Canada (PAC) be approached to do research and reporting on the situation,” the cable read.
Global Witness and Partnership Africa Canada supported by the US, UK and Canadian governments led opposition to the lifting on the KP ban during the diamond watchdog’s meeting in Tel Aviv, Israel, in June 2010.
However, a Zimbabwe desk officer in the British foreign office said some European countries were opposed to the ban.
“Zimbabwe Desk Officer Tracy Walton noted that the EU was considering a ban on the import of Zimbabwe diamonds, but said that Belgium had mounted opposition.
[Antwerp in Belgium is the center for the world diamond trade. I am sure they would not want to see governments banned from exporting diamonds, lest anyone would take a closer look at the human rights situation in Botswana (like the displacement of the San people) or the DRC. - MrK]
“According to Walton, Belgium was amiable to UN -- not EU -- sanctions because Belgium did not want any country in the world to trade the diamonds if Belgium could not,” the cables said.
The UK efforts were also frustrated by Russia which was said to be “the biggest obstacle in the UN to implementing sanctions” while China was "uninterested" in the diamonds issue.
Western countries supported by some NGOs claim that the Marange gems are “blood diamonds” and should be banned from the international market.
However the Zimbabwe government dismisses allegations of rights abuses and insists that measures have since been taken to ensure compliance with KP requirements.
[Also, the KP requirements only apply to rebel movements, not national governments. Not a small detail in the KP applicability to the Zimbabwean government. - MrK]
Officials say the vast alluvial deposits in Marange could supply 25 percent of the world's diamond demand and help drive up the country’s economic recovery.
Labels: CORRUPTION, KIMBERLEY PROCESS, MARANGE DIAMOND FIELDS, MARK MALLOCH-BROWN, SANCTIONS
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NATHANIEL MANHERU-Tunisia, Egypt: Fatwa on US Middle-East strategy?
Saturday, 05 February 2011 03:05 Blogs
In his Anti-Memoirs, Andre Malraux wrote that if our caves and their flint implements remind us that man invented the tool, “it is in Egypt that we are reminded that he invented the tomb”.
I don’t know what Malraux meant by that. I just hope he meant the prodigious and majestic pyramids attesting to both Egyptian architectural excellence and the hard slave labour their grandeur belie. If that is what he meant, I might just agree, even then reluctantly. If he meant to mischaracterise Egypt as the place of death or the deathly, maybe I might need more persuasion.
Egypt, apart from being the birthplace of world civilisation, invented irrigation technology, invented paper — that far reaching technology and platform that made human experience recordable and preserve-able. Egypt chose to call it papyrus, not paper, but frankly who cares about a name? I hope my readers remember that the giant Sphinx only lost its precious nose when some short Frenchman called Napoleon realised the nose that squatted on that giant face had an African flatness about it. Leaving it there would then have given an African identity and name to the crib and citadel of human civilisation, something no European was ready to accept, something no European is ready to concede to this day. There is a way in which black Africa navel-connects with ancient Egypt. Read Cheikh Anta Diop for more if you so wish more on this subversive narrative.
The day Tunisia angered Zimbabwe
I recall one prominent Zimbabwean politician who broke away in protest from a guided tour in Tunis a few years ago. This minister politician had gone for the second leg of the World Summit on Information, WSIS as it was called. In between sessions, he chose to tour Carthage, home of Hannibal the great conqueror who crosses the implacable Alps to subdue and subjugate Europe. In spite of the well known fact that Carthage was an African city, its denizens decidedly African, the Tunisian guide maintained after what the minister hoped was a confirmatory enquiry that Hannibal was an Arab. That upset the honourable minister who then decided short of punching the Arab guide, the only other sane thing to do was to protest with his feet. He walked away, quite angry, quite embittered by this great pillage from the black man’s great past.
Boil in the land of the Pharaohs, Hannibal
Today, these two sites of great African grandeur and heroism are on the boil. Western media networks are having a field day, half-hourly spewing images of deadly confrontation in Egypt, the land of the Pharaohs, themselves part of our collective ancestry as Africans, or at the very least, as of Africa. And these networks deliver these images with a conspicuous grin of macabre cynicism. They do much more. Where Egypt is not illustrating enough Marlovian atavism, their reporters are goading them into it, all for “great television”.
Egypt shall go down in history as the first civil conflict or unrest to reach our homes in real time, to reach us live. In that sense it shares the same dubious fame with its Arab cousin Iraq, which also made history as the setting for the first televised war. Of course both situations raise fundamental ethical dilemmas for broadcast journalism, dilemmas schools of journalism and human rights agitators run away from by invoking the myth of “freedom of expression”.
You do not need to be an employee of any government to start wondering whether or not it makes sense for societies to allow “live” transmission of civil unrest, thereby inadvertently encouraging it, directing it, compounding it and, quite frankly further causing it once it has begun. Yes, cameras do cause human actions, do incite destructive human behaviour. Yes, networks delivering such images do make big money from enhanced ratings as a result. They thus do make money from the gory scenes, from spilt blood. When blood and tears do make good broadcast business, reporters very easily slip into the zone of agitation, very easily cause — not cover — events. Therein lies the ethical dilemma which no amount of chanting of First Amendment will ever change.
So much noise, so little light
Malraux called Egypt that country where man invented the tomb. Today I say Egypt is that country where the media invented contents for that tomb. And that had nothing to do with the genius of the Pharaohs. Quite the very opposite, it has a lot to do with the West and its worst media habits. In Tunisia and now in Egypt, we have had noise, too much noise masquerading as journalism. I do not know if after watching so much on Egypt from western networks and their Arab decoy — principally Al Jazeera and Al Arabyia — I stand any wiser, any better informed about those two situations.
I see the media magi shouting every day, every hour, behind them agitated Egyptian crowds and behind these plumes of fire, wisps of smoke from a burning city, burning country, but I come no nearer to understanding what is at stake. I can only suspect it must be enormous. Otherwise how does a country self-immolate so tremendously for so little or nothing?
But my suspicion of the bona fide status of these so-called global broadcast networks is fortified. A reporter who asks an irate crowd when it will march on President Mubarak’s palace cannot pass for reporting. Etymologically, “reporting” comes from “re-” which means “again”, and “-port” which means “carry”. “Reporting” then means to “carry again”. You do not carry, let alone again, what you are fomenting, instigating or actively wishing “live”, do you? But in their infinite wisdom, the Egyptians allowed that to go on for a long time. It is their prerogative.
Labels: EGYPT, PROPAGANDA
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Windfall tax re-introduction meaningless without transparency - MUZ
By Florence Bupe and Kabanda Chulu
Sat 05 Feb. 2011, 04:00 CAT
ZAMBIANS should demand transparency from government in the use of revenue from the mining industry before pushing for the re-introduction of the windfall tax. And the Council of Churches in Zambia (CCZ) says government must develop a policy framework to compel investors to deposit 50 per cent of their profits in local banks to strengthen the foreign exchange reserve bases.
Making a submission to the parliamentary committee on economic affairs on the impact of extractive industries on Zambia’s economy in the post privatisation era, Mine Workers Union of Zambia (MUZ) deputy secretary general Nkole Chishimba said the re-introduction of windfall tax would be meaningless without transparency.
He said the government should clearly explain how resources from the mining industry are being utilised.
“Before we ask for the re-instatement of windfall tax, it is important to ask how the money we are currently getting (in form of mining taxes) is being utilised.
Without transparency, we risk finding ourselves in a situation where the windfall tax is reintroduced with ordinary Zambians still not benefiting from the industry,” Chishimba said.
He said the current mining tax regime is not adequate enough to effectively guarantee benefits for the country’s economy.
Chishimba said the government had not done much to seize the opportunities that exist in the extractive industry to grow the economy.
He said the government could help strengthen the local currency by ensuring maximum benefits from the mining industry and attractive commodity prices on the international market.
Chishimba further urged government to strictly regulate the externalisation of mining revenue if the country’s economy is to benefit meaningfully from the industry.
And committee member George Mpombo said Zambia has been turned into a ‘fool’s paradise’ with foreign investors reaping benefits from the country’s resources, while local people have no benefits to refer to.
Meanwhile, the CCZ has challenged government to establish a transparent environmental fund for use to clean up the environment being destroyed by the mines. In its latest policy brief on extractive industries, the CCZ stated that there was need for an increase in the sharing of benefits of the proceeds of mining.
“Zambia must immediately develop a policy that provides for retention of a percentage of copper proceeds in Zambia, for example, the local currency will be stabilised and more funds can be available for investments by local Zambians if investors are compelled to deposit at least 50 per cent of their profits with local banks,” it stated.
It stated that local councils should be empowered to decide what taxes to charge the mines so that revenue gained is used to improve livelihoods within the mining areas.
Through its social and economic justice programme, the CCZ, since 2009, has undertaken activities aimed at promoting transparency and accountability in the management of natural resources. These included raising community awareness on natural resource management, commissioning a research on uranium mining policy review and the launch of the report on its findings and engaged parliamentarians on private members’ motion advocacy.
Labels: GEORGE MPOMBO, MUZ, WINDFALL TAX
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We have to change the way the police polices
By The Post
Sat 05 Feb. 2011, 04:00 CAT
The revelations made by Inspector General of Police Francis Kabonde to the Parliamentary Committee on Legal Affairs are very worrying.
Kabonde complained that it was challenging for police officers to enforce the Electoral Code of Conduct because of harassment from politicians and that some officers were threatened with dismissals, and this made it difficult for them to perform their duties effectively.
Political use or misuse of the police is a real issue in our country and those in the police service have long been avoiding saying anything real on this issue.
Politicisation of the police has over the years kept on increasing in dimension, occasionally leading to ‘politicisation of criminals’ and ‘criminalisation of politics’.
Sometimes politicisation went to the extent of using the police as a political mouthpiece for those in power.
With the unethical continuation of this malpractice, a nexus of politicians, police and criminals has been created.
Dragging the police into political controversy has led to the deterioration of police image.
Knowing this to be a wrong step and continuing to do it over the years by successive governments was morally inappropriate.
And what is morally wrong cannot be politically right. The need for keeping the police out of politics is, therefore, too urgent to delay.
The role of political leaders and that of the police officers should always be distinct. Political leaders should not take over the operational command of the police.
They will lay down the policy guidelines and the police will execute the decisions within the framework of the law.
The senior police officers will firmly provide correct advice on policy matters. It should be clear as to whose duty is what, who is accountable for what.
A responsible government should lay down transparent policy decisions and monitor its implementation by the police. Ours is a country with politicians in the driving seat.
It should be the duty of every government to enhance the skill, efficiency and professionalism of police.
Politicisation of the police is detrimental to the cause of democracy and damages the basic structure of governance.
The chain of command is bruised and the discipline essential for skilled functioning of police disappears gradually.
Police should be loyal only to lawful orders and obedient to the legal commands. Instead, personal loyalty to the extent of pleasing political bosses overstepping the law of the land brings down the image of police.
Politicians were found to punish the police officials who do not follow their illegal orders.
External political power brokers should not determine the important service matters like transfer and posting of police.
If the career of an efficient honest officer is caused to suffer for doing the right thing simply because it goes against the personal interest of a ruling party member, it sends a damaging message through the rank and file of an organisation.
Selective partisan enforcement of the law is the result of undesirable encroachment and is opposed to the principle of rule of law. Wrongful political intrusion creates an unhealthy environment for our democracy.
Political neutrality and operational autonomy of police tied with accountability is vital for achieving a just society.
Unfortunately, politically-oriented policing got upper-hand over community-oriented policing, resulting in violation of fundamental rights, and widening the gap between the police and citizens.
Growth of professionalism, coupled with strengthening the institutional structure of police is essential to overcoming the evils of politicisation.
Politicisation often leads to witch-hunting. Public perception of police legitimacy badly suffers due to everyday intrusion in police work by people in authority or around it.
Pretended neutrality is the worst form of discrimination.
It is time to put a stop to the gradual deterioration of our police.
De-politicisation is key to the process. Insulation of police from political interference is possible and we hope the government will rise to the occasion and live up to our people’s expectations.
Instead of interfering, the government should ensure transparent and merit-based recruitment, transfer, posting, promotion and all matters affecting the career of an officer.
Lawless law enforcement never enhanced the cause of democracy. Police is what the police does.
If illegitimate political intrusion leads to police disempowerment, the images of the government and that of the police suffer badly.
And the other day, we heard the voice of the Inspector General of our police on this score.
We hope it reaches the ears of the concerned authorities in the government.
We have been too tolerant, as a people, of crimes and abuses of power and this tolerance emboldens the anti-social elements to continue to indulge in criminal activities.
We should all encourage lawful demand for rule of law and cessation of all sorts of undesirable intrusion into and influence on the police and criminal justice system.
Police high-ups have a sacred responsibility to ‘call a spade a spade’ at all times – in the interest of the country they serve.
Use of police to further political objectives by foul means should be a crime.
Political will to resist the temptation of abusing law and lawful authorities for partisan ends should be more openly pronounced and demonstrated.
We can be a great nation, if we become good as a people. As a nation, we should be ready for a meaningful shift in the type of policing, with a view to attaining dignity and justice for all our people, especially the common man.
If not, we are really avoiding saying anything real about these real issues.
Confucius once remarked: “To know what is right and not to do it is the worst cowardice.”
We have to change our ways. We have to change many things. We can’t continue doing things the wrong way and using the wrong methods.
We can’t hang on forever to colonial policing practices that even colonialism would find repugnant today.
We can’t continue using colonial practices for policing a democracy because colonial practices and laws contained no elements of democratic values.
We say this because colonial policing was aimed at control and subjugation of the community; it was aimed to be used as a coercive instrument to keep the community under control.
The need for creation of an environment of security for the public was remote in the minds of the rulers.
Authority and its exercise was the point at issue rather than accountability.
Over the years, we have seen four presidents assuming power in our country. It is difficult to find any one of them who used police primarily in the interest of public service.
The interests of the government and the interests of the ruling party got priority over public interest and in many cases, police was used to serve the interests of individuals. Lack of transparency and accountability has continued in police domain when the society expected them to conform to democratic values.
Accountability is the cornerstone of democratic policing.
Accountability raises the question of policing the police. Sovereignty demands that ultimate accountability lie with the people who pay for police and bear the total cost of running the government.
We should know everything we can about government and the first thing we should know is what we are paying for. It is easy to measure the cost of running the government, but it is not easy to measure the ‘value for money’ especially the benefit that ultimately goes to the community at large. Is there any way of measuring the GDP of police service?
In a democracy, police is expected to be civilian in nature, more decentralised to conform to the local need, transparent in their performance and proactive rather than reactive.
They will work in the interest of public service, facilitate access to justice, maintain healthy contact with the community, follow the principles of rule of law; encourage public participation in policing and adhere to the principles of fundamental rights.
They are also expected to adopt a culture of minimum use of force and avoid torture.
But there are challenges to democratic policing.
And these are many in our country. We still have colonial laws and regulations – even our police stationery still bears colonial descriptions of an individual.
We still have a colonial culture of authoritarianism.
We still use the police for suppression, oppression and repression of political opponents and more protocol orientation than service mentality.
Use and abuse of police since independence was manifested in using police to win an election, to protect the arbitrary authority of the regime in power, to support rule of power instead of rule of law, overstep the law, operate above and beyond the law to suit the desire of the ruling regime, indulge in clandestine acts of oppression and suppression of political opponents, indiscriminate arrest, torture in remand, indulgence in so-called ‘cross-fire’, collection of intelligence regarding political opponents and enjoyment of impunity and political patronage by corruption officials.
This can’t continue.
We have to change the way the police polices.
Labels: POLICE, POLICE CORRUPTION
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MMD is to blame for poverty levels - CSPR
By Kombe Chimpinde
Sat 05 Feb. 2011, 04:00 CAT
CSPR says Zambians should not forget that MMD is to blame for the high poverty levels the country is experiencing as they choose leaders this year.
Civil Society for Poverty Reduction (CSPR) chairman Partner Siabutuba warned in an interview that Zambians should not buy the MMD’s failed manifesto ahead of this year’s general elections as it had greatly contributed to the country’s underdevelopment.
He said the MMD had a tendency to make economic adjustments when the country drew to elections for its advantage.
“As CSPR we are concerned about the high poverty levels. Given that people have experienced poverty for a long time now they must seriously reflect on the 20 years rule of MMD. MMD has introduced a number of programmes in the name of reducing poverty like the Farmer Input Support Programme (FISP), youth empowerment fund policy,” Siabutuba said.
“We have seen initiatives like the national development plans, the Fifth National Development Plan for instance and many others which have all been a mess. We have had a lot of money put in all the initiatives but very little has come out.”
Siabutuba said the MMD’s manifesto was merely policies on a piece of paper, which were used as a ticket for misapplication of funds.
He said many policies that had been embarked on with so much vigor had seen little or no meaningful implementation.
“Zambians must demand for better and new ideas. Don’t let political parties sell you ideas that are old and have failed. What the country needs right now is new workable ideas in the agriculture sector, new strategies of marketing products, a proper road network, decent employment for all,” he said.
Siabutuba said the MMD must refrain from asking for a fresh mandate from Zambians during its campaigns because it had enough time to prove its worth.
He said in the event that the MMD remained in power, it needed to give Zambians a good reason as to why it should be entrusted to run the country’s affairs after having lamentably failed.
“Zambians should demand for a clear explanation from President Banda’s government about the much talked about economic improvement which was not benefiting the majority Zambians. Economic improvement that has so much been talked about does not reflect what is happening on the ground. Diseases like malnutrition are still recorded at most health cares in both rural and urban areas,” he said.
“Their policies have failed to improve the livelihood of Zambians. They have had all the time to adopt and work on new strategies that will have to reduce poverty levels in the country. But it seems like it lacks both the political will and a vision for this country. Even in their campaigns it is clear that they have nothing new to offer to this country.”
He said there was nothing new and inspiring in the MMD’s political statements.
Siabutuba called on the electorate to critically analyse all the parties’ manifestos for new policies and ideas that would further the country’s national and economic development.
Labels: CSPR, MMD, NEOLIBERALISM, PARTNER SIABUTUBA, POVERTY
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Rupiah admits FNDP’s flawed implementation
By Mutale Kapekele and Joseph Mwenda
Sat 05 Feb. 2011, 04:01 CAT
PRESIDENT Rupiah Banda has admitted that implementation of the Fifth National Development Plan was negatively affected by poor coordination and weak linkages within government departments.
The President said this at the launch of the K132 trillion rich Sixth National Development Plan (SNDP), which will run from 2011 to 2015.
President Banda said in preparing the SNDP, the government took note of the lessons learnt from the previous development plans and experience which indicated that many programs were only partially funded and could not, therefore, be completed due to limited resources.
“It was noted that poor coordination and weak linkages among various government units and other stakeholders implementing similar programmes adversely affected performance of the plan,” President Banda said.
“This is notwithstanding, positive achievements that were recorded during the period. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by about six percent on average during the plan period amid the unprecedented difficulties in the global economy as a result of the global financial and economic crisis. However, this growth was below the seven percent in the FNDP. Overall poverty fell from 73 percent to 64 percent though rural poverty remained high.”
President Banda said both domestic and foreign private investment grew and Zambia’s competitiveness continued to improve during the implementation period of the FNDP.
He said through the SNDP, the government would continue to focus on investing in infrastructure, with a bias towards energy, road, railway and air transportation, human resource development in areas of education skills, health, water and sanitation.
“During the period, the proportion of people living in extreme poverty is expected to decline from 37 per cent in 2006 to about 29 per cent in 2015 while rural poverty is expected to decline from 77 per cent in 2006 to 50 per cent in 2015,” he said.
“The SNDP will also continue to address the structural bottlenecks in the economy in order to accelerate socio-economic transformation for prosperity. Solutions in the plan aim at creating employment, raising average per capita income levels and further improving Zambia’s competitiveness.”
President Banda also said the private sector would remain the engine of growth and development.
“In that regard, I emphasise that the private sector remains a key partner in Zambia’s development and, therefore, needs to actively participate in the implementation of the plan,” he said.
“The private sector should lead the growth and government will provide the atmosphere for you to do this.”
He said the projected resource envelope for the SNDP was K132 trillion, which would be met by K103 trillion of domestic resources, and K29 trillion, or 22 per cent, from external assistance and external borrowing.
“However, there is need for further strengthening of domestic revenue collections and public expenditure,” President Banda said.
“I, therefore, urge the minister of to give serious attention to implementation of revenue measures as well as measures aimed at strengthening public expenditure.”
Earlier, finance minister Dr Situmbeko Musokotwane said the FNDP was successful owing to the economic growth of an average of six percent and successes in the mining sector.
“The performance of the FNDP was very good,” Dr Musokotwane said.
“During that period, the economy turned around with an average growth rate of six per cent. During that same period, more than 700,000 tonnes of copper was produced per annum and indications show that we could hit two million per annum in the next five to six years. This is 10 times more than what was produced in 2010.”
Dr Situmbeko also said the FNDP led to successes in all sectors and raised employment levels.
Labels: FNDP, RUPIAH BANDA, SIXTH NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN
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Nalubamba opposes Kalale’s return to ECZ
By Moses Kuwema
Sat 05 Feb. 2011, 04:01 CAT
IT is ridiculous for leaders in government to regard people in opposition political parties as enemies, says Senior chief Bright Nalubamba.
Commenting on the attacks on works and supply deputy minister Lameck Mangani for meeting PF member Judith Kapijimpanga, chief Nalubamba questioned the kind of multi-party democracy the MMD embraced in 1991 when it could not allow people with different views to meet.
“For someone to talk to a person from the opposition then they commit a crime. Mangani can still be close to the MMD but he must have the right to talk to people with different views,” chief Nalubamba said.
He said the political set-up in Zambia required people who were elected or nominated to Parliament to be representatives of everybody regardless of their political affiliation.
“Constituencies have people from the opposition who are free to make contributions to issues of national development. Now should these people be shunned? It’s ridiculous for a leader to only address party cadres from his party. People need to talk to you when you are their leader,” he said.
Chief Nalubamba said it was totally wrong for the MMD to consider Mangani their enemy on the basis of his meeting Kapijimpanga.
“Mangani is my friend too. Now should our friendship be determined by what I am to the MMD? He has a choice to be with everyone, whether they are from PF or not because that is the only way you can win the support of the people. I am totally in support of Mangani on what he is doing, friendship should not be stopped because of political affiliation,” he said.
And chief Nalubamba backed calls for former Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) director Dan Kalale not to return to the institution.
He said allowing Kalale to return to ECZ would only result in the stakeholders and voters losing their confidence in the electoral institution.
“If I were him Kalale I would respect the views of the stakeholders and stay away from the ECZ just like justice Florence Mumba did,” he said.
Chief Nalubamba said there was need for the ECZ to be audited so that the public could know how taxpayers’ money was being spent.
“How can an important institution like ECZ be ran without auditing? There must be something wrong they are trying to hide. I don’t care who does it but the auditing has to be done,” said chief Nalubamba.
Labels: CHIEF NALUBAMBA, DAN KALALE, ECZ
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Cops deployed in Mongu demand return to stations
By Roy Habaalu
Sat 05 Feb. 2011, 04:00 CAT
POLICE officers deployed in Mongu after last month’s fracas have demanded that they return to their stations. According to police sources yesterday, the officers were unhappy with the conditions under which they operated such as poor diet and non-payment of their allowances. They said only prison officers had been paid some allowances.
“We came under alarm and we were told that when the situation is calm we would return. We never carried anything apart from our sleeping bags and uniforms. The painful thing is that since we came we're doing nothing apart from intimidating people,” one of the officers said.
They said some officers were sleeping in the hall at Kambule High School.
“This place is swampy and two officers are suffering from malaria because we have no mosquito nets and sometimes because of poor arrangements our truck is used to shift officers from one point to the other and we don't go to collect firewood,” another officer said.
When contacted, Western Province police commanding officer Fabian Katiba said the officers would return to their stations at the recommendation of their supervisors.
“It's not officers to judge that their job is over. They will be taken back when their supervisors say so but they should be ready to work anywhere. They are feeding on fresh rations that is chicken and beef and they are sleeping on mattresses,” said Katiba.
Labels: BAROTSELAND AGREEMENT, MONGU
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Rupiah is scheming against free polls, warns Hansungule
By Ernest Chanda
Fri 04 Feb. 2011, 04:01 CAT
PRESIDENT Rupiah Banda’s government has schemed against free and fair elections slated for this year, says Professor Michelo Hansungule. Commenting on the hounding out of justice Florence Mumba from the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) chairmanship, the Pretoria University law lecturer said President Banda has a lot to explain on the matter.
“President Banda must not be allowed to escape this one scot-free. It is not enough for him to conveniently say ‘I reluctantly accept justice Mumba’s resignation’.
Justice Mumba’s removal from the ECZ could be part of a grand scheme to avoid free, fair and credible elections this year,” Prof Hansungule said.
“President Banda must explain what happened at the Electoral Commission? Why did he allow government newspapers to be used by his cadres to throw mud at Justice Mumba, his own appointee? President Banda has some explanation to do to protect the integrity of the judiciary, assure the credibility of the forthcoming elections and protect the integrity of justice Florence Mumba.”
Prof Hansungule said national and international election observers should note the event with keen interest.
He said it was terrible that the government unleashed ignorant and ruthless ECZ workers on an innocent person.
“These are people who do not even have an idea about the extent of their compounds where they live.
They don’t know, for example, why Chilenje compound has that name,” said Prof Hansungule.
“The President never called on these hooligans to stop it. This is someone the President himself appointed to the Commission but could not protect, of course, because he was the one who unleashed the stone-throwers against the judge.”
Prof Hansungule said judges should avoid political appointments outside their profession to avoid abuse from the executive.
He said taking up such appointments was a serious risk to the legal profession.
“It may be insensitive of me but I blame judges themselves for their quandary.
When the President calls and asks you to serve in a particular capacity, why do they answer the telephone? The President will one day appear before them as accused, so why accept temporary insecure appointments politicians use to divide and rule the noble profession?” said Prof Hansungule. “Besides, is it lawful for a judge who has sworn to God and the Constitution to serve the judiciary for life at the same time to be part of the executive branch? Where does this leave the principle of separation of powers?”
Labels: FLORENCE MUMBA, MICHELO HANSUNGULE, VOTERIGGING
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Resolve problems of Barotseland peacefully - Sata
By George Chellah
Sat 05 Feb. 2011, 04:01 CAT
MICHAEL Sata has called for peaceful resolution of problems in Barotseland. In an interview yesterday, Sata said it was not too late to resolve the problems in Barotseland peacefully by talking to each other without intimidation, harassment and violence.
“Arresting and detaining so many young people from Mongu will not resolve the tension that has been created over the issues they have been raising. What is needed is the release of all the arrested and detained young people and engaging them and their leaders into finding ways to remove the cause of this dissension,” Sata said.
“As I have stated before the Barotse Agreement is not a contentious issue, which any serious government, which is interested in increasing the participation of its people in government can fail to honour and respect. No one can govern this country alone or with a small group of people from Lusaka. We need all our people to participate in government using the structures they themselves have created and understand better.”
He said for PF, this made the honouring of the Barotse Agreement a matter of urgent necessity and not political expedience to win an election.
“We want to govern not for the sake of it but to push our country and all our people in all parts of our country forward. We therefore call for the release of all the detained young people and their positive engagement in removing the tension that today surrounds Mongu and other parts of Barotseland,” Sata said.
“We cannot continue to have young people hiding in the bush for weeks fearing to be arrested without their mothers and fathers knowing where they are. Let us bring peace to those mothers and fathers who are not sleeping and even eating because they don’t know where their children are.”
He stressed the need for fear and tension to be removed from Mongu.
“Our people need return to normal life following the sad events of the last few weeks in which some of our young people lost lives and others where maimed and will have to live the rest of their lives as disabled persons,” Sata said.
“We know that the conditions in our prisons are not good for anybody. This government must just pluck the courage to do the right thing.”
Labels: BAROTSELAND AGREEMENT, MICHAEL SATA, MONGU, POLITICAL VIOLENCE
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‘Dig your well before you are thirsty’
By The Post
Fri 04 Feb. 2011, 04:00 CAT
If there is in their hearts a vestige of love for their country, love for humanity, love for justice, our politicians in government should listen carefully to what Bishop Paul Mususu and Col Panji Kaunda are saying on the situation in Egypt and the lessons that can be learnt from it.
We know that it sounds negative but we have always thought it positive to say that an important thing about democracy is that we can remove, without bloodshed, the people who govern us. We can get rid of a Kaunda, a Chiluba or even a Banda by peaceful electoral processes. But that cannot be done under a system where through corruption and nepotism, all the structures of the state have been corrupted; where those who manage and supervise elections represent and are chosen by those in power; where those who adjudicate electoral and other disputes are appointees and are under the overbearing influence of those who govern. In a word, people cannot remove those who govern them by peaceful means when these are closed off through corruption and abuse of state institutions.
We must ask ourselves what will happen when people realise that although theoretically they are told that they can get rid of those who govern them through the ballot box but practically this can’t happen. If people lose the power to sack their government, one of several things happens. First, people may just slope off. Apathy could destroy democracy. And when this happens, we are in danger.
The second thing that people can do is to riot, to protest like they are doing in Egypt today. Rioting is an old-fashioned method for drawing the attention of the government to what is wrong. It is difficult for a person who considers himself elected, even through fraudulent elections, to admit it, but riots have produced some reforms, some changes, some revolutions. Riots have historically played a much larger part in politics than we are ever allowed to know.
Thirdly, nationalism can arise. Nationalism is built out of the frustration that people feel when they cannot get their way through the ballot box. With nationalism comes repression. We hope that it is not pessimistic – in our view it is not – to say that democracy hangs by a thread in our country. Unless we can offer our people a peaceful route to the resolution of injustices through the ballot box, they will not listen to politicians that have blocked off that route.
What is happening in Egypt can teach us one or two things on what not to do. And we can use these lessons in handling the very badly handled issue of the Barotseland Agreement. Diverse groups of young people in Western Province went to the police, asking for permits to hold rallies, to share ideas and even to protest against government policies. But each time, they were denied the right to do so in total violation of their fundamental human rights. We all know that freedom of expression is a fundamental right of every human being. This right is also enshrined in our Constitution. While this right is not absolute, it is a matter of justice that it is given to all without discrimination of persons and irrespective of the issue involved. Participation in the life of the country is not only a right; it is a duty that each citizen should be proud to assume and exercise responsibly. The enjoyment of the freedom of speech would require that the government allows the people who hold a different line of political thinking an open forum to express their views without government interference. And the enjoyment of the freedom of thought and expression would require creating a thick line marking a distinction between the government and the ruling MMD. Lack of distinction between the ruling party and the government creates a climate of political intolerance, leading to the restriction of the freedom of thought and expression. The whole issue of denying Barotseland Agreement activists the right to hold meetings, rallies, protests was all geared to protect the political fortunes of the MMD in the province. We all know that protests are a testing ground for any democracy. The ideas of free expression and citizen participation are easy to defend when everyone remains polite and in agreement on basic issues. But protestors – and their targets – do not agree on basic issues, and such disagreements may be passionate and angry. The challenge then is one of balance: to defend the right to freedom of speech and assembly, while maintaining public order and countering attempts at intimidation or violence. To suppress peaceful protests in the name of order as was the case in Mongu is to invite repression; to permit uncontrolled violent protests is to invite anarchy. There is no magic formula for achieving this balance. In the end, it depends on the commitment of the majority to maintaining the institutions of democracy and the precepts of individual rights. Those young people in Mongu, including those who were brutally murdered by Rupiah Banda’s police, have always been peaceful for all these years. Rupiah’s government unjustifiably blocked all avenues for them to peacefully express themselves and protest the policies of his government. Rupiah and his government are trying to make these young people victims of every kind of unjust condition imaginable. Then when they explode, they want them to explode politely! Why? They are dealing with the wrong people at the wrong time and in the wrong way.
The issues of poverty, unemployment and lack of meaningful democracy that are being raised in Egypt are very similar to what these young people were raising in Mongu. But those who have never experienced similar moments will never know what kind of bitterness and indignation this can generate. They killed innocent young people in Mongu. And all is quiet, as if no life has been lost unjustifiably; as if no crimes have been committed by those in power and the police officers they command. The endless stream of lies and slanders, poured forth in their crude, odious, repulsive language against those they have killed and those they have incarcerated may only be compared to the endless stream of clean young blood which they had spilt in Mongu – with Rupiah’s knowledge, consent, complicity and approval – being spilt by the most inhuman gang of assassins it is possible to imagine. How can one describe people who can kill and torture fellow human beings in that way? Look at the inhuman treatment that they subjected that 92-year-old former Ngambela of Barotseland Maxwell Mututwa to. And people who do such things are not even ashamed to call themselves Christians.
To have believed their lies on the events in Mongu for a single moment would have sufficed to fill a man of conscience with remorse and shame for the rest of his life. They did not even bother in the least to conceal what they were doing. They thought they had deceived the people with their lies and they ended up deceiving themselves. They felt themselves lords and masters of the universe, with power over life and death. In every society, there are men of base instincts. These sadists, brutes go about under the guise of human beings, but they are monsters, only more or less restrained by discipline and social habit. If they are offered a drink from a river of blood, they will not be satisfied until they drink the river dry. We all know that a common tactic of tyranny is to charge the opponents of the government with treason. For this reason, the crime of treason must be carefully limited in definition so that it cannot be used as a weapon to stifle criticism of the government.
It is said that the man who abides by unjust laws and permits any man to trample and mistreat the country in which he was born, is not an honourable man. It is also said that in the world, there must be a certain degree of honour just as there must be a certain amount of light. When there are many men without honour, there are always others who bear in themselves the honour of many men. These are the men who rebel with great force against those who steal the people’s freedom, that is to say, against those who steal human honour itself. In those men, thousands more are contained, an entire people is contained, human dignity is contained.
What is happening in Egypt should be a lesson to all these petty and corrupt dictators who cheat themselves that power lies with them. Yes, fictitious power lies with them, but real power lies with the people. And when the people rise against them, no force on this planet can save them from the impending Armageddon. This is the experience of Mubarak in Egypt today. And this was the experience in Tunisia the other week. They should not cheat themselves that they will continue to deceive the people all the time. It is said that you can fool some people some of the time but you cannot fool all the people all the time. It is regrettable to note that our entire political arena is full of lies, cheating, hypocrisy, double standards and injustice. We need a political life that is governed not by lies and deception, but by ethics and morality, by a sense of truth and honesty. This is the only way to avoid what is going on in Egypt today. And we don’t want our country to go through such a process because it is costly. We all know that there is no perfect form of human government. Abuses can take place in every system, but the fundamental value of democracy is to allow the participation of citizens in the government of their country. In this regard, democracy as a system of government is consonant with human rights and the respect of human dignity and freedom.
And in this way, it serves as a safety valve against the possibility of any destructive conflict. Good governance that is accompanied by a high spirit of tolerance, transparency, accountability and hatred for corruption is the surest way of avoiding what is going on in Egypt. Let’s not wait for things to get to that level to correct them. The Chinese say ‘dig your well before you are thirsty’.
Labels: EGYPT, PANJI KAUNDA
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Agric stakeholders hit out at Commodity Exchange
Wednesday, 02 February 2011 23:32 Agriculture
Herald Reporter
THE recently established Commodity Exchange could have serious implications on food security and drive farmers away from farming, agriculture sector stakeholders argue. Sources said once food crops are traded on the exchange, Government would have no control and that posed a threat to national food security.
According to the sources, the exchange has the potential to disrupt contract farming of some cash crops such as cotton because farmers will be tempted to engage in side-marketing.
They questioned the relevance of the exchange given the role of the Agricultural Marketing Authority. A senior Government official said the Commodity Exchange as shrouded in a lot of secrecy and the entire Agriculture Ministry was not consulted in its creation.
“Officials in the Ministry of Industry and Commerce are actually very hostile to officials in the Agriculture Ministry, from the Permanent Secretary downwards,” said a Ministry of Agriculture official speaking on condition of anonymity.
“The fact that the Commodity Exchange is bei-ng proposed to start trading in maize, wheat and small grains, yet not even a single cent was put into the production of these crops by any investor except Government and the Presidential Inputs Scheme, will seriously impact on the food security situation at a time farmers are just beginning to produce food crops in abundance.”
No comment could be obtained from the Ministry of Industry and Commerce.
According to the sources, the exchange will not pay cash to farmers who have the capacity to deli-ver their produce. The farmers will be given warehousing recei-pts yet there will be need for cash to prepare for the next season.
Those farmers who cannot deliver their crop on their own will be at the mercy of brokers who can buy at unfair prices and benefit from the end price when they take the produce to the excha-nge.
“All this begs the questions, who are the pla-yers behind the Commodity Exchange and why has it not been subjected to Cabinet scrutiny?
“What’s the motive behind wanting to put food crops in the hands of the private sector when we are still under sanctions and how nationalistic is this private sector?”
An AMA official said the Grain Marketing Boa-rd seemed to want to “play a go along game”.
“This commodity exchange will be a parallel structure which eliminates the benefits AMA’s functions are to achieve such as contract farming and provision of a regulatory framework.”
The Commodity Exchange was established to among other things:
* Provide a platform to trade agricultural pro-ducts which include maize, wheat, soya beans, barley, sorghum, cotton, coffee, tea, sugar and livestock.
* Determine prices on the sole basis of supply and demand.
* Provide a regulatory framework for stakeholders.
* Employ brokers who will trade on behalf of farmers and be the interface between farmers and buyers.
* Hire GMB depots for warehousing of the tradable products.
In addition to promoting fair marketing and pricing of agricultural produce, AMA’s functions are to:
* Regulate participation in production, buying or processing of any agricultural products by producers, buyers, or processors or classes of products, buyers or processors of any agricultural product upon such terms and conditions including as appropriate the fixing of quotas, as may be prescribed.
* Promote contract farming of strategic crops.
* Review annually the general economic condition and prospects of the agricultural industry and, in particular, the marketing of agricultural products.
* Promote efficient administration of marketing of any agricultural product, whether on local or export markets, at all times keeping abreast of local and international market dema-nds and trends
The AMA official added: “Brokers on the exchange work to fulfill the needs of their principals — the buyers — whose motive is profit and not farmers’ viability.
“AMA is mandated to protect the interests of the producer, including those in the communal and resettlement areas.”
He said the GMB’s function as a buyer of last resort needed to be maintained to safeguard farmers’ interests, especially smallholders who will have no influence on the exchange.
“GMB has of late been setting very competitive floor prices for maize and wheat and what needs to be done is to capacitate it to pay on time and not this exchange business, which has the potential to disrupt the land reform programme.”
Labels: COMMODITIES, MARKETS
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COMMENT - These foreign corporations will always be full of excuses. It is time to get tough, and yank their licenses.
Ministry to rule on non-complying mines
By: By Prof Tshuma, Business Reporter
Posted: Friday, February 4, 2011 4:47 pm
…as financial institutions continue refusing compliance
MINERS have been refusing to comply with the indigenization policy
citing that they were already indigenized as
they were into corporate social responsibilities as well as
mobilizing foreign revenue inflows especially the international banks.
In response to this move, the Minister of Youth, Development, Indigenization and Empowerment, Savior Kasukuwere has given a statement that government was finalizing consultations as to what steps to take on the issue of miners who were making the claims.
“Currently work is at an advanced stage to finalise consultations on the mining sector with a view to publish the gazette for the sector not later than the end of February 2011,” said Kasukuwere.
He said business entities were grouped according to their sectors and were asked to send their proposals for considerations in line with the indigenization policy.
Thirteen sectoral committees were created in August 2010.
“The mining sector committee report has since been analyzed and presented to cabinet for consideration and we agreed that the percentage of indigenous shareholding be as follows: 100% for alluvial diamonds; 51% for other diamonds and minerals and 51% for all new investment in the mining sector.
“The share ownership trusts be entitled to 10% of profit before tax for reinvestment in the community in accordance with section 14B of the Indigenization and Economic Empowerment (General) Regulations 2010 as amended, defer implementation of empowerment of empowerment credits pending further reflection.
“We also agreed that a sovereign fund be created for the mining sector and to approve the proposed timeframes, thresholds and lesser shares,” he explained.
The grouped sectors were as follows manufacturing, tourism, finance, mining, transport, communication, agriculture, energy, construction, agriculture, retail/trading, property/real estate, services and others.
The Indigenization and Economic Empowerment Act creates an enabling environment that results in increased participation and empowerment of indigenous people in the Zimbabwean economy and concurrently address issues of employment creation, economic growth and poverty alleviation.
Labels: INDIGENIZATION AND EMPOWERMENT ACT (ZIMBABWE), SAVIOUR KASUKUWERE
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Civil servants being taken for a ride
By: Bhekizulu Sibanda – Mount Pleasant
Posted: Friday, February 4, 2011 1:19 am
DEAR EDITOR - Allow me through your widely read publication to express my disappointment over the way the civil servants salary reviews are being handled both by our workers council and government being represented by Minister of Finance Tendai Biti and Minister of Public service, Eliphas Mukonoweshuro.
I think civil servants are being taken for a ride by both sides.
I am forced to subscribe to the rumour that our council representatives were bribed by MDC-T to pacify us so that they (MDC-T) would not be embarrassed by their failure to improve our welfare.
This is after MDC-T leader Morgan Tsvangirai made an impassionate plea to civil servants to return home promising them lucrative salaries and improved working conditions.
Looking back, one will realise that since the MDC-T got into government, civil servants demands have been ignored and their strikes have been virtually ineffective and have yielded nothing.
Firstly, APEX council was only given an audience by Biti less than 24 hours before his Budget presentation just to show how insignificant they are. And as expected, their views were never meant to be incorporated in the 2011 Budget. Still the APEX council made no fuss about it.
Secondly, the Public Service Commission went ahead and reviewed 2011 salaries by marginal figures without even consulting our workers' representatives because they knew it was not necessary.
APEX council pretended to be shocked by the miserable salary increase.
To substantiate my point, both ministers Biti and Mukonoweshuro have been arrogant regarding our salary reviews because they know they are holding our representatives by the groins.
How do you explain Mukonoweshuro’s assertion that civil servants are 'cry-babies' and Biti’s rude statement when he said, "Do you expect me to squeeze money from a rock?” and his arrogant contention, "Show me where the money is and I can go and collect it”?
Is this the way he would have addressed representatives from the Lecturers Association of Zimbabwe?
Is that the arrogance he would show his colleagues in Parliament?
Instead, he can afford to handsomely pay legislators, write off their debts in addition to getting them new single–cab vehicles for their personal use.
Apparently, these legislators' lives have no bearing on what the life of the ordinary person they claim to represent is like.
The life of luxury that they live with all the government perks are a far-cry from what the teachers, police, clerks of Zimbabwe dream of.
So is financial discipline only for the masses?
Where is the stamina of our representatives?
Prior to the GPA, our union was vibrant and results-orientated in pushing for strikes against the Zanu-PF government. We operated under a hyper-inflationary environment, but we still got meaningful wage increases.
The coming on board of MDC-T in government has seen workers councils taking a sympathetic approach towards the government and refusing to strike on the understanding that the government was operating on a shoestring budget.
One can then easily conclude that they are sympathizing with Tsvangirai who is being forced to take back his words after failing to live up to his promise. Civil servants have realized the futility of his promises.
Zimbabwean public servants have to stay very vigilant to avoid being used by people who purport to be representing them, yet have their own hidden political agendas.
Such kind of cunning politicking is not new in the Zimbabwean scenario.
Bhekizulu Sibanda – Mount Pleasant
Labels: CIVIL SERVANTS, MDC
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MMD headed for doom in this year’s Elections-Chirwa
Friday, February 4, 2011, 14:44
United Party for National Development (UPND) chairman for international relations Prof. Clive Chirwa has charged that it is impossible for the MMD to return power after this year’s general elections.
Prof. Chirwa says that the MMD has failed to deliver in most sectors of the economy which has resulted poverty levels in the country to rise. He says that the situation on the ground clearly shows that the MMD has no chance of coming back into power after the 2011 elections.
Speaking on QFM%u2019s public last say last evening, Prof. Chirwa has since called on the opposition political parties to unite.
He says that Zambia has too many political parties that have made the MMD remain in power for too long. He added that political parties should join the UPND/PF pact to foster development in Zambia.
Prof. Chirwa says that the Zambian opposition political parties should be reduced to accommodate the Zambian populations that are registered voters.
[Qfm]
Labels: CLIVE CHIRWA, MMD, UPND
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President Banda launches national development plan
Friday, February 4, 2011, 14:46
Government has projected to reduce extreme poverty levels from 37 per cent to 29 per cent by the year 2015. Rural poverty is also set to reduce from 77 per cent to 50 per cent during the period under review.
The projections have been set in the Sixth National Development Plan launched by President Rrupiah Banda in LUSAKA on Friday.
In his address during the launch, President Banda said the SNDP will also continue to address bottlenecks in the economy, in a bid to accelerate social economic transformation.
President Banda said the plan also seeks to create jobs, wealth and income levels in the country.
And One hundred and 32 trillion Kwacha will be spent to implement the Sixth National Development plan in the next five years.
President Banda says one hundred and three trillion Kwacha will be raised from domestic resources, while 29 trillion Kwacha representing 22 percent of the total cost, will be sourced from co-operating partners and external borrowing.
President Banda has urged the Ministry of Finance to strengthen domestic revenue collection and public expenditure so that the SNDP can be effectively implemented.
The President also noted the need to strength linkages among implementing agencies, if the plan is to be effectively executed.
Mr. BANDA has also challenged the private sector to play a key role in growing the economy, as stipulated in the plan.
He has called on co-operating partners to provide their usual support towards the plan.
And Finance Minister, Situmbeko Musokotwane says Government aspires to grow the economy in the next five years of the plan, by an average seven percent.
Dr Musokotwane has however urged policy makers and Government agencies to understand the plan for effective implementation.
He has also announced that Government will embark on a country wide campaign aimed at sharing and helping citizens understand the plan.
And Secretary to the Treasury, Likolo Ndalamei thanked members of the public who contributed in the drafting of the SNDP.
And Bank of Zambia Governor Caleb Fundanga says the central Bank will ensure the financial frame work is in the right place during the implementation of the Sixth National Development Plan.
Dr. Fundanga says the Plan is good for the country as it will be a good for the country’s development agenda.
Dr. Fundanga says the Central Bank will also ensure there is low inflation during the implementation of the plan.
And UN Country coordinator Kanni Wignaraja says UN agencies in Zambia will fully take part in the implementation of the Plan.
Ms Wignaraja says the UN will specifically involve itself in the Education and Health Sectors.
[ZNBC]
Labels: RUPIAH BANDA, SIXTH NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN
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AU SUMMIT: A/S CARSON'S MEETING WITH BOTSWANA'S VICE PRESIDENT MOMPATI MERAFHE TRIPOLI 00000588 001.2 OF 002
Passed to the Telegraph by WikiLeaks 9:31PM GMT 31 Jan 2011
Ref ID: 09TRIPOLI588
Date: 7/21/2009 16:01
Origin: Embassy Tripoli
Classification: CONFIDENTIAL
Destination:
SUBJECT: AU SUMMIT: A/S CARSON'S MEETING WITH BOTSWANA'S VICE PRESIDENT MOMPATI MERAFHE TRIPOLI 00000588 001.2 OF 002 CLASSIFIED BY: Joan Polaschik, Charge d'Affaires, U.S. Embassy Tripoli, Department of State. REASON: 1.4 (b), (d)
1.(C) Summary: Assistant Secretary Johnnie Carson met with Botswana Vice President (VP) Mompati Merafhe on July 2, 2009 on the margins of the African Union (AU) Summit in Sirte, Libya. The discussion focused on the global financial crisis, recent accomplishments made by the Government of Botswana (GOB) in the agricultural sector, the new USG global food security initiative, and political leadership in South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Madagascar. End Summary.
BOTSWANA STRUGGLES DURING GLOBAL FINANCIAL CRISIS --------------------------------------------- ----
2.(C) VP Merafhe asked the Assistant Secretary for his opinion on the state of the global financial crisis and economy. Carson expressed his belief that the recession in the United States was close to bottoming out and could settle sometime between June-September next year. However, U.S. employment, housing, and auto industry figures all continue to indicate a slump.
3.(C) VP Merafhe noted that Botswana was "struggling" as a result of the global recession, citing high-end tourism and the diamond industry as particularly hard hit. As part of a larger effort to save jobs in the industry, Botswana has had to close one diamond mine due to decreased sales and lower prices. The GOB is also in the process of concluding establishment of a diamond trading consortium including DeBeers, Anglo America, and Namibia that would, once complete, consolidate 30% of global diamond trade in Botswana. The GOB will hold an 80% stake under the partnership.
4.(C) Merafhe also discussed the GOB's decision to run a budget deficit through which government spending would be used to stimulate the economy (Note: the African Development Bank [ADB] recently approved a loan of USD $1.5 billion in Botswana, marking the first such debt that Botswana had accrued in over 17 years. End Note.)
AGRICULTURAL SECTOR REFORM A HIGH PRIORITY ------------------------------------------
5.(C) VP Merafhe explained that the GOB has more than doubled sorghum production in the last year, increasing yields from 43,000 metric tons to 93,000 metric tons using a locally developed model that could be replicated in other countries. Ensuring the sustainability of agricultural sector investment and the accomplishments that have been achieved, is a high priority for the GOB, Merafhe continued.
6.(C) Carson noted that the USG was in the process of launching a new, global food security initiative in which Africa would be featured prominently. In particular, USG agricultural assistance funding will double to $1 billion during FY2010, with an approximate total of $3.5 billion provided by the USG within the next three years. Carson explained that host country partnership, innovation, and ownership of planned agricultural sector interventions are USG priorities in its approach to implementing the new initiative.
ENERGY PRODUCTION: SEEKING SELF-SUFFICIENCY -------------------------------------------
7.(C) Carson asked about the status of coal production and energy resources in Botswana. Merafhe noted that the GOB was working to harness Botswana's overall energy resources to achieve self-sufficiency, and that China will enter the market to help Botswana further exploit its coal production capabilities. There are no plans, at present, to develop wind or solar energy resources.
DOMESTIC POLITICS -----------------
8.(C) When asked about domestic politics, Merafhe said he was confident about the prospects for his party in upcoming national elections to be held in October, noting that under the GOB system the president is not directly elected but instead chosen by the political party with the highest number of seats in Parliament. Merafhe does not expect new opposition candidates TRIPOLI 00000588 002.2 OF 002 to enter the election campaign.
VP MERAFHE: SOUTH AFRICA'S ZUMA IS "INTERNALLY FOCUSED" --------------------------------------------- ---------
9.(C) Moving to regional issues, A/S Carson asked the Vice President for his impression on the recent election of Jacob Zuma in South Africa. Merafhe said it was too early to tell, but the initial indications suggested that Zuma appeared to be "internally focused." Merafhe also noted that he had no prior knowledge of, or contact with, the new South African Minister of Foreign Affairs but that she appeared to be solid
ZIMBABWE --------
10.(C) xxxxxxxxxxxx A/S Carson noted that POTUS saw Zimbabwe Prime Minister Tsvangirai during his recent travel to Washington, and said that helping the Prime Minister without aiding Mugabe will be a challenge. A/S Carson also said that the USG would remain engaged in Zimbabwe and continue to channel foreign assistance in support of the people of Zimbabwe through non-governmental organizations. USG support for humanitarian assistance, HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment, and democracy and governance programs in Zimbabwe will all continue under the USG foreign assistance program. Agricultural sector inputs and education programming are also anticipated as new USG foreign assistance components. 11.(C) A/S Carson asked if SADC would increase pressure on Zimbabwe for Mugabe to exit. xxxxxxxxxxxx
MADAGASCAR: WAY FORWARD REMAINS UNCLEAR ---------------------------------------
12.(C) VP Merafhe said that Madagascar was also a "nasty situation." A/S Carson noted that the AU will repeat efforts to assemble the four political parties in Madagascar in an effort to proceed with presidential elections and restore constitutional governance. A/S Carson noted that Rajoelina is presently too young to secure the presidency under the Malagasy constitution and that the overall way forward in resolving the political impasse in Madagascar was still not clear. POLASCHIK
Labels: DIAMONDS, JOHNNIE CARSON, WIKILEAKS CABLES
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WikiLeaks: Tsvangirai in regime change talk on U.S. State visit
By: Nancy Pasipanodya
Posted: Thursday, February 3, 2011 10:44 pm
Tsvangirai meets US President Barack Obama during a US state visit in June 2009PRIME MINISTER Morgan Tsvangirai used a state visit to the United States to find ways of ousting President Mugabe, a confidential cable released by whistle-blowing website WikiLeaks revealed.
The PM had travelled to the US with a delegation comprising Zanu-PF's Tourism and Hospitality Industry Minister Walter Mzembi.
Mzembi was barred from discussion with US officials including President Barack Obama.
It has now emerged that one of the reasons why Mzembi was barred was because Tsvangirai was discussing regime change options with the US administration.
The confidential cable entitled "A/S CARSON'S MEETING WITH BOTSWANA'S VICE PRESIDENT MOMPATI MERAFHE TRIPOLI" released last week quotes United State's chief African diplomat, Assistant Secretary Johnnie Carson confirming the meeting and insinuating that it would be difficult to remove President Mugabe.
Carson met with PM Tsvangirai during the visit and the White House barred the media from asking the Zimbabwe delegation any questions after the meeting even though it had earlier been announced that a question and answer session with the Press would follow the discussions.
The confidential cable read: "Carson noted that POTUS saw Zimbabwe Prime Minister Tsvangirai during his recent travel to Washington, and said that helping the Prime Minister without aiding Mugabe will be a challenge.
The cable also reveals that the US government was working directly with non-governmental organisations in Zimbabwe to effect regime change.
"Carson also said that the USG (US Government) would ... continue to channel foreign assistance... through non-governmental organizations."
"USG... democracy and governance programs in Zimbabwe will all continue under the USG foreign assistance program.
The United States also wanted to use the regional Southern African Development Community (Sadc) to "increase pressure on Zimbabwe for Mugabe to exit".
During Tsvangirai's visit, President Obama referred to a "partnership with Prime Minister Tsvangirai" instead of with the Government of Zimbabwe.
During Tsvangirai's visit President Obama announced that his government would be giving US$73 million to selected non-governmental organisations.
BOTSWANA ASKING FOR AID
The cable also quoted Botswana vice president Mompati Merafhe revealing that Botswana was "struggling" as a result of "the global recession, citing high-end tourism and the diamond industry as particularly hard hit."
"As part of a larger effort to save jobs in the industry, Botswana has had to close one diamond mine due to decreased sales and lower prices."
The cable also made an interesting observation that the Botswana government would be maintaining an 80% stake in any diamond mining in the country.
Zimbabwe has been criticised for passing an indigenisation and empowerment law requiring a 51% ownership by indigenous Zimbabweans.
Labels: JOHNNIE CARSON, MDC, MORGAN TSVANGIRAI, TREASON, WALTER MZEMBI, WIKILEAKS
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EU aware sanctions hurt ordinary people: Wikileaks
By: Our reporter
Posted: Thursday, February 3, 2011 9:52 pm
THE European Union tried “creative” ways of presenting illegal and ruinous sanctions on Zimbabwe to the world to hide their adverse impact on the country and its people, a confidential US State Department cable released by WikiLeaks reveals.
The revelations show that
the EU, the US and MDC-T were aware that sanctions are meant to destabilize Zimbabwe and are not only targeted on less than 200 Zanu-PF officials only. The West and the MDC-T party have claimed that sanctions do not affect the national economy.
According to the leaked diplomatic dispatch, a sanctions plan code-named “reftel b” was to devise ways of imposing a total investment ban on Zimbabwe.
This was after their preferred candidate for Zimbabwe's presidency, MDC-T leader Mr Morgan Tsvangirai, failed to win the 2008 presidential elections.
The plan was, however, dropped after realising that it would hurt British and American investments in Zimbabwe instead of just hurting the Zimbabwean economy and making people turn against Zanu-PF and its leadership.
Part of the cable reads: “The United Kingdom will push for further measures, including an investment ban, to be enacted in September (2008).
“However, the remaining foreign investments in Zimbabwe are British and American, and pursuing an investment ban is difficult.”
According to the cable, the Dutch government then proposed another plan they hoped would help disguise the embargo’s debilitating economic impact.
Holland’s proposal would see European companies stopping business ope-rations in Zimbabwe after claiming an “uneven” business environment.
“For example, governments could use ‘moral suasion’ rather than an investment ban, with Press statements such as ‘it’s inconceivable to do business in Zimbabwe’.”
“Tesco, UK, has stopped buying from Zimbabwe, and Shell is also considering a sale of assets in Zimbabwe,” the cable added.
Tesco, the UK supermarket chain, withdrew from Zimbabwe soon after the announcement of Presidential run-off election results, which gave President Mugabe a sweep of the polls.
In the same year, British companies BP and Shell indicated they would dispose of their assets in Zimbabwe and have since done so.
WikiLeaks disclosures have also revealed how Washington actively supported Tsvangirai — even though they had little faith in his party’s leadership credentials — inorder to effect regime change in Zimbabwe.
The leaks have been a big source of embarrassment for MDC-T, which former US Ambassador to Zimbabwe Christopher Dell said would need “massive hand-holding” should it ever get into power.
Labels: EU, NEOCOLONIALISM, SANCTIONS, WIKILEAKS, ZDERA
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Zuma accepts Zimbabwean envoy, despite MDC-T calls
By: Samantha Chidzero
Posted: Thursday, February 3, 2011 11:19 pm
SOUTH African President Jacob Zuma yesterday accepted Ambassador Phelekezela Mphoko’s credentials as Zimbabwe’s chief envoy to that country, despite calls by the MDC-T to reject the appointment.
MDC-T requested South Africa and EU countries not to recognise ambassadors constitutionally reassigned by President Mugabe last year. The EU snubbed the MDC-T request.
Accepting the credentials, President Zuma said he knew of Ambassador Mphoko’s “skills and capabilities”.
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Speaking after presenting his letters of credence, Ambassador Mphoko commended South Africa for standing by Zimbabwe in the face of illegal and ruinous Western sanctions on the county.
“Your country, South Africa, has proved to be an all-weather friend to Zimbabwe and has refused to support the illegal sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe, and has instead demanded their immediate removal,” Ambassador Mphoko said.
He said he was honoured to stand in President Zuma’s presence.
MDC-T leader Mr Morgan Tsvangirai had written to President Zuma and several European foreign missions claiming the ambassadors posted last year were not constitutionally appointed.
The PM has indicated that he will not recognise Ambassador Mphoko as Zimbabwe’s new chief diplomat to South Africa.
Labels: AMBASSADOR, JACOB ZUMA, MDC
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Civil servants being taken for a ride
By: Bhekizulu Sibanda – Mount Pleasant
Posted: Friday, February 4, 2011 1:19 am
DEAR EDITOR - Allow me through your widely read publication to express my disappointment over the way the civil servants salary reviews are being handled both by our workers council and government being represented by Minister of Finance Tendai Biti and Minister of Public service, Eliphas Mukonoweshuro.
I think civil servants are being taken for a ride by both sides. I am forced to subscribe to the rumour that our council representatives were bribed by MDC-T to pacify us so that they (MDC-T) would not be embarrassed by their failure to improve our welfare.
This is after MDC-T leader Morgan Tsvangirai made an impassionate plea to civil servants to return home promising them lucrative salaries and improved working conditions.
Looking back, one will realise that since the MDC-T got into government, civil servants demands have been ignored and their strikes have been virtually ineffective and have yielded nothing.
Firstly, APEX council was only given an audience by Biti less than 24 hours before his Budget presentation just to show how insignificant they are. And as expected, their views were never meant to be incorporated in the 2011 Budget. Still the APEX council made no fuss about it.
Secondly, the Public Service Commission went ahead and reviewed 2011 salaries by marginal figures without even consulting our workers' representatives because they knew it was not necessary.
APEX council pretended to be shocked by the miserable salary increase.
To substantiate my point, both ministers Biti and Mukonoweshuro have been arrogant regarding our salary reviews because they know they are holding our representatives by the groins.
How do you explain Mukonoweshuro’s assertion that civil servants are 'cry-babies' and Biti’s rude statement when he said, "Do you expect me to squeeze money from a rock?” and his arrogant contention, "Show me where the money is and I can go and collect it”?
Is this the way he would have addressed representatives from the Lecturers Association of Zimbabwe?
Is that the arrogance he would show his colleagues in Parliament?
Instead, he can afford to handsomely pay legislators, write off their debts in addition to getting them new single–cab vehicles for their personal use.
Apparently, these legislators' lives have no bearing on what the life of the ordinary person they claim to represent is like.
The life of luxury that they live with all the government perks are a far-cry from what the teachers, police, clerks of Zimbabwe dream of.
So is financial discipline only for the masses?
Where is the stamina of our representatives?
Prior to the GPA, our union was vibrant and results-orientated in pushing for strikes against the Zanu-PF government. We operated under a hyper-inflationary environment, but we still got meaningful wage increases.
The coming on board of MDC-T in government has seen workers councils taking a sympathetic approach towards the government and refusing to strike on the understanding that the government was operating on a shoestring budget.
One can then easily conclude that they are sympathizing with Tsvangirai who is being forced to take back his words after failing to live up to his promise. Civil servants have realized the futility of his promises.
Zimbabwean public servants have to stay very vigilant to avoid being used by people who purport to be representing them, yet have their own hidden political agendas.
Such kind of cunning politicking is not new in the Zimbabwean scenario.
Bhekizulu Sibanda – Mount Pleasant
Labels: CIVIL SERVANTS, ELIPHAS MUKONOWESHURO
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America failing Egyptians
By: Nomsa Mpala
Posted: Thursday, February 3, 2011 1:41 am
DEAR EDITOR - It seems the last two weeks have been very hectic politically etc and it’s very difficult to comment on anything with certainity. One thing for sure is that the true colours of America are there for all to see.
They have really stuck in with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak who is their ally in the Middle East. They talk of reforms and working with Mubarak when the few people on the streets say they no longer want Mubarak.
Regime change is only acceptable to them when their allies are not involved. Since when does America support 'dictators'? Anyway I wish peace and tranquil to the people of Egypt.
The western press as usual fanned this uprising, but clearly the people are now tired and regretting.
It was a spontaneous thing which they did for fun and now they don’t have food, supplies and there is massive looting and crime.
Slowly many more people are saying: "Let Mubarak stay in power in the transitional period".
Opposition parties and forces have a way of multiplying their numbers and popularity. Egypt has 84 million people with maybe just 4 million anti-Mubarak, no wonder they couldn’t reach the 1 million they wanted today.
But enough said. Peace be to Egypt.
I missed out on the tribal debate, but Welshman Ncube and his lot must be really mad to suggest President Mugabe is tribalistic.
President Mugabe is principled, period. That’s why he has refused to swear in Roy Bennett without any apologies.
As for Ncube, let protocol take its place.
-Nomsa Mpala
Labels: EGYPT
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Mugabe held back land reform to aid apartheid deal: new book
by Staff Reporter
04/02/2011 00:00:00
IN the first of a series of forthcoming major highlights from Blessing-Miles Tendi’s book
Making History in Mugabe’s Zimbabwe: Politics, Intellectuals and the Media (Peter Lang), New Zimbabwe.com reveals a little-known but important historical fact that Robert Mugabe deferred land redistribution from whites to blacks in the early 1990s following appeals from the former Commonwealth Secretary-General Emeka Anyaoku.
This diplomatic deal helps to explain South Africa’s “quiet diplomacy” on the Zimbabwe crisis, argues Tendi’s book (page 84).
When pressed to explain the state’s lethargy on land reform in the early 1990s, Zanu PF politicians Didymus Mutasa and Nathan Shamuyarira argued that considerations of the possible implications of rapid land reform on South Africa’s transition from Apartheid to democracy inhibited radical land redistribution.
President Robert Mugabe resisted a strong clamour from some Zanu PF members for total redistribution of white-owned land following the termination of the Lancaster House constitution’s 10-year property clause in 1990, Mutasa and Shamuyarira said.
Suppressing the Zanu PF push for land was the Commonwealth Secretary-General Emeka Anyaoku who held a diplomatic parley with the Zanu PF government in 1990 to dissuade it from engaging in radical land reform, subsequent to the expiry of the Lancaster House constitution’s property clause. South Africa’s first black President Nelson Mandela had been released from Robben Island prison and his ANC party was locked in negotiations with the Apartheid regime in 1990.
According to Mutasa and Shamuyarira, Anyaoku implored the Zanu PF government to desist from radical land reform because the resultant flight of white Zimbabweans would destabilise the Apartheid transition talks in South Africa.
Shamuyarira maintains that Mugabe reluctantly agreed to begin extensive land seizures only after South Africa’s transition period was complete. However, Mutasa argues that this led to rising frustration amongst landless Zimbabweans, which set the ground for radical land seizures of white-owned farms in 2000 and after.
Zanu PF felt it had done a deal for South Africa. Mutasa explains the ANC’s later reluctance to criticise the Zanu PF government’s seizure of white-owned farms publicly as recognition of its contribution to ensuring South Africa’s peaceful transition from Apartheid.
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“Zimbabwe was supposed to be an encouraging example for white South Africans that blacks and whites can reconcile and work together peacefully,” Mutasa said.
Tendi interviewed Anyaoku in London to verify the authenticity of Mutasa and Shamuyarira’s claims. Anyaoku said: “My diplomatic mission was to warn Mugabe not to touch the land when the Lancaster House Constitution’s protection of white farmers’ ended. The end coincided with the beginning of negotiations to end Apartheid in South Africa.
“I told Mugabe that taking over white farms would scupper what (FW) de Klerk was trying to achieve. South Africa’s white community was very powerful. Taking over white property in Zimbabwe would alarm white South Africans. Fearing for their material and financial assets, they would use their influence to scupper the negotiations.
“I put this strongly to Mugabe. He was reluctant to agree but saw the force of my argument. He agreed to protect white farms until the transition was finished. He wanted speedier land reform and said he was under pressure from his party to do it.
“I was closer to Joshua Nkomo than I am to Mugabe. Nkomo was one of those who felt 10 years had been a long enough wait for land. Nkomo wanted all the land returned to Africans. I urged them to be patient.”
Subsequent to this meeting, Anyaoku communicated Mugabe’s assurance that he would not risk destabilising transition talks in South Africa by taking over white farms to the ANC via Thabo Mbeki.
Tendi asked Anyaoku why he did not document this diplomatic dealing in memoirs on his tenure as Commonwealth Secretary General from 1990–1999. Anyaoku expressed “regret” for not having documented this because it “explains why Mugabe waited that long to complete land reform and Mbeki’s response to land takeovers in Zimbabwe”.
Anyaoku argues that at the time of writing up his memoirs, he did not realise how relevant this diplomatic deal would be in helping to make sense of events in Zimbabwe after 2000.
South Africa received considerable criticism from Western media and governments for not taking a firm and public diplomatic stance critical of the Zanu PF government during the “Third Chimurenga”. South Africa preferred a brand of private diplomacy labelled “quiet diplomacy” by various commentators.
But the Anyaoku narrative partly explains South Africa’s response to the land seizures after 2000.
In 2003, Mbeki delivered the 20th anniversary lecture of the Guardian, a leading Nigerian newspaper, in Lagos. Anyaoku was present at this lecture. During the question and answer segment of Mbeki’s address, a Nigerian journalist asked Mbeki why South Africa had not been resolute in criticising the Zanu PF government over the land seizures. Mbeki turned to Anyaoku and responded, “Chief Anyaoku knows better”.
In May 2010, in a speech about the South African transition from Apartheid to democracy, Mbeki told the Fifth Al Jazeera Annual Forum in Doha that: “We must also mention the decision taken by the government of Zimbabwe to postpone any action to resolve the land question in their country.
“The leadership of independent Zimbabwe understood that radical land reform in their country would have alarmed the apartheid regime, encouraging it to oppose the negotiations, on the basis that the ANC would follow the Zimbabwe example and dispossess the South African whites of their land and property”.
It is not improbable that Mugabe reminded Mbeki of the Anyaoku diplomatic deal and presented the post-2000 land seizures as born out of slow land redistribution in the 1990s. Indeed, Mbeki is likely to have felt indebted to Mugabe for what he cast as a sacrifice, helping to explain why the South African government chose to adopt the “quiet diplomacy” approach to the land upheavals.
Making History in Mugabe’s Zimbabwe: Politics, Intellectuals and the Media is published by Peter Lang, London. To order a copy, CLICK HERE
Labels: LAND REFORM, ROBERT MUGABE, THABO MBEKI
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