(BLACK AGENDA REPORT) Obama And Kikwete Want Uganda And Rwanda To Halt Their Congo Bloodshed
Kambale MusavuliJuly 03,2013
After visiting Senegal and South Africa, President Obama's last stop on his African tour was in Tanzania where he visited President Jakaya Kikwete and concluded his trip to Africa on Tuesday, July 2, 2013.
Both President Obama and Kikwete have made auspicious statements regarding the crisis in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
Last week, President Kikwete called on both Rwanda and Uganda to enter into dialogue with their respective rebel militia who are present in the Congo instead of continuously utilizing rebel presence as a rationale for repeated interventions in the Congo.
On Monday, July 1, 2013 during his state visit to Tanzania, responding to a question from a Congolese journalist, President Obama said "The countries surrounding the Congo, they've got to make a commitment to stop funding armed groups that are encroaching on the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Congo."
President Obama's response is fascinating in two respects. First, in spite, of sixteen years of intervention in the DRC by U.S. allies Rwanda and Uganda, which has triggered the deaths of millions of Congolese, President Obama still did not mention either country by name; he merely uttered the phrase "Congo's neighbors." Secondly, while U.S. has repeatedly acknowledged that its allies, Rwanda and Uganda are funding armed groups in the Congo, it continues to arm, train, finance and provide diplomatic and political cover for both countries.
Philippe Bolopion of Human Rights Watch says it best when he observed in a New York Times commentary: "So how do you get away with arming a rebel force that attacks U.N. peacekeepers, rapes women and recruits children? You need powerful friends, and Rwanda has had one. Born from the guilt of the Clinton administration's inaction in the face of the Rwandan genocide, and a recognition of Rwanda's relatively efficient use of development aid, the United States has proven to be one of Kigali's staunchest allies."
It would stand to reason that as the U.S. calls on its allies to cease funding of armed groups in the Congo, the U.S. itself would cease funding of Rwanda and Uganda as long as they continue fueling the conflict in the DRC. In fact, U.S. law calls on the Obama Administration to do as much. Section 105 of Public Law 109-456, the law that President Obama sponsored as senator and co-sponsored by Hillary Clinton and John Kerry, authorizes the Secretary of State to withhold aid from Congo's neighbors, should they destabilize the country. The Obama Administration has yet to fully implement this law.
Pressure has been mounting around Rwanda and Uganda's support of militia gangs in the Congo. In light of the UN Group of experts reports published in 2012, the United States government has said that "there is a credible body of evidence that corroborates key findings of the Group of Experts' reports - including evidence of significant military and logistical support, as well as operational and political guidance, from the Rwandan government to the M23."
The administration response to the report has been a suspension of $200,000 of Foreign Military Financing provided to a Rwandan military academy and a phone call from President Barack Obama to Paul Kagame to discuss Rwanda's role in the destabilization of the Congo. Unfortunately, these small steps have not been enough to stop Congo's neighbors from intervening in the Congo, nor are they commensurate with the level of suffering the people of the Congo face daily due to the brutal killings perpetrated by militia gangs.
One of the key changes needed in U.S. policy in the Great Lakes Region of Africa is to cease its support of U.S. allies who are fueling conflict in the DRC. As he did in his 2009 trip to Ghana, President Obama repeated again during his Cape Town speech that "we are interested in investing not in strongmen but in strong institutions." However, the US government's continued support of strongmen in Rwanda, Uganda and DRC, stands in stark contrast to President Obama's declaration in Cape Town.
A second key change required in US policy is for the U.S. to in fact support strong institutions and democracy both in the Congo and the region. The lack of democracy and democratic institutions and the militarization of the political space in the region have been a major driver of the instability in the DRC, Uganda and Rwanda. These structural changes in U.S. Foreign Policy are vital steps needed to advancing peace and stability in the Congo and the Great Lakes region of Africa.
Despite the millions of Congolese who have perished in the past 16 years in what the United Nations says is the deadliest conflict in the world since World War II, the response from the United States in particular and other global leaders has been lackluster at best in the face of what is arguably the greatest human tragedy at the dawn of the 21st century. The recently initiated "Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework for the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Region," is one such example; as it fails to hold Rwanda and Uganda accountable, lacks a serious justice component, did not include the Congolese people in its development and mistakenly argues that legitimizing Rwanda and Uganda's looting of the Congo under the guise of trade and economic integration will bring stability.
The degree to which action has been taken, to hold aggressor countries like Rwanda and Uganda accountable has been a result of global pressure on world leaders by ordinary people. We have repeatedly seen the constructive role that global pressure can play in advancing peace in the Congo. Recently, the UN Group of Experts on the DRC leaked a report documenting reduced support for Rwandan and Ugandan militias in the Congo. This is a clear sign that the pressure on the U.S. and its allies Rwanda and Uganda needs to be sustained and stepped-up.
Musavuli is Spokesperson for Friends of Congo
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Labels: BARACK OBAMA, JAKAYA KIKWETE
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(BLACK STAR NEWS) Is Obama talking to Kagame through Kikwete about Congo?
Ann Garrison June 02,2013
Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete sparked the outrage of Rwandan President Paul Kagame and other prominent Rwandans last week when he said, at the African Union’s 50th anniversary summit, that the UN combat intervention brigade cannot be the only solution to the long running armed conflict in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. President Kikwete’s remarks were significant because the UN combat brigade is to be composed of Tanzanian, South African, and Malawian troops with a Tanzanian commander.
To achieve peace in the Great Lakes Region, he said, the Ugandan and Rwandan governments must negotiate with eastern Congolese militias composed of their own former citizens, whom they characterize as a cross border threat to their security. Rwandan President Paul Kagame and other prominent Rwandans responded angrily that they would never negotiate with the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda, or FDLR , a militia composed of Rwandan Civil War refugees and their children in Congo.
On May 30th, the Rwanda New Times quoted Jean-Pierre Dusingizemungu, President of the Ibuka genocide survivors group saying that, “Ibuka strongly condemns President Kikwete’s statement as no negotiation is acceptable with a known terrorist group that is responsible for the death of more than a million Tutsis in Rwanda and continues its blood-thirsty activities in the eastern DR Congo.”
Dusingizemungu's description of the Rwanda Genocide has been widely disputed by genocide survivors, ICTR defense lawyers, and academics. University of Michigan Professor Alan Stam pointed out, in his presentation “Understanding the Rwanda Genocide,” at the Gerald Ford School of Public Policy, that the 1991 Rwandan census reported a population of 7,590,235, including 645,170 Tutsis, and if that’s true, then this reference to “the death of more than a million Tutsis in Rwanda” isn’t plausible. The National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda’s website includes a page titled Second Rwanda General Census of Population and Housing - 1991, but, on June 2nd, there were no statistics there. Perhaps they’ll be there tomorrow, or perhaps they've been removed because they’re the subject of painful contention between Hutu, Tutsi, and Twa survivors of a horrific tragedy in which approximately a million Rwandan people died.
Did The New Times, in their outrage at President Jakaya Kikweke, misquote Jean-Pierre Dusingizemungu? Perhaps, but more importantly, misquote or no, a statement that the Rwandan government “will never negotiate” with the FDLR is not promising for peace in the Democratic Republic of the Congo or the wider region.
President Obama himself wrote, in his Senate legislation, the Obama Congo, Relief, Security, and Democracy Promotion Act of 2006, that “the real and perceived presence of armed groups hostile to the Governments of Uganda, Rwanda, and Burundi continue to serve as a major source of regional instability and an apparent pretext for continued interference in the Democratic Republic of the Congo by its neighbors [Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi].”
Rwanda, Uganda, and Burundi have claimed to be pursuing these hostile groups of their own refugee citizens in the Congo since 1996, and in the process, instigated two regional conflagrations, including the “African World War” of 1998 to 2003, which drew in all nine countries bordering the Democratic Republic of the Congo. By 2008, the International Rescue Commission completed an epidemiological study concluding that 5.4 million people, most of them civilians, had died of the fighting or of consequent hardship between 1998 and 2008 alone.
But despite nearly 20 years of war and human catastrophe in Congo, the Rwandan government continues to argue that Rwanda’s tragedy, not Congo's, and the FDLR’s threat to Rwanda from within Congo, is the fundamental and most important reality in the region, and says that it will not negotiate.
On Friday, June 1st, Ibuka survivors president Jean-Pierre Dusingizemungu, published a response to Kikwete, titled, “Rwanda can’t talk to FDLR; they’re stone cold killers.”
However, on the same day, the Tanzanian press reported that President Jakaya Kikwete has said he will not apologise to Rwanda or change his stand that the Rwandan government should negotiate with rebels.
The White House recently announced that President Obama will soon make his second trip to Africa South of the Sahara, including stops in Senegal, and in South Africa and Tanzania, two of the three countries contributing troops to the UN combat intervention brigade. He will not travel to the capitals of longstanding U.S. allies and military partners Uganda and Rwanda.
Is President Obama speaking to President Kagame through President Jakaya Kikwete? Or is President Jakaya Kikwete speaking simply on his own? It seems most likely that President Kikwete at least knows that President Obama will agree with him that, after almost 20 years, the Rwandan Civil War in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo must end.
Labels: ANN GARRISON, BARACK OBAMA, DRC, JAKAYA KIKWETE, PAUL KAGAME
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WikiLeaks cables: Tanzania official investigating BAE 'fears for his life'
David Leigh
Sunday 19 December 2010 21.30 GMT
Prosecutor Edward Hoseah voiced safety fears over inquiry into 'dirty deal' involving sale of radar system to governmentJakaya Kikwete, pictured with George Bush in 2008, had his commitment to fighting corruption questioned, according to the cables.
The Tanzanian prosecutor investigating worldwide misconduct by BAE, Britain's biggest arms company, confided to US diplomats that "his life may be in danger" and senior politicians in his small African country were "untouchable".
A leaked account of what the head of Tanzania's anti-corruption bureau, Edward Hoseah, termed the "dirty deal" by BAE to sell Tanzania an overpriced radar system, is revealed in the US embassy cables.
BAE is to appear in court in London tomorrow, when their system of making secret payments to secure arms contracts, exposed by the Guardian, will be officially detailed for the first time.
Every individual involved in the BAE scandal in Britain and Tanzania has escaped prosecution.
But the arms giant agreed with the UK Serious Fraud Office (SFO) to pay £30m in corporate reparations and fines, provided the word "corruption" did not appear on the indictment. A corruption conviction would debar the company from EU contracts.
The former overseas development secretary, Clare Short, said at the time: "It was always obvious that this useless project was corrupt."
Hoseah met a US diplomat, Purnell Delly, in Dar es Salaam in July 2007, and claimed (unrealistically it turned out) he would be able to prosecute guilty individuals in the BAE case. The US cable reports: "He called the deal 'dirty' and said it involved officials from the Ministry of Defence and at least one or two senior level military officers."
Hoseah spoke gloomily about the prospects for Tanzania's anti-corruption struggle and his original hopes to prosecute the "big fish" of corruption.
"He told us point blank ... that cases against the prime minister or the president were off the table ..." The cable then details allegations against former leaders and their inner circles, saying they would be "untouchable".
"He noted that President Kikwete does not appear comfortable letting the law handle corruption cases which might implicate top-level officials." The cable then says Kwitke "does not want to set a precedent" by going after any of his predecessors.
There were "widespread rumours of corruption within the Bank of Tanzania", Hoseah said, and the island region of Zanzibar was also "rife with corruption".
The diplomat noted: "Hoseah reiterated concern for his personal security ... saying he believed his life may be in danger ... He had received threatening text messages and letters and was reminded every day that he was fighting the 'rich and powerful'."
He might have to flee the country. He warned: "He said quietly: 'If you attend meetings of the inner-circle, people want you to feel as if they have put you there. If they see that you are uncompromising, there is a risk.' "
The US embassy noted in a "cynical" aside, that probably the only reason Hoseah felt obliged to attempt a BAE prosecution was because the SFO had presented him with "a fully developed case file, brimming with detailed evidence".
Today's court appearance by BAE is the culmination of lengthy attempts to bring the company to justice since the Guardian exposed its worldwide secret payment system.
The prime minister at the time, Tony Blair, intervened in 2006 to halt an SFO investigation into payments to members of the Saudi royal family.
The US department of justice has had more success than the SFO, forcing BAE to pay $400m (£260m) in penalties under the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.
£28m radar deal 'stank'
Tanzania, on Africa's east coast, is one of the poorest states in the world, formerly controlled in turn by Arab slavers, German colonists and the British.
At the time of the radar deal, life expectancy was 45.
Tanzania was forced to apply for debt relief from the west and was heavily dependent on aid. It is ravaged by HIV/Aids and its GDP per head is just $723 (£465).
President Benjamin Mkapa, whose regime did the deal, was succeeded in 2004 by his political colleague Jakaya Kikwete.
Tanzania, which has no air force, bought the military air defence radar from BAE in 2001 for £28m.
It was claimed the Commander system, which was portable and festooned with anti-jamming devices, could also be used for civilian air traffic control.
The country borrowed the cost from Barclays, adding to its debt burden. Both the World Bank and the International Civil Aviation Organisation called the purchase unnecessary and overpriced.
In London, the then development secretary, Clare Short, temporarily blocked aid payments in protest. "It stank," she now says of the sale.
She urged an export licence be withheld, but was overruled by Tony Blair himself. Robin Cook, then foreign secretary, recorded bitterly in his diary that Dick Evans [of BAE] seemed to have "the key to the garden door of No 10 [Downing St]".
In January 2007 the Guardian disclosed that BAE had used an offshore front company, Red Diamond, to secretly pay £8.4m, 30% of the radar's ostensible price, into a Swiss account.
The account was controlled by Tanzanian middleman Sailesh Vithlani. His "consultancy" agreement was, it is alleged, formally signed off in London by Evans.
Labels: CORRUPTION, EDWARD HOSEAH, JAKAYA KIKWETE, TANZANIA, WIKILEAKS
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Africa must move to centre of global economy – Kikwete
By Kabanda Chulu in Kitwe
Tue 11 May 2010, 04:00 CAT
PRICEwaterhouse Coopers (PwC) Zambia senior partner Richard Mazombwe has observed that Africa’s business leaders are at a crossroads between feeling confident and being weighed down by the risks of doing business in the region. And Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete has said there is urgent need to move Africa from the periphery to the centre of the global economy.
Releasing the PwC chief executive officer’s survey at the 20th World Economic Forum in Dar es Salaam on Friday, Mazombwe stated that 87 per cent of CEOs headquartered in Africa anticipate regional expansion in the next 12 months which is the highest percentage among CEOs headquartered anywhere in the world.
He stated that the survey and forum were important platforms for business leaders to aggregate experience and seeks clarity on the challenges as well as the tremendous opportunities of doing business in Africa.
“Africa’s business leaders are at a crossroads between feeling confident and being weighed down by the risks of doing business in the region but the survey finds that 87 per cent of CEOs headquartered in Africa anticipate regional expansion in the next 12 months, the highest percentage among CEOs headquartered anywhere in the world,” stated Mazombwe.
“Their optimism contrasts sharply with that of global CEOs, whose confidence has plummeted from similar levels three years ago, following the global downturn.”
And PwC Central Africa senior partner Philip Kinisu stated that there was a relative sense of confidence in many African countries due to the muted impact of the global economic downturn.
“And in many ways the business environment continues to improve, driven by relentless economic, social and political changes. It means businesses are increasingly focused on growth within the region and tapping new consumers in their existing markets,” Kinisu stated.
“In a sense we Africans are rediscovering Africa and growth through better penetration of existing markets is expected among 77 per cent of CEOs in Africa, compared to 38 per cent of global CEOs but South Africa differs from the rest of the continent with only 33 per cent of respondents targeting existing markets instead they are much more focused on expanding into new geographical markets.”
Officially closing the World Economic Forum last Friday, President Kikwete said despite Africa’s huge potential, the continent suffered from lack of integration in the global economy.
“If there is any predicament to African development, it is this state of affairs and it is time to move Africa from the periphery to the centre of the global economy,” President Kikwete said.
He reminded the participants that the smallest share of global exports comes from Africa just 3.5 per cent and just a trickle of global foreign direct investment (FDI) goes to Africa at 0.96 per cent and the continent is not integrated into international financial markets.
“Africa remains predominantly a primary producer and importer for industrial use. We produce what we don’t consume and we consume what we don’t produce but this cannot continue and to end the continent’s marginalisation, Africans must believe in themselves and be the change they want to see,” said President Kikwete.
And South African President Jacob Zuma said the upcoming World Cup tournament will show the world that Africa is ready to do anything.
“There were a lot of doubts and skepticism. But people who come to Africa will see that we are not just bushes and mountains. They will see how Africa is ready to do anything that can be done anywhere else in the world,” President Zuma said.
“Potential investors should act now and in a short period of time, Africa is going to be the place for doing business globally and FDI will come on its own.”
South Africa’s Sasol chief executive officer Pat Davies stated that there was no time for appropriate regulatory structure to be set up before initiating public-private partnerships.
“Focus on where there are markets and opportunities and use business to remove barriers, but give business reasonable certainty and predictability and we can create more partnerships and companies will help create regulatory frameworks by making the investment decision,” stated Davies.
And HCL Infosystems of India founder Ajai Chowdhry stated that one of the keys to unlocking Africa’s potential lies with young people, who comprise 60 per cent of the population.
“Let’s take a bunch of young people and put their minds on fire. You should believe in the demographics of Africa to make your human capital capable and entrepreneurship will happen,” Chowdhry said.
United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT) executive director Anna Tibaijuka said Africa’s mindset has to change to ensure development.
“There is a role to be played by everyone. But we cannot afford to have more than half our population underutilised and 60 per cent of young people left behind. Follow up and follow through with local action for regional and global growth,” Tibaijuka said.
Yara International of Norway president Joergen Ole Haslestad observed that another key to unlock Africa’s potential was to develop the agricultural sector.
“All of us have to accept and understand that farming is business,” said Haslestad.
The 20th World Economic Forum on Africa concluded in Dar es Salaam last Friday and 13 African heads of state and government participated together with more than 1,000 delegates from 85 countries. Rethinking Africa’s Growth Strategy was the theme of the meeting.
The next World Economic Forum on Africa will take place in Cape Town, South Africa from May 4 to 6, 2011.
Labels: GLOBALISATION, JAKAYA KIKWETE, RICHARD MAZOMBWE
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COMMENT - I don't know if this event has anything to with or is a setup for the
World Economic Forum on Africa: Rethinking Africa’s Growth Strategy, to be held from 5-7 May 2010, in Dar es Salaam. What Africa needs is a continent wide law that requires all raw materials to be sold through national governments and at market value ONLY. This will do away with all poverty and war on the continent, because most wars are proxy wars fought to sell out the people's resources to transnational corporations. When hundreds of billions become available from raw materials, no 'conditionalities' attached, there will be more than enough money available for economic diversification, local entrepreneurs (low or no interest loans and grants) and full social services (universal healthcare and education). The resources are there and the money is there, all we need is an end to this economic model of neocolonial exploitation.
Leaders of liberation movements meet in Tanzania
By: TH-TZG
Posted: Tuesday, May 4, 2010 10:04 am
PRESIDENT Mugabe arrived in Tanzania yesterday to attend a meeting of liberation movements that seeks to find ways of
offsetting resurgent neo-colonialism in Africa. Soon after his arrival, he held closed-door talks with his Tanzanian counterpart, President Jakaya Kikwete.
The meeting of liberation movements begins Tuesday. Countries that have confirmed their participation in addition to Zimbabwe and the hosts are Angola, South Africa and Namibia.
The meeting starts with a session incorporating secretaries-general of the movements, in which Zimbabwe will be represented by Zanu-PF secretary for administration, Didymus Mutasa.
After that, presidents and leaders of the movements will go into session. Insiders said the meeting had been long in coming and would focus on how the liberation movements could co-ordinate activities for Africa's development.
Tanzania is currently hosting the 20th World Economic Forum on Africa where 11 African heads of state and government are expected to attend. The forum is being held under the theme "Rethinking Africa's Growth Strategy".
The last liberators' meeting was in Sandton in South Africa back in 2000. This year it coincides with the 50th anniversary of the launch of the continent's struggle for independence.
President Mugabe is accompanied by ministers Webster Shamu (Media, Information and Publicity), Emmerson Mnangagwa (Defence), Saviour Kasukuwere (Youth Development, Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment) and other senior Government officials
Labels: JAKAYA KIKWETE, LIBERATION, MUGABE
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‘It’ll be a shame for govt to abandon Levy’s legacy’
Written by Chibaula Silwamba
Tuesday, September 08, 2009 3:24:27 PM
IT will be a shame for the current government to completely abandon the Mwanawasa legacy, former State House chief analyst for press and public relations David Kombe has said.
In an interview at the launch of the biography of the late president Levy Mwanawasa written by Post managing editor Amos Malupenga with a foreword from Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete, Kombe said although every leader had their own style and would want to set their own legacy, it would be bad to completely ignore the legacy Mwanawasa had set.
"Every leader has to set his own agenda and therefore it is up to the leadership to decide whether they want to continue with that legacy or they want to set a new legacy but it will be a shame to abandon the legacy of Levy completely; that will not be very good even when you say you want to set a new legacy. There are a lot of good things in the legacy of Levy that can be emulated," Kombe said.
However, he said it would be unfair to demand that President Banda follow president Mwanawasa's legacy.
"Legacy is very difficult because what you must also understand is that leadership styles differ. While we may want the legacy to continue, we are now dealing with a different leader and therefore, for me, it will be unfair to say that the current leadership must follow the legacy that was set by the late president because every leader I think they aspire to set their own legacy," Kombe said. "But the legacy that the late president left has a lot of things that the current leadership can learn from and had a lot of programmes and ideas that the current leadership can try and implement, but they are under no obligation to do that but they can try and do it."
Kombe said Malupenga's book was indeed an incentive for posterity.
"The book is a very good initiative; it's supposed to serve as an inspiration for future leaders and everybody who aspires to leadership and at the same time it's a tool for everyone to use to learn about integrity. The late president was indeed a very honest man. For those of us who worked closely with him we know very well the vision that he had for this country and he really worked very hard; he used to work long hours just to try and get the country moving. He committed himself to the cause of the country and it's good that Amos has captured most of these things in his book," said Kombe.
"We hope that those who will read [the book] will be able to use it and be able to become better people whether in political life or in business or whatever they do because this book cuts across political barrier. Whether you are a family man, you are in business, you are in politics; this book teaches us something."
Labels: AMOS MALUPENGA, DAVID KOMBE, JAKAYA KIKWETE, MWANAWASA
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COMMENT - If there is any doubt left that the MDC is a party of Uncle Toms and the rhodesians who love them (or is that the other way around - perhaps we're talking about some kind of co-dependent relationship), it is this embarassing address to other African leaders by Arthur Mutambara. The world has moved on, and only those who get on board will not be left behind.
Mutambara gets schooled by African leaders
Herald reporter
Wed, 29 Jul 2009 01:03:00 +0000
DEPUTY Prime Minister
Arthur Mutambara drew the ire of African leaders yesterday when he suggested that
no African leader had a brand worth selling where national visions are concerned, and that to be acceptable, the leaders and their countries needed Western endorsement.Sources said DPM Mutambara, who was presenting a paper on
"Strategies for integrating innovations in public service", had to leave the conference hall in a huff after
the leaders, one after the other, wished Zimbabwe well should he ever assume the presidency.
The sources said the DPM’s presentation appeared to be going well, up to the point he appeared to suggest that Africa should be a chattel of the West.
"What is Mugabe’s brand, what is Museveni’s brand, what is Kikwete’s brand? If a brand is to succeed it should be endorsed by the outsiders. Africa cannot endorse her own brand, Mugabe cannot endorse his own brand, Museveni can- not endorse his own brand, Kikwete cannot endorse his own brand. We need BBC, you need CNN, you need SkyNews to do it," Ugandan sources who attended the plenary quoted DPM Mutambara as saying.
The sources said DPM Mutambara then said Zimbabwe had no capacity to develop its resources without input from the West.
"On mining we do not have capacity, we are workers, our capacity is Chiadzwa. We need people with technology, from England, from America," he charged as he concluded his speech.
The sources said host President Yoweri Museveni promptly stood up and challenged the presentation.
"Young man, your presentation smacks of a serious inferiority complex," the Ugandan leader was quoted as saying.
"You say you need endorsement from the West yet there is a whole world ranged against us. If you think there will come a time when Africa will get the support of the Western world, you are mistaken.
"Think of China, how it was demonised until they made money on their own effort, now they are a big brand not because the West said yes, but because China said no."
The Ugandan leader then cited the example of Malaysia that followed the Chinese development model.
He drew the Deputy Prime Minister’s attention to the situation in India saying: "Now the West, Europe cannot ignore India, not because India was their darling in the past, but because India stood by its own principles.
"Look at Venezuela right now, they are being demonised, but they are working with a clear sense of self-conviction and confidence, and things will come right. So, we have a saying that when you winnow, you remove seed from chaff, you do not take everything. If ever you become a president with these kinds of ideas, then God help Zimbabwe."
Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete then took the floor and echoed his Ugandan counterpart’s words saying he did not know whether to attribute Deputy Prime Minister Mutambara’s presentation to youthfulness or some unknown condition.
"I don’t know whether its youthfulness or what, but this young man does not seem to know that there is no good story that comes out of Africa to CNN, BBC, SkyNews.
"When you want a good story to come out of Africa, you pay for it. Tanzania had to pay 40 million shillings to simply get a good story out of Africa to BBC, they simply don’t want a good story out of us. If one day you become a president, we wish you well with these ideas," the Tanzanian leader said.
Zambian leader Rupiah Banda then drew the Deputy Prime Minister’s attention to the history of Zimbabwe saying: "I want to be historic, I want to be direct, the basis of the demonisation of Zimbabwe is not failure to rebrand, it is rooted in the land question. Let’s not humour each other here. We are talking about a culture of land use, not inability to present a pretty picture of Zimbabwe."
DPM Mutambara laughed off the exchange last night saying everything was done in a spirit of debate, and the exchange had been taken out of context.
"The debate we had was a healthy debate, you know this was a dialogue. I was saying we need to have a product worth branding, you need success stories as you can’t endorse yourself. The tourists who come to our countries do not watch Uganda Broadcasting Corporation, they do not watch ZBC, the tourists watch international media channels like CNN and BBC. Where is Africa’s international channel?
"The second issue was on our challenges, what is the problem in Africa? Why does Africa appear stagnant?
"We agree that there are endogenous and exogenous factors, we spend too much time on the external, what about the internal? But my presentation covered quite a lot of things," he said. - Herald
Labels: ARTHUR MUTAMBARA, JAKAYA KIKWETE, MDC, MENTAL SLAVERY, NEOCOLONIALISM, NEOLIBERALISM, RUPIAH BANDA, YOWERI MUSEVENI
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Govt incurs huge bill in delivering cow donated to Tanzania President Kikwete
Written by Mutuna Chanda in Kitwe
Wednesday, July 29, 2009 5:38:19 AM
GOVERNMENT has dispatched a six-man delegation to deliver a pregnant Friesian cow to Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete. And sources have revealed that the government has spent over K68 million in per diem for 10 days on the six officers that have been sent to deliver the cow to President Kikwete in Tanzania.
The black and white cow which was given to President Kikwete by President Rupiah Banda at the Ndola International Trade Fair early this month was transported to Tanzania by road last Saturday.
According to government sources, each of the six officers led by Copperbelt Provincial veterinary officer Dr Alishenke Mutemwa was given US $220 per night equivalent to K1,148,400 [at K5,220 per US $] as out-of-pocket allowance for 10 days.
The sources said Dr Mutemwa was accompanied by a senior animal and extension officer at the veterinary department in Ndola, Charles Lwanga, two drivers one for the cow and the other for the delegation, an imprest holder and another government official from Cabinet office in Ndola.
The sources said the delegation left in two vehicles one of which was a grey Toyota Hilux registration number GRZ 788 BV and a white Mitsubishi Canter registration number GRZ 332 CA, which was carrying the cow.
When contacted for comment, Coperbelt permanent secretary Villie Lombanya confirmed that government officers had been dispatched to deliver the cow to President Kikwete and justified the US $220 daily per diem.
However, he denied that six officers had been assigned saying only two were on that mission and that the rest were from the Tanzanian High Commission.
Asked why the cow was not put on a train through the Tanzania Zambia Railway (TAZARA), Lombanya said the cow was pregnant and that the government did not want it to deliver in transit.
And when asked if each of the officers had been given out-of-pocket allowances of US $220 each for 10 days, Lombanya said he was not privy to the details and that he just facilitated the dispatch of the cow.
"Well, I don't know those details," said Lombanya. "What I did was to facilitate. That was done by Cabinet Office in Lusaka. If they have been given US $220 each per day that is normal; that is government's foreign travel per diem for east Africa because each region has its own rate and it is provided for in the circular [foreign travel]. That is in order and they have to live anyway; they are on duty."
Labels: CATTLE, JAKAYA KIKWETE, RUPIAH BANDA
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Govt dispatches 6-man delegation to deliver pregnant cow to Kikwete
Written by Mutuna Chanda in Kitwe
Wednesday, July 29, 2009 5:36:47 AM
GOVERNMENT has dispatched a six-man delegation to deliver a pregnant Friesian cow to Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete. And sources have revealed that the government has spent over K68 million in per diem for 10 days on the six officers that have been sent to deliver the cow to President Kikwete in Tanzania.
The black and white cow which was given to President Kikwete by President
Rupiah Banda at the Ndola International Trade Fair early this month was transported to Tanzania by road last Saturday.
According to government sources, each of the six officers led by Copperbelt Provincial veterinary officer Dr Alishenke Mutemwa was given US $220 per night equivalent to K1,148,400 [at K5,220 per US $] as out-of-pocket allowance for 10 days.
The sources said Dr Mutemwa was accompanied by a senior animal and extension officer at the veterinary department in Ndola, Charles Lwanga, two drivers - one for the cow and the other for the delegation - an imprest holder and another government official from Cabinet office in Ndola.
The sources said the delegation left in two vehicles, a grey Toyota Hilux registration number GRZ 788 BV and a white Mitsubishi Canter registration number GRZ 332 CA, which was carrying the cow.
When contacted for comment, Coperbelt permanent secretary Villie Lombanya confirmed that government officers had been dispatched to deliver the cow to President Kikwete.
However, he denied that six officers had been assigned. He said only two were on that mission and that the rest were from the Tanzanian High Commission.
Asked why the cow was not put on a train through the Tanzania Zambia Railway (TAZARA), Lombanya said the cow was pregnant and that the government did not want it to deliver in transit.
And when asked if each of the officers had been given out-of-pocket allowances of US $220 each for 10 days, Lombanya said he was not privy to the details and that he just facilitated the dispatch of the cow.
"Well, I don't know those details," said Lombanya. "What I did was to facilitate. That was done by Cabinet Office in Lusaka. If they have been given US $220 each per day that is normal; that is government's foreign travel per diem for east Africa because each region has its own rate and it is provided for in the circular [foreign travel]. That is in order and they have to live anyway; they are on duty."
Labels: CATTLE, JAKAYA KIKWETE, RUPIAH BANDA
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HH overshadows Rupiah at Lwiindi
Written by Chibaula Silwamba and George Zulu in Monze
Wednesday, July 08, 2009 5:36:12 PM
UPND-PF pact co-leader Hakainde Hichilema on Monday overshadowed President Rupiah Banda at the Lwiindi Gonde traditional ceremony of the Tonga people of Southern Province.
And Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete said it was a big challenge to maintain African tradition and culture amidst globalisation and technological advancements that are eroding culture.
Meanwhile, senior chief Moonze of the Tonga people requested President Banda and his government to recognise him as a paramount chief in Southern Province.
The audience cheered Hichilema whenever he stood up to join the dancers and give them gifts.
When Monze district Lwiindi Gonde organising committee chairperson Rex Natala apparently forgot to acknowledge the presence of Hichilema, who is also Lwiindi Gonde patron, the audience and especially people who sat behind the UPND leader in the VIP tent repeatedly shouted "HH! HH! Zambia forward!"
When Natala praised the government, some people in the VIP tent were heard shouting: 'Corruption! Corruption!'
After observing the continued shouts, Hichilema called his deputy Richard Kapita, who in turn told party acting secretary general Chibwe to ask the UPND supporters to stop shouting. Chibwe was later seen going round the VIP seats beckoning people to stop chanting anti-government slogans.
After Natala's speech, President Banda and his Tanzanian counterpart, Kikwete, went into the arena to give gifts to the dancers without cheers or ululations. But later, as Hichilema walked into the arena while flashing a UPND symbol to give gifts to a performer of Kuyabila, the audience spontaneously cheered him amid shouts 'HH! Zambia forward!'
When Hichilema walked into the arena and the audience cheered him, President Kikwete kept on talking to tourism minister Catherine Namugala while showing the hand gestures (UPND symbol), apparently asking why Hichilema was using that symbol when walking into the arena. Meanwhile, the people who sat behind Presidents Banda and Kikwete, were also shouting: 'Boma ni Boma' [Government is government!]”
In his speech, Hichilema, who is also Lwiindi traditional ceremony patron, defied the directive not to be political and acknowledged the presence of opposition political party leaders.
"Thank you to all various organisations that have been able to be represented here, including political parties and Given Lubinda representing Michael Sata, thank you very much," Hichilema said.
Hichilema said Zambia was a country of diversity.
"Zambia is proud to have substantial and varied traditional ceremonies and cultures," Hichilema said.
"In this part of the country, there are no ceremonies of that celebrate war. There are ceremonies that celebrate economic and social development such as this particular ceremony. The dance I performed Mr President is not a violent dance, it's a dance that is demonstrated 40 kilometers from here where I was born and we celebrate that when more of our cattle has breed when we have to celebrate a good harvest. That is what people do and these are your people Mr President."
He said the Lwiindi Gonde had several aspects, one of which was rain making while the other was thanks giving to God for the good harvest.
"For many of the people in this area, they depend on agriculture and the paramount chief Moonze was known for making sure that the population was well fed. If there were rain problems or shortages of rains, Moonze Mukulu prayed to the ancestors so the rain came and so people planted, so they could have food," Hichilema said.
"As you know a population that is hungry is the population that is angry."
He said the ancestors did their part and now was the time for the current generation to play its role.
And President Kikwete said Africans must be vigilant to make sure that their cultures were not eroded.
"I thank you so much your royal highness for agreeing with President Banda for me to visit you and witness this important ceremony of the Tonga people. A ceremony dedicated to thanking God for the good rain and for the good harvest; the ceremony of asking God to give you good rains and good harvest next year. I say I am very impressed from what I have seen and what I have heard particularly from the words of chief Moonze Mukulu of the Tonga people," President Kikwete said.
“Your royal highness, may I also say a few words of praise for maintaining your tradition and culture. I say you deserve praise because in these modern days of information communication technological revolution and globalisation, to maintain our traditional African cultures is a big challenge indeed. The television, the computer, the video games and the mobile phones seem to be stealing the hearts and minds of our young men and women."
He observed that young people tend to spend more time on these gadgets and in the process learn and acquire foreign cultures and traditions. He asked chief Moonze and the Tonga people to maintain their traditions.
"Please make sure that the younger people and the educated young men and women are fully involved and participate actively and that they don’t participate like expatriates from Europe," President Kikwete said.
"They should be proud of participating in their traditions; educated or uneducated so long they are Tonga people they must participate in this tradition."
President Kikwete said it was a revolution that he had visited a village in Zambia because on many occasions he and other heads of state only go to Lusaka.
"I join you in thanking God for the good rains and the good harvest; I also join you in asking God Almighty to give you good rains and good harvest next season and forever. There should be no season when there is no rainfall and no good harvest until the Day of Judgment," said President Kikwete.
And President Banda acknowledged Hichilema's remarks that Tonga people were peaceful. President Banda said he could not deliver his speech but hoped to do so next year.
Labels: CEREMONIES, HAKAINDE HICHILEMA, JAKAYA KIKWETE, LWIINDI, RUPIAH BANDA
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Rupiah, Kikwete agreed to concession TAZARA – envoy
Written by Chibaula Silwamba in Livingstone
Wednesday, July 08, 2009 5:29:54 PM
TANZANIAN High Commissioner to Zambia Dismas Nguma yesterday revealed that Presidents Jakaya Kikwete and Rupiah Banda agreed to concession TAZARA, with preference to Chinese companies.
Explaining what Presidents Kikwete and Banda with their delegations discussed during the bilateral talks in Livingstone on Monday, High Commissioner Nguma said the focus of the meeting was on Tanzania Zambia Railways (TAZARA) which had problems.
"The key areas where they concentrated was on the TAZARA railway, as you know it has not been performing as expected and on that one they agreed jointly look for concessioning of the railway line with the first preference being given to Chinese companies," said High Commissioner Nguma in an interview. "And then they agreed also to send their ministers concerned for transport to go to talk to their counterpart in China and chart the way forward for reviving the railway line again."
Recently, government sources had revealed that the Zambian and Tanzanian governments were planning to concession TAZARA to a Chinese firm.
And High Commissioner Nguma said chieftainship was abolished in Tanzania hence President Kikwete was very happy to witness the Lwiindi traditional ceremony of the Tonga people.
"From Ndola the reception was wonderful, the exhibitions were well organised and then from there we came to Livingstone. The President [Kikwete] said he had been to Lusaka but this time he had the opportunity to visit Ndola and Livingstone and went to a traditional ceremony which was wonderful as you know in Tanzania we abolished the chieftainship right after independence so it was interesting to see how the people are really honouring their culture, coming together to celebrate good harvest after the good rains," said High Commissioner Nguma.
"I am sure it was a good experience for the President. He was very impressed and I am sure he is looking forward to coming back again as President Rupiah Banda said he would like to invite him for a state visit."
President Kikwete, his wife and his delegation left yesterday to Tanzania.
Labels: CHINESE, JAKAYA KIKWETE, RUPIAH BANDA, TAZARA
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Kikwete complains over Zesco outages
Written by Mutuna Chanda and Zumani Katasefa in Ndola
Tuesday, July 07, 2009 3:00:49 PM
TANZANIAN President Jakaya Kikwete has complained that Zesco Limited’s unstable power supply to his country’s south-west towns was making him unpopular. And President Kikwete has said trade between his country and Zambia is shamefully low.
President Kikwete who officiated at this year’s Zambia International Trade Fair (ZITF) in Ndola on Saturday, which is being held under the theme ‘Investment in Infrastructure for Competitiveness’, said during a tour of the stands that he could not brag about the funds he secured from the Norwegians for electricity supply to the south west part of Tanzania while he served as energy minister because power supply to the area was unstable.
He told Zesco customer services director Teddy Mwale to resolve the problems that made power supply to the area unstable.
This was when Mwale guided President Kikwete through the Zesco stand and pointed to the power company’s network on a map.
“The power in this area is not stable,” President Kikwete said as he pointed at the towns of Sumbawange and Mbozi where Zesco exports power. “There are so many complaints that every time I visit the place I am not scoring points.”
President Kikwete said Tanzania even considered supplying thermal power to the area to solve the electricity problems.
“I am still resisting thermal power but when power is unstable you can’t resist much,” President Kikwete told commerce minister Felix Mutati and tourism minister Catherine Namugala as they walked away from the Zesco stand. “You need to resolve that.”
Mutati and Namugala pledged that Zambia would solve the problem.
Later in an interview, Mwale said Zesco supplied power to Sumbawange and Mbozi at a low voltage of 66 Kilovolts (kV).
Mwale said the areas experienced low power especially during peak periods.
He said the long-term solution to the power problems in the area would be to uprate the electricity supply to 132 kV.
Mwale also said the other long-term solution would come with the implementation of the 330 kV power interconnector to east Africa because the substation at Kasama which was responsible for electricity supply to the Tanzanian towns would be of bigger capacity.
And President Kikwete said Tanzania and Zambia could do more to increase the official statistics of trade between the two countries.
“The trade between our two countries is a mere US $20 million and is declining,” President Kikwete said. “I know someone may say that there is trade that is not captured, these are official figures but there is much more going on. We need to make the official statistics better.”
He said the two countries’ ministries of trade needed to be more proactive and interact more.
President Kikwete also said it was undisputable that most African states had inadequate infrastructure.
“Poor infrastructure makes the cost of transporting goods in Africa among the highest if not the highest,” he said.
He said the cost of transporting a 40-foot container was US $2,000 more in Africa than other regions.
President Kikwete said improved road infrastructure could contribute two per cent to Africa’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth.
He said African countries needed to correct the mistakes made by their long departed colonial masters who built infrastructure to facilitate the exit of raw materials.
President Kikwete said the infrastructure built by the colonial masters was meant for exploitation and that to improve on it needed enormous amounts of investment of between US $18 million and US $25 million per year.
He said much as raising such amounts of money was a tall order, African countries needed to be innovative in sourcing the resources.
“Governments have to give infrastructure development the priority it deserves in their national budgets,” President Kikwete said. “ODA (Overseas Development Assistance) will continue to be an important source of financing for infrastructure development.”
He cited the recent North-South Corridor meeting which Zambia hosted in Lusaka at which donors pledged funds amounting to US $1.2 billion for the rehabilitation of infrastructure.
President Kikwete said the rehabilitation of infrastructure in the North-South Corridor would reduce the travel time between Dar-es-Salaam and Lusaka by 25 per cent.
He said the problem of infrastructure in Africa could not be solved by one or two sources of income.
President Kikwete said there was room for private sector participation in infrastructure development.
He however expressed fear that the private sector would only invest in infrastructure projects that had quicker and higher returns.
President Kikwete invited Zambians to participate in the Dar-es Salaam International Trade Fair and pledged that there would be increased participation of Tanzanians in coming Zambia International Trade Fairs.
And President Rupiah Banda said African countries were responsible for their own destiny.
During a luncheon hosted in honour of President Kikwete on Sunday, President Banda said African countries should secure their future by creating opportunities that would promote job creation and wealth.
“In this regard, Zambia and Tanzania should therefore strive even more to remove all impediments to development cooperation and trade opportunities for our two peoples,” President Banda said.
President Banda said the Zambian government was confident that following the tripartite COMESA-EAC-SADC conference which was held from April 6 to April 7, 2009 in Lusaka, at which US $1.2billion was pledged by cooperating partners, railway, road and energy infrastructure would be developed in the North-South corridor, saying that this would improve regional infrastructure and facilitate trade in the region.
“Achievements have been scored in the past, notably among them, the construction of the great Uhuru or Tazara railway line and the Tazama oil pipeline. We are proud of these infrastructure projects as they are a manifestation of what can be achieved between two countries through cooperation,” he said.
President Banda said sustained economic growth and development could not be attained without a vibrant private sector.
He said his government would continue to improve the business environment so as to enable the private sector to thrive and reach its full potential.
“It is in light of the foregoing that I am pleased to inform this August gathering that plans are already underway to establish a one-stop-border post at Nakonde on the Zambian side and at Tunduma on the Tanzania side. It is in this regard that I appeal to the business sector in both our two countries to take advantage of conducive environment to create joint ventures in both countries which will enhance the social and economic well-being of our two peoples,” said President Banda.
Meanwhile, ZITF board chairman Phesto Musonda said the cost of moving exports to ports was prohibitive, making products for landlocked countries such as Zambia less competitive.
“With regard to our roads, the road density in Zambia and the region at large is still very low and the main export routes suffer from overloaded trucks and heavy traffic which damage our road infrastructure,” Musonda said. “The answer to this problem in my humble view lies in investing in the rail networks in order to decongest the roads and avoid transportation of bulk goods on roads thereby prolonging the lifespan of our roads.”
He appealed to the Tanzanian and Zambian governments to urgently come up with measures that would resuscitate the operations of Tanzania Zambia Rail Line (TAZARA).
“So that it can take off the pressure being exerted by trucks on the Great North Road especially that this route leads to sea ports and is vital not only to Zambia but the entire SADC and Comesa regions,” said Musonda. “The investment in rail systems construction and rehabilitation will lead to reduction in transport costs hence making our region more competitive.”
This year’s ZITF has attracted 500 local companies and 120 foreign exhibitors from 14 countries.
This compares with over 300 local companies and 130 foreign exhibitors from 12 countries that took part last year.
The overall best exhibit award was scooped by Ndola City Council while the chairman’s special award went to Zambia Revenue Authority.
Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) won the international award, while Kenya got the second prize, with South Africa coming third.
Labels: JAKAYA KIKWETE, ZESCO
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Rupiah, Kikwete pledge to revamp TAZARA
Written by Florence Mwisa in Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania
Wednesday, February 11, 2009 9:42:20 AM
PRESIDENT Rupiah Banda and his Tanzanian counterpart Jakaya Kikwete have pledged to work together to revamp the Tanzania-Zambia Railways (TAZARA) to enable the joint venture contribute meaningfully to the two countries' economic development.
During the dinner hosted by President Kikwete on Monday night at State House, President Banda said TAZARA had continued to provide a useful link for bilateral trade between Zambia and Tanzania hence the need to revamp it.
He observed that TAZARA was a highly strategic asset that had continued to help improve the lives of the peoples of the two countries.
President Banda said the need to ensure that the management of TAZARA was revamped could not be overemphasized considering the economic importance it played in the development of both countries.
President Banda said Zambia was keen in following Tanzania's developments and its successes scored in the areas such as tourism, agriculture and transportation.
''The future of our countries needs to be set today. We must create opportunities that offer and promote job creation for our people and it is my hope that with this visit, economic cooperation and bilateral relations will be uplifted between our two countries,'' he said.
President Banda also commended Tanzania for the commitment it had shown in finding a lasting solution to the problems in the Great Lakes Region in order to lay a firm foundation for economic development.
Earlier, President Kikwete regretted that the cordial relations between Zambia and Tanzania had not brought about many benefits for the people.
President Kikwete said there was need to seriously look at how TAZARA and Tanzania Zambia Mafuta (TAZAMA), which were important joint ventures between the two countries, could be improved.
He said the two companies currently had serious problems and that there was need to find a way of improving their operations.
President Kikwete further regretted that even if the two countries cooperated closely in confronting issues affecting people, Tanzanians and Zambians had not benefited as much as trade had remained minimal.
He challenged the chambers of commerce of the two countries to engage and establish areas of cooperation that could help improve trade between the two countries.
President Kikwete assured President Banda that problems that were currently obtaining at the Port of Dar-es-Salaam were being seriously looked into and that they would be addressed soon.
Labels: JAKAYA KIKWETE, RUPIAH BANDA, TAZARA
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Zimbabwe gets US$70 000 from Tanzania for cholera efforts
Gift Chinene
Sun, 21 Dec 2008 22:16:00 +0000
A CONSIGNMENT containing 40 tonnes of drugs and equipment worth US$70 000 to help combat the cholera outbreak has arrived in Zimbabwe from Tanzania.
Earlier this month, the spokesman for Tanzanian President and current Chair of the African Union, Jakaya Kikwete, made the pledge to donate cholera fighting kits to Zimbabwe.
The consignment received in the capital Harare includes chlorinated lime, anti-biotics, infusion sets and latex gloves among others which are urgently needed to combat the crisis.
Tanzania, the only Sadc member state from East Africa, has vowed to help Zimbabwe fight the current public health crisis and urged all the countries in the region and internationally to help fight the epidemic.
Speaking after receiving the consignment, the Minister of Health and Child Welfare, Dr. David Parirenyatwa and the Minister of Local Government, Public Works and Urban Development, Dr. Ignatius Chombo commended the people of Tanzania for responding to Zimbabwe’s plight “without prejudice”.
“We would like to extend our gratitude to our brothers, the Tanzanians, for their solidarity and urgency in responding to our call for assistance,” said Dr. Parirenyatwa.
“The Ministry of Health together with related ministries are working hard to arrest the spread of the cholera epidemic and we commended the Tanzanian government for its timely intervention,” added Dr. Parirenyatwa.
Dr. Chombo said that Tanzania “responded to the call urgently and without judging us.”
“We would like to thank the Tanzanian Government for the timely donation and their humanely gesture,” added Dr. Chombo.
“We hope that bilateral relations between Zimbabwe and Tanzania will always be strong.”
During the hand over ceremony, the Tanzanian Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Jaji Rajabo said the relationship between Tanzania and Zimbabwe dates back to the liberation struggle and it should be strengthened.
CALL FOR INCLUSIVE GOVERNMENT
Tanzania joined the increasing number of countries urging Zimbabwe’s main political parties (Zanu PF and the two MDC formations) to form an all-inclusive Government.
Dismissing Western calls for militarized intervention under the Responsibility to Protect banner, President Kikwete said the AU and Tanzania did not consider invasion an option.
President Kikwete also endorsed the facilitation efforts of Sadc under former South African President, Thabo Mbeki, although the MDC leader, Morgan Tsvangirai had indicated that they were no longer recognizing him as an impartial mediator.
Ironically, the MDC requested President Kikwete to be the new mediator.
Labels: JAKAYA KIKWETE, TANZANIA
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Odinga advises Tsvangirai to boycott GNU
Tendai Mucherahohwa
Thu, 04 Dec 2008 19:49:00 +0000
MDC leader, Morgan Tsvangirai
THE leader of the Movement for Democratic Change has been advised by the Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga to boycott the power–sharing agreement, the Zimbabwe Guardian has learnt.
Morgan Tsvangirai arrived in Nairobi, Kenya last night to consult on the ongoing power–sharing talks in Zimbabwe.
Tsvangirai was travelling from Senegal where he held talks with President Abdoulaye Wade and Tanzania where he met Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete who is also the AU chairman on Wednesday in Dar es Salaam.
Tsvangirai asked Kikwete to lead the power-sharing negotiations in Zimbabwe. He also called on Sadc to withdraw from the negotiations and said he did not want South African President Kgalema Motlanthe to take over the talks because former President Thabo Mbeki had failed.
It is understood that President Kikwete told the MDC leader that AU can only assume the responsibility after a resolution by its top organs and further consultations with Sadc.
The MDC leader emerged from a meeting with the Kenyan PM who immediately declared that "Power-sharing is dead in Zimbabwe and will not work with (President Mugabe) who does not really believe in power-sharing."
Odinga said he had advised Tsvangirai to boycott the power–sharing agreement because he (Tsvangirai) “had won” the March 29 elections and should therefore be the President of Zimbabwe.
Odinga also said “(President) Mugabe must be removed from power as power-sharing efforts in his country have ended.”
The opposition Movement for Democratic Change party and President Robert Mugabe's Zanu PF agreed to share power on September 11, following the harmonized elections, but negotiations over control of the Ministry of Home Affairs are still taking place.
TSVANGIRAI NOW IN EXILE IN BOTSWANA
The MDC leader left Kenya Thursday for Botswana where he, and his associates, are now believed to be exiled.
Labels: JAKAYA KIKWETE, MORGAN TSVANGIRAI, NATIONAL UNITY GOVERNMENT, RAILA ODINGA
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Kikwete praises principals in the Zimbabwe deal
Our reporter
Wed, 24 Sep 2008 03:26:00 +0000
THE current chairperson of the African Union and President of the Republic of Tanzania has congratulated the principals who signed a historic deal paving the way for an all-inclusive Government to be formed in Zimbabwe.
Speaking at the ongoing UN General Assembly summit, Jakaya Kikwete said a “landmark breakthrough” was achieved in Zimbabwe and congratulated President Robert Mugabe, Movement for Democratic Change leader, Morgan Tsvangirai and MDC-M leader, Arthur Mutambara for their “statesmanship” in coming up with an agreement to end the country’s economic and political crises..
“We need to congratulate H.E. President Robert Mugabe, Prime Minister Hon. Morgan Tsvangirai, and Deputy Prime Minister Prof. Arthur Mutambara for their statesmanship,” said Kikwete.
“On September 15, 2008, a landmark breakthrough was achieved in the Zimbabwe political crisis when the three parties to the conflict: ZANU-PF, MDC-T and MDC-M signed the historic agreement for ending the conflict and forming an inclusive government,” Kikwete continued.
“The leaders of these three parties are now engaged in the process of implementing this agreement. Getting to this point in a conflict situation that looked impossible is a major achievement indeed.”
President Kikwete also indicated that President Mbeki would not continue with mediation efforts in Zimbabwe, but that the South African government will continue with the mediations effort.
Recognizing and commending President Thabo Mbeki of South Africa for his “sterling leadership”, Kikwete said “his patience, perseverance and understanding” are factors which helped a deal to be brokered in Zimbabwe.
Kikwete confessed that President Mbeki’s resignation after his African National Coingress recalled him raised “some concerns about what would happen if difficulties are experienced with the implementation of the Agreement” between Zimbabwe’s main political party leaders.
He however said that there was reason to worry as the South African government will continue with the facilitation efforts in the country.
“No cause for alarm, the South African government remains, and the new leadership will continues to be seized of the matter,” said Kikwete, adding that “Moreover, since this Agreement is the product of the decision taken by the AU at its Summit in Sharm Al-Sheikh, Egypt on 1-2 July 2008, the AU and SADC stands ready to assist, if need would arise.”
President Mbeki will immediately cease facilitation work in the Zimbabwe crisis after he was recalled by the National Executive Committee of the ANC Party on Saturday following a judge’s ruling last week that he may have had a role in Jacob Zuma being charged with corruption.
A judge ruled Friday that prosecutors were wrong to charge ANC President Jacob Zuma with corruption. President Mbeki was said to have interfered in the National Prosecuting Authority's decision to charge Zuma – a charge he categorically denied in his resignation statement.
Meanwhile the allocation of ministerial portfolios in the all-inclusive government was delayed after the principals failed to reach an agreement on the precise allocation of the ministries. The matter has now been returned to the negotiators as President is currently out of the country.
Labels: AU, JAKAYA KIKWETE, NATIONAL UNITY GOVERNMENT
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African states reject US sanctions call
Herald Reporter
AFRICAN leaders attending the Group of Eight Summit in Japan yesterday vehemently resisted Western-led pressure to support an American draft resolution to have the United Nations slap Zimbabwe with sanctions, as British Foreign Secretary David Miliband stage-managed a visit to the so-called refugee camps in South Africa to ratchet up anti-Zimbabwe pressure.
The seven-country-strong African contingent, led by African Union chairman President Jakaya Kikwete of Tanzania, yesterday snubbed the coercive tactics of the United States and instead emphasised the need for dialogue. Leaders from Algeria, Ethiopia, Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal and South Africa joined Tanzania in telling the G8 that sanctions would not help Zimbabwe in any way.
The G8 is a grouping of the world’s most industrialised nations. President Kikwete was quoted by online publications as saying while he recognised America’s concerns over Zimbabwe’s recent presidential run-off, he did not subscribe to the notion that sanctions were helpful. "The only area we may disagree on is the way forward," he said after a meeting with US President George W. Bush.
It is believed that South Africa’s President Thabo Mbeki took the lead in condemning sanctions as a solution to Zimbabwe’s challenges. America admitted it failed to get support from the African countries.
At a Press briefing, US Deputy National Security Advisor Dan Price told the American media in Washington that Bush had failed to convince Africa that sanctions were the right way forward. "There were differences. Not all leaders are there yet. Not all leaders are in a position to support sanctions at this time," Price said.
Japanese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Kazuo Kodama was also quoted as saying: "African leaders didn’t ask the G8 to do anything specific." He said the African heads of state had indicated that "sanctions may lead to internal conflict in Zimbabwe".
Indications yesterday were that the G8 itself was not united in the call for sanctions with Japan not interested in such a route and Russia — which can veto any sanctions proposal at the UN Security Council — also not supportive of the idea. Last week, Zimbabwe’s Ambassador to the United Nations said most Security Council members were waiting for the AU to give them a cue on how to engage Zimbabwe. The recent AU Summit in Egypt resolved that dialogue, as called for by President Mugabe, was the best way forward.
Yesterday, the Government slammed British Foreign Secretary Miliband for visiting the so-called Zimbabwean refugee camps in South Africa, saying the move was calculated to coincide with the G8 summit that opened in Japan yesterday. Miliband, said the Government, was stage-managing events to ratchet up anti-Zimbabwe sentiments for the G8 summit. In a statement yesterday, Zimbabwe’s Ambassador to South Africa, Cde Simon Khaya Moyo, warned Miliband "to stop his mischief".
"Yesterday’s (Sunday) so-called visit to Zimbabwean refugee camps in South Africa by British Foreign Secretary Mr David Miliband is a malignant political lie tailored to coincide with the opening of the G8 Summit in Japan today," Cde Khaya Moyo said.
He said there are no refugee camps in South Africa but centres for foreign nationals displaced during xenophobic attacks that rocked that country recently. "Mr Miliband must stop his mischief and attend to numerous problems affecting his disintegrating Labour Party in the United Kingdom," he said.
Cde Khaya Moyo reminded Miliband that Zimbabwe was no longer a British colony. "He has no business to come to South Africa and lecture on Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe long ceased to be a British colony and shall never be again." Cde Khaya Moyo said Britain should allow South African President Thabo Mbeki to execute his mediation in Zimbabwe as mandated by Sadc and recently by the AU without interference.
According to reports from South Africa, Miliband arrived in that country on Sunday and visited about 2 000 so-called refugees. He was quoted as saying it was imperative for a political solution to be found in Zimbabwe.
Miliband urged the international community to support the US-proposed sanctions against the country at a UN Security Council meeting to be held in New York. He pledged his country’s support to isolating President Mugabe and his Government.
Labels: AU, COLOUR REVOLUTIONS, DAVID MILIBRAND, JAKAYA KIKWETE, NEOCOLONIALISM, SANCTIONS
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Bush and Kikwete fail to agree on Zimbabwe
Our reporter and sources
Mon, 07 Jul 2008 13:16:00 +0000
President Bush and Tanzania's President Jakaya Kikwete toast at the social dinner held at the State House in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, Sunday, Feb. 17, 2008. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)
UNITED States President George W. Bush and Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete, the current head of the African Union Monday failed to agree on the imposition of sanctions against Zimbabwe as they met on the sidelines of the ongoing G8 Summit in the lakeside resort of Toyako on Japan's northern island of Hokkaido.
President Bush has said he supports the idea of United Nations wide sanctions against Zimbabwe to ‘restore democracy’.
Bush said he was ‘deeply concerned’ by the way the June 27 elections had been conducted but failed short of calling President Robert Mugabe illegitimate.
"You know I care deeply about the people of Zimbabwe," Bush said. "I'm extremely disappointed in the elections."
“And we, of course, listened very carefully. And President Kikwete, as the head of the AU, has been very involved in this issue. I'm not going to put words in his mouth, he can express his own self, but it was -- this issue of Zimbabwe took a fair amount of time,” said Bush.
Bush was meeting leaders from seven African countries who are attending the summit as observers. High on the agenda was the structure of the Aid Package promised to African countries.
Zimbabwe was also discussed.
Reports coming from Japan indicated that there were discussions on Zimbabwe, but no consensus was reached on the way forward. African countries, including South Africa, indicated that they were against the imposition of sanctions against Zimbabwe.
Britain and the United States were hoping to convince the African countries that sanctions were the ways forward.
Standing next to Bush, President Kikwete, was reported as saying that while some African leaders share U.S. concerns, You see differently but for us in Africa we see differently, but I think again there is still room for us for discussions."
Kikwete added: “So this is the way we see it. I don't think there is much, the divergence there. You would have liked to see us do a bit -- some things, we would have liked to see you do some things. But we'll continue to discuss all these issues, and as friends at the end of the day we'll come to an understanding.”
According to Reuters news agency, Kikwete said: "We are saying no party can govern alone in Zimbabwe, and therefore the parties have to work together in a government and look at the future of their country together," he said.
Bush international economics aide Dan Price, speaking after the briefing said, “There were differences. Not all leaders are in a position to support sanctions at this time.''
Japan also seemed not too enthusiastic to send a ‘strong statement’ as had been requested by British Prime Minister, Gordon Brown.
Japan said they were concerned about the situation in the country.
The G8 comprises the United States, Japan, France, Britain, Germany, Canada, Italy and Russia.
Labels: COLOUR REVOLUTIONS, GEORGE BUSH, JAKAYA KIKWETE, NEOCOLONIALISM, ZIMBABWE
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