By Reason Wafawarova in SYDNEY, Australia
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
THE frisky announcement made by Morgan Tsvangirai on Sunday, June 22 was not made on behalf of people who support MDC-T and most certainly not on behalf of the generality of Zimbabweans.
It is obvious that the euphoria that came with Tsvangirai’s lead in the first round of the presidential election has turned into hypochondria and the calamitous state of the opposition has meant that MDC-T has had to be seen to be doing something to avert Tsvangirai’s melancholy that has come with the revival of Zanu-PF’s fortunes.
That ‘‘something to be done’’ is now coming under the guise of a concern for the "suffering people" of Zimbabwe.
Tsvangirai’s announcement of his intended withdrawal from the run-off set for Friday is dressed in altruism and an omnifarious assortment of pretences designed at creating the impression of popularity and humanitarianism as part of Tsvangirai’s political personality.
The world is meant to see in Tsvangirai’s efforts to topple President Mugabe, the equivalent of Fidel Castro on the outskirts of Havana in the historic revolutionary ousting of Batista in 1959.
The irony that those who backed Batista back Tsvangirai and his intended victim is the equivalent of Castro is conveniently shelved in favour of the politically expedient doctrine of dictatorships and despotism.
This is the doctrine that says the man who called for the total isolation of Zimbabwe and its economic strangulation can turn out to be the messiah and redeemer of the same people whose suffering is a direct result of his retrogressive campaign.
The man who has stood firm against this economic aggression has been angrily labelled a "ruthless dictator".
Those who today are involved in political violence are by all means petulant social misfits whose behaviour borders on perversity.
There is simply no politician worth dying for and every person has a right to their life, despite their political wisdom or lack of it.
There is consensus that violence of any form is intolerable and there is absolutely no middling when it comes to people who lack respect for life.
Killers have to be condemned the same way we condemn James D. McGee for his part in the killing of innocent Vietnamese and the same way we condemn the British and the Americans for taking away the lives of Iraqis with impunity.
It is the reckless and hasty conclusion that the political goons involved in the violence reported across Zimbabwe are a State-sponsored lot that needs interrogation.
This assertion is meant to portray the Government as the anti-people monster bent on abusing the very people for whom those in Government sacrificed life and limb in a war for popular liberation some 28 years ago.
At the same time, Tsvangirai, the anti-people sanctions evangelist is portrayed as the altruistic leader of an enfranchising political party so worried about the people that they can afford to forego a "coming election victory" if only to save people from "the brutality of the regime".
And who pays the piper?
Washington and London continue to shamelessly stand on the bodies of hundreds of thousands of Iraqis and Afghans with their hands endlessly dripping with the blood of innocent civilians — they stand shouting endless truisms for the people of Zimbabwe.
What rank hypocrisy!
The US is taking Zimbabwe to the UN Security Council in the name of humanitarianism.
This is when the people make good politics.
If you come from a country such as Zimbabwe, where the concept of people makes good politics, then your passport becomes an automatic qualification for asylum visas.
Your country has no struggles making world headlines from the Western media and your country makes it ahead of the poorest of the poor at the UN meetings.
Zimbabwe has retaliated to the Western sanctions by banning the West from any involvement in the country’s affairs and imperialism cannot stand such defiance.
They have simply ordered Tsvangirai to assume a posture of a man of the people and to ensure that he gives the impression that the people are desperately crying to the West for redemption.
This is the context in which the announcement of withdrawal from Tsvangirai is structured.
Now that the announcement has come, what is coming next is Western commercial propaganda.
Zimbabwe will be portrayed as a country facing genocide.
People across the world can be frightened by massive propaganda and the West is well aware of that. That is not a surprise.
Take a classic example, Germany.
It was the most civilised country in the world, the leader in the sciences, the arts — the Weimar Republic.
Within two or three years it had been turned into a country of raving maniacs by extensive propaganda from the Anglo-American machinery. It worked.
It is meant to work for Zimbabwe today.
The propaganda frightened the Germans and many thought they were defending themselves against the Jews and the Bolsheviks.
The rest is history.
The US held about 120 000 American citizens of Japanese descent on the basis of this same propaganda.
Today, one needs to check the media and see how often it is mentioned that before Zimbabwe embarked on the land reform programme, over 75 percent of its arable land was in the hands of 4 000 white farmers.
How many times is it mentioned that Zimbabwe embarked on the land reform programme after Britain reneged on its 1979 commitments to the land question, namely to provide funding for land redistribution?
Equally, one needs to check how often it has been mentioned that when Iran began enriching uranium again, it was after the Europeans had rejected their side of the bargain, namely to provide firm guarantees on security issues.
These guarantees are no trivial matter for they were meant to ensure that Iran would not be attacked.
When one side backs down, one expects the other side to back down as well.
That is what happened with Iran and Zimbabwe.
When one side is sanctioned and economically strangulated, one expects that side to counter the pressure by whatever means within their capacity.
This is why Western media and election observers are banned from Zimbabwe.
This is why MDC-T is labelled a treacherous party behind the sabotaging of the Zimbabwean economy.
It is because indeed they are.
All this has not been mentioned once in the Western media.
It is not that the Western Press does not know this.
They know, but it is not the kind of reporting consistent with Western imperialism.
The Western Press will not report that Iran is virtually surrounded by US military forces in Afghanistan, Iraq, Turkey and the Persian Gulf.
If they do, it’s because the US is defending itself against terrorists not because it is part of the grand strategy to control Middle East oil resources.
Let it be known that the US foreign policy, just like all of Western foreign policy; is not designed for the benefit of the population, local or foreign.
It is designed for the benefit of power sectors.
To these power sectors, it is useful to dominate the world, by force if necessary.
To this end, the 40 million US citizens that cannot afford to buy food are no priority when the US spends on its military misadventures in Iraq and its sponsorship of rebel civic groups in Zimbabwe.
Even Australia can afford US$18 million towards MDC-T ahead of its appallingly poor Aboriginal communities.
If one were an idealist holding the view that the country is its population, then the extravagant expenditure in Iraq is unacceptable.
But if one were a realist who holds the view that the country is the people who own the country, then the expenditure is a gain.
The same is true for trade deficit.
There is a huge trade deficit for the US if one thinks the country consists of its people but there is no trade deficit if one takes the more reasonable view that the country is the people who own the country.
To these few people, it works like this.
If Dell exports computers from China to the US, it is considered US exports, not US imports. And it is, from the point of view of Dell management.
In this context, there is no trade deficit.
The same goes for US and Western foreign policy.
It does not serve the local populations. It is based on the two pillars of corporate policy.
Noam Chomsky gives these policies as: "Policy one is stuff the pockets of your rich friends with as many dollars as possible. Policy two is get into a position where you can shake your fist at the world and they will do what you want them to do — intimidate the world by force."
The invasion of Iraq achieved those goals. Nobody at Halliburton is complaining that they are going broke.
In fact, the same companies that once supplied Iraq with weapons are now being paid to do what is called "reconstruction" of Iraq, robbing US taxpayers for obscene profits.
The amount of corruption and robbery under the Iraq occupation has been colossal and the imperial gangsters are just making out fine on that.
These are the people who have instructed Tsvangirai to make the people of Zimbabwe a tool of convenience in their ambitions to make profit out of the resources of Zimbabwe.
These people will splash pictures of fighting Zimbabwean villagers daily. This is not because they really wish the villagers were not fighting and neither does it mean that they mean well for the cause of these people. History does not absolve the West when it comes to such virtues. It condemns them with no qualification.
The alleged deaths of 80 people, according to Tsvangirai; cannot be a number terrible enough to move the holes in the chests of such heartless people as George W. Bush, Gordon Brown, David Miliband and Condoleezza Rice. It becomes a number terrible enough only if it can provide a platform for imperial victory.
Those in the Diaspora will confess that they are not exactly treated as equal fellow human beings in their workplaces and adopted communities.
This is precisely because many of them are in the West because they make good politics for the power centres that run Western countries and not because they are exactly fellow human beings with equal standing to their hosts.
Zimbabweans are today so important for their usefulness to gain UN sanctions over their own country. They are very important for their usefulness to give the US-led Western alliance a pretext for military intervention in Zimbabwe.
The MDC leadership is appealing for such intervention and also hoping that it comes under the proxy of an African face. The West know what Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia has been doing in Somalia on their behalf and they are hoping there will be a Zenawi among Zimbabwe’s neighbours.
The Chad-Sudan conflict is another inspiring example for the West. One leader up north of Zimbabwe is yet another encouragement.
The pretext for intervention is what the worry is and it’s nothing close to the plight of Zimbabweans. Neither is it anything to do with democracy or freedom. That does not even exist in the US and will not exist through the MDC or through Iraq’s Nouri Maliki. Simply put, that is not the intention.
It is important for Zimbabweans to read the MDC-T move well and to unite and do a one love act that will shame the imperial monsters that front Tsvangirai as a soldier of democracy much against his own character and leadership style if the goings on in the opposition MDC-T are to be taken into account.
The people of Iraq have been abused for imperial purposes and so were the people of Nicaragua, Chile, Haiti and so on and so forth.
In all these cases the intervention by Western countries did not bring any happiness.
In fact, in all these cases the people became poorer than they were before the intervention and Zimbabwe will be no exception if these imperial monsters were ever allowed to set their ruthless feet in the country.
If indeed Tsvangirai carries out the Western threat to pull out of the run-off, then Zimbabweans must remember that they alone hold the solution to their problems, especially the political ones.
This is no time to be waiting upon the Americans and the British. Enemies cannot be friends just because there is a family disagreement.
Zimbabwe we are one. Together we will overcome. It’s homeland or death!
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Important article
Read this article, everyone.
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/front/la-fg-militias27-2008jun2...
What do you stand for?
Mr Wafawarova
Having a quick glance through your articles and your bio, you claim to be writing on Zimbabwean politics amongst others. I agree to some extent on some of your criticisms on US policies, which many people including US citizens believe are atrocious. However your lack of criticism on Robert Mugabe is deafening. Mugabe has been on record saying that, quoting, “How can a ballpoint pen beat a gun?” Yet not a word from you, someone who regards himself a Pan-Africanist. If you are not in favour of democracy then openly proclaim it, but then that might disqualify quite a bit of your western criticisms. Morgan Tsvangirai had no option to pull out of an election in which, if the result was going to go in his favour, wasn’t going to be recognized by the ruling regime that, quoting again, “can only be removed by God.” If he had stayed in the run-off he surely would’ve unleashed civil war as promised by ZANU-PF. Is that what you wish on the people of Zimbabweans? War? These quotations have not been made up I heard the words uttered on the radio myself. Failure from your side to acknowledge the futility of these statements will doom your self-proclaimed intellectualism to the Just-Another-Black-Consciousness-Hipocrat heap. Blacks have been conscious for quite a while now, it’s time now for them to become accountable too. I’ve been to Zimbabwe during the last 15 years on many an occasion, and witnessed the terrible regression for myself. The person at the helm and responsible for this mess, His Excellency Comrade President Robert Gabriel Mugabe must be removed, and I believe the majority of the good people of Zimbabwe realise that too.
WHAT IS YOUR UNDESTANDING?
My understanding of a pen not being mightier than the gun is that he was saying the liberation struggle remains more important than the chosing of leaders.
My understanding of being removed by God is as good as yours and I have already said that was merely campaign rhetoric that some see as dangerous nonsnse.
I do not think President Mugabe would have called for an election and campaigned so hard if he knew he had power to overturn the result.
He probably was playing psychological games with the electorate and with Morgan too. To me it looks like the trick worked and Morgan chickened out.
Its dirty politics but what do you expect?
I still hold unequivocally that there is no explaining away of the violence. Perpetrators MUST be brought to book.
President Thabo Mbeki wrote a
President Thabo Mbeki wrote a stinging report to Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe in 2001, pleading with him to stop land grabs and admit that the ruling party has failed to create a democratic state.
In a 37-page analysis of the situation in Zimbabwe, written a year after Zanu-PF lost a referendum to the opposition, a landmark event that triggered violent land seizures, Mbeki warns of the consequences.
"Of critical importance... is the obvious necessity to ensure that Zimbabwe does not end up in a situation of isolation... condemned to sink into an ever-deepening social and economic crisis that would result in the reversal of many of the gains of the national democratic revolution."
Mbeki, who has been criticised many times for failing to speak out publicly against Mugabe, in this document warns of the dangers of "stripping white capitalists of their wealth".
He says it "would result in the collapse of the economy with disastrous effects".
The "discussion document" was written in August 2001 and will appear in the June issue of New Agenda, a journal of social and economic policy.
The document was leaked to the Mail and Guardian newspaper, which posted it on its website on Friday, the day of Zimbabwe's one-candidate presidential runoff.
Mbeki begins the report by saying: "This discussion document is a humble contribution to the work that Zanu-PF must carry out... Zimbabwe is confronted by a number of problems that require urgent solutions."
Quoting lengthy paragraphs and numbers from International Monetary Fund (IMF) reports and other economic research, Mbeki asks, "What went wrong?" in Zimbabwe.
He points out that the private sector played a "minimal role with regard to the task of bridging the disparities between black and white".
Mbeki says one of the "serious mistakes" was that the government had to borrow too much money to fund its social upliftment programmes.
"One of the things that went wrong was that the programmes adopted to improve the quality of life proved to be unaffordable... the national democratic state resorted to borrowing, to make up the shortfall in resources available to the government."
By the end of the 1980s, interest payments on the loans amounted to 6,7 percent of the GDP.
"In time the high budget deficit would necessarily lead to the collapse of the social services...
"What had seemed to be the fertiliser that ensured the growth of these services, would turn out to be the toxic substance that would kill these services."
This obliged Zimbabwe to turn to the IMF for help.
But when Zimbabwe defaulted on its IMF debt in 2001, the world body refused to reschedule the debt.
"The party of revolution has to [decide] whether [it] can afford an unfriendly relationship with the IMF at the same time as, in reality, it cannot do without support and assistance from the IMF," Mbeki says.
Also, Zimbabwe cannot afford to "end up in a confrontational position relative to the UK", referring to the former colonial power's role in the land restitution process.
"To resort to anti-imperialist rhetoric will not resolve the problems of Zimbabwe but may compound them."
Mbeki says Zanu-PF must carry out a "serious review" to pull Zimbabwe out of its "deepening crisis" and admit that it had lost contact with the masses.
"Government actions have taken place that have led to accusations about disrespect for the independence of the judiciary, the violation of the rule of law, the suppression of the right to freedom of expression and the independence of the media and the denial of the right to the people of Zimbabwe of their right freely to choose their government....
"The party of revolution in Zimbabwe must admit to itself that it has created the conditions for others to reach these conclusions."
Mbeki calls on the ruling party to "distance itself from the violence and intimidation of the 'war veterans' and related forces and practices".
"Everything we have said indicates that, at this stage, it is not possible for the party of revolution in Zimbabwe to act in a manner that would ensure the further encouragement of popular democracy in that country," Mbeki says
WHY CHIWENGA WILL DIE FOR MUGABE
Why Chiwenga would die for Mugabe
By Geoffrey Nyarota
Should a man who failed an elementary military test, shot himself in the
heart in despair as a result, missed the vital organ by millimeters, before
the test result was reversed in his favour out of sympathy, ever be
permitted to assume command of the armed forces of a nation?
Most fair minded people will say, "Of course not."
The foregoing is an apt description of the circumstances surrounding the
launch of the military career of the commander of the Zimbabwe Defence
Forces, General Constantine Chiwenga.
Not only did then Prime Minister Robert Mugabe order the officials at the
Military Staff Training College in Gweru to reverse the result of the
crucial test that the young officer had failed, he also immediately rewarded
him with promotion to the rank of brigadier, appointing him to take charge
of the Zimbabwe Army's One Brigade in Bulawayo. He became Brigadier Dominic
Chinenge.
Chinenge was the name that Chiwenga assumed after he enlisted with ZANLA on
arrival in Mozambique in 1973. After the ceasefire and independence he first
came to the notice of the new military top brass as commander of the Zanla
forces during the Entumbane uprising in Bulawayo.
Then Finance Minister Enos Nkala, an avowed enemy of PF-Zapu President Dr
Joshua Nkomo, made inflammatory remarks at a Zanu-PF rally held in Bulawayo
in November 1980. He warned Nkomo and PF-Zapu that Zanu-PF would deliver a
few blows against the opposition party. This careless and insensitive remark
sparked off the first Entumbane uprising, in which Zipra and Zanla, the
armed wings of the two parties fought a pitched battle for two days in the
newly constructed but still unoccupied suburb of Entumbane, where troops of
both armies had been temporarily cantoned.
Chinenge was the commander of the Zanla troops.
In February 1981 there was a second uprising, which spread to Glenville and
also to Connemara in the Midlands. ZIPRA troops in other parts of
Matabeleland headed for Bulawayo to join the battle, and ex-Rhodesian units
were brought in to stop the conflict. Over 300 people, most of them
ex-guerillas lost their lives.
The British Military Advisory Team (BMAT), which the new government of
Zimbabwe contracted to integrate Zanla and Zipra, as well as elements of the
former Rhodesian security Forces and also to modernize the new Zimbabwe
National Army, established a military training school in Gweru. Among former
Zanla fighters enlisted was Dominic Chinenge. That was in 1982.
Eleven years earlier, two Form Three schoolboys, Constantine Chiwenga, and a
friend had absconded from Mt St Mary's Secondary School, a Catholic
institution in the heartland of the Hwedza District. They set out along the
road that many schools boys and girls of the day were travelling - to
Mozambiaque and the war of liberation. The friend was Bigboy Samson
Chikerema.
When they returned to Zimbabwe after the ceasefire in 1980 they had assumed
new names as was the fashion among the young guerillas. Chiwenga had become
Chinenge, while Chikerema had assumed the name Perrence Shiri. Chinenge was
destined to become Brigadier Chinenge in charge of One Brigade in Bulawayo
and ultimately General Chiwenga, commander of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces.
Shiri would be appointed commander of Five Brigade, the controversial North
Korean-trained unit which caused havoc and mayhem in the provinces of
Matabeleland and the Midlands.
Deployed to rout what turned out to be only a handful of armed dissidents in
the aftermath of Entumbane, Five Brigade waged a ruthless campaign of
bloodthirsty slaughter, which left no less than 10 000 innocent civilians
dead. Some estimates put the figure at as high as 20 000.
At the end of his training course in Gweru, Chiwenga's class took an
examination. Not surprisingly, given his poor academic background, he failed
the test that was designed to open the doors to opportunities in the
military.
On arrival back home in Harare, unable to come to terms with the bleak
future he faced, the young officer pulled out his service pistol pointed it
at the left side of his chest and pulled the trigger. The bullet sliced
through his body exiting at the back, just below the left shoulder blade. He
had however missed the heart which he apparently was aiming for.
"He was unconscious when he was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit at
Parirenyatwa Hospital," says Dr Mukai Ndlovu (not his real name) who was a
young doctor at the hospital at the time when Chiwenga was rushed there.
Ndlovu who now lives in the United Kingdom, was present in the theatre as
Chiwenga underwent surgery. He observed him as he recuperated slowly in the
hospital's exclusive Ward D, which had previously been reserved for wealthy
white patients.
"The bullet missed the heart by a mere 10 millimetres. It went through his
left nipple and missed the heart by a mere centimetre. The bullet had
perforated the left lung and there was much bleeding. The bullet had gone
straight through his body and there was a gapping hole at the back.
"Apart from general debridement (cleaning) of gun-shot debris from the
wound, there was not much repair to damage that was done in front of the
body."
But, Ndlovu said, the posterior wound had caused a serious problem as it
took time to heal. After he was discharged from hospital the wound had taken
more than two months to heal.
After Chiwenga's recovery the then Prime Minister, Robert Mugabe, had felt
sorry for the young former freedom fighter. He ordered the military
instructors in Gweru to reverse Chiwenga's exam result. Not only that - he
promoted him to the rank of Brigadier in the first crop of post-independence
commanders of the army's four brigades at the time. Brigadier Chinenge was
appointed commander of One Brigade at its Brady Barracks headquarters in
Bulawayo.
Ndlovu says this development had raised eye-brows in medical circles.
Said the doctor: "If someone undergoes such a traumatic experience; if
someone underwent such acute severe depression that he attempted to take his
own life, that means he became at the time virtually a deranged man.
"For such a man to recover, have his exam result reversed and be promoted to
a brigadier was simply incredible.
"That explains Chiwenga's deep loyalty to Mugabe. But in a civilised society
you do not promote someone who has undergone such a deranged and traumatic
experience to take charge of an army brigade, let alone a whole army.
"It's unheard of. You would not trust a man who has undergone such severe
acute depression to make normal and rational decisions under challenges such
as experienced in a military situation. Someone who is susceptible to such
irrational decision-making has already shown you that he cannot be relied
upon to make reasonable decisions under stress and challenge."
Ndlovu said the fact that Chiwenga had risen to become, first commander of
the Zimbabwe National Army and then of Zimbabwe's Defence Forces reflected
badly on the judgement of Mugabe.
"According to Mugabe," says Ndlovu, "here is a man who was prepared to die
because he failed a simple test and who is now dependent on him for all his
credentials and promotions. Mugabe prefers such a man in charge of the army
because he is not capable of making professional and independent decisions.
Yet failing that simple test in 1982 proved that Chiwenga is not capable of
holding positions such as he holds now."
"Now we all reap the consequences of Mugabe's ill-advised decisions. Without
Mugabe, Chiwenga would certainly not be commander of the army. He should
have been dismissed from the army when he failed."
Of late Chiwenga has acquired political clout, which is not entirely
commensurate with his position in the armed forces. He has become perhaps
Zimbabwe's most powerful citizen after Mugabe. Some will argue that he may
have become the most powerful Zimbabwean.
He is the leader of the Joint Operations Command which, since the dramatic
political events of March 29, 2008, when President Mugabe lost a crucial
presidential election to his nemesis and perceived political Liliputian,
Morgan Tsvangirai, of the MDC, has effectively usurped the executive powers
otherwise vested in the President.
Addressing Zanu-PF supporters on Friday, June 12, Mugabe, disclosed what he
assumed was a closely guarded secret. It was information, however, that has
been in the public domain since soon after the events of that fateful day on
Sunday, May 30, 2008, when the top war veterans visited the President.
As the party faithful cheered him at Murehwa Business Centre, Mugabe
dismissed the MDC, as has been his relentless custom since 1999, as a
"British party that was created and funded by the British". Mugabe then made
his public disclosure.
He said that after the March 29 elections the war veterans had approached
him in his office to plead for a return to the bush war that preceded
Zimbabwe's independence.
"They said, 'We secured our independence through the barrel of the gun. Are
we now to surrender it through the power of the pen? Should we let the
country go through a simple X on a ballot paper?'
"We told them we did not want to go back to war. But we said to them, 'Can
all of you here just watch as the country is taken back?'"
Following this clear presidential incitement, on April 5 the security forces
were heavily deployed throughout the countryside and Zimbabwe has known no
peace since then.
The identity of the war veterans who approached Mugabe in the circumstances
described is not in any way shrouded in mystery. The delegation that visited
the President comprised none other than the members of the Joint Operations
Command. The commanders who visited Mugabe that Sunday are General
Constantine Chiwenga, commander of the Defence Forces, Commissioner General
Augustine Chihuri of the Police, Air Marshal Perrence Shiri, commander of
the Air Force of Zimbabwe as well as director of prisons Paradzai Zimondi.
These men, Chiwenga and Chihuri, in particular, are reputed to be currently
the powers behind the Mugabe throne.
It is they who monitored the operations of the Zimbabwe Electoral
Commission, which is headed by a former senior army officer. It is they who
received the first briefing on how the election count was shaping. It is
they who were the first to panic at the totally unexpected or, in their
view, unacceptable briefs that they received from ZEC that Sunday. It is,
therefore, also they who, when it became patently clear which way the vote
count was going, decided to take the bull by the horns by approaching the
equally anxious Mugabe.
It is they, reliable sources say, who calmed the President, by saying he
should not panic. It is they who decided on the strategy to delay the
announcement of the election results, especially the presidential, which
they and Mugabe became aware of on that day, as indeed did many Zimbabweans
who bothered to collate the results posted outside their polling stations,
in terms of the Electoral Act.
It was after such collation that MDC Secretary General Tendai Biti
prematurely announced the election, much to the chagrin of the JOC, which
allegedly was counting on the secrecy of the whole counting process to
implement whatever strategy was their brief. They never forgave Biti. He now
stands charged of treason and faces a possible death sentence.
The JOC has now effectively usurped executive authority from Mugabe. Their
loyalty to Mugabe arises from different reasons. Chiwenga owes his very
existence to the President. Chihuri was rehabilitated in 1980 after a long
period of incarceration as a prisoner of Zanu in the dungeons of Cabo del
Gado in Mozambique. Shiri lives in mortal fear of retribution for
Gukurahundi.
Besides that, their senior positions in the security forces have opened
doors to immense wealth. They own mansions, the best farming estates, fleets
of luxury cars. It is not loyalty alone that motivates them to resist
change. They cannot countenance letting go of all they have acquired over
the years that the system has been totally devoid of any vestige of
accountability.
As leader of JOC in a lawless Zimbabwe, Chiwenga is the man now vested with
authority over the lives and welfare of millions of Zimbabweans. As for now,
those lives count for nothing as the veterans of the war of independence now
fight for their very survival.
With Reserve Bank governor Gideon Gono on sides to keep the presses running
while printing bank notes with reckless abandon, the people of Zimbabwe are
in trouble, even if they vote Mugabe out on Friday.
He has made it impiously clear, only God can dethrone him.
But Mugabe's blaspheme should not, in any way, intimidate Tsvangirai into
withdrawing from Friday's elections. The electorate should be mindful,
however, that they will basically be choosing between Morgan Tsvangirai and
Constantine Chiwenga and his ruthless cronies, a choice between the forces
of good and the forces of evil.
If Mugabe and his henchmen lose the election re-run innocent Zimbabweans
will die in ruthless retribution. Likewise, if they emerge victorious they
will celebrate by sacrificing the lives of innocent Zimbabwe.
Relevance
I will keep this piece by Geoff on the forum for the sake of tolerance although I fail to see its relevance here.
The relevance my thick-headed
The relevance my thick-headed friend is that it reveals that Zanu-PF has morphed from a liberation force to an elitest force solely concerned with protecting what they have raped and pillaged from the Zimbabwean people over the last 28 years. And you Reason with your myopic eyesight go on supporting them and proping up this useless bunch of thieves.
So the logic
So the logic is that Geoff is the fact man and Reason is the myopic bloke? How sweet.
Reason is also the gullible
Reason is also the gullible fool who has been indoctrinated by Zanu-PF propaganda who now openly supports this group of rogue thieves.
Is "also"?
Is 'also' here an acknowledgement of the factuality of the assertions in this piece? Sounds like and that is the point I wanted driven home, even if it comes out of what you see as indoctrination on my part.
Reason you do not deal with
Reason you do not deal with facts. You have openly admitted that here on this blog that you deal with opinions only. When others put facts up to you you openly dismiss them. You are simply another one of the propagandist puppet of Zanu-PF. Sad really that you have no mind of your own.
Opinion
What you have written is what is called an opinion and facts are abound in the articles on this site.
Let's say this for Reason...
Let's say this for Reason. He puts every comment in plain view on the blog — even the harshest critcisms.
This is a good approach, Reason. If only the Herald worked the same way!
Thank you
Thank you Adam. Criticism will always be tolerated as long as it is not slanderous, malicious, defamatory or plain insults.
ZANU-PF is what we call sore
ZANU-PF is what we call sore losers. Yes, there are many historical issues to be resolved including the reneganding of Britain on the Lancaster agreement although for the sake of your own people, let them speak without intimidation and murder. Today is now and what an emabarassment to Africa that Mugabe continues to rant. What an embarassment when he says "only God can remove me". Someday Zimbabweans will have a chance to vote and speak their mind without sore losers killing or intimidating them.
I agree
The freedom to chose leadership must be freedom from intimidation, bribes, propaganda, sanctions and violence. As it is right now Zimbabweans are not free from any of these.
MUGABE FOR CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY-GUKURAHUNDI
The United Nations should put Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe and his
officials on trial in the International Criminal Court for crimes against
humanity, the African Christian Democratic Party said today.
Party leader Reverend Kenneth Meshoe said this was in view of the apparent
state-sponsored murder and torture of members of the Movement for Democratic
Change (MDC) and the public in Zimbabwe.
"We are shocked and repulsed by the terror tactics of Mugabe and his forces
against a completely defenceless public as displayed in news reports. We
extend our condolences to those tortured and those who lost loved ones in
the political violence."
The ACDP said those calling for a government of national unity that included
Mugabe were trying to protect a cruel leader from prosecution and should not
be taken seriously.
The party also said the decision by the MDC to withdraw from the run-off
elections was a courageous one. "It must have been a very difficult decision
for the MDC to make. As all appearances indicate that the violence against
the MDC is state organised and state sponsored," said Meshoe.
The ACDP called on the international community, particularly the African
Union and UN, to intervene in the crisis. He said SADC had dismally failed
Zimbabweans. "There must be an immediate end to this senseless violence," he
said.
Deon Rutledge
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CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY
This is a legal term at international law and it has proven to be very complex, mainly because people have abused the term for political expedience.
It would have been better if Meshoe ahd bothered to qualify what he means by crimes against humanity? It is like people talking about genocide.
If indeed there is a planned and deliberate attack on civilians by the Zim gvt then there is every need for intervention but those facts have to be established first, just like what Kikwete said.
crimes against humanity
The Rome Statute Explanatory Memorandum states that crimes against humanity "are particularly odious offences in that they constitute a serious attack on human dignity or grave humiliation or a degradation of one or more human beings. They are not isolated or sporadic events, but are part either of a government policy ( although the perpetrators need not identify themselves with this policy ) or of a wide practice of atrocities tolerated or condoned by a government or a de facto authority.
(source wikipedia )
I think this does apply to Zimbabwe and its incumbent government.
YOU THINK
You think and that is good but the law is not based on opinion. Its based on facts and evidence, not what you think, unfortunately
I think.
I think that you are a cunt.
I think you need to add the
I think you need to add the word "dead" the first is useful unlike Reason who is useless.
Exactly
You spray facts at lunatics they run away shouting obscenities and insults. Typical MDC supporters if you ask me.
Wafawarova's comments neausating
Your comments in The Herald are in bad taste and regretable.What are you doing in Australia anyway - you cant tell me you have any business to conduct in a country that your paymasters so much demonise. Why cant you go back and enjoy the prosperity in Zim or conduct your business in China or North Korea you hypocrite. Its surprising you are not in Zim to vote yourself but you find it easy to urge on the MDC while you are a ZANU PF hoodlum doing - I dont know what in a murungu's country?.
Comments
Its normal that some readers may not agree with what writers put across and I respect your feelings (save for the nausea).
I am not so sure if it makes perefect sense to imply that only Zimbabweans resident in the country must comment on Zimbabwean issues. More so I think its undemocratic to say those who comment must do so in a way that suits the opinions of the rulers in the country where they are living. I thought the saying When you are in Rome do as the Romans do was an old saying that preceded democracy.
I have no problem with living in China or North Korea. It sjust that I have no immedeate plan or cause to be there.
Of course not.
The weather's nice in Australia. Public transport's good. Air's clean. Supermarkets are full of nice things. Australia?
It's great.
Why don't you stay there? Forever? It's homeland or death!
Or a supermarket full of food.
YOU SELL OUT.
Morgan dancing to master`s tune
What you are saying is very true and those who does not know should be taught.I always say those who forget the history of Zimbabwe must be condemned to repeat it.It is unfortunate for some ignorant people who are uttering rubbish to you because of telling the truth.Truth hurts but the message gets home whether these people like it or not.Why is it that they do not come up with a sound argument than just to blame President Mugabe.What have they achieved which can convince the Zimbabwean masses that they are progressive.Sellouts won`t do anything good to the nation.You have made my day by this detailed and well written piece of work.Lost people should not be emotional to the extent of being grade one pupils when it comes to sovereignty.
People always ask why are you in Australia, let me answer those people ,why are Western countries` representatives in Zimbabwe, a country they ,lie about time and again.Did they bring sleeping beds,did they bring kentucky, did they bring hotels,did they bring clean air, did they bring some ground to build their posh offices and nice tarred roads for their cars.If the answer is a big NO,then what are their intentions in Zimbabwe.
It is high time to tell people that leaders are not made or manufacturerd but are born and ordained to carry out big assignments.It is the spirit of leadership that moves a person to stand for people in truth not to be instructed by people who cannot partake in the inheritance of the fruits of what one is entitled to inherit.As Zimbabweans we are entitled to inherit Zimbabwean resources and it is the same with people from other countries.Noone should come and say the inheritance must be done this way when that person is also entitled to inheritance in his own country.That is really unfair,undemocratic,uncivilised,unheard of and is a violation of another person`s right.People who are greedy to the extent of havingn scooping arms needs to be told to mind the businesses of their own countries and leave Zimbabwe alone.We say do to others what you like them do unto and one good turn deserves another , but the enemies of Zimbabwe are doing the opposite.Dindingwe rirnonaka richakweva rimwe kana iro rokweviwa roti mavara angu azara ivhu.Let us continue standing for our country whether the enemy likes it or not.MY MOTHERLAND,ZIMBABWE
So you believe that Zanu-PF
So you believe that Zanu-PF has done an incredible job in managing the economy, the state, the people in Zimbabwe and should be left alone to continue this wonderful job?
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe not ZANU PF, should be left alone.
And that's the crux of the
And that's the crux of the problem. Zanu-PF has been such an integral part of Zimbabwe that in effect it is Zimbabwe. And the ongoing problem is how to separate the two so a functioning state with an independent judiciary, defence force, etc can take hold.
Thank you
Thanks Cosmas for a sound arguments. I can see your patriotism in evry letter you write. And thank you for answering the "WHY are you in Australia?" question.
Maybe the truth hurts; but this stuff just makes us laugh.
Cosmas, you're grip on the psychology of the people who disagree with you is hopeless. None of these weird arguments "hurt". They just seem silly.
When Mugabe lost the election — now that obviously hurt, and REALLY hurt; and he has been throwing a grumpy and vengeful tantrum ever since. When people get very old they become like small children again.
Leaders are not made or manufactured or born or ordained. They are elected. Kings are born as kings; but we overthrew the kings because they are just tyrants and dictators in disguise. Elected leaders alone have legitimacy, and they must hold free elections or they lose that legitimacy; when they lose they must step down. Mugabe lost. Get over it. Leave the tantrums to the old man.
Reason is in Australia because it is a better place for his wife and children, by far, than Zimbabwe under Mugabe. That is because it is not squashed under the foot of a grouchy dictator. What people say on the blog about this is quite right. If Reason thinks Australia is a better place for his children than Zimbabwe, then he has no right whatsoever to right articles saying that Zimbabwe is no worse than Australia. He should admit that he lives in a decent country with a good government. His pen says one thing, but his feet say another, and I believe his feet.
Adam
You better go and research more on leadership then come back to ,a sound argument.I did not say leaders are not elected but i said leaders are born,hence the saying a chick that shall develop inhto a cock is seen the very day it is hatched.Leaders are elected but the elected person is identified how? It is through charisma,eloquency,wisdom,sound decisions,high level of maturity,understanding,being a visionary,being an independent thinker,being a determined person whoi can sometimes take a certain way that will benefit the followers in the long runh although it was like a contradiction.Let me ive you one definition of leadership, leadership is the ability to create a very conducive enviroment for something extraordinary to occur-one extra-ordinary feature can be taking people a mile further from where one can nsay it is obvoius.Leadership Adam is not an overnight issue it is a process whereby oine is incubated, gets into a wilderness situation,one can live what i call a fish out of water life but remains committed to his or a special assignment.Leadership does not call for cowards because it is about sacrifisng,hance Biko talked about the need to come out of the comfort zones.Leadership is not about the zietgist(spirit of the times according to philosophers) but is about one knowing his or her identity,who are you and what is your role,what do you want to achieve,what are your short and long term goals,how long have you been planning all this path of leading people,is ther some sense of genuineness in you,are you an inspiring leader who is there to set the pace for the good of your followers.Can anyone doubt your moves when you try to justify your position.Leadership is not inherited, yes you are elected but leaders are born.I can take it from the bible, the case of Joshua, the Case of Aaron,Joseph and the most popular leader Jesus Christ then why do you say leaders are not born.If God agrees that so and so should be leading people then who can be against that person.I am a devouted believer and i belive that if God hasd got a plan for my future to be a leader in any capacityt in Zimbabwe noone can be against that,hence leaders are elected but are born with certain characteristics that wiil make us to conclude that leaders are born.Let us keep in touch because this is food for thought,you have your own views and i have mine.What is needed is to just respect each ohter`s views and reach a common ground which can bring a better Zimbabwe wher everyone lives in peace and harmony.We are not enemies but pathfinders seeking that right path that can be followed to bring our country to a common understanding that all Zimbabweans have a role to jealously safeguard our sovereignty and self-determination that was born out of a protracted liberation struggle.Different theorist emerge but the drawing line is as Zimbabweans how best can we come up with solutions to our problems without first taking the issue out of our home.Charity begins at home and we areas reflection of our parents that is why whenever one messes up people will ask whose son or daughter is that one.I have never heard people saying whose friend is that.So Adam let us not accuse each other for nothing but let us focus on how to reach a common ground without hiding behing our fingers because the truth is everyone should safeguard the interests of Zimbabwe first then who ever tries to be ahead of Zimbabweans when that person is not a Zimbabwean will be told, you need to first remove the log in your eye before attempting to remove the speck that is in nother person`s eye.
Are you saying that Mugabe is
Are you saying that Mugabe is divinely appointed and so nobody has the right to vote him out of office?
Personally, I think this view is blasphemous and an outrageous violation of very basic Christian principles. If you really believe this then you don't believe in God at all. You worship Mugabe himself.
Cosmas, look a this..
I don't know if you read my earlier response to your post. But look at this news from Zimbabwe (from BBC):
"An e-mailer says that in the Midlands area last Sunday many people were turned out of church to attend political rallies. "In some churches the pictures of Jesus were taken down and pictures of Mugabe were put up," the correspondent writes.
Adam
Adam you must understand.One cannot go against God and i never said some of the words that you keep on putting in my mouth.Let us say the right words that a person said rather than saying what you only want to say.I never said what you wrote in your piece of work so may you please use the words that a person used rather than putting words in a person`s mouth.I keep on emphasising the need to be accurate and respect each other`s views in a way that shows some sense of building not destroying.Thank you Adam for your views.
Respectable view
Thanks Adam for very civilised language and a mature approach. I have not implied that Zimbabwe is not worse than Australia, at least economically. I know the economy of Zimbabwe is in shambles and I know this has to stop.
My analysis is on the causalities and the remedies and I think people are being dishonest by pretending that snactions have had a benign effect on what is happening in Zimbabwe.
At the same time I think the gvt of Zim is being dishonest by saying corruption has played a miniamal role in the crisis. These two factors have brought down the country and they need to be arrested NOW.
How do we end the sanctions? How do we end the corruption? This is what I WRITE about.
I am here not as a hypocrite but as a person who looks at global politics from what manu would call a leftist perspective and I have no regrets for that.
I absolutely agree with you....
...that corruption is a terrible problem in Zimbabwe, and it must be addressed.
I'm going to forward your comments to the editor of The Herald and to the Zimbabwean ministers in my address book for their comments.
Is this OK with you?
I've had quite a few personal dealings with ministers in Zim. I'll see what kind of response we can get. I'm sure they'll be delighted with your comments, Reason.
Oops. I forgot...
... Cde. Editor of The Herald's your friend.
So he won't care.
Hmm...
And who wrote this?
This, I would like to remind readers, was written by a man who concluded one of his pieces with the words 'Motherland or death'.
I cannot blame Reason for moving to Australia to secure a better life for his son.
It's just that that he loses the right to write anything like 'Motherland or death' every again. For him, it's 'Motherland or mineral water, nice public transport and a choice between twenty kinds of cereal for breakfast.'
'Motherland or Fruit Loops, Cornflakes or Cocoa Pops?'
People are dying, OK.
Reason's just made sure he's not going to be one of them.
I'm glad you're comfortable, you despicable sell out.
steady on
This comment is very funny — except for the very last line.
Let's be civil, not grumpy or angry.
Anyway, who knows exactly why Reason is in Australia? I think the only aspect of his argument it really affects is his critcisms of the MDC. The MDC base a lot of their complaints on the details of the situation in Zimbabwe — and Reason can't possibly know what's going on there. Even the people in Zimbabwe have trouble knowing what's going on there.
But apart from that, let's live him a break about being in sunny, peaceful Sydney.
Woah. Reason's censoring
Woah. Reason's censoring me.
You don't like people knowing who you actually are, Reason?
Why is this?
You're going to go on trial one day, Reason.
You need to support your allegations.
I refer you to ABC today and see if they still stand with their story.
It is imperative that we do not allow hearsay and malice to be taken for a fact and I challenge you to prove the piece of history you put across as factual before everyone but most of all to check with your source first. Thank you.
Er... OK then.
Fine. Let's set the parameters.
Reason, for the record: do you categorically deny that you worked for the National Youth Service?
Do you categorically deny that you were in fact the Director of the National Youth Service?
Do you categorically deny that nearly a dozen of Mugabe’s politburo educate their children in Australia?
Can you categorically say that you have taken no money from the Zimbabwean state or ZANU (PF) to assist you in Australia?
Once you've answered these questions I'll see what I can do about the evidence.
NYS
I did work for the Youth Ministry for three years and I did work for the NYS programme in the process.
I catergorically deny without quakification that I was the Director of the NYS.
I can neither confirm nor deny that there are dozens of politiburo meber's children studying in Australia.
I can catergorically say that I have not at any time taken any money from the Zimbabwean State or ZANU PF to assist me in Australia.
I have always said anyone who can prove otherwise is welcome to do so. And please do not bring internet gossip as evidence because that has already been discredited at law.
Seriously though, what is
Seriously though, what is wrong with working for the National Youth Service and serving one's country. There is a fundamental difference between the the country, the state, the governemnt and a political party, so stop pointing your finger aimlessly trying to demonise people and Zimbabwe unnecessarily.
NYS
The programme pricipally is an orientation towards the country's values and its history and many ccountries have similar programmes, the US, Israel, Ghana and others included.
There is basically nothing wrong with the programme and evne Zim parliament supported it only asking that it should not be partisan.