SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

Police on Thursday arrested 47 Bindura University students, on allegations that they held an illegal meeting. By Friday afternoon the students were still being held at Bindura Central police station and had not been given any food. A statement from national students body, ZINASU, said the arrests breached its members’ right to freedom of association. ZINASU spokesman Avoid Masiraha said the agenda of the meeting was to map out a way forward on the student representative council elections to be held sometime this semester. “We find the government’s reaction to students very worrying. We have 12 other students from Harare Poly who have been charged under the country’s security laws which interfere with our constitutional right.“Students have a right to associate and exchange ideas about things that they need and require the government provide,” Masiraha told SW Radio Africa Friday. MDC-T youth assembly secretary-general Promise Mkwananzi said those arrested were all members of the party’s students council and included the head of the group, Ian Makone Jnr. Mkwananzi said the students had gathered to discuss the prevailing economic hardships in the country in connection with the plight of university students. “We condemn the arbitrary arrests being carried out by the police. But what we are seeing is a panic in the regime, precisely because of the worsening macro-economic situation in the country.“The ZANU PF regime promised people 2.2 million jobs, but in reality people are losing their jobs daily, civil servants have not been paid and the liquidity crunch is out of hand.“And as the regime panics, we are seeing the escalation of repression, arrests and other forms of intimidation,” Mkwananzi added. The MDC-T youth official is himself facing arrest over a party meeting held in Bulawayo Sunday. Bulawayo-based SW Radio Africa correspondent Lionel Saungweme said city police were keen to question Mkwananzi about the meeting, which was attended by about 50 MDC-T youths at the Plaza hotel. However police managed to arrest only three people following a tip-off from unnamed MDC-T supporters who thought the meeting was about ousting Morgan Tsvangirai. Mkwananzi said the meeting was a private affair held in a private place, attended by members of the party’s youth assembly and was not open to the general public.“We have long said it is abnormal to arrest people for exercising their right to meet, and the Public Order and Security Act which the police use is undemocratic and unconstitutional,” Mkwananzi added. The ruling ZANU PF regime has in place an arsenal of repressive security legislation which the country’s partisan police force use to stifle criticism or perceived dissent. The party continues to resist and ignore efforts by human rights activists and opposition political parties to have these laws repealed in line with the country’s new constitution.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

Concern is high among many Zimbabweans in South Africa after it was announced by the authorities there that special work and study permits, granted to Zim nationals, will expire later this year. South Africa’s cabinet resolved last week that the permits, granted under the Zimbabwe Special Dispensation Project, will expire in November 2014. The resolution also includes a decision that fresh permits can be obtained, but only if people return to Zimbabwe to apply. This decision is set to be fully explained by SA Home Affairs Minister Naledi Pandor next week. But the planned move is already drawing criticism for rendering the documentation process ‘null and void’. Diana Zimbudzana from the Zimbabwe Exiles Forum told SW Radio Africa that the resolution will see Zim nationals choosing to work illegally in South Africa once again. She explained that permit holders will not risk returning to Zimbabwe with no guarantee of receiving the documentation that will allow them re-entry to South Africa. “The resolution is a sad development because it forces people back into a situation that the permits lifted them out of, and that was being illegal. Zimbabweans went out of their way to get these permits, but they won’t forfeit their lives in South Africa if there are no guarantees they will get the permits again,” Zimbudzana said. She questioned what the point of the documentation project was, saying “people will work in South Africa illegally, be deported, and then return again as we have seen for years.”“South Africa will lose millions (of rand) in deporting people. So they might as well adopt a better policy,” Zimbudzana said. The documentation project was launched in 2010 to give Zim nationals the opportunity to regularize their stay in South Africa by applying for work or study permits. The project offered an alternative to Zimbabweans trying to legalise their continued stay in South Africa, other than turning to the country’s chaotic and over-subscribed asylum system. An estimated 230, 000 Zimbabweans applied for permits, which is said to be a fraction of the real number of Zim nationals living in South Africa. These figures are almost impossible to confirm, with no system of registering and checking the number of nationals who have fled to South Africa during the past decade. Refugee rights group PASSOP has said that many people are still waiting for their permits. Zimbudzana said Friday that some people’s permits have only been issued in recent months, and they are now faced with the documents expiring as soon as November.“Their time has now been cut off and there is no explanation about this. So we’d expect now for the Minister of Home Affairs to offer us (civil society) a chance to make a presentation and engage with us on the future,” Zimbudzana said.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

Suspended ZBC CEO, Happison Muchechetere, was arrested Thursday on allegations that he inflated the price of an Outside Broadcasting (OB) van purchased from a Chinese firm last year. Police spokesperson Charity Charamba confirmed the arrest saying Muchechetere was also questioned on cases involving tender procedures which occurred during the time he was at the helm of the ZBC. Muchechetere was later released after the police recorded a warned and cautioned statement. It is alleged that Muchechetere misrepresented that the van was purchased for more than $1 million and yet it cost $100,000. Allegations are that in 2013 Muchechetere connived with officials from a Chinese firm and inflated the figure and fabricated receipts. It is also alleged that he shared the balance with the firm’s officials. Muchechetere’s arrest comes after Prosecutor General Johannes Tomana said public executives who were recently exposed for earning ‘corrupt salaries’ will not be prosecuted because they had not committed any crimes. Muchechetere was among the first CEOs to be exposed and was forced on leave to pave the way for an audit, after it emerged that he was earning a ‘corrupt salary.’ Reports said between May 2009 and December 2013 Muchechetere pocketed as much as $2.3 million in salaries and allowances. The MDC-T shadow minister for information Nelson Chamisa said Muchechetere’s arrest was a case of the ‘bigger fish targeting smaller ones.’ He said: ‘Muchechetere is just a small kapenta fish in the very large sea of corrupt enemies. We don’t want a situation where this so-called fight against corruption is reduced into a side show by the sharks targeting smaller fish.’ Last month, Information Minister Jonathan Moyo sounded a thinly veiled warning on what was to befall the suspended ZBC boss. Without mentioning Muchechetere by name Moyo said: ‘We have people who claim to have bought an OB van and they want to pretend that they bought it from Mars and only they know how much it costs. Yet we know that an OB van is just a combi.’ Moyo said this while addressing the Bulawayo Press Club.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

The presidential spokesperson George Charamba, who is also Secretary for Information, Media and Broadcasting Services, has been accused of interference and causing the chaotic mess plaguing the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC), according to the NewsDay newspaper. The allegations were made by the suspended ZBC chief executive Happison Muchechetere, in a special audit report seen by NewsDay, in which he accused Charamba of imposing unqualified staff and ordering other activities that were costly, without following proper procedures. Muchechetere, who had so far shouldered the blame for the mismanagement and corruption at ZBC, lost his post over allegations that he awarded himself and senior staff hefty salaries, while others went unpaid for over six months. NewsDay said he defended himself against this criticism in the audit, pointing to Charamba instead. In a week that that he would rather forget, Muchechetere was also interrogated by police over allegations that he had inflated the price of an outside broadcasting van from China to $1 million, when the actual cost was just over $100,000. The shamed CEO reportedly denied this and again pointed to “Charamba’s interference” as the reason for much of the “maladministration” at ZBC. The current Information Minister Jonathan Moyo, who fired Muchechetere and other board members, ridiculed him over the OB van affair earlier this month when he addressed the Bulawayo Press Club. Referring to exorbitant salaries at ZBC, Moyo said the staff had lined their pockets while failing to discharge their duties. “We have people who claim to have bought an OB Van and they want to pretend that they bought it from Mars and only they know how much it cost. And we know that an OB van is just a Kombi,” Moyo said as the Press Club roared with laughter. Muchechetere fingered Charamba last week as ZBC announced a new management team, which includes Josephine Zulu as head of radio services and Christopher Chivinge as head of news and current affairs. Chivinge, known to be a good friend of Charamba’s, is ironically one of the “unqualified” officials that Muchechetere claims the Presidential spokesperson imposed at ZBC in 2011. According to Newsday, Muchechetere claims that Charamba had ordered ZBC to “re-engage” Chivinge as one of the line managers back in 2011 even though he was not qualified for the job. The ZBC board reportedly expressed reservations over Charamba’s directive, then forced Chivinge to attend a compulsory interview where he failed to produce copies of his “O” and “A” Level certificates. Chivinge is also said to have failed to meet several other conditions set by the recruitment committee. It turns out Chivinge was fired from the ZBC in 2006 following some irregularities regarding a trip he made to China. NewsDay said he was sent to the Africa World Television Station in Namibia by the Information ministry, serving there as editor-in-chief before returning to ZBC in 2011, on Charamba’s orders. With Muchechetere facing a police investigation over the OB van, the ZBC saga is bound to continue. But some observers say no arrests are likely to be made, as all the culprits who run parastatals and government institutions are ZANU PF members and officials.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

ZIFA chairman Cuthbert Dube convincingly won re-election for another four year term, beating his nearest rival by 30 votes. The former Public Service Medical Aid Society (PSMAS) chief executive got 44 votes to the 14 garnered by Trevor Carelse-Juul. The elections were supervised by Ashford Mamelodi, the FIFA southern region development officer. There was no outright winner in the initial poll that saw Dube receive 34 votes, with Juul getting 14. Lesley Gwindi polled 10 and Nigel Munyati, the outgoing ZIFA board member, failed to get a single vote. New ZIFA guidelines stipulate that a candidate has to receive more than 38 votes to be declared the winner out of 58. Omega Sibanda emerged as the new ZIFA vice president after beating Elkanah Dube by 38 votes to 20. However, it is Dube’s re-election that has sent jaws dropping in soccer loving Zimbabwe. A top sports writer from the state media said Dube’s main challenge in his second and last term is his ability to see through his four years as ZIFA boss. His victory has been met by ‘shock and surprise’ rather than jubilation across the country, an indication of how unpopular Dube has become in the football fraternity. Information Minister Jonathan Moyo could not contain his disappointment when he described Dube’s re-election as ‘indecent and in defiance of all rationality and purpose.’‘As shocking and as distasteful as his re-election may seem to some, the government cannot involve itself or try to meddle in the affairs of the association as this will entail an expulsion from FIFA.’ Former ZBC football commentator Ezra ‘Tshisa’ Sibanda told us it is unfortunate that a person like Dube, who failed dismally in his first four years, should be given another chance to lead ZIFA.‘It is dumbfounding that he is being given another chance to destroy football in the country. He has let junior football die a natural death…there is no more youth policy to talk about in Zimbabwe and yet this is the same program that produced the best footballers in the country since independence,’ Sibanda said. Other analysts who spoke to SW Radio Africa said you don’t need the intelligence of a rocket scientist to understand why Dube got four more years to reign over football in Zimbabwe.‘Money played a big part in this election,’ claimed one football administrator while another summed it up in one short phrase: ‘Don’t bite the hand that feeds you.’ By turning ZIFA into a giant gravy train and keeping friends close and enemies closer, Dube managed to quash any appetite for a change in leadership during Saturday’s poll. Dube was last month sacked from the PSMAS in the aftermath of the scandal surrounding his obscene salary. He was at the helm of the medical aid society since 1992, earning $230,000 per month even though the company was reeling under a $38 million debt.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

MDC-T Youth Assembly secretary-general Promise Mkwananzi has described as a ‘nullity’ his expulsion from the party by a faction said to be aligned to Morgan Tsvangirai.

Mkwananzi was responding to media reports that he and MDC-T Youth Assembly chairperson Solomon Madzore have been fired for being sympathetic to a group calling for party President Tsvangirai to step down, to facilitate leadership renewal.

The decision to censure the two was taken at a meeting held Sunday, according to a statement issued Monday afternoon by the MDC-T Youth Assembly National Council.

“People are allowed to dream, let them dream on. I think they are underestimating the seriousness with which we take these positions and the party’s constitution.

“I am a member of the national executive of the party, Solomon Madzore is a member of the national standing committee, and so we can only be suspended by a two-thirds majority of the party’s national council,” Mkwananzi said.

The MDC-T youth leader said the individuals who purportedly took the decision to suspend the two had no authority to do so.

He said the only person who can convene a formal meeting of the youth assembly is Solomon Madzore, as youth assembly president, in consultation with the assembly secretary-general – who is Mkwananzi.

“Any meeting that happens outside that orbit is unconstitutional and violates the party’s rules and regulations. Anyone who calls such a meeting is out of order.”

Mkwananzi said the suspensions and expulsions that have taken place since February 15th are unconstitutional and unprocedural, and called on all MDC-T members to respect the constitution.

“Whoever is undertaking those processes must be warned very strongly. We know that those behind this are nursing their own ambitions which have nothing to do with building the party.”

“However let the people be assured that on our part, we will defend the party’s principles, values, and constitution with our lives.”

The firebrand youth leader attributed the current crisis in his party to the leadership’s failure to abide by the party’s constitution.

“We continue to challenge the leadership and Tsvangirai himself to exercise his authority and ensure that the party is brought back to order.

Tsvangirai issued a directive that all these suspensions and expulsions should stop and one wonders why they continue to happen if he and the people that surround him, are genuine in stopping this insanity and idiocy,” Mkwananzi added.

MDC-T Youth Assembly spokesman Clifford Hlatshwayo, who issued the statement announcing the latest purge, said Mkwananzi had been fired for “promoting factionalism, misappropriation of party funds, serious security breaches, misrepresenting the Assembly’s resolutions and putting the name of the party into disrepute”, among other breaches.

Madzore was not fired but his case has been “forwarded to the top leadership for further deliberation” after those who attended the meeting “expressed serious displeasure in the manner in which he is discharging his duties, and his non attendance of party programs and meetings.”

A Monday report on online news source Newzimbabwe.com quoted Madzore as saying he will not lose sleep over the issue.

“What I can tell you is it was not the MDC-T youth assembly that met. I will not comment on mickey-mouse issues that was not the MDC-T youth national council because we have not convened such a meeting.”

The MDC-T has already suspended deputy treasurer-general Elton Mangoma, the manicaland provincial leaders Pishai Muchauraya and Julius Magarangoma, in the ongoing leadership wrangle which has on occasions turned violent.

Last week, MDC-T Chitungwiza Provincial chairperson Alexio Musundire was expelled, joining other senior party officials who were expelled in Mat North. Reports suggest that the pro-Tsvangirai camp is now gunning for Gorden Moyo, one of the party’s most senior officials in Bulawayo.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

In a move that is likely to anger villagers the government has with immediate effect scrapped the free agricultural inputs handouts that were being issued to poor communal farmers, a minister has said.

Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Davis Marapira, told journalists in rural Masvingo last week that government will no longer be issuing free fertilizer and seed to the rural farmers. Marapira said this was done as a way to ‘end the dependency syndrome’ in the country. He added that government had realised that it was better to subsidise inputs for manufacturing companies than to issue free handouts to communal farmers.

The move comes at a time when the economy is on the decline and with rural folk struggling to provide for themselves. According to the UN at least 2.2 million people are in need of food aid, the majority being in rural areas.

At the same time the government owned Agricultural Development Bank of Zimbabwe reported that it had posted a $ 9.2 million loss for the year ended December 2013. CEO Sam Malaba said only privatization could save the bank.

Godfrey Mtimba, who was amongst the journalists addressed by Marapira last Thursday, told SW Radio Africa that the government decision is likely to anger the villagers. He said: ‘The people are in genuine need and I am sure they will be both shocked and angered by this.’ Mtimba said the scribes were equally taken aback and bombarded the minister with questions asking where the government expected the villagers to get the money to buy inputs for themselves.

The government has been assisting farmers with inputs since 2000. Last year it introduced the $161 million input scheme with the aim of assisting poor communal farmers who could not afford the cost of inputs. The scheme has always been marred in controversy with reports of partisan distribution of inputs. President Mugabe also operates a similar but personal scheme. That scheme has not been spared controversy either.

The communal farmers are not the first to be abandoned as government announced last month that it was stopping assistance for the A2 farmers. Agriculture minister Joseph Made, told Parliament that the A2 farmers should not look forward to any assistance from government this year and should go and ‘kneel down’ in front of the banks.

The A2 farmers are larger scale farmers who were awarded the land seized from white commercial farmers under the land grab exercise. Despite the support given to the farmers crop production has remained low with most of the donated inputs reportedly abused, resold on the black market or exported to regional countries.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

South African President Jacob Zuma has made a last minute decision not to attend this week’s European Union (EU) – Africa summit, which is facing a boycott led by Robert Mugabe.

The fourth EU – Africa Summit will take place on Wednesday and Thursday this week in Belgium, and plans to bring together African and EU leaders under the theme ‘Investing in People, Prosperity and Peace.’

Some African leaders, including Zambia’s Michael Sata, have already started arriving in Brussels ahead of the meeting. But it was announced this weekend that Zuma would not be joining his counterparts. Instead, Minister of International Relations and Co-operation Maite Nkoana-Mashabane will represent South Africa at the meeting.

South Africa’s Presidency has not said if Zuma’s withdrawal from the summit is linked to Mugabe’s boycott threat, with the 90 year old ZANU PF leader lashing out at Europe for ‘dictating’ the makeup of the African delegations. Mugabe was left fuming after his wife Grace was not invited to attend the Brussels gathering and was refused a travel visa.

Mugabe’s boycott threat was last week then echoed by an organ of the AU, which recommended that the entire African bloc not attend the summit.

Clayson Monyela, spokesperson for South Africa’s department of international relations and co-operation, said on Monday that Zuma “has other commitments,” and would not elaborate further.

The South African leader however was quoted by the national SABC broadcaster as saying: “I think that time must pass wherein we are looked as subjects; we are told who must come, who must not come, we have not attempted to decide when we meet Europe; who must come and who must not come. It is wrong and causes this unnecessary unpleasantness.”

Mugabe has reportedly also been angered by the EU’s decision not to invite his Sudanese counterpart, Omar al-Bashir, who faces war crimes and genocide charges before the International Criminal Court. Also left off the invite list is the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, an AU member, with the African bloc accusing the EU of trying to undermine the AU’s authority and sovereignty.

Exiled Zimbabwean journalist Tanonoka Whande said Monday that the EU is again facing a credibility crisis, by bending the rules for some “dictators” and not others. Mugabe himself was originally not set to attend the meeting, because he remains targeted with European restrictive measures. These same measures have prevented his wife from travelling to the EU.

“This shows the inconsistency of the EU. Why are the rules being bent to accommodate Mugabe?” Whande questioned, calling the move “sanctions busting.”

Meanwhile Rose Benton, the coordinator of the London based protest group, the Zimbabwe Vigil, said that a demonstration will be held at the Brussels meeting this week.

“We felt we should be there. We are protesting about the lack of the rule of law in Zimbabwe and Europe’s support of an illegal regime. It seems Europe doesn’t care about Zimbabweans and we need to protest this,” Benton said.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

The High Court Monday granted five families who were about to be evicted from Arnold Farm in Mazowe the right to remain at the property.

Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights said in granting the families the right to remain at the farm the High Court was aware of the individuals’ rights not to be evicted from their home or to have their home demolished.

The lawyers group recently approached the High Court seeking an order protecting the right to shelter for the families to remain on the farm for six months, to allow them to harvest their crops. That was after the police demolished the homesteads of some of the families and ordered them to vacate the farm by 24th March.

The five families concerned have been residing at the property since 2000, at the height of the land grab exercise. Until 2006 their occupation was protected in terms of the Rural Land Occupiers Act. Since then they have been engaging the government with a view to have their continued stay at the farm regularized in terms of the Gazetted Lands which replaced the old law.

However, despite government’s promises that these families would be granted offer letters to the farm, such letters have yet to be issued. Instead on March 22nd the police moved in without notice and demolished some of the dwellings and ordered them to vacate.

According to the lawyers group, hundreds of families have been affected by the evictions. It is believed that the first family want to annex the property and turn it into a lavish game sanctuary. Reports said President Mugabe also intends to build a university to be named after him. The Mugabe family has various projects in the Mazowe area, including the Gushungo Dairy, an orphanage and a state of the art primary school. They have also appropriated part of Interfresh’s Mazowe Citrus Estates.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

The cash strapped ruling ZANU PF government has finally managed to pay all civil servants their March salaries.

Since the election last year President Robert Mugabe’s government has struggled to raise the$155 million for its monthly wage bill for the over 230,000 civil servants, amid reports the treasury is relying on handouts from donors.

Cash constraints have dogged the state payroll over the last three months, resulting in the Ministry of Finance last month changing pay dates for civil servants from the 21st of March to the 27th, citing inadequate finances.

Dr Takavavira Zhou, President of the Progress Teachers Union, said as of Monday government had dispensed salary schedules of civil servants to their banks.

But some of the banks are failing to provide cash for their customers because of the liquidity crisis in the country.

‘There are some civil servants who told me they’ve been unable to withdraw their salaries because the banks are short of funds. This has affected most rural based teachers who travel to urban areas to get money from their banks and are stranded as a result,’ Zhou said.

Zhou said there is also a disturbing pattern that has emerged where the government was failing to remit contributions by teachers to their unions, like the PTUZ. This situation is crippling operations of most civil servants unions according to Zhou.

‘What is happening is that government, through the SSB facility (Salary Services Bureau) is deducting money from our members but is failing to remit that money to the union. We are a bit apprehensive as to why government is doing this because we suspect it might be a plot to weaken our operations,’ claimed Zhou.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

Landmines have killed and maimed hundreds of Zimbabweans as inadequate resources and a lack of political will continue to hamper demining efforts.

More than 1,500 people and 120,000 cattle have been killed since 1980, while more than 2,000 people have been maimed, humanitarian groups say.

In 2012 alone 12 people died while 11 were injured countrywide. However, the figures do not include unreported cases, according to the Zimbabwe Mine Action Centre which coordinates demining activities in the country.

Planted by Rhodesian forces during the liberation struggle and targeted at guerillas, the victims are now ordinary villagers, particularly those living along the borders with Zambia and Mozambique.

The worst affected areas include Musengezi, Rwenya, Rushinga and Mukumbura, where routine chores are a risky business for villagers.

Humanitarian news agency IRIN reports that fetching water, gathering wild fruits, or herding cattle are not straightforward for those living in affected areas.

“Villagers rarely venture far, and if they do, it is along well-worn foot paths. But flooding, a frequent occurrence, can dislodge the mines and bring them to the surface, where curious children treat them as toys and are killed or maimed.”

Zimbabwe remains one of the most heavily mined countries in the world – with at least 1.17 million mines still remaining. Due to the scale of the problem and slow pace of demining, several western-sponsored humanitarian groups are now assisting Zimbabwe to do the job.

These include the US-based HALO Trust, the Norwegian People’s Aid, and the International Crescent of the Red Cross, which are assisting with training or equipment used in demining activities or support for those maimed by the mines.

Last year Japan gave HALO $864,000 to clear mines in Mukumbura, an area the group described as resembling “a country in the immediate post-conflict phase,” with mines found close “to houses, school and clinics.”

The spokesman of the International Crescent of the Red Cross, Tendayi Sengwe, said the mines are a huge challenge for people living in these areas.

“For communities in these minefields, the explosive can be in the yard and adults have to constantly remind children to be careful.

“While the older generation may be aware of the threat, people born after the liberation war may not be, and this puts them at higher risk.”

Sengwe said huge demand for land as a result of population growth also means that people end up taking risks and venturing into minefields, in search of farmland or pastures.

“These communities are trapped and it’s critical that these landmines are removed so that people can live and move freely without the fear of being killed.”

He said the wealth of rural communities lies in their livestock and the constant loss of cattle through landmines also depletes the communities’ sources of livelihood.

“It is therefore important that everyone remains committed to supporting the efforts being put towards eradicating this problem,” Sengwe added.

The cash-strapped Zim government this year allocated just $500,000 towards demining activities, instead of the requested $2 million.

The country has missed three mine clearance deadlines set by the Mine Ban Treaty which requires signatories “to undertake to destroy or ensure the destruction of all anti-personnel mines in areas under its jurisdiction or control as soon as possible.”

The Zim government has in the past blamed the delay on old and antiquated equipment, and pleaded for help and support for its demining personnel.

A legislator who spoke to IRIN disagreed, and said this was a case of misplaced priorities. He said right from the start, the government should have devised a solid policy specifying the amount of land to be demined per year, and allocating sufficient funds towards this.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

A team of international doctors and nurses will be arriving in Zimbabwe this week to offer free facial surgeries to children and adults afflicted with cleft palates or similar facial disfigurements.

According to the organizers, the life changing exercise will start with the screening of patients on Sunday, with the actual surgery starting Monday at the Harare Central Hospital. The process starts at 8am and potential patients must bring their particulars, including medical records.

Operation of Hope together with the Avondale and Borrowdale Brooke Rotary Clubs are calling on all people afflicted with cleft palates or similar facial disfigurements to attend the exercise.

Operation of Hope has been undertaking such missions in the country since 2006. So far more than 720 people have benefited from 13 previous missions. Last year more than 40 people, mainly children, received new appearances.

The Rotary Club’s Stewart Chipato said this time around they were expecting more people from all over the country. He said: ‘We have distributed flyers through hospitals, schools and churches and sent messages through the social media.’

Chipato said there are plans to expand the exercise and undertake more research to determine the extent of the problem of facial disfigurements in the country. He said there were fears that some potential beneficiaries were missing out because of ignorance and because relatives were hiding afflicted family members due to shame.

He added: ‘We are also looking into how we can get more local doctors trained in surgery so that we can have local experts. This is a life changing operation for both the afflicted and their families.’

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

The liquidity crisis facing the government has adversely affected defence operations, including delays in paying members of the armed forces their salaries.

The economic downturn in the country has forced the government to cut defence spending, which has resulted in reports of soldiers struggling to make ends meet in military barracks.

Our correspondent Lionel Saungweme says it is an open secret that members of the armed forces are not happy with many things, ranging from erratic food supplies to shortages of new uniforms.

Last week there were several reports in the media suggesting that morale was at its lowest among the security services after the government postponed their pay date.

In 2008 President Robert Mugabe faced threats of unrest from the military at the height of the country’s economic crisis, when disgruntled soldiers rioted in Harare after becoming frustrated with queuing to withdraw cash from banks.

Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa has admitted the country’s economy is showing no sign of improvement after ZANU PF and Mugabe’s controversial ‘win’ in last years election.

Saungweme told us that as a result of the cash crisis army bosses have briefed their troops about the situation and this has seen soldiers bringing their own food to cook inside the camps.

'The cash shortage has also seen a shortage in uniforms, camouflage such that when a soldier washes their clothes, they’ve to wait until the uniform is dry. This is because some soldiers steal the uniforms for resale. The suspects are senior soldiers who then sell the uniforms to juniors.

‘Some information I gathered, points to a situation where the army and the Zimbabwe Prison Service (ZPS) have not recruited this year in order to save the little cash in their coffers,’ Saungweme said.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

Zimbabweans in South Africa are being urged not to ‘panic’ over changes to work permit laws set to come into force later this year, with a leading refugee rights group saying it will engage the authorities on the way forward. Concern has been high among many Zim nationals across the border, after South Africa’s Cabinet resolved that work permits granted under the Special Dispensation period will expire this November. Part of that resolution is a requirement that new permits can be applied for, but only back in Zimbabwe. The Special Dispensation period was introduced in 2010 to give those Zimbabweans working illegally in South Arica at the time a chance to regularise their stay. An estimated two million Zimbabweans are thought to have fled the political crisis back home for the relative security of South Africa, choosing to live illegally across the border. Under the dispensation period, over 250,000 Zim nationals were granted four year work and study permits. The authorities also suspended the mass deportations of Zim nationals, that they had been undertaking until the dispensation was announced. The deportations of illegal Zimbabweans have since resumed, and the news of the authorities toughening up its permit laws has sparked real fears of a return to the chaos experienced before. One SW Radio Africa listener said by email that “it is not a good idea” to leave South Africa without a guarantee of being allowed back. He added: “You don’t even know whether you’re gonna get it (permits) or not or when. What about our jobs, accommodation, installments, credits or (do) you have to resign?” Diana Zimbudzana from the Zimbabwe Exiles Forum told SW Radio Africa last week that the resolution will see Zim nationals choosing to work illegally in South Africa once again. She explained that permit holders will not risk returning to Zimbabwe with no guarantee of receiving the documentation that will allow them re-entry to South Africa. “The resolution is a sad development because it forces people back into a situation that the permits lifted them out of, and that was being illegal. Zimbabweans went out of their way to get these permits, but they won’t forfeit their lives in South Africa if there are no guarantees they will get the permits again,” Zimbudzana said. These fears have also intensified after Zimbabwe’s Home Affairs Minister said that South Africa’s permit plans had not been communicated to them. Minister Kembo Mohadi was quoted as saying that the ZANU PF government was not in a position to offer any permits for Zimbabweans based in South Africa.“The government only issues permits for foreigners who want to work here in Zimbabwe, not the other way round. As far as I am concerned permits for Zimbabweans who want to work in South Africa are done in that country not in Zimbabwe,” he said. But Braam Hanekom, the Director of the refugee rights group PASSOP, said Zimbabweans must stay positive. “We are going to engage the government and find out the details and about the logistics and see if there is any possible way for people affected by the resolution to avoid returning to Zimbabwe,” Hanekom told SW Radio Africa. He said that logistically and financially, forcing people to leave the country just to return at a later stage “is chaotic”. But he insisted it was not all bad news.“We need to acknowledge that the government has given positive indications that Zimbabweans will be given another chance to get permits. When the Department of the Home Affairs proceeded with the dispensation project, they made it clear that it was a four year permit and made no undertaking that it would be renewable,” Hanekom explained. He added: “So it’s good news that it looks like the government will allow Zimbabweans another chance to stay in South Africa.”

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

Dewa Mavhinga, a leading civil rights activist, has said a new Government of National Unity is not an option because it will fail like the previous one and will divert people from pursuing genuine political reform.

He said ZANU PF can only reform if it is subjected to ‘domestic’ pressure from united, organized and informed citizens who can actively participate in political processes. He said that the focus should be on laying the ground for ‘sufficient pressure’ which will force political change. Mavhinga, who is the chairperson of the Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition, said this can be done by building the citizens’ capacity to make connections between economic decline and the lack of political freedom.

Mavhinga’s comments come after senior MDC-T politicians, including party leader Morgan Tsvangirai, have called for a new coalition saying ZANU PF has neither the will nor capacity to lead an economic recovery. Some analysts have predicted a complete economic collapse which they say will force ZANU PF into a new coalition.

But Mavhinga said people should not just hope that the economy will implode and force ZANU PF to do this. He said instead the people should mobilise and demand their basic rights and political freedoms. He added: ‘The problem ahead of the 2013 election was that of demobilized people who were now looking up to the GNU when they were not in a position in their own communities to push for reform. This is what needs to be addressed’.

He said part of the demobilization of the communities was a result of civil society aligning itself with the MDC parties without playing their role of offering warnings and constructive criticism. He added: ‘This is why we are restating the position that civil society’s autonomy and independence should be guarded jealously so that they can play their role of empowering the citizens.’

Many analysts have blamed civil society for not warning the opposition against entering the 2013 election without proper reforms to the electoral system. ZANU PF was eventually declared the winner but few have accepted the result because of the unfairness of the electoral process. To this date the electronic voter’s roll is still not available to the opposition and to Zimbabweans.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

The Zimbabwe Mining Development Corporation (ZMDC) has been assigned new leadership this week, with Mines Minister Walter Chidhakwa selecting a fresh board.

The new board will be chaired by David Murangari, who will be deputised by former Reserve Bank deputy governor Edward Mashiringwani. Chidhakwa said the ZMDC was “central to Zimbabwe’s economic development,” amid the general consensus that corruption was draining the Chiadzwa diamond fields dry. He said that the government was now working on a “robust system” that would ensure transparency in the operations of diamond mining companies in Marange.

Ironically, it was the Herald newspaper that gave the most accurate depiction of the situation, by mistakenly titling the article ‘Government connives with mining firms’. Such connivance by ZANU PF has for years been highlighted as the real reason for the missing diamond millions in Marange, with the party previously accused of using the cash to finance a parallel government.

Minister Chidhakwa meanwhile last year dissolved the management boards of the ZMDC, the Minerals Marketing Corporation of Zimbabwe (MMCZ) and Marange Resources, amid allegations of serious malpractice and suspected corrupt activities.

Sources quoted by the NewsDay newspaper said the dissolution of the boards was linked to the alleged disappearance of 1.3 million carats of diamonds in 2010, following the breakdown of Canadile Miners, a joint venture diamond mining firm involving the ZMDC.

The MMCZ and the ZMDC have both been embroiled in allegations of corruption recently. In September 2013 Robert Mugabe accused former ZMDC board chairman Godwills Masimirembwa of being involved in a $6 million fraud deal with a Ghanaian investor. Mugabe later back tracked on this accusation.

And then in November last year, a report by the news and analysis website Africa Confidential named the former MMCZ board chair, Chris Mutsvangwa, as being a key architect of arms-for-minerals deals with Russia and China. Mutsvangwa, who was the former Zimbabwe ambassador to China, is now the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

Commercial farmers in Zimbabwe are moving to shift the focus of the land compensation debate to become a national issue, with individual property rights at the centre of the argument.

This is one of the issues being debated during a series of meetings on farm restitution and compensation in Zimbabwe this week. Featuring South African land valuer Mills Fitchet, discussion has zeroed in on the danger of Zimbabwe’s agricultural sector being undervalued because of the nation’s land policies.

The land grab campaign that has defined the current farm ownership system effectively destroyed property rights in Zimbabwe, with vast tracts of land being claimed as ‘state land’ and parceled out along partisan lines. This situation still persists, despite warnings that without a return to a productive agricultural sector, enshrined by rights to property ownership, Zimbabwe’s economy will fail to recover.

John Worsley-Worswick, who heads the Justice for Agriculture (JAG) group, said Wednesday that “there is a necessity to bring the land issue to closure.” He told SW Radio Africa that protection of property rights and individual access to title deed was key for Zimbabwe to move away from being a ‘begging nation’, reliant on highly expensive food imports and aid.

“In Zimbabwe the agricultural land is the biggest national asset, and if this land is not valued properly, to an international standard, then we become a beggar nation and we will have to accept the reconstruction of Zimbabwe on someone else’s terms,” Worsley-Worswick said.

He said that Zimbabwe, which has the potential to be a strong player in international food production, “can’t afford to have this asset undervalued in any way.” He added that the local land tenure system, which “hamstrings” agricultural endeavours, means the country’s agricultural value is not what it could be.

“Property rights issues and compensation issues are going to be at the forefront of concerns before we can go forward. These rights have been grossly infringed and trampled on for years. Individual rights to property is a basic human right and these issues have to be dealt with before going forward,” Worsley-Worswick said.

The property rights issue has previously been argued as the key for Zimbabwe’s agricultural restoration, along with a transparent, independent land audit to decipher exactly who owns what in the country.

Such an audit has recently been recommended in a new report about the prospects for Zimbabwe’s economic recovery. The report, Zimbabwe’s International Re-engagement: The Long Haul to Recovery argues that if the country is to salvage its crippled economy and attract investment, the government must demonstrate that Zimbabwe is a worthwhile business destination and credible partner.

The report says the government must move to reduce uncertainty about the multi-currency system, indigenisation, and complete a full, impartial land audit.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

Delegates to the EU/AU summit that kicked off in Brussels, Belgium on Tuesday have described President Robert Mugabe’s boycott of the event as ‘insignificant’ as most African leaders apparently ignored his call to snub the gathering.

Mugabe refused to travel to Brussels for the summit, in an apparent protest against the refusal by the EU to allow his wife Grace to accompany him. The EU Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Aldo Dell’Ariccia, last week said the bloc had not given a visa to Grace because there was no program for wives of presidents and there was no need for her to attend.

Only South African President Jacob Zuma appeared to go along with Mugabe in boycotting the summit, but his government was quick to point out that he wasn’t attending because of ‘other commitments.’

Elliot Pfebve, the newly appointed MDC-T chief representative to the EU, said most delegates thought Mugabe’s decision to boycott was based on ‘emotion and concerns for his family rather than what is best for Zimbabwe.’

Pfebve, who was in Brussels attending a two day EU/AU business forum at the beginning of this week, said that Zimbabwe could have benefitted substantially, due to the presence of high level investors.

The business forum was attended by leading business personalities across the globe, diplomats, chief executives of multi-nationals, former Presidents of various countries in Africa as well as current leaders on the continent.

‘President John Mahama of Ghana gave a presentation on the need for investors to visit Accra. He took questions from investors on some concerns they raised and in the end, Ghana signed deals worth billons of dollars.

‘Since Zimbabwe is struggling to attract foreign investors, this was an opportunity for Mugabe to meet would be investors and discuss ways of trying to co-exist in the harsh economic environment in the country,’ Pfebve said.

The MDC-T representative to the EU said there was a suggestion by other delegates that Mugabe’s non-appearance will damage his reputation as the first deputy chair of the African Union.

‘He tried to influence other African leaders not to attend the summit, which he failed, and people were asking why they would want to boycott when the event was supposed to benefit the continent.

Pfebve said that Africa has over a billion people and why would Mugabe try to hold the whole continent to ransom, just because his wife didn’t get a visa.

The senior MDC-T official added: “That is abuse of power. Mugabe is not President and husband to Grace Mugabe but President and leader of all Zimbabweans."

The summit brings together 28 European countries and 54 African Union members, minus Zimbabwe and others who are being represented at ministerial level.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

The Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation board has overruled a management reshuffle announced by chief executive Allan Chiweshe last week.

In reversing the reshuffle, the ZBC board said it was not consulted.

A statement issued by board chairman Father Gibson Munyoro advising “people to go back to their usual roles”, said the reshuffle was done “without prior consultation or the advice and approval of the board itself.”

“Accordingly, any movements or changes to take place within the national broadcaster shall be presented to the board for consideration and strategic discernment before being announced and effected,” Munyoro said in a statement quoted by various media houses on Wednesday.

ZBC acting chief executive Chiweshe announced the changes last week, which he said were part of a restructuring exercise at the beleaguered state broadcaster.

Another ZBC top official, Gladman Bandama, told the media that the reshuffle targeted systems in need of improvement, ahead of results of a forensic audit.

Auditors were called in after the media highlighted how senior managers such as the sacked Happison Muchechetere were drawing scandalous salaries of up to $44,000 while the broadcaster’s rank and file had gone for months without wages.

The results of the probe are not yet out, and the board said allowing the changes to go ahead before the results of the audit are known will be counterproductive.

Chiweshe’s reshuffle would have seen news and current affairs general manager Tazzen Mandizvidza moving to the helm of productions and television services.

Head of radio services Christopher Chivhinge and head of news and current affairs Josephine Zulu would have swapped roles under Chiweshe’s plan.

Deputy Information Minister Supa Mandiwanzira told the NewsDay that his ministry works through the board, and if the reshuffle has been rescinded, it means it had been handled unprocedurally.

In February, Information Minister Jonathan Moyo withdrew the appointment of Dr Dennis Magaya as head of the ZBC board chair for his alleged involvement in salary and procurement scandals at national power utility, ZESA.

Moyo reversed Magaya’s appointment in less than 42 hours after the media highlighted his muddy past at ZESA, raising concern that the appointments were being done haphazardly without due processes being followed.

Efforts to contact Information Minister Jonathan Moyo and his deputy Mandiwanzira about the latest confusion at the ZBC failed as their phones were not being answered.

But Barnabas Thondhlana, editor of the Observer newspaper, said it was unlikely that Chiweshe would have made the changes without consulting the board.

“Chiweshe fully knows that the ZBC at the moment is a hot potato and would not have made these changes unilaterally. He must have consulted the board, but that the board did not communicate these changes to the ministry.”

“The ZBC as we all know is a political animal and so the ZANU PF-controlled information ministry always wants to ensure that those appointed to the top are people who can respond positively to political instruction,” Thondhlana said.

He said the board was likely ordered to reverse Chiweshe’s reshuffle because the ministry was not happy with certain people taking over strategic portfolios.

“Maybe the ministry already has its own individuals earmarked for these posts. You will recall that last month all managers were ordered to reapply, and so this could be part of a process getting rid of some people and bringing in new faces.

“With ZANU PF embroiled in factionalism over who will succeed Mugabe, the rivals will want to ensure that their own people are occupying key positions at the state broadcaster,” Thondhlana added.

Information Minister Moyo is believed to a strong ally of ZANU PF stalwart Emmerson Mnangagwa, who is pitted against the party’s vice president Joice Mujuru in the race to succeed an ailing Mugabe.

The parent ministry last month directed managers at the state broadcaster to reapply for their positions as it moves to trim a 46-strong management contingent.

The top officials are accused of haemorrhaging the country’s sole broadcaster of millions of dollars in hefty salaries. A few months ago the State announced that it had adopted the ZBC’s $40 million debt, effectively transferring it to the taxpayer.

SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe

MDC-T senators walked out of parliament Tuesday in protest over the exclusion of their proposals from the Electoral Amendment Bill.

The Bill is one of several other pieces of legislation that have to be aligned with the country’s new constitution adopted last year.

Among other issues, the opposition lawmakers want the Justice Ministry to revisit Section 40 (c) of the Electoral Act which prohibits anyone else except the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission from conducting voter education.

The senators also want the Bill to be clear about who should be the final authority on voter registration – ZEC or the office of the Registrar-General.

Senator Morgan Komichi said they realised during the proceedings that Deputy Justice Minister Fortune Chasi who presented the Bill was not taking their concerns seriously, hence the walk out.

“This is an ugly, undemocratic Bill which represents ZANU PF in all respects and that is what we are protesting,” Komichi told SW Radio Africa Wednesday.

“As senators we want ZEC to be independent of the justice ministry, and also to have its own voters roll. In that Bill, the Electoral Commission doesn’t have any power over the voters roll or even to hire or fire its own chief executive which makes the chairperson of the body just a stooge.”

The senator said their concerns stem from the events in the 2013 elections when it became apparent that the Rita Makarau-headed ZEC wasn’t the one in charge of the polls.

He said it is clear from the way the Bill is being handled that the ZANU PF government has no intention to democratise the electoral process.

“Without the changes we are proposing, the registrar-general will continue to run the elections and this violates the new constitution.”

Komichi said he did not think the walk-out by at least 20 senators would change anything, but they did it “for the record”.

“We want people to know that we raised these issues and did not just sit back. ZANU PF has the majority in both Houses and they will use this advantage to entrench systems that help them to retain power.

Komichi said the ruling regime knows that without these systems that tilt the political ground in their favour, they will be out of power.

“That is why they do not want to give people the right to choose their own leaders or to vote because they know once they do that, they will be out of power.”

The Bill will now go to the Lower House following its Third Reading at the Senate on Wednesday, where Komichi thinks it will sail through regardless of objections.

Other contentious points raised by the MDC lawmakers include allowing postal votes from Zimbabweans based outside the country, as well as allowing equal media coverage for all political parties by the State media.

ZANU PF has also steadfastly refused to reform the country’s security sector which continues to prop up President Robert Mugabe’s hold on power.