SW Radio Africa news - The Independent Voice of Zimbabwe
Villagers relocated to make way for diamond mining operations in Marange are in mourning after a nine year old girl died this week, after drowning in the Odzi river. The body of Jane Chirasika Dirikwe, a grade three pupil at the relocation compound in Arda Transau was found on Friday afternoon, four days after she disappeared in the Odzi river. The girl had gone to the Zimbabwe National Water Authority (ZINWA) compound to fetch water for her family, after supply to Arda Transau had been disconnected on 16th November. The girl and others reportedly left their buckets at ZINWA and walked to the nearby Odzi river to swim. But the detour ended in tragedy, with the girl disappearing. It’s understood that it took the police water unit over 48 hours to attend the scene. Although police were alerted immediately after the girl disappeared on Tuesday afternoon, they only arrived at Arda Transau on Thursday. SW Radio Africa was told that the girl’s body was eventually found on Friday afternoon. The death is the latest blow to face a community already battling issues like poverty and hunger. The firms who took over their residential plots for diamond mining were meant to ensure the wellbeing of the families they relocated. But promises to provide food support, new houses and more have been broken. James Mupfumi, the acting head of the Centre for Research and Development (CRD) told SW Radio Africa that the situation is “tragic.”“This situation is so sad especially coming from a beleaguered community who has been abandoned by the government, and abandoned by the firms that promised to take care of them,” Mupfumi said. Reasons for the disruption of water are said to be the result of a blown transformer. But it is understood that there is also an ongoing dispute between ZINWA and Anjin Investments, one of the diamond mining companies in Marange, over non-payment of water services to the relocated families. “The diamond mining giant is reportedly refusing to pay ZINWA its dues arguing that the government of Zimbabwe is responsible for supplying water to the community. Water supply has been intermittent since the beginning of relocations in 2010. Other residents say ZINWA regularly switches off water supply and claim there is a technical fault in order to press Anjin for payment,” the Centre for Natural Resource Governance said.