POLITICAL SITUATION IN ZIMBABWE

Army officers from the 2.1 Infantry Battalion are force-marching villagers to Zanu PF meetings in the constituencies, according to villagers. The terrified villagers, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of harassment, said the soldiers were using black Loncin motorbikes, which are also being used by Zanu PF youths, ordering villagers to attend party meetings. Loncin is a leading Chinese manufacturer of motorcycles, scooters and engines. The party recently acquired 550 vehicles — an assortment of single and double cab 4X4 vehicles including Toyota Hilux, Nissan NP300, Ford Ranger and Mazda BT50s valued at US$14 million — and motorbikes for 68 districts to ensure its campaign managers and foot soldiers reach all areas including remote districts to mobilise voters. The soldiers, names supplied, have been addressing meetings at Mukombwe and Tsiga primary schools in Ward 26 where they are openly campaigning for Zanu PF. “They come and address villagers who would have been ordere

POLITICAL SITUATION IN ZIMBABWE: MUGABE CANNOT WIN A VIOLENCE-FREE ELECTION!!! : The failure by the coalition government to implement agreed reforms has not helped the situation. The MDC parties and others cannot affo...

The failure by the coalition government to implement agreed reforms has not helped the situation. The MDC parties and others cannot afford to boycott the coming elections in protest as much is at stake. It means that political parties opposed to Mugabe and Zanu PF have to squeeze the most out of this hostile environment that favours the incumbent if at all they wish to defeat him at the ballot box. How then can the MDC parties overcome this monumental obstacle and enhance their chances of winning? There is no single answer to this question, but without doubt, the strategy they will use will play a significant part in determining the outcome of the elections. Many analysts have dwelt on this subject before and it is thus familiar among readers. However, in as much as analysts have criticised the MDC parties for their failure to come up with a credible, clear and coherent strategy to win at the polls, it is unfortunate that few of them have come up with ideas as to what is to be d

POLITICAL SITUATION IN ZIMBABWE: IMF considers staff-monitored programme for Zim (G... : HARARE The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is considering introducing a staff-monitored programme (MTP) for Zimbabwe as it warns of de...

HARARE The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is considering introducing a staff-monitored programme (MTP) for Zimbabwe as it warns of debt distress in the southern African country burdened with arrears of more than US$4.5 billion. The IMF executive board, which concluded an Article IV Consultation with Zimbabwe on May 17, said strict adherence to sound policies would help Harares cause in its quest to have its foreign debt cancelled and lure much-needed economic assistance from donors. Many directors were of the view that a Staff Monitored Programme (SMP) could help establish a track record of sound policies, the Fund said in a statement last week. An SMP would see Harare surrendering to the Bretton Woods institution some of its independence in economic formulation and implementation. Similar programmes have been introduced in other crisis-torn countries, including Sudan, Togo, Liberia, Republic of Congo and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. A more recent case is Chad w

POLITICAL SITUATION IN ZIMBABWE: PAST & FUTURE OF ZIMBABWE : Made said critics are ignoring Zimbabwe’s reality. “We were a conquered people and our land was taken,” he stated. “Naturally, we had to...

Made said critics are ignoring Zimbabwe’s reality. “We were a conquered people and our land was taken,” he stated. “Naturally, we had to fight and we won an armed struggle to the right to reoccupy our land.” Initially, Britain and the U.S. had agreed to compensate displaced white farmers as part of the 1979 Lancaster House Agreement that brought independence to what would later become Zimbabwe. Once the farmers were not paid, the blame was shifted to the Mugabe government, not the countries that reneged on their pledges. “We will not compensate for land that was never paid for,” Made said. “That land was taken by virtue of conquest – our forefathers were not given money. That [compensation] is the responsibility of the British.” Made said most of the world minimizes the suffering Blacks experiences under White minority rule. He said:“There’s all the talk about democracy, but we are the people who were denied the right to vote. We are the people who were told, ‘You don’t come t

AS ZIMBABWEANS brace themselves for a national referendum scheduled for November 2012 and national elections planned for March 2013, there is need for a sober but critical reflection on the core elements of a relevant past that gave birth to Zimbabwe; the murky present and the mysterious future of this great Southern African nation that is at stake. The murky present is locked in a series of debilitating contests pitting: # Forces of progress against those of both puppetry and tyranny concealed under bastardised ideologies of democracy and nationalism respectively, # Angry victims of violence and terror seeking justice and accountability against a terrified political-military leadership fearful of leaving public offices because of active participation in violence and massacre of fellow citizens, # The terrified, hungry, impoverished, oppressed citizenry against a brutal and selfish elite cabal engaged in naked primitive accumulation ala colonialism and which has elevat

POLITICAL SITUATION IN ZIMBABWE: MAWERE DENIED ZIM ID : REGISTRAR General Tobaiwa Mudede last week blocked South Africa-based businessman Mutumwa Mawere’s application for a new national identit...

REGISTRAR General Tobaiwa Mudede last week blocked South Africa-based businessman Mutumwa Mawere’s application for a new national identity card, telling him that dual citizenship remains illegal even under the new Constitution. Mawere, who is said to be involved with a new political party but denies the reports, holds South African citizenship. He plans to challenge Mudede's decision at the courts as soon as the country's new Constitution becomes law. The new charter was recently approved by the legislature and now awaits President Robert Mugabe’s assent. Mawere told the RG in a letter on Monday: “You will appreciate that I also want to participate in the forthcoming general elections that will be held in terms of the new Constitution that clearly confers on persons like me the right to citizenship and consequently the right to participate in the elections as a voter." The former SMM Holdings owner said he was surprised when told Mudede wanted to see him as he was pr

PRIME Minister Morgan Tsvangirai wrapped up his party's post-election plan meeting Sunday vowing to overturn President Robert Mugabe's indigenisation drive if he wins upcoming general elections. He wound up the meeting with a rally attended by thousands of supporters of his Movement for Democratic Change (MDC-T) at a sports ground in Harare's Highfield suburb.   "We will reverse indigenisation laws and create empowerment laws for the majority of the people of Zimbabwe," said Tsvangirai. "We cannot all share a small cake. We can't share the existing wealth so we will have to create a bigger cake." Mugabe introduced the indigenisation law in 2010 which forces foreign-owned companies - including mines, banks and retailers - to cede 51 percent ownership to black Zimbabwean investors. The Zanu PF leader has threatened to take over firms that fail to comply. Tsvangirai is uneasy with the law which he says has driven away desperately needed foreign inve

POLITICAL SITUATION IN ZIMBABWE: ZIMBABWE`S POLITICAL SITUATION & RECOMMENDATIONS : As the Global Political Agreement (GPA) staggers to an end, continued violations of the agreement, reform deficits, limited institutiona...

As the Global Political Agreement (GPA) staggers to an end, continued violations of the agreement, reform deficits, limited institutional credibility and the rejection of a UN election needs assessment mission underscore the continued absence of conditions for peaceful and credible elections, despite the new constitution adopted in March 2013. President Robert Mugabe has been forced to step back from a June vote, but his party still pushes for an expedited process with little time to implement outstanding reforms and new constitutional provisions. The pervasive fear of violence and actual intimidation contradicts rhetorical commitments to peace. A reasonably free vote is still possible, but so too are deferred or disputed polls, or even a military intervention. The international community seems ready to back the Southern African Development Community (SADC), which must work with GPA partners to define and enforce “red lines” for a credible vote. The Zimbabwe African National Uni

POLITICAL SITUATION IN ZIMBABWE: NCA TURNS POLITCAL, WAY TO GO, THUMPS UP!!!! : WITH Zimbabwe’s new constitution set to be debated in Parliament next week, the National Constitutional Assembly (NCA) pressure group an...

WITH Zimbabwe’s new constitution set to be debated in Parliament next week, the National Constitutional Assembly (NCA) pressure group announced on Wednesday that it would soon transform into a political party. The NCA, a vocal advocacy group which has for more than a decade been demanding a new constitution, campaigned unsuccessfully in March to have Zimbabwe’s new charter rejected at a referendum. But six percent of those taking part in the referendum voted ‘No’, despite the country’s major political parties led by Zanu PF and the two MDC factions all urging their supporters to vote ‘yes’. Now NCA chairman Lovemore Madhuku, speaking during Workers’ Day celebrations at the Raylton Sports Club in Harare on Wednesday, says they believe they have a very important constituency that needs representation. They are also not abandoning their demands for a “people-driven” constitution, dismissing the new supreme law set to be rushed through Parliament before President Robert Mugabe’s asse

POLITICAL SITUATION IN ZIMBABWE: TSVANGIRAI; JOIN FORCES WITH NCUBE IF YOU CARE ABO... : THE MDC party led by Welshman Ncube on Wednesday mocked MDC-T leader Morgan Tsvangirai’s protests against Zanu PF for stalling reforms a...

THE MDC party led by Welshman Ncube on Wednesday mocked MDC-T leader Morgan Tsvangirai’s protests against Zanu PF for stalling reforms agreed in 2008 accusing him of flouting SADC resolutions. Tsvangirai is on a week-long trip around Africa trying to persuade leaders to lean on President Robert Mugabe to implement media, security and electoral reforms before elections are called. But the MDC has accused Tsvangirai of hypocrisy over his alleged refusal – in collusion with Mugabe   to accept Ncube as a principal as outlined in a SADC resolution after he became leader of his party in 2011, replacing Deputy Prime Minister Arthur Mutambara who later filed a court challenge. “The last resolution made in Maputo which stated clearly that Welshman Ncube was a principal of the GPA [Global Political Agreement] and thus must be involved in all GPA deliberations has not only been ignored and trashed by Mugabe and Zanu PF but by Morgan Tsvangirai and the MDC-T,” MDC spokesman Nhlanhla Dube sa