Colleagues at OSISA recently  shared this news with us:

Well done sisters in  Mozambique!!

Last week, the advert above (of a local milk stout beer) sparked a furor in Mozambique and managed to galvanize the women’s movement (across the spectrum), to rally together against it.

They claimed successfully that this advert was insulting, discriminatory, sexist and against women’s dignity.

After a press conference where a campaign against the brewer (Cervejas de Mocambique) was launched, the brewer bowed to the pressure and decided to unconditionally withdraw the advert.

Fórum Mulher (Women Forum) and the Mozambican Human Rights League led the protest.

More from Comrade Fatso …

I’m Mr Explorer in eighteen something and three
Who discovered this vast, virgin African territory
Utterly unknown you see
Apart from a pocket of peoples like the Hutus, the Tutsis
The Luo, the Tuareg, the Shona, the Masai,
Yoruba, Bambara, Zulu and Fulani
But they don’t count really
So yes this dark continent was discovered by me
I’m Mr Missionary armed with a book
Settlers will arrive soon so quick take a look
It talks of miracles, parables, temples ‘n’ disciples
Worship God and no other idols
It’s filled with trials, tribulations, testaments and tales
Just remember the weak shall inherit the earth
And God is a white male
Your minds and souls are all we ask
Capturing your bodies is someone else’s task

I’m Mr Setller here to each colonisation 101
We’re gonna liberate your land and you’ll be governed by the gun
After stealing your soil you can’t sit back and relax
Coz we’ll make you our workers by making you pay tax
We’ll destroy your industry and make you produce products that are primary
We’ll invest in infrastructure and run your resources to the sea
We’ll pull out our paint brushes and paint you some borders
It’s a fantastic old tactic called divide and conquer
Coz I’m Mr International Finance here to fund your independence
We’ll douse you with debts while we reap the benefits
Take down your tariffs, slash social spending
Hold back on health, here comes the happy ending
We’ll flood your country with our goods
We’ll privatize your national foods
Now you ask what all this meant
This ladies and gentlemen is development.

Congratulations to Beatrice Mtetwa has been awarded the Inamori Ethics Prize for her defence of human rights and press freedom. Speaking at the ceremony in Cleveland Ohio, she said:

“I am optimistic that democracy and the rule of law will be restored in Zimbabwe, I abhor injustice and I fight it wherever I see it. I am driven to defend people who are struggling for their basic human rights. … I am optimistic that the rule of law will be restored in Zimbabwe in my lifetime.”

You can read her interview with Kubatana here.

Well done to everyone who signed a petition, wrote a blog, submitted a letter to the editor, or otherwise complained about Luxurygate – The purchase of government vehicles.

Public discussion and pressure around this issue has prompted the statement below from the Prime Minister’s office – It’s a real shame that it takes people getting outraged about an issue before government finds the need to explain its actions. But steps like this will hopefully lead to the policy changes outlined below for accountability and transparency in government salaries and expenditure.

Cars for Ministers: The facts

There have been reports in the press of late about unjustified expenditure of motor vehicles for Cabinet Ministers and senior government officials.

Indeed it is the duty of the press in a democratic society to oversee the State and excesses of government.

A vibrant media that is not indebted to any political organisation is the cornerstone of any democracy.

However, to the extent that the Press is the Fourth Estate which plays a critical role in any society, it has an obligation to be fair, impartial, objective and accurate. That is why every journalist is taught the value of public interest, privilege and truth.

Public interest is key but it is not best served by mistruths and sensationalism.

In 2010, the Government of Zimbabwe set aside $1,5 million for the purchase of off-road vehicles for Cabinet Ministers and other senior Government officials. The money was disbursed to the Ministry of Transport in December 2010. CMED, a private company, has proceeded to acquire the vehicles which are a condition of service for Cabinet Ministers.

Since January 2011, the Ministry of Finance has been gazetting accounts following the procurement of vehicles for education officers, health officials and other key departments in line with allocations in the 2011 budget. There has been no allocation for Cabinet ministers in 2011 and the off-road vehicles, procured this year from the allocation in 2010, are for outreach duties.

Like all civil servants, whose plight everyone concedes must be improved, Cabinet Ministers are not on meaningful salary. Their salary does not include any allowances such as housing and education because of the limited fiscal space.

However, the so-called Luxurygate teaches all of us important lessons.

Firstly, that there must be transparency in the conditions of service, remuneration and other perks for all senior officers. While the current law says only the President’s salary should be gazetted, perhaps we need greater transparency where all remuneration and benefits for everyone in Government are made public so that there is no room for speculation.

Secondly, it is important for everyone in public service, including cabinet Ministers, to declare their assets and for the Government to have a comprehensive and vehicle policy.

The bottom line is that civil servants and Cabinet Ministers must be well remunerated so that they are able to buy vehicles from their own salary.

In the face of accusations of profligacy, the Prime Minister, as the head of Government charged with the responsibility of formulating and implementing Government policy, has sought to clarify the cost and the context of the procurement of the alleged vehicles.

The Government should not operate as a secretive enclave. In the public interest, the Ministry of Transport should state the full facts, the number of vehicles procured and the total cost to the taxpayer.

Luke Tamborinyoka
Spokesperson
Office of the Prime Minister

Its not because they cant drive or they don’t have driver’s licenses because some women even possess international drivers licenses acquired internationally when they once lived abroad. Unlike fellow women in most parts of the world who can go behind the wheel at anytime, women in Saudi Arabia still cant enjoy the same rights to drive cars in public after a religious fatwa (an Islamic religious ruling) imposed by conservative Muslim clerics to enforce the motoring ban on women. Saudi Arabia is the only country in the world that bans women from driving. The ban is one of the restrictions women in Saudi Arabia face each and everyday. One of the strict measures is that women are not allowed to leave home without a male guardian or even practice their right to vote. In June 2011 women in the Saudi kingdom staged a small protest against the ban by getting behind the wheel but most of them got arrested.

One of those who got arrested includes Manal al Sharif, an IT specialist who launched the “Women2Drive” campaign which encourages women to drive. She made a video of herself driving and posted it on Facebook but the page was pulled down and other women who participated in the campaign were threatened.