I’ve been of two minds since hearing that the “government” of Zimbabwe has asked for help in the current cholera crisis.

On the one hand, I thought to myself, “finally.” On Monday this week, water supplies to Harare were turned off completely – the water authority had run out of chemicals. So surely, if the “government” declares it an emergency, and they get some help, then they can start to do something about it, and people will stop dying.

But on the other hand, there’s a huge gap between the “government” saying it’s an emergency, and people actually getting help. The problem is exactly that – they’re a “government,” not really The Government. It’s the same “government” that failed to account for more than US$7 million from the Global Fund to Fight HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe eventually paid the money back, and the Global Fund approved another US$169 million in assistance to the country. Now the EU wants to give another USD11million for cholera – and the US has contributed USD 220 million to Zimbabwe’s food and health crisis since October 2007.

It’s a complicated issue, and I don’t really know how to resolve it in my own head. I don’t want anyone to die from cholera when there is help available to stop that. But I have no confidence that this regime will handle that assistance responsibly. So I was encouraged to see CHRA’s statement which raised similar concerns. WoZA’s recent report also points out the relationship between the regime’s growing and the spiralling health crisis.

It’s this failing “government” that created Zimbabwe’s cholera crisis. They’re not the people who should be trusted to solve it.

I learnt last weekend that Thabani Zikhali, better known to most of us as Fela, died. I remember Fela fondly from meetings and discussions at the ISO offices – sitting on those wooden benches in the office, or outside in the car park. And I’m sad, and angry to lose such a good, strong, capable, confident, powerful, energetic, useful, motivated, activist. Fela fought for social justice and better basic services like access to water, health care and sanitation. Little did any of us suspect that it would be exactly this collapsed health care system that would fail him. Political violence has taken its toll on Zimbabwe – but perhaps an even greater threat is the health crisis. This is Comrade Fatso’s tribute to Fela. May he go well.

Die For The People

Today we paused for a moment of silence. Silence amidst the echoes of cholera cries, mutinous outbursts and beaten trade unionists. We paused for a moment, calm in the chaos of our struggle. We stood by a red dust Warren Hill grave side to remember our Comrade Fela. A comrade who tirelessly fought in the trade unions, the Zimbabwe Social Forum and the residents associations. A founding member of the Uhuru Network and The Amandla Centre. A comrade who died from the injustice he fought so hard against. A collapsed health care system that failed to give him basic treatment.

We stood. We cried. We paused for a moment of reflection in the whirlwind that this struggle for justice can be. Because this is what it can be sometimes. Life or death painted in stark red soil. Each shovel-load of soil by each comrade onto his coffin was a reminder of the urgency of the struggle we are in. Each speech about Fela’s life was a call to uprising.

Fela died as he lived. Determined. Dignified. His death was poetic. Because he fulfilled the destiny of his name: Fela Nabantu. Die For The People.

May our comrade rest in peace.

Zimbabwean human rights activist Jestina Mukoko was abducted from her home in Norton, outside Harare, around 5am on Wednesday 3 December. Reports indicate that a group of at least 12 men in two unmarked vehicles came to her house. She was taken by force still barefoot and in her pyjamas. More than 24 hours later, there is still no sign of Mukoko, nor any indication of her whereabouts or who might have abducted her.

Amnesty International issued an alert yesterday, demanding that Zimbabwean authorities guarantee Mukoko’s safety. Mukoko is the director of the Zimbabwe Peace Project (ZPP), a local human rights organisation that monitors and documents human rights violations.

Phone the Norton Police station and demand that they investigate Jestina’s disappearance: +263 (0)62 2120. Be persistent! It can be hard to get through.

The Kubatana team went to a public meeting last night in Harare. The speakers: four men. The moderator: a man. The audience: over 100 men, and maybe 30 women. Audience members who asked questions: Men again. Why are there so few women panelists and moderators at public meetings organised by civil society in Zimbabwe? What can be done to ensure that more women attend these meetings, and participate in them?

The Kubatana team was in Johannesburg recently for MobileActive08. As we moved around the city, we spoke with taxi drivers about the ANC split, Xenophobia, Zimbabwe, and other issues.

Here are a few snippets of our conversations:

Troublemakers, they kind of respect the taxi drivers. For other people, they have no respect. But for taxi drivers, they kind of leave us alone. They know we can make our own violence.

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People must tell the truth. It will heal other people. Actually, that will teach people to learn, and forgive. Otherwise, when it’s not done, I will see a Shona person, and think you’re a part of Mugabe. You killed our people. You know, things like that. But if there is TRC [a Truth and Reconciliation process], then I think people will be able to see, okay, fine. This is what happened. Let’s forget about it.

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You’ll never get a settlement in Zimbabwe. You know why? Because they’re making too much money. They’ve got 25-tonne trucks travelling up and down from Zimbabwe to Jo’burg and Jo’burg to Zimbabwe everyday. With all the food in it you want to eat. All the appliances you want to buy. Those people are my customers like you sit there. I ride them to the trucks. I fetch them from the trucks. It’s completely shocking.

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There is no such thing as a Rainbow Nation. You must know where you come from and know where you’re going. If you’re a Zulu you’re a Zulu. If you’re a Xhosa you’re a Xhosa. Now (interim president Kgalema) Motlanthe is more of a rainbow person. He can socialize with anyone. Which is not right. We need someone who is either a Xhosa, or a Zulu.

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You know that woman that they say Zuma raped? It’s untrue. She was involved with Zuma for a very long time. Zuma was actually planning to marry her as one of his wives. So, they blame the Intelligence Minister. That might be true, that he tried to convince that lady, to pay her money so that she can threaten Zuma. That’s what she did! Those questions were asked in court – and she couldn’t manage to answer them. There were police outside, she had a phone, and there was a house phone. And you wake up in the morning, take a bath, make food, fry eggs, you eat, make phone calls. You know? The door’s unlocked. And you come up later and say you’ve been raped. Why didn’t she go out and report at the same time, when police were outside Zuma’s house. Besides that, she should have called. Or wake up in the morning and go and make a statement at the police station.

As the SADC troika jetted into Harare yesterday to try (unsuccessfully) to make some headway in the stalled talks, a variety of different Zimbabwean civil society organisations gathered to protest the delays and demand a resolution of the country’s political crisis.

Read about some of these actions here:

• Riot police descend on women protesters – Women’s Coalition
• Police ruthlessly crush protest by youth activists – Youth Forum
• 23 injured, 7 arrested and 4 abducted after a ROHR demonstration – Restoration of Human Rights Zimbabwe
• Image Gallery – Restoration of Human Rights Zimbabwe demonstration

Zimbabweans are speaking out. It’s time SADC also took a stand on these stalemated negotiations.