Have you made any new year’s resolutions was one of the first things a colleague asked me when we officially opened for the year?

I told her I was still thinking about it as I do not want to commit myself to things I will never get around to doing. This is true so far as ‘serious’ or ‘real’ resolutions are concerned. I mean, I have made a couple of ‘silly’ resolutions that don’t necessarily make you feel bad if by the end of the year you don’t achieve them, like learn to bake for instance. I’ve already made my first tray of muffins (or were they scones?). Soft inside but hardish outside; couldn’t figure what they lacked and where the hell do you get cinnamon? My other resolution is to factor in more board games. I’ve already purchased a game of Monopoly and boy am I enjoying it! I happen to have a couple of ‘serious’ resolutions lingering in the back of my mind, like vigorously pursuing an Mphil and getting myself more organized in my work or improving my technical skills. But achieving the simplest things in Zimbabwe can be a Herculean task. Nothing is simple anymore.

From these little resolutions, it looks like 09 for me is about confronting and overcoming challenges. Put mildly, it’s about doing things I have never done. If only embracing bigger challenges at a national level was as simple.

I have several other ‘silly’ and much easier to achieve resolutions like buy and actually wear a dress at least once this year. Cut down on (cough) chocolate. I will also try not to yell at my neighbor’s noisy brats when they sing and play catch along the corridor on Saturday morning while I clutch desperately at the straws of a well deserved lie in. If not to stop the rascals from nudging my satellite dish in retaliation, then to avoid developing a coronary or any other stress related disorders. Sigh. Somebody might wonder why those ‘silly’ things are resolutions at all. Well, just to enjoy the little joys of life I say. I resolve to try and do a lot of that this year, and relax a little more. So far I’ve discovered that lying on an airbed and watching my fish swim endlessly in their glass tank is such an uplifting and liberating experience. They lead such a simple life; eat. shit.

A family member or two have phoned with a few suggestions of New Year resolutions for me. Please try and tone down a bit Natasha we don’t want another Jestina.

And, by the way, when are the wedding bells?

The removal of the repressive regime in Zimbabwe has become a desperate humanitarian necessity.

Along with a lot of other people, I am worried that it’s almost a week since Jestina was forcibly disappeared. Two of her employees were also abducted recently. It appears the state is unashamedly bent on doing whatever it takes to eradicate all forms of dissent and criticism.

But my worry goes beyond the safety of Jestina and her coworkers. I used to get encouraged each time somebody ‘important’ made a statement on Zimbabwe or castigated Mugabe or called for some sort of action. All the while I believed this was culminating in a build up of some real decisive action. But the continuous all-talk-and no-action is causing me, and I’m sure many other people, the kind of fatigue that makes you want to turn off the TV whenever the news starts, or avoid reading the papers. Everyone seems to acknowledge there is a serious crisis in Zimbabwe but no one seems capable or willing to actually do something about it.

I have developed an acronym for all the politicians spewing the tired and useless rhetoric of castigating Mugabe. They are ATANAs: All Talk and No Action. It seems to have become the fashionable ‘in thing’ to be heard once in a while castigating Mugabe. You find even idiots like Julius Malema in some speech that has nothing to do with Zimbabwe calling for Mugabe to step down. I have been putting together quotes from various politicians worldwide and a distinct pattern emerged: they are all ATANAs who really can’t or won’t do anything except talk. It probably gives them some kind of political mileage to be seen to establish a certain position on Zimbabwean or African politics at large.

Interestingly some ATANAs have been more vocal than others and recent examples include the revered Archbishops Desmond Tutu and John Sentamu as well as President Raila Odinga calling for the forcible overthrow of Mugabe. I feel I must point out at this stage that former President Jimmy Carter in an interview with SW Radio admitted that the Elders couldn’t actually do anything for Zimbabwe except that they had the ability to shift the beam of world attention onto the beleaguered country. Go figure.

That I ambitiously agree with the idea of a forced removal is no secret but it is unfortunate that it might just remain that: an ambitious idea. As long as loud mouth politicians are putting more energy into talking; as long as the world willingly watches as the people of a nation slowly die, and as long as we value the cornerstones of the Wilsonian system of independent states i.e self- determination and sovereignty – people in Zimbabwe will continue to die miserable, unnecessary deaths.

Meanwhile, South Africa continues to play a half-hearted role of outwardly criticizing Mugabe, all the while being the super-power in Southern Africa that’s harboring him against real removal from power. If the cholera outbreak spreading across the Limpopo will not serve to make them take more decisive action or at least realize that this might implode and cause instability and suffering throughout the region, then only God knows what will.

French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner long ago once recognized a duty to intervene when human rights were abrogated. I agree and reckon that if earthlings are the ones who designed and put in place the concept of sovereignty, surely the same earthlings must by now realize the need to make provisions for when a regime forfeits that legitimacy through abuse of the human rights of innocent people.

Though an Iraq-style solution might not be favorable, it has become desperately necessary for the world to intervene somehow, whether they decide upon military invasion or something else. The fact is Zimbabweans need to be saved from this untouchable regime that will neither cooperate with the provisions of the GPA nor cease the culture of crushing dissent though the enforced disappearance of perceived enemies.

Won’t somebody say something and actually mean it for once because all the diplomatic gibberish is serving only to further torment an already disillusioned nation. It has clearly become desperately necessary that in order to salvage the little that remains of this economy and its people, the repressive regime needs to be removed and an interim government instated until fair elections can be held again.

In response to my blog Civil society needs to re-strategize one of our subscribers sent in the following comment:

I do agree on peaceful demonstrations but fundamentally differ with the writer on the accountability of the organizer (s). I think the NCA, Woza, Zinasu and ZCTU have done enough as it is. Remember, it is illegal to have a group of more than four people or organising such. The organisers will be taking risks in organizing these demonstrations. My suggestion is for Zimbabweans to start getting involved in protests in a cunning way. No one should be given the task of organizing because then you need to coordinate and plan and put the whole project into a scheduled start-do-end scenario which has failed so far. In Thailand people have been protesting for 5 months. I don’t think there is a project manager for this, everyone feels responsible and they do not have an end date but an end objective and are actively dedicated. By cultivating bravery, Zimbabweans can change their destiny because those with power are a very small number compared to those who are suffering. Also those with power are actually frightened that is why they rely on guns, violence and intimidation. We are still at a stage where we value “going to work” even if that is now meaningless or “queuing at the bank” even though we may not get our money. We need the same determination to be cultivated in changing the lame duck mentality when it comes to demonstrating for social progress. The whole world is actually waiting for Zimbabweans themselves to actively and practically SHOW their disgust at what is happening in their countries before they can come and assist.

First off, to say civil society has done enough as it is akin to saying HIV and AIDS workers must just stop because now it is up to people to abstain, be faithful and condomize. The civil society organizations the author mentioned as examples are among the many others that pledged to stand up for the rights of others. It is their core business and what donors give them funds for. So to say they have done enough gives the impression that all their goals and objectives have been achieved, and that the human rights situation in Zimbabwe has improved to such an extent that they can now stop. Alternatively it gives the impression that their efforts have failed and its now up to Zimbabweans to sort this mess out themselves.

Secondly the fact that POSA criminalizes mass mobilizations is a matter of public knowledge. But despite that knowledge, WOZA, Zinasu, the NCA among others still go out to protest in large numbers because action like this is fundamental to civil disobedience. The quest to be heard calls for the need to do something that attracts attention. Mass protest achieves that goal.

Third, it is unfortunate that the author does not suggest means and ways Zimbabweans can “start getting involved in protests in a “cunning way, ” neither does he say how Zimbabweans can start “cultivating bravery” in order to change their destiny. I must point out that we are talking about a highly traumatized people that are scared out of their wits of the invisible government. A people that is trying to recover from witnessing their wives, mothers and sisters being raped senseless in their presence. How simple is it then for people to just jump up and protest one day without any form of leadership? Steve Biko so rightly put it that the most important weapon in the hands of the oppressor is the mind of the oppressed. Zimbabweans have more than one enemy; they still have to get over the fear in their minds to be able to move forward.

That civil society has dared to protest is what gives us hope and is the very reason why we ought to harness that strength. Why should they not be encouraged to incorporate more practical means of protest that everyone else will feel compelled to join? Indeed Zimbabweans need to cultivate bravery but right now the pressing matter is that we’ve got a dictator in our midst, and the actions of civil society are what will give the ordinary citizens the clout to engage in protest. Cholera has failed to galvanize people, so have hyperinflation, poverty and food shortages. Only people can move people now.

The small protest activities that civil society has organized so far have required a lot of planning and have been dangerous to implement. Why shouldn’t they be encouraged to do the same thing at a more coordinated level so that we see some real change? Do they not owe it to the people whose rights they represent to form more practical, effective mobilizations that will include those same people in change processes?

Yes, it is true that the world is waiting for Zimbabweans themselves to do something about this situation, but remember, the rest of the world does not live here, like you and I do, and we happen to have first-hand knowledge of the exact situation on the ground.

Life under a dictatorship in Zimbabwe has seen all systems collapse, including the work of civil society organizations and human rights defenders. If its not the so-called war veterans stifling progress, it is the invisible government dictating obstructive policies like the recent food ban that saw a majority of needy Zimbabweans starve. The same government is slowly but systematically taking the country to hell by committing crimes against its own people, the most recent being the unexplained disappearance of the Global Fund money to fight TB and AIDS and the state indifference to the endemic cholera outbreak.

As to be expected some members of society and civil society have made efforts to protest. A risky occupation in the face of a brutal and unrelenting police force that is always ready to descend on peaceful protesters with baton sticks and tear gas. Marching, as we have seen in the last few years, has been rendered basically useless. So have picketing and other peaceful forms of civil disobedience. A number of civil society groups – notably WOZA, the ZCTU and ZINASU among others have been outstanding in staging protests in Zimbabwe. But none of their endeavors have achieved much. It is high time they all sat down and re-strategized to effect the mother of all protests in Zimbabwe.

The one obvious weakness that has been inherent in the previous protests staged by Zimbabwean civil society has been ‘individualism,’. How often do we hear that today WOZA is staging a demonstration, tomorrow it is the NCA, then ZINASU, and then ZADHR? Each time their separate protests hardly last 30 minutes or achieve the desired goals before the leadership is nabbed and the groups disperse. It is always the same pattern: go out in the street – police appear promptly – protest leaders are nabbed – the rest of the group disperses.

Instead of these individual groups staging their protests separately, it would be more strategic for them to come together as one unit driven by a single passion. The struggle for justice is not about populism or fame, it is about sacrifices and the sooner Zimbabwean civil society organizations realize this the better for everyone. Civil society should be willing to work with other member organizations because they are fighting the same cause – a rogue regime that is trampling its people.

Civil society needs to go beyond their differences and form a highly organized unit that will mobilize in such a way that will ‘confuse’ the police who are used to nabbing the one leader, rendering the protest over. A unified civil society must find tactics that will work. They must abandon ineffective mobilizations. The current type of demonstrations may make participants feel they have done something huge, or garner donor appreciation, but they will not end the crisis in Zimbabwe.

Organizing protests is also about logistics: where people meet; how and where they march to for instance. WOZA has been proficient in timely convergence with the help of synchronized watches and marching in silence for a distance while the crowd gathers. The same tactic  – if adopted by a unified movement of civil society groups has the potential to see the largest march since the 90s. The law of large numbers has historically proved to be the best crowd puller. The more people who march, the more infectious the spirit of solidarity and the higher the possibility of ordinary citizens joining in the protest – which is the desired effect, surely?

And, no matter how many they are, the police do not outnumber the ordinary citizens. The law of large numbers is critical in keeping the rogue police force at bay. Outside the CFX bank in Bulawayo, irritated customers retaliated and pounced on a policeman who was overpowered by the angry mob. Civil society needs must take advantage of the situation – the angry crowds and the fact that the police hardly have the fuel or the water to mobilize their water cannons!

Phoenix, my fish that survived the ZINWA water ordeal that saw all my other fish die, swallowed her young one in an unprecedented move yesterday. I bought several other interesting fish to replenish the tank and ease her loneliness but somehow she perceived the other fish a threat – especially the hyperactive, ugly black gouramis and the red-tailed guppy.

Sometimes I wonder how many Zimbabwean mothers, who have no idea where the next supper is going to come from or where to get school fees, wishes she could just swallow her children and shield them from the cruel hell this country has degenerated into. I heard on etv yesterday that the South African government is currently debating the legality and practicality of deporting a two-year old whose mother died of cholera at Musina after illegally crossing the border to seek medical attention. Had the mother known this was to be the fate of her child isn’t it possible she would have wanted to ‘swallow’ him before she died in order to forestall the misery brought on by petty party politics and the hellish bureaucracy that dogs the lives of refugees at the hands of some xenophobic South Africans?

Meanwhile the Elders delegation was stuck in South Africa at the weekend because they were denied entry into Zimbabwe by the invisible government. It is obvious that the leaders of the invisible government have something to hide and as Carter rightly put it, are “very immune to reaching out for help for their own people.” They will not even allow critical humanitarian assistance to flow in where whole communities stand a chance of being wiped out by cholera and starvation.

SADC turned its back on the people of Zimbabwe, so did the AU and let’s hope that the Elders are not just going to give up. Unnecessary diplomacy and bureaucracy will see many a dictator thrive if the international community does not soon devise interventionist policies regarding Mugabe, especially where the welfare of a whole nation is at stake.

Not wishing to see another Iraq-style invasion, sometimes it is necessary to use force in order to oust a dictator and save the lives of innocent, defenseless people. This has become a matter of urgency because this dictator is swallowing all of us, not to protect us but to annihilate us.

Day full of drama at the shopping centre today after a group of soldiers were beaten and chased away from Intermarket bank by the military police earlier on. The selfish sods get their salaries all at once in hard cash back at their barracks, and they still want to jump the queues.

Then there was an accident on Enterprise road outside our office. An elderly woman was bumped by a blue Mercedes Benz whilst trying to cross the ever busy road. The loud screech of braking tyres and a thud drew people from their offices. The police were there in a blitz because Morris Depot is just round the corner. You’d think that with so many sophisticated looking people plus the Merc owner and the police gathered around, something would be done for the poor woman expeditiously. Although she showed no visible signs of hurt, she was clearly in shock and kept rubbing the side of her belly. She must have been hurt internally and from what I understand most accident victims die from the shock than the wounds.

The two policeman on the scene promptly got to work, one taking down a statement from the Merc owner, the other vacillating between alerting and diverting traffic and making some markings around the Merc. He had no chalk and ended up using pieces of red brick to do the job. Clearly no easy task.

Meanwhile the elderly woman sat quietly, only her eyes betrayed the pain she felt. If I didn’t know better I’d say she felt more uncomfortable from all the attention than from the pain she felt. More onlookers gathered around her, someone asked the others if she was all right, what happened and was the Merc driver speeding? Why did the foolish woman not cross the road at the traffic lights? She ought to thank her lucky stars a Merc hit her. There was an unspoken consensus that the woman was to blame. Accusatory eyes pierced at her all round.

There was also a mysterious lack of a sense of emergency; nobody bothered to ask why the woman wasn’t being rushed to hospital and when I did, I got the kind of astonished, irritated stares only a loud fart would elicit. There was lots of silence, eyes shifted momentarily to the Merc owner, and then everyone refocused their attention on the poor woman. Time was being wasted on trivialities; the one policeman continued with his show of taking a long statement while the Merc owner fidgeted with his cell phone. Dark sweat rings grew under his armpits. The people made him nervous so did the police. This was an emergency and all he needed to do was get the woman into his car and drive to the nearest hospital. But no, protocol and bureaucracy required that statements be taken, marks be established around the vehicle and papers be signed before any help could be afforded the ailing woman. Whoever said there is no rush in Africa has never been more precise.

This is exactly how it feels to be Zimbabwean of late. Africans stood by and waited for the ‘authorities’ to deliberate over the impasse in Zimbabwe. A lot of statements were issued while the rest of the world gawked as Zimbabwe burned. Did they perceive Zimbabwe was all right because she remained quiet? They assumed everything would be sorted in talks because the revered SADC was there. Whenever Khama or the late Mwanawasa – bless his soul – pointed out the emergency of the situation, they were hushed by silent stares. It was almost as if they were disturbing the silence in a movie theatre populated by voyeurs.

Shall it not baffle our children when they reflect on history, that SADC was there, so were the UN and the AU but Zimbabwe died while they all watched?