Kubatana.net ~ an online community of Zimbabwean activists

Author Archive

Symbolic patriotism

del.icio.us TRACK TOP
Tuesday, October 7th, 2008 by Natasha Msonza

Yesterday after work I was walking down Central Avenue on my way home. It was after five and I was approaching the new government complex opposite the post office when something very peculiar happened. Everyone who was directly in front of the government complex within about a 15 metre radius suddenly stopped and froze in their various postures of intended motion. I approached the small crowd cautiously, feeling sure that something occult had just happened when a policeman whom I hadn’t noticed suddenly ordered me to stop also. Before I could protest or even ask what was going on, a group of three men were also ordered to stop dead in their tracks. One of them quickly protested saying he was late for something but the police officer just gave him a blank stare and repeated his order. I’m not sure if the order also meant no talking because everyone who stood there seemed to be tongue-tied. All kinds of questions were spinning in my head as I wondered if possibly I was the only one who didn’t know what the hell was going down.

Was Mugabe in the vicinity or something? But then again only cars stop for the illustrious presidential motorcade, not people. Or was this going to be another random forex check? God help me but Gono said it was okay to buy with it so it must also be okay to actually possess it. Last time I was a victim of forex random checks was when I moved to Harare a few years ago and didn’t know that milling around Ximex Mall simply made one a suspected forex dealer. I remember vividly how policemen appeared from nowhere and randomly grabbed people, including myself, and threw us into their trucks to take us to the charge office for a random search. It was dangerous then to be caught with certain amounts of forex, lucky for me I had none.

The minute long wait in front of the government complex seemed like ages. Only when the policeman himself started walking did everyone else shake out of his or her hypnotic state. I was determined to know what it had been all about so I followed the police officer and asked. He rudely asked me if I didn’t know that when the Zimbabwe flag is being taken down everyone stops as a sign of respect and patriotism. All the time I’ve stayed in Harare I’ve never noticed the flag that hangs to the left of the new government complex entrance. Last time I stopped for the flag was back in high school at assembly when we sang the national anthem while it was being hoisted. Besides, I didn’t know one also stops for it when it’s being taken down, let alone in the middle of a busy city pavement. But in Zimbabwe ignorance is no excuse. Ask those whose cars have dared malfunction in front of State House and they will tell you the dire consequences of such an unfortunate thing happening to you. Or try taking pictures or even pointing towards State House and the soldiers will give you the beating of your life.

As I walked away I had this sickening empty feeling you get when you’ve just been forced to do something you wouldn’t ordinarily do from free will and volition. I tried to imagine what I would have done had I known what was going on. Would I have resisted and what would the police officer have done to me? That bit is not hard to imagine.

Is this how patriotism works in Zimbabwe; being made to stop dead in your tracks in respect of the flag even though you don’t feel it deep inside?  I understand patriotism to be the love and loyalty one feels for one’s country and a patriot is someone who supports and is prepared to serve her country. I love this country and some of its people but not its government. The current government doesn’t love me enough to put in place workable policies and mechanisms to make life bearable so why should I love them?

Does symbolic demonstration of patriotism actually define its existence? If I hadn’t stopped for the flag would that have made me less of a patriot? For whom are these little things intended, because the ordinary person who is hungry from lack of food and tired from waiting in long queues couldn’t give a rat’s behind what patriotism means.

Zimbabwe’s Reserve Bank is renamed by the people

del.icio.us TRACK TOP
Tuesday, October 7th, 2008 by Natasha Msonza

Go now, Gono

An underground movement that calls itself People to People distributed, or rather littered, Harare’s streets with flyers over the weekend carrying a message rebuking the Reserve Bank Governor for printing substandard bank notes in the form of the new $20 000. Aside from detailing how the $20 000 note has no tight security features and is probably being replicated, the flyers also mention that some shops and vendors are not accepting this note as legal tender. The flyer also demands reasonable withdrawal limits and reasonable policies to curb inflation.

I started hearing complaints about the $20 000 note last week and indeed, it is of poor quality and appears to have been printed on something like bond paper. It also doesn’t have raised font or the silver security strip and watermark that have been the usual security features. But until today it has been possible to transact with it. First it was the hwindis (conductors). They are no longer considering the $20 000 note as legal tender. Unfortunately for them a lot of us had that note and we’d gone such a distance that either dropping us all off or taking us all back to the taxi rank would have been a loss either way. The hwindi eventually capitulated on taking the notes muttering under his breath that as soon as he can he will deposit the money in a bank.

While it is commendable citizen activism the flyers may spark alarm and despondency. The flyers were strewn all over the city from taxi ranks to shopping centres such that those who initially hadn’t closely analyzed the $20 000 note are all going to start shunning it. Now this is a disaster because that’s what the banks are churning out and one cannot exactly consider the option of re-depositing because of the hassle getting it in the first place and there is no guarantee of getting 10s next time. In any case, who wants to deal with tellers who are always on go slow and probably orchestrate the formation of the long bank queues in order to work overtime to reap the benefits?

When bearer cheques were first introduced in 2003 people blasted them for their insulting poor quality and very existence but not to the extent of actually not recognizing them as legal tender. If the people lose faith in the national currency, it spells disaster. One of the fundamental principles of a good economy is that the people have confidence in it. Most Zimbabweans know the security features of the US dollar better than their own money. In fact, they can tell a fake from a real one and actually know which year that country printed new notes.

It is nauseating to think that some people can just play games with a country’s whole economy and get away with it. What will it take for the man who sits at the helm of our central bank to admit failure and resign?

It really is a shame. The Shona version of the People to People flyer concludes by saying: Nderipi zita idzva reBhanga guru renyika? Rinonzi Zeroes Acre! Loosely translated: What is the new name for country’s central bank? It is called the Zeroes Acre! Indeed.

What we’ve been reduced to

del.icio.us TRACK TOP
Thursday, October 2nd, 2008 by Natasha Msonza

Bank queuing has become the major occupation of my early mornings and lunch hours. For me and a lot of other people, it has become necessary to open multiple bank accounts to get around the pathetic withdrawal limits that the central bank has been insisting upon. Although the maximum withdrawal was recently increased from the pathetic $1000 to another pathetic $20 000, this has not eased the demand for cash in the slightest bit, despite Gono’s reassurance in yesterday’s Herald newspaper that the cash situation will improve significantly and the backlog will be cleared. People’s money loses value every minute thus there is no motivation to keep it a second longer in the bank if people can help it. There will therefore always be a backlog as long as Gono and his henchmen do not come up with some viable fiscal policies that will check the ravaging inflation.

I’ve found that I despise bank queues. More and more I dread the indignity of standing in disorderly queues in order to get my hard-earned money. I mean, it’s not out of the ordinary for people to stand in queues worldwide, but the ones in Zimbabwe have a way of getting to you. There are all sorts of strange things going on that often make you wonder just how long the country can go on like this before it bursts at the seams.

It is hateful how the frustrating queues have eaten away at society’s moral fabric. Yesterday I watched a small group of angry men literally drag out one old man who had rejoined the queue, arguing they didn’t recognize him and that he was trying to use his age to jump the queue. Not so long ago it was the norm to give way to the old and frail, the pregnant and those who were obviously not in good health or had some sort of an emergency. Nowadays, everyone is just so tired of the daily onslaught of waiting and waiting, sometimes with a real chance of the cash running out before being served that they have completely lost all patience and sense of kindness. Those of ill health just have to get well again, or bring a wrapper to sit on while they wait their turn.

I particularly detest moments when I find myself stuck between two men. My last experience was quite unpleasant with people shoving this way and that and I could feel the man behind me press unashamedly into the small of my back with an extended section of his anatomy. Ordinarily one would stand slightly outside the queue with just one’s foot placed to mark one’s spot. But that is risky because when the self-important guards come to ‘control’ the queue, they shed off anyone who is not in single file with others.

Then there are those that just don’t bother to bath anymore even with the improved weather conditions we are now experiencing. I make it habit of queuing first thing in the morning at one of my banks and it is no longer surprising to catch a whiff of stale sweat and other things only known to God from some of the people queuing. It used to annoy me so much until I figured that sometimes, it is a reality that some people actually lack both soap and water to wash their bodies with; some would even have walked such long distances the bath they would have had in the morning makes no difference.

Above all these concerns is that a lot of productive time is being lost while people queue for money. I know almost all the staff working for one small company located at Newlands shopping centre that I was surprised one day to see them all in a bank queue and wondered who had remained to serve their customers. It is something of a catch-22 really. They are pressed by the need to get cash that will transport them to and from work the next day as well as the need to stay at their workstations as desired by employers. At the end of the day that explains why there is a lot of anger, bad mood and stress going round. It’s infectious.

I’ve taken to religiously making sure my MP3 player’s batteries are well charged for waiting so long in the queues. I play the music full blast and though it makes me appear unfriendly it saves me a lot of stress. When I listen to Regina Belle’s In Love Again – some of the words stand out though I dare not share them with my angry, frustrated fellow queuers:

Do you ever dream do you even know how tomorrow is another day,
Will we be in the same place in the same way?
Don’t wanna leave but it seems that I just can’t breathe
Maybe we need a change,
Coz we always complain about the same things.
If we agree to change – will it be for good or will we be back here again?

State of emergency in Zimbabwe

del.icio.us TRACK TOP
Friday, September 19th, 2008 by Natasha Msonza

Yesterday I spent close to 2 hours in and out of a bank queue trying to withdraw my $1000 for the day. I stood so long I began to shiver slightly from both hunger pangs and exhaustion. Soon as I got my one leaf, I proceeded straight to Libby’s and bought myself hot chips for exactly $1000. They were the cheapest meal on the menu. I told my partner and since then he won’t stop making fun of me. He says it’s a whole new meaning to the term hand-to-mouth. It’s simply ridiculous and defeats logic that I spent so long to get such little cash and when I did, I immediately used it all on lunch. The reasoning was had I not spent so long in the queue, I wouldn’t have felt faint in the first place. Which makes me think of the way South African politics work. When they feel someone is not doing their job properly, they shout from the rooftops if they have to and actively advocate having that person removed with immediate effect. Currently, that is what’s happening to President Mbeki, despite his so-called victory on the Zimbabwe mediation.

Recently the ANC mass mobilized to demand that all charges against Jacob Zuma be dropped citing unfair treatment by the NPA. They went out of their way to demonstrate in front of the courts, they even threatened to ‘crush’ anyone who blocked Zuma’s path to the presidency. Frankly it was my first time to witness a group of people actually advocate for a criminal to be set free. The courts probably gave in and acquitted Zuma, and now the heat has been turned onto Mbeki. The ANC is blatantly and unashamedly using the ANCYL President Julius Malema to communicate the fact that Mbeki is no longer wanted within the ANC and to demand his resignation. Although Malema does this under the banner of representing the position of the youth league even those with half a brain can figure out that the silence of the ANC whiteheads speaks of their collective opinion.

Although I do not completely subscribe to the ANC strategy of doing things I sometimes wish we had similar kinds of behavior in Zimbabwe, more so within the ruling party. That’s the way a democracy should be, for the people, and not the individual to be in control of things and to decide who stays and who goes. But in Zimbabwe, it is taboo and even if some members of the politburo were disgruntled about the leadership, they would never dare to explicitly register their disapproval. I guess it’s a question of socialization and this culture of inherent resignation threatens to prevail over all deliberations in this country as long as Bob lives.

Right now barely 48 hours after the contentious signing of the agreement, another deadlock has been reported over the allocation of Ministries and who gets what portfolio. Those clowns squabbling about whether or not the key ministries of Finance, Agriculture, Foreign affairs, Local government, Justice and Information should still be under Zanu PF patronage or not is the last thing we need. It has been as plain as day that the previous cabinet, which by the way, Mugabe himself called the worst ever, failed to run this country and its clear that for any economic progress to prevail, such posts must exchange hands into those of younger, more capable ones.

As long as Mugabe and his people retain these key positions, this will not only be egg in Tsvangirai’s face but there is absolutely no way this country will turn around. The international community has indicated it is not prepared to inject any funds where there is a likelihood of them being squandered again by the chefs in their insatiable appetite for self-enrichment while intended beneficiaries, who are ordinary Zimbabweans, continue to live in abject poverty. I would suggest that as long as selfish interests still prevail over practicality and simple humanity, Tsvangirai must just call it quits. If he decides to give in to Zanu PF’s impossible demands, then we know we’ve got ourselves another wolf out to fatten his stomach – at the expense of the poor taxpayer.

It worries me how people can spend so much time arguing over what obviously needs to be done when the country is at an advanced state of emergency and needs serious economic rehabilitation. Haven’t these ruling party politicians made enough hay while the Zanu PF sun still shone brightly, especially in the years they looted from the whites under the banners of land reform and reclamation of sovereignty? Have they not stolen enough, even from the mouths of the poor – to last them a lifetime? We desperately need a change of tactics and Tsvangirai and his people are our only hope so far. Only the selfishness of an egotistic few now stands between Zimbabweans and the road to economic renewal. This arrangement will only work when individuals involved are prepared to do without unnecessary opulence and to work together for the benefit of the majority.

My deal wish list

del.icio.us TRACK TOP
Wednesday, September 17th, 2008 by Natasha Msonza

So. They have finally agreed to something.

Like everyone, I am just waiting to see the viability of the DEAL. I am just finding it a bit hard to be optimistic momentarily because for starters I know too well the people we are dealing with. I know there is a chance of somebody reneging on their role in the agreement simply because they have done it before and that is my biggest worry. Like President Tsvangirai (doesn’t yet smoothly roll off the tongue); we are gonna have to trust Mugabe.

Well, since this DEAL is supposedly in the name of the ordinary people, I have a few things that I’d like to see evolve from this agreement. Some of them are touched upon and promised in the agreement:

-A practical and sustainable economic recovery plan and fiscal policies that will gain back the trust of international donors and investors and see an end to food shortages plus restoration of public services. They can start with booting out Mr Gono, if the rumor that he’s quitting is not true. It would also be nice to have a reasonable daily cash withdrawal limit that actually takes you to work and back.

-Cessation of intolerance of divergent political orientation and the respect and upholding of the rights to freedoms of speech and association.

-An end to chaotic land grabs by so-called chefs and a plausible land audit to hold anyone sitting on idle land accountable. We need farmers who know what they are doing else we’ll continue to starve and beg.

-The setting up of a Truth commission should be in the offing to bring justice for victims of traumatic violence that characterized the contentious elections. This may only be done after more immediate needs like economic revival, but a lot of Zimbabweans hope for justice in a new Zimbabwe.

-A complete overhaul of the health sector with a possible replacement of the long-serving Minister of Health Dr Parirenyatwa. This time we’d appreciate a minister who is more focused on saving lives instead of threatening to take lives for political gain.

Those are a few among my many wishes, and I have a couple of smaller, more specific ones, like having ZINWA booted out for instance They have failed us miserably and we are just sick (literally) and tired of dirty water.

Above all, I wish that all parties keep their side of the bargain, cooperate and comply with the provisions of the agreement. Otherwise this DEAL is not for me. It would have been all just usual pomp and fanfair for an egotistic few.

Being the miserable pessimist my friends say I am, I’m glad in a way to find that there are several of us out there who just cant trust anymore and are concerned about any equation that equals Bob. History of the 1987 Unity Accord taught us that much. I find a number of people are agreeable to the deal; BUT with conditions. I’ve also heard a couple of whispers that if the MDC did not have something up their sleeve, they wouldn’t have signed. This remains to be seen.

Could it be that possibly the only way of ousting a tyrant is to do it from the inside?

Zimbabweans text their views to Kubatana

del.icio.us TRACK TOP
Tuesday, September 16th, 2008 by Natasha Msonza

Today at Kubatana we sent an SMS to our subscribers asking them what they think about this new deal. We wanted to be able to get a sense of what Zimbabweans are feeling and what they understand about the provisions of the agreement. We got some touching responses, some of which are below:

Real governing powers for MDC. No to cosmetic executive powers!

The agreement is a sad death of democracy & why vote when people can talk. I don’t think we’ll ever have confidence in any election in this country again.

As long as Mugabe does not believe that he is the cause of all the problems and repents, it is not going to work.

We want a working union but those who committed crimes should be brought to book.

Its like mixing fresh & rotten fish but the country has suffered so long maybe it will be better for us.

I think it could soften the blow of the sanctions coz I’m sure most foreign leaders are more than willing to deal with Morgie.

They should not allow Mugabe to retain the powers that he used to torture, kill and traumatize the masses between 29 March and 27 June thereby depriving us of democracy. Our fight 4 the past 9 yrs has been about democracy. So if R.G retains those powers, it’s a raw deal.

I hope the deal will hold & stop the suffering of the general populace.

That’s a good move for a change into a better future.

Ahoy Mr. Prime Minister Ahoy!!!! Congratulations to Mr. MT 4 doing it, now Zimbabwe can be on its feet again. Our hope has been revived now we can look 4ward.

As long the agreement serves the interests of the people and the paves way for free and fair elections in a period they agreed then its okay.

Nothing wrong with the deal but should consider change of the constitution b4 anything and implement what is in the agreement.

It’s the beginning of a long process of exiting Zanu pf, lets accept the deal, we will get there.

Well since it came after extensive consultation, l believe something positive is in the making.