Taking action against a Typhoid outbreak, which to date has had 900 reported cases, the City of Harare hastily dispatched Municipal Police to contain the spread of the disease by closing down Mereki, a popular braai spot in Warren Park. So far city and government health officials have named fish, raw meat sold in butcheries and fruits and vegetables for sale from open air vendors and people’s markets as vectors of the Salmonella Typhi bacterium. Authorities even went so far as to issue a statement saying that water was not the problem in this outbreak. According to the World Health Organisation, water, or in this case the lack of it, is the cause of a typhoid outbreak.

Water and sanitation delivery services have been poor at best and nonexistent at worst in all of the areas affected by Typhoid. Health officials report that cases have been found in Chitungwiza, Epworth, Dzivarasekwa, Budiriro and Warren Park. The epicentre of the outbreak is said to be in Kuwadzana. Residents of all these areas have complained vociferously to anyone who would listen about erratic water delivery, sewerage flowing unabated in the streets, zero refuse collection by the city and the decrepit state of their public ablution facilities. Given this set of circumstances it is surprising that outbreak is not more severe.

Addressing members of the police force undertaking diploma studies Police Deputy-Commissioner General Levie Sibanda, said:

“The organisation does not take lightly acts of misdemeanour and those found wanting should be dealt with accordingly.”

For once the Herald does not exaggerate when it states the ZRP is merely ‘concerned’. It’s all very well to say this at a ceremony, but what action is being taken? Which officers are under investigation for soliciting bribes, excessive use of force and dereliction of duty?

Read the full article here

Here’s an excerpt from an interview I’ve just done with the Executive Director of the Southern African Parliamentary Support Trust, John Makamure:

You work with both Civil Society and Parliament. For a very long time Civil Society has been advocating for media freedom, but obviously the legislative environment does not allow for this. Why do you think civil society is not lobbying parliamentarians directly to introduce the Private Member Bills that would change this?

I am also very concerned that our civil society friends are not taking advantage of the democratic space available in Parliament. Advocacy requires that you exploit any opportunities that are available. We have supported quite a number of public hearings that are conducted by committees in Parliament. We fund those. And we try to send out information to members of civic society. But the response has been very poor on some public policy matters, which we believe would be relevant to those organisations. We don’t understand the apathy. We need civic society to engage Parliament more and work with the committees and individual members to improve the public policy environment.

SW Radio Africa (London) reports that ‘Hundreds turned out for the Global Free Zimbabwe protests’. The protests were organised by MDC-T in an effort to pressure the South African government and SADC to ensure that ZANU PF is forced to honour the Global Political Agreement.

Zimbabwe vigil organiser, Rose Benton explained to SW Radio Africa that the London part of the protests was ‘a very big success’. The Zimbabwean community in London is estimated to number 100 000 and is largely concentrated in London. An estimated 300 gathered for the protest there.

It is estimated that millions of Zimbabweans reside outside the country’s borders. However, globally, less than 1000 people participated. Success, I suppose, is relative.

As one half of government and a party to the GPA itself, I wonder at the naiveté shown by the organisers of the protests. There is no denying that ZANU PF has stymied implementation of the GPA. But after having fought for democracy for so long, I would have hoped that MDC-T might have formulated a different strategy that best utilises the tools they have at hand. Contrary to what the MDC-T would have Zimbabweans in the Diaspora believe, it is not entirely powerless in government. Combined all the MDC factions hold a majority in both houses of Parliament. Given these circumstances it is surprising that key provisions to the GPA such as amendments to POSA and AIPPA are yet to be passed into law.

Like ZANU PF, MDC-T has consistently failed to deliver on its promises to the people of Zimbabwe. These protests are nothing more than a mass diversion to take away attention from the real issues and dissociate that party from the mess it too has made of this transitional period. Moreover, MDC-T has gotten into the disturbing habit of looking for a big brother in its fight with ZANU PF. The MDC-T persists in appealing to an international community that is largely fatigued of the Zimbabwean situation and is plagued by its own problems. By doing so, MDC-T plays directly into the hands of ZANU PF who accuse the party’s leadership of letting their decisions be made by foreign ambassadors. Acquiring power is a struggle in itself, the difficulties of which should never be underestimated. No amount of hand-wringing and petition signing is going to make it any easier. After years of South African mediation and questionable sanctions, none of which have been effective in wresting power from ZANU PF, MDC-T really should know better. And if that party cannot hold its own, it shouldn’t be in the ring.

John Makumure writes in Newsday:

Many people must be wondering what has happened to the Public Order and Security Amendment (Posa) Bill that made history as the first private member Bill to be successfully introduced and passed by the House of Assembly.

The short answer is the Bill is stuck in the Senate after Zanu PF senators refused to pass it, arguing this was a matter negotiators to the Global Political Agreement (GPA) were seized with.

The Posa Amendment Bill seeks to make it easier for citizens to enjoy their civil liberties relating to the right to assemble, gather and demonstrate; curtail powers reposed in the police with respect to public gatherings; to clarify persons intending to demonstrate are required to notify the police and not to seek permission; and to ensure the police will be held to account in all cases where they use force to break public gatherings.

Read the rest of his article here

I had a conversation with Melania Chiponda from Chiadzwa Community Development Trust yesterday.

This is what I learnt:

Families at Chiadwza are being forcibly relocated by diamond companies while the government and the judicial system look the other way. Here I thought the point of the Third Chimurenga was to restore land dignity to the peoples of this country. Mining companies have not bothered to hold consultations with the community about relocation; in fact the community found out they were being moved off their land in the newspapers. They have been given a relocation allowance of $1000. They have yet to receive compensation.

The first twelve families to be relocated by mining companies at Chiadzwa were moved into tobacco barns, until there were protests, upon which mining companies began building houses. 89 of the houses built by Anjin for the families they will be relocating were destroyed by the first storm of the rainy season last November. More were damaged.

Companies with majority government shareholding like Marange Resources are easier to negotiate with and more generous towards the community than those which are privately owned like Mbada or Anjin. It’s crazy that Mbada can spend a million dollars on a football tournament to better its public image, yet is miserly with the food packs they give the community and is among the major perpetrators of violence and human rights abuses against the community. The biggest perpetrator of human rights abuses is the police. When CCDT tried to discuss the matter with Police Commissioner Chihuri he was conveniently busy.

Chiadzwa is a dry area, and the little water the community has access to is being polluted by mining companies. Last year four men were detained and beaten by the police for digging for water in their own back yard. One of them died at the hands of a police officer. The other three sustained severe injuries. The police officer responsible for the beatings and murder has never been arrested.

The community doesn’t actually object to the mining or selling of diamonds, they just want it done in a way that their rights as human beings are also respected.

I’m angry. You should be too.