‘Aliens’ to vote” was a catchy headline in a daily paper today. I think these so-called Aliens would rejoice if the headline would read “Aliens exempted from paying tax in Zimbabwe.” After 33 years of independence as a nation should we continue to classify other people under the banner of aliens? Who are these aliens? Are they black or white? Having parents of foreign origin or being born in a foreign land automatically puts one in the bracket of  “aliens”. These are people who have been labeled to have no totem at one point and who lived in the squashed urban settlements of Zimbabwe. An operations was launched a couple of years ago to cleanse the urban settlements from  “aliens”, but almost 8 years on “aliens” have developed a mentality of resisting in order to exist and to be recognized.

Also if you speak a foreign language with no fixed abode moving from one mine or farm to another looking for menial jobs your ID reflecting “A” you are not spared from the branding either. This alien brand went as far as making those with British roots join the renouncing queue at Registrar General’s Offices. After the economic meltdown of 2008 the even to the so-called original Zimbabweans ran for cover in foreign countries and they became bitter after being treated to the Alien brand which forced them back home. Imagine if you cannot stand to be called alien for four years how about someone who had to endure it for 33 years.

With the referendum over and expectations of new constitution it seems like “aliens” have all of a sudden become a special group which every politician is giving special mention so that their right to vote which was stolen some time back can be restored.  For the past 33 years “aliens” have been contributing to Zimbabwe’s economic growth under harsh working conditions in mines, farms, industries, now most these aliens’ children have become educated professionals and are now part of the systems running this great nation. Some of these “aliens” have gone to represent the nation in sports and some have become successful business people and all we have been hearing were praises for Zimbabwe and not “aliens”. These are our brothers and sisters who have been used for so many years to toyi toyi in the street campaigning for various political parties only to be denied that right to vote in an election because they are “aliens”. Even to get travel documents is still a hassle for them because they have to go through a rigorous process of renouncing some foreign citizenship. Election time is the only time when “aliens” get recognition and this time if they are allowed to vote those hopes are high that they will be recognized as Zimbabweans, not space invaders like what some people think.

Coming home from the range on Sunday, about 1600, along Arden Rd through Gunhill I cross Borrowdale road, and get pulled over by the police. Officer takes my license and walks around the pickup. Eventually gets back to say, “let me tell you what your offences are.” All well and good, but since I have been driving it since 1997, and nothing is altered since it was constructed at Willowvale, I have to wonder, “What now?”

Something about no Gross Vehicle Mass displayed. “Since when?”

“2010.”

Well, they slipped that in without telling me. So, fine to be paid. But I have no money, I am coming home from a Sunday out, and I spent the $1 I took with me on a Mail and Guardian. There is nothing in my wallet.

“Park over there behind the police car, we are going to Borrowdale Police Station.” All well and good, I move the truck, and sit there reading the Mail and Guardian. (This new Zimbabwe edition is damn good I think!) Eventually there is a queue of vehicles behind me, and we are about to set off, I believe. But no, a different policeman goes from car to car, and eventually, after all producing money (I watch in the rear view mirror), they all drive off. Just me left.

“Is it you have no money, or you just don’t want to pay a fine?” (Well, that’s a stupid question, who does want to pay a fine?) “No, I have no money”, and I show how empty my wallet is. I have also watched while sitting, at a minimum of three vehicles drive past, without being stopped, who also have no Gross Vehicle Mass displayed. I guess the law passed by them unnoticed too.

You can see the officer mentally grumbling. “Well, this time I will let you off with a caution, don’t do it again” (By ‘it’ I assume he means get stopped without any money, because he has no idea what the ‘offence’ is). He gives me back my license.

Tuesday, I am coming home from Newlands (on a bike) and have to negotiate to get across Borrowdale Road as the lights are not working. Chaos! But not to worry, the police are there. And yet, not there. The police are in the same place, Swan Drive, just west and in sight of the intersection, puling cars over. There are no police at the intersection attempting to direct traffic, or anything remotely useful. There are six of them, 25 meters away, pulling cars over.

It could not be more blatantly obvious, more ‘in your face’, up front, glaring. The ZRP are not around to provide a service (like law and order) to Zimbabwean citizens. The ZRP are there to take money from people.

After fighting so hard to move into his new residence in the plushy suburbs of Harare, Zimbabwean Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai was reported to be securing his future by offering to buy the house from the government at a whopping price tag of 4.5 million US Dollars. The Prime Minister’s office quickly rubbished the report claiming that the PM has the right to buy the house but is yet to do that because he does not have the money.

But looking at both ways he can still make an offer and buy the house and most likely the price range is in the millions considering it was renovated with a loan of over 1.5 million dollars. This is a house which has been at the center of controversy with allegations of corruption in the loan allocation and which Mai Tsvangirai worked so hard to decorate with a kitchen suite reported to be worth over 40 000 US$. Taking it from the gospel of prosperity being preached in many churches these days some may say that as the Prime Minister he deserves to be associated with everything that glitters. From Hollywood style marriage celebrations to living in mansions. Who knows soon he will be having a chopper for his campaign in the next harmonized elections. The offer to buy the house comes at the time when legislators have also filed golden handshake demands in the form of stands, cars and cash as exit packages.  Whether the mansion will be the new state house or a retirement home for the Prime Minister it remains to be seen. It is up to the electorate to approve demands of such a tasty lifestyle.

The ‘war’ between kombi drivers and police officers has been going on for so long and because there is nobody to police the police, the ordinary citizens are suffering. Over the recent years police have been using forceful means to deal with public transport drivers in the country. From smashing of windscreens to Hollywood movie style chases this has been the order of the day. These forceful means have fallen short as citizens are harmed or lose their lives. There are reports of incidents of police smashing windscreens and injuring passengers. I have witnessed such incidents. Just when we thought this was bad enough the kombi operator-police war has yielded the unbearable – death. As kombi drivers try to escape from police officers they do so at full speed and in so doing go against road rules and place the life of other motorists and pedestrians at risk. In the past two months two people lost their lives in such scenarios at the Copacabana rank alone. The most recent was of an old lady who was dragged under a kombi for more than 100 metres leading to her death. The kombi was running away from a police officer.

Death is something never prepared for, but for anyone to die in this manner is more painful than the word painful itself. Even if the driver gets a life sentence or a death penalty the root cause of the problem will not have been addressed. For kombi operators and the police officers it’s now  ‘a mice sees cat game’ at the risk of passengers, pedestrians and other motorists. On one hand, the mice don’t care how they will run away from the cat, as long as they don’t get caught. On the other hand, the cat will use all the powers vested in him to chase the mice. But then again at the centre of all this fight, is a mother on her way to work, a boy on his way to school, an old lady on her way to her rural home crossing the street unaware that a mouse is on the run and that their life might end. For how long will we watch lives being lost at the hands of this cat-mice fight?

Independence Day Competition: Make your mark!

Kubatana is offering a prize of $100 for the most creative submission commenting on Independence Day. Submissions can include poetry, prose, a very short film, original art, a design for a sticker that we might take further, a photograph . . . you get the idea. We encourage you to think outside of the box! Don’t be shy, let it all out. A delivery of 33 cupcakes with Zimbabwean flags stuck in them might win our hearts but not The Money – hmmm, you choose!

How?
You can email your submission to: info [at] kubatana [dot] net
If your submission is an unusual shape or size and is impossible to submit over the Interweb, then get in touch on the same email address and we’ll work something out.

Deadline: 26 April, 3pm Kubatana time
Please include your name, and phone number

Amnesty International welcomes Vladimir Putin to Amsterdam.

Via this isn’t happiness