Price US$1 Friday 1 December 2023 NEWS Chivayo scores another victory in solar project Story on Page 7 NEWS Zec must address election management shortcomings WHAT’S Story on Page 16 INSIDE SPORT AN ABSOLUTE DISGRACE TO THE WHOLE NATION Story on Page 54 ALSO INSIDE Minister expresses El Niño fears Masaya killers roam the streets Nicholas "Big Daddy" Kajese, a CIO agent stationed at Harare Central Police Station, was involved in CCC MP Takudzwa Ngadziore abduction. The same CIO Ferret Team is said to have killed Masaya.
Page 2 News NewsHawks Issue 159, 1 December 2023 OWEN GAGARE AS police and Parirenyatwa Hospital staff called in the exhausted and anxious search team into a morgue, slain main opposition CCC activist Pastor Tapfumaneyi Masaya’s son was struck with horror. He was shaken to the core, a bundle of nerves. Police and hospital medical staff deal in dead bodies. It comes with the territory. A dead body marks a staggering awakening of reality, and finality at best. It embodies death. Facing his father’s body hit him hard. But that was not the only problem: The body, which reportedly was injected with some toxic substance, was naked, mutilated and battered beyond recognition. The face was crushed. His private parts were tied with a wire. The body was decomposing. The cruelty with which he was murdered was gruesome. As Masaya’s son inched closer, he looked horrified. He looked at the body and failed to identify it. He tried to look at the boot the deceased was wearing, but no clue could be seen. The son initially said it was not him. So the search party led by Mabvuku Ward 21 councillor Alexio Nyakudya had to dig deeper into more creative and cerebral ways of identifying the body. A member of the team, Tonderai Dombo, spoke to The NewsHawks about the macabre situation and the atmosphere of horror which enveloped the group at Parirenyatwa. “It was a horrifying event. We had received a call from a contact person in the funeral parlour while we were still at Chabwino farm searching for his body because we feared he had been killed. The person said we should rush to Parirenyatwa Hospital because a body had arrived with CCC regalia,” Dombo said. “We rushed there. Police and hospital staff checked our IDs [national identity numbers] and then allowed us in. Me and Masaya’s son remained outside chatting while others went in. They failed to identify him. So the son had to go in to help. Horror-struck, he also failed. At one point, he said it was not him. We were sceptical and tried to look for more clues. The body was battered beyond recognition. He had one shoe on him, but that did not help either.” Nyakudya and his team then enquired from police — who had found the body and taken it to Parirenyatwa — where the clothes were. They were then told they had been taken to Rhodesville Police Station in Harare. So the search party went there. “We left Parirenyatwa and went to Rhodesville late afternoon on Monday November 13 — the very day we had done the search at the farm where we thought he could have been dumped like former Mabvuku MP James Chidhakwa on 23 October. We spoke to the police about the issue. They agreed to show us the clothes. Nyakudya was shown the clothes — the CCC overalls he was wearing; a T-shirt with recalled MP Munyaradzi Kufahakutizwi emblazoned on it. That brought the reality home that Masaya was indeed gone. At that point we were almost 100% sure it was him, although we still needed DNA tests to confirm, especially because George Charamba [President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s spokesperson] came up with a bizarre theory that we had stolen a body to make a political case. “From there we went where he had started the day – at Kufahakutizwi’s home. Masaya was abducted while campaigning for the recalled MP. We had left people gathered. So we had to go back to inform the people. We also went to Masaya’s home to inform his family about what had happened. We had left his wife at Kufahakutizwi’s house, but by that time we returned she had left. We informed her and she looked devastated. We then planned events for the following day, including taking the wife to Parirenyatwa. That’s where the DNA was later done using material from the sister to confirm beyond reasonable doubt it was him. From there preparations for the funeral and burial were done. It was a disturbing situation and experience. No one deserves to die that way. It was brutal, cruel and barbaric. You can even begin to imagine how a peaceful man like Pastor Masaya went through during his last moments through the gruesome murder.” Meanwhile, Masaya’s family, relatives and friends expected the police to play their part beyond just recovering the body. Police investigation goals include preserving the crime scene and gathering evidence, establishing the victim's identity, determining cause and time of death, finding and interviewing witnesses, reconstructing the victim's last hours or days, establishing suspect identities, locating suspects, and arresting suspects and preparing for prosecution. Investigators must consider homicide statistics, types of homicides, and methods of committing homicide during this stage. Tactics used in the investigation relate to the initial police response, suspect handling, victim identification, forensic medical examination, evidence collection, and media relations. Even though police were given names of the suspects, they have done next to nothing about it. So the suspects are still roaming the streets scot-free despite that police were given the names of the Zanu PF-connected assailants, some of them with links to the ruling party candidate in the looming Mabvuku-Tafara by-election Pedzai "Scott" Sakupwanya. A number of by-elections will take place on 9 December after recalls of CCC MPs, senators and councillors by opposition activist Sengezo Tshabangu who fraudulently claims to be the party’s interim secretary-general. Tshabangu’s action, aided and abetted by Zanu PF, Parliament and the judiciary, as well state security agents, has given the ruling party an opportunity to secure a twothirds parliamentary majority amid President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s secret plans for a third term. A two-thirds majority will help Zanu PF amend the constitution and change it where necessary to facilitate the process strongly Masaya's gruesome murder horror Members of the late Pastor Tapfumaneyi Masaya's family, relatives and friends, as well CCC offcials, before they went on a search mission for his body.
NewsHawks News Page 3 1ssue 159, 1 December 2023 opposed by Vice-President Constantino Chiwenga and his political allies. Soon after Masaya was abducted, the CCC activists in Mabvuku gave police the names of four suspects However, 23 days later no one has been arrested and there has been little interest to get down to the bottom of the murder saga. Tapfumaneyi was abducted together with his fellow activist Jeffrey Kalosi on 11 November during the party’s by-elections campaign. Kalosi was severely beaten and dumped hours later at Chabwino Farm not far from the area where Tapfumaneyi’s body was found the following day. A police statement issued on Monday confirmed the discovery of a body a day earlier on Sunday, but they maintained the body had not been positively identified. “The ZRP is conducting investigations in connection with the location of a body at the intersection of Arcturus Road and Lobo Road in the Cleveland area of Harare on November 12,” national police spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi said. “The identity of the victim is yet to be established. More details will be released in due course as investigations unfold.” The body was then identified by Masaya’s son and his wife. Initially they struggled and failed to identify the body as it was battered beyond recognition. The only clue that indicated it was him were the clothes. DNA later confirmed the situation. Assistant Commissioner Nyathi refused to comment on progress made in investigations when The NewsHawks called. He said he was preparing a public statement on the matter which would be posted on the police's X social media page. Police later released a statement saying investigations were still in progress although he said indications were that “this is purely a murder case.” “The Zimbabwe Republic Police wishes to appeal to the public or politicians to allow investigations to proceed normally without any form of distraction or interference. Current investigations, though still in motion, indicates that this purely a murder case,” Nyathi said. Soon after the body’s discovery, Masaya’s widow Maria Zhuwao told The NewsHawks she was shocked by the state it was in. “I almost could not recognise him, he was naked, his body was swollen, but his shoes sold him out and I knew that the body that lay lifeless at the mortuary at Parirenyatwa was my husband,” a distraught Zhuwao said. Zhuwao explained in utter disbelief how a man she left on the morning of Saturday 12 November 2023, well and alive, was found at the corner of Arcturus Road and Lobo Road in the Cleveland area, cold, mutilated and lifeless two days later. “I left him in the house in the morning like we would do any other day and he told me that he would be going to the door-todoor campaign. He was asking me why I was going to work, but I wanted to go to work. Part of me was not keen to go, but I encouraged myself to go, hoping to see my husband when I returned home,” said Zhuwao. This was the last time they were to see each other and embrace each other as was custom in their household. “When I returned at around 6pm, I checked the ground where they used to meet, hoping to see a crowd, but I did not see anyone, so I decided to rush home so that I would see him and ask him how the door-to-door campaign had played out. As I reached home, I saw four women under our tree and I asked them how the day went and they said it didn’t go well, people were beaten,” said the grieving widow. At that moment, she was yet to discover the shocking revelation of her husband’s disappearance. “The four women followed me inside the house and they said my husband and his friend Jeff had been taken by men who were in an unmarked vehicle. They said that both of them were blindfolded and thoroughly beaten by their abductors,” said Zhuwao as she tried to put the events in chronological order. He did not survive the beatings. Masaya’s murder was roundly condemned by human rights organisations. A joint statement by Amnesty International, Southern Defenders and Human Rights Watch released on 15 November called on the Zimbabwean government to immediately address the escalating cases of abductions, arbitrary detention, torture and killing of parliament members, opposition political activists and human rights defenders. “The authorities should urgently take effective measures to prevent these grave human rights violations, bring those suspected to be responsible to justice, and ensure access for survivors and victims to justice and effective remedies,” the human rights organisations said. “Following the August 2023 general elections, government security forces have systematically attacked human rights defenders, activists and members of the main opposition party, Citizens’ Coalition for Change (CCC). The elections had been marred by reports of irregularities, including voter intimidation, the arrest of civil society organization staff members, and interference with the internet.” The organisations noted that Zimbabwe had a long history of human rights violations surging during election periods, including abductions and enforced disappearances, arbitrary detention, and excessive use of force by police. They condemned Masaya’s murder and the kidnaping and torture of fellow activist Jeffrey Kalosi during the party’s by-elections campaign. Kalosi was severely beaten and dumped hours later at Chabwino Farm not far from the area where Tapfumanei’s body was found days later. The organisations noted that on 26 August, suspected state security agents disrupted a CCC news conference and attempted to abduct its national spokesperson, Promise Mkwananzi. Mkwananzi was saved by members of the media and other people, including an opposition activist, Nelson Mukwenha. Mukwenha was abducted later that evening at his home. He was tortured and dumped in Mapinga. On 2 September, ward 27 councillor Womberaiishe Nhende and his friend Sanele Mkhuhlane were abducted, tortured and injected with an unknown substance. The organisations also noted that former legislator James Chidhakwa, was abducted and totured on 23 October before beng dumped in Arcturus. Legislator Takudzwa Ngadziore was abducted near his home in Harare before being tortured and dumped in Mazowe he however recorded his abductors, but the police failed to take action. The organisations expressed concern that Zimbabwe had a history of unresolved cases of forced disappearances, including that of journalist and activist Itai Dzamara in 2015. They condemned the arrest of lawyers, the violation of the constitution and international charters in relation to torture. “Amnesty International, Southern Defenders, and Human Rights Watch therefore call on the government of Zimbabwe to: Conduct prompt, thorough, impartial, independent, effective, and transparent investigations into the abduction and subsequent killing of Tapfumanei Masaya; and cases of abductions, arbitrary detention, enforced disappearances, torture and other ill-treatment, and injection of foreign substances into activists and opposition political party members; “Ensure that anyone suspected to be responsible for these serious violations of human rights is brought to justice in fair trial. The government must also ensure access to justice and effective remedies, including quality medical and psycho-social (mental health) support, for survivors and victims; “Put an end to violations of human rights and take concrete and effective measures to respect, protect, promote and fulfil the human rights of everyone in the country, as required by Zimbabwe’s constitution and international human rights treaties to which Zimbabwe is a state party,” the statement said. Slain main opposition CCC activist Pastor Tapfumaneyi Masaya's family, relatives and friends combing the bush in Chabwino Farm on the outskirts of Harare for his body in 13 September 2023.
BRENNA MATENDERE ZIMBABWE'S deputy Industry and Commerce minister Roy Bhila was fired last week over corrupt issues involving cement import licences — money-spinning permits — and the secret charging of "facilitation fees" in the process by ministry officials in cahoots with business traders, official sources have told The NewsHawks. To exacerbate the situation, Bhila, who is MP for Chiredzi North, Masvingo, was secretly recorded saying President Emmerson Mnangagwa is on his way out as his co-deputy Constantino Chiwenga gradually manoeuvres to position himself as his successor in 2018 or before. Chiwenga's rise, expected by some, will prevent an amendment of the constitution and third term plot by Mnangagwa and his political allies. Insiders say Mnangagwa, officially 81 but in reality 85, has third term ambitions and is surreptitiously manoeuvring to stay on beyond 2028. That is why Zanu PF, which failed to get absolute parliamentary control during the recent August general elections, is desperate to secure a twothirds majority through the backdoor to change the constitution to facilitate that. The ruling party is currently capitalising on opposition activist Sengezo Tshabangu's fraudulent recalls to cause by-elections to push for a twothirds majority. Official sources say Bhila was dismissed for those two reasons. "Bhila was fired for abusing cement import permits and attendant corruption activities associated with that. The issuance of those permits, which are money-spinning instruments, was accompanied by payment of facilitation fees for the personal benefit of the ministry's officials and those that they work in cahoots with," an official source said. "Besides corruption, politics also contributed to Bhila's dismissal. He was recorded telling the grassroots in his constituency in Chiredzi that Mnangagwa is on his way out and Chiwenga is coming in. He was specifically recorded as saying 'mudhara haasina basa as power is shifting to Chiwenga and people are now aligning themselves with him. Chiwenga is the future'. This was viewed as an attempt to incite subversion and a revolt against Mnangagwa's leadership. This is a manifestation of factionalism, infighting and succession battles. The unresolved leadership question in Zanu PF and government after the coup has not gone away." Mnangagwa recently warned those plotting against him that he was always ahead of them because he set up the country's security architecture and structures that are still loyal to him, hence keeping him in power. He has also said no one will stage a coup against him. The President's authorised biography Emmerson Mnangagwa: A Life of Sacrifice by his informal adviser Eddie Cross says in January 2019 Chiwenga tried to impose a state of emergency while his boss was away in Russia and other countries in Eastern Europe amid fears of yet another coup. This was during anti-government protests over fuel price increases and other deep economic problems. The book says Zimbabwe Defence Forces commander General Phillip Valerio Sibanda refused to help in overthrowing Mnangagwa who had come in through a coup in November. However, the cement import permits scandal is what immediately got Bhila removed. The political issue exacerbated the situation. Zimbabweans can now freely import. This came as a response to a doubling of prices caused by surging demand and depressed local production. Cement prices were rising on the informal market due to a combination of factors: plant breakdowns and scheduled maintenance at the country’s major cement producers, besides the expiry of import licences. All this happened at a time of record high demand. “The nation is advised that following reports of artificial cement shortage in the market and the spiralling prices cabinet has approved the importation of cement by individuals and companies with free funds,” cabinet said recently. Until December, each individual and company can import a maximum of five tonnes of cement. Cement producers for years lobbied the government to limit imports, saying they could not compete with cheaper imports, given the high cost of production at home. In 2021, the government gazetted Statutory Instrument 89 of 2021, which restricted foreign cement by issuing import licences. Many of these licences have since expired and the government had been reluctant to renew them, causing a shortage. This caused arbitrage and corruption, which ministry officials in cahoots with business are cashing in on. Contacted for comment and upon hearing it was a journalist from The NewsHawks, Bhila said: “Yes its me Bhila. What is your problem?” When the questions were put to him over the reports of corrupt issues involving cement import licences — money-spinning permits — and the secret charging of "facilitation fees" in the process by ministry officials in cahoots with business traders, Bhila breathed in deeply before terminating the phone call after about eight seconds of holding on to the line without speaking. Afterwards, he stopped answering further calls. Why Mnangagwa fired Roy Bhila Page 4 News NewsHawks Issue 159, 1 December 2023 Former deputy Industry and Commerce minister Roy Bhila
NewsHawks News Page 5 1ssue 159, 1 December 2023 THE Zimbabwe Power Company (ZPC) has lost its Supreme Court appeal against a High Court ruling reinstating businessman Wicknell Chivayo’s US$173 million contract to set up a solar plant in Gwanda. This becomes Chivayo and his company Intratrek Zimbabwe’s third victory in this legal dispute this year, also bringing to an end the court battle that has been dragging on for years. In January this year, High Court judge Siyabona Musithu upheld an application by Chivayo who had dragged the Zimbabwe Electricity Supply (Zesa) Holdings subsidiary to court, fighting to have the deal back. The Zimbabwe Power Company (ZPC) withdrew the contract when Chivayo’s firm failed to complete preliminary obligations after being paid US$5.6 million by the power generator. A bid to revive the case by the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) failed again after the businessman and his company were found not guilty and acquitted twice. Before the latest acquittal, Justice Musithu had ruled in favour of Chivayo, reinstating the contract. However, the matter in which h3 was demanding US$22 million in damages for defamation was not dealt with. Chivayo, through his company Intratrek Zimbabwe had sued ZPC US$22 million for defamation after ZPC caused his arrest. He had also demanded US$3 million compensation for expenses he had incurred between 2013 and 2018 in funding the project. In January this year, Justice Musithu upheld Chivayo’s application before slapping ZPC with costs on a higher scale. Chivayo had argued that the ZPC besmirched him by getting him arrested on fraud allegations emanating from the solar project. The ruling was expected to bring to an end the legal dispute that started in 2015. However, the ZPC filed an appeal at the Supreme Court, complaining that the lower court erred when it ruled in favour of Chivayo. The ZPC’s appeal was heard by the bench comprising justices Lavender Makoni, George Chiweshe and Joseph Musakwa who dismissed it with costs. “The Supreme Court has dismissed the appeal by the Zimbabwe Power Company. “You will recall that the High Court had made a finding that the contract between Intratrek and ZPC was valid and subsisting and that it had not been properly cancelled and that specific performance must be granted. “ZPC had appealed to the Supreme Court, contending that the contract had been validly cancelled and terminated by the passage of time. "They'd alleged certain breaches on the part of Intratrek. The Supreme Court found this to be without merit. “It found that the High Court properly exercised its discretion in the assessment of the evidence that was before it and correctly came to the finding that specific performance ought to be granted. “As a result, therefore, the appeal was dismissed. What this means is that the Gwanda solar project will have to go on and Intratrek will have to undertake that work in accordance with the judgement of the High Court," said Advocate Lewis Uriri who was representing Chivayo and his company. Before the Supreme Court, the ZPC through its lawyer Daniel Tivadar insisted that Chivayo did not fulfil the contract hence the High Court erred when it ruled that the contract was binding and valid. Tivadar said the project was supposed to have been completed in 2019. “It’s common cause that the respondents have not satisfied the conditions precedent and what they cannot tell this court is that we were going to fulfil the project. There is no evidence; that’s the simple point,” said Tivadar. Uriri insisted that evidence by his client before the lower court was not contested. “So the appeal is with no merit and ought to be dismissed in its entirety with costs,” said Uriri. The agreement between the ZPC and Intratrek was signed subsequent to a successful tender bid, for the engineering, procurement, and construction of a 1 00-megawatt Gwanda Solar Power Station Project. Intratrek was awarded as the lowest compliant bidder to specification out of six bidders at a cost of US$173 million. Arguing his case before the High Court, Chivayo said if given another chance, he is going to complete the first phase of the 100MW project in half a year. Chivayo submitted that people should not be too shocked over delays in executing projects, saying there was nothing unusual, considering the hostile Zimbabwean economy. “There is nothing unusual with projects taking longer because of a lot of things like the country’s economic sanctions and solvent risks associated with our country,” he said. The businessman said he longed for another opportunity to fulfil what the parties had initially agreed. He said he previously played his part by approaching banks in a bid to fund the projects and did nothing wrong. Chivayo also blamed local media for ruining his dream through publishing stories he insisted were fraught with factual errors. He also revealed that his company paid sub-contractors who did the pre-commencement work after ZPC refused to pay. Meanwhile, the ZPC released a statement in reaction to the Supreme Court ruling, clarifying that the judgement does not mean the state power utility will pay US$22 million for defamation. “The Supreme Court judgement has the effect of upholding the High Court judgement granted by Honourable Justice Musithu in January 2023, in which the Gwanda EPC Contract was found to be still valid and binding on both ZPC and Intratrek Zimbabwe(Private) Limited -(“Intratrek”). “For the avoidance of doubt, the High Court judgement did not award Intratrek damages in the sum of US$22 million as alleged by some online publications or any other sum in damages for that matter. “To the contrary, the High Court only granted an order for specific performance, which in simple terms requires parties to perform their respective obligations under the EPC Contract. “Considering that the Supreme Court is the final Court of Appeal in this instance, the legal implication of today’s judgement is that ZPC and Intratrek will revert to the position that they were before the 23rd April 2018,” said the ZPC. A full judgement on the matter is yet to be released. — STAFF WRITER. Businessman Wicknell Chivayo Chivayo scores another victory in solar project ...but will he raise US$172m?
Page 6 News NewsHawks Issue 159, 1 December 2023
NewsHawks News Page 7 1ssue 159, 1 December 2023 Move to appease security forces NATHAN GUMA TREASURY has allocated 18% of the national budget to the security sector, ZW$10.8 trillion (US$1.9 billion), which is a large amount in peacetime, as President Emmerson Mnangagwa moves to appease the restless uniformed forces. Since the 2017 military coup that toppled the then president Robert Mugabe, the security sector has been complaining about deteriorating conditions of service in the face of a worsening socio-economic crisis. The discontent also saw Mnangagwa losing at a polling station set up for soldiers at Pondoroza Barracks in Redcliff, Midlands Province, during the 23 August general elections. This month, deputy commissioner-general of police Learn Ncube appeared before the parliamentary portfolio committee on Defence, Home Affairs, Veterans of Liberation Struggle and Security chaired by Beitbridge East MP, Albert Nguluvhe, pleading for an upward review of its budget allocation, arguing the inadequate funding of the police force is crippling operations. Ncube said the skills and the competencies of the police sometimes leave a lot to be desired due to inadequate resources, even for training police officers. Presenting the 2024 budget this week, Finance minister Mthuli Ncube allocated ZW$10.8 trillion to the security sector out of a total of ZW$58.2 trillion (US$10bn) budget, dwarfing other sectors such as the health and social services. The Office of the President and Cabinet (OPC) has been allocated ZW$2 157 038 000 000, while the ministry of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs, which caters for the Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services, has been allocated US$1 078 019. The ministry of Defence and the ministry of Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage have been given the highest allocations of ZW$3 637 636 000 000 and ZW$3 931 884 000 000 respectively. “The security forces play an important role of protecting the country’s territorial integrity, national interest and sovereignty over land and air space, against both internal and external aggression. Peace is key to economic development,” reads the budget statement. “Whilst the country is generally characterised by a peaceful environment, the ongoing geopolitical dynamics require that the country continuously capacitate its security forces with adequate rations, training and relevant equipment, to enable them to safeguard the country’s integrity.” “This entails the need to continuously capacitate the security forces through payment of commensurate remuneration, as well as review of non-monetary benefits, including provision of decent accommodation. Therefore, an amount of ZW$8.6 trillion has been allocated towards the security cluster to meet their remuneration, food rations, operational equipment and the necessary infrastructure.” The security sector’s allocation is higher than the health sector, which was allocated ZW$6 311 893 000 000, which translates to 10.8%. This is also 4% lower than its target of 15% set by the Abuja Declaration. The health and social sectors have been in a shambles. For instance, findings by acting Auditor-General Rheah Kujinga revealed that Zimbabwe’s largest referral hospital, Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals, which services Harare and other nearby provinces, has been operating with only one functional ambulance, reflecting the country’s continually crumbling healthcare services. Another study titled Five Years of Progress or Stagnation published by the Sivio Institute in August, also showed that the Zanu PF government has failed to deliver in the social services cluster that includes pension systems and allocations, housing, health and education. The government made nine promises with regards to pension systems and allocation, with a performance of 49%, while making 15 promises in the health sector with a performance of 37%. More promises were made in the education sector, with a performance of 47% while the lowest score was recorded in housing with a score of 36%. With the national hospitals in a dilapidating state, the government also missed its target to reduce hospital fees by at least 50% and to provide free healthcare for cancer patients, as per its 2018 promise. In 2022, the government effected a hike in hospital fees in which adult and children's consultation fees were pegged at US$12 and US$6, representing a 1 748% hike, sparking an outcry.
Page 8 News NewsHawks Issue 159, 1 December 2023 BERNARD MPOFU FINANCE minister Mthuli Ncube has proposed a sharp hike in passport fees despite concerns over the lack of transparency on how the proceeds are spent. Critics say while access to a passport is a basic human right as it enables people to exercise their constitutional right to free movement, Zimbabwe’s passport fees are almost 400% higher than those of other Southern African Development Community countries, making them the most expensive travel documents in the region. Presenting the 2024 National Budget in Parliament, Ncube proposed several measures to raise more tax revenues amid growing economic instability. The head of Treasury intends to increase passport fees from US$100 to US$200 for ordinary passports and from US$200 to US$300 for emergency passports by next January. An additional fee of US$20 is charged for every electronically readable passport application to obtain a quick response (QR) code. This makes Zimbabwe's passport one of the most expensive in the world. With Zanu PF dominating Parliament, the budget proposals are expected to sail through. Last month, the Auditor-General (AG) raised the red flag over failure by the Home Affairs ministry to provide information on how much was raised from the issuance of electronic passports (e-passports), amid concern that Treasury could have been prejudiced of millions of dollars in revenue. According to findings in the Auditor-General’s latest Appropriation Accounts, Finance and Revenue Statements, and Fund Accounts for the year ending 31 December 2022, the Home Affairs ministry disclosed revenue collected in local currency while the service is being provided in hard currency. President Emmerson Mnangagwa launched the e-passports in 2021 after the government partnered a murky Lithuanian company in producing the travel documents. Before the introduction of the e-passports, an ordinary passport cost US$53, while an urgent passport (three working days to process) cost US$253. The e-passport project is being implemented by the government in partnership with Garsu Pasaulis on a build-own-operate-transfer arrangement. Comparatively, South Africa charges R400 for a passport, equivalent to US$25, while Botswana charges P260 (US$25). Namibia’s passport goes for R400 (or US$25), and Mozambique charges 2 500 meticais (about US$40). New extortionate Zimbabwe passport fees spark outrage
NewsHawks News Page 9 1ssue 159, 1 December 2023 Social media tackles tax hikes
Page 10 News NewsHawks Issue 159, 1 December 2023 Minister expresses El Niño fears FINANCE minister Mthuli Ncube has expressed fears that an El Niño-induced economic contraction is looming amid drier climatic and weather conditions — drought — that will envelop six countries in the region, including Zimbabwe. Already, in Zimbabwe, Lesotho, South Africa, Botswana, Mozambique, Eswatini and Zambia, the planting season has been delayed by two months or more, severely impacting on potential production yields, food security, economic growth and inflation, among other issues. Presenting his US$58.2 trillion budget to Parliament last Thursday, Ncube said: "Mr Speaker Sir, the domestic economy is now projected to grow by 5.5% in 2023, a slight upward revision from the August projection of 5.3%, on account of better-than-expected output in agriculture, in particular, tobacco, wheat and cotton. "However, economic growth is expected to slow down to 3.5% in 2024, mainly owing to the anticipated impact of the El Niño phenomenon being forecasted for the 2023/24 summer cropping season on agricultural output, as well as declining mineral commodity prices attributable to the global economic slowdown." Extreme weather conditions caused by El Niño and La Niña affect infrastructure, food and energy systems around the world. For instance, when less cold water comes to the surface off the west coast of South America during El Niño events, fewer nutrients rise from the bottom of the ocean. That means there is less food available for marine species like squid and salmon, in turn reducing stocks for South American fishing communities and causing inflation on those commodities. Droughts and flooding caused by the extreme 2015-16 El Niño event affected the food security of more than 60 million people, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation. A recent study suggests El Niño significantly reduces global economic growth, an effect which could intensify in future. Zimbabwe is likely to experience a drought in the 2023/24 cropping season due to El Niño climate phenomenon that threatens to slow down the country’s economic growth projections, trigger higher food prices and stoke much-dreaded inflation. The World Meteorological Organisation has declared the advent of the devastating climate phenomenon, warning its return would lead to rising global temperatures and extreme weather conditions in July. The United Nations weather agency estimated there is a 90% probability of El Niño persisting through the second half of the year and it is expected to be of “at least moderate strength”. A case study on Zimbabwe by Hillary Muguyo, Tamuka Magadzire and Dennis Junior Choruma from the University of KwaZulu-Natal, as well as Vimbai Chimomyo of the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre assesses the potential effects of El Niño on southern Africa. It offers potential adaptation and mitigation measures for farmers to prepare for the looming El Niño-influenced drought and the future. To reduce climate and weather hazards connected with El Niño, the brief report suggests anticipatory action methods be applied in southern Africa, using Zimbabwe as a case study. It also suggests strategic, tactical and operational decision-making that the agricultural sector must adopt to protect farmers' livelihoods and enhance drought readiness. The research emphasises the significance of providing farmers with knowledge and advice regarding drought and heat stress, including cultivating crop varieties and livestock and sufficient fire safety precautions. The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) says the El Niño occurance will ravage Zimbabwe and the region between October 2023 and March 2024. It is expected to have adverse effects on rainfall from October 2023 to March 2024, leading to drought conditions in Zimbabwe. Apart from southern Africa, it will also affect other nations. El Niño (which means "little boy" in Spanish) and La Niña (little girl) are two opposing climate patterns that break these normal conditions. Scientists call these phenomena the El Niño-Southern Oscillation cycle. El Niño and La Niña can both have global impacts on weather, wildfires, ecosystems, and economies. Episodes of El Niño and La Niña typically last nine to 12 months, but can sometimes last for years. El Niño and La Niña events occur every two to seven years, on average, but they do not occur regularly. Generally, El Niño occurs more frequently than La Niña. Swiss-based Assessment Capabilities Project (ACAPS), established in 2009 as a non-governmental project to conduct independent, ground-breaking humanitarian analysis to help humanitarian workers, influencers, fundraisers, and donors make better-informed decisions, says: “Zimbabwe is a country that requires close monitoring and where the effects of El Niño may lead to negative outcomes or generate humanitarian needs. “Forecast models anticipate the possibility of below-average rainfall towards the end of 2023, particularly in the central and southern regions. Such forecasts would affect the region’s planting seasons, increasing the possibility of hardened drought conditions and affecting the country’s crop production, livestock and food security.” This evokes previous El Niño disasters in Zimbabwe. In 2015-2016, an El Niño drought devastated most of Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe has, over the years, grappled with the repercussions of the climate crisis, which have led to erratic rainfall patterns characterised by either severe floods or prolonged periods of drought. The country has experienced a trend of numerous regions reporting rainfall levels below the usual during what should be "normal" years. The looming El Niño is poised to exacerbate this predicament. It is expected to intensify aridity, significantly impacting food and animal production across many areas, including those typically classified as "dry regions". The El Niño phenomenon of 2015-2016 stands as a stark reminder of the devastating consequences of the phenomenon. During that period, the country endured extreme dry spells and significantly reduced rainfall, severely affecting agricultural output and leading to adverse food and nutritional shortages. At least 2.8 million people were exposed to food insecurity. Consequently, a state of drought disaster was declared on 4 February 2016, prompting a humanitarian appeal for US$1.5 billion to address urgent needs in food, nutrition, agriculture, water, education, and health sectors. The consequences extended beyond these sectors, affecting urban areas as well. Cities, municipalities, and urban settlements had to endure prolonged water rationing schedules due to reduced water levels. Additionally, electricity generation at the country's hydroelectric power plants was significantly hampered. The ripple effects of the El Niño-induced drought permeated various sectors of the economy, with adverse impacts on manufacturing and energy industries. Nonetheless, the most severely affected sectors remained food and nutrition, agriculture, water, education, health, and wildlife. Anticipated outcomes of El Niño include a delayed onset of rainfall and prolonged dry spells, which could significantly impact food production and disrupt the food supply chain. Regions with typically lower precipitation levels are particularly susceptible to experiencing drought, which may result in widespread crop loss, livestock fatalities, increased disease incidence, crop pests, and challenges related to water, sanitation, and hygiene (Wash). These challenges, in turn, can have cascading negative effects on nutrition. According to forecasts from the Meteorological Services Department, El Niño is expected to be most strongly felt in the southern parts of the country, spanning from west to east. These areas, which also experienced high levels of food insecurity during the 2015/16 El Niño episode, include Matabeleland North, Matabeleland South, Midlands, Masvingo, and Manicaland. — STAFF WRITER.
NewsHawks News Page 11 1ssue 159, 1 December 2023 Anti-people budget to worsen poverty NATHAN GUMA THE ZW$58.2 trillion 2024 National Budget presented by Finance minister Mthuli Ncube, underlined by a heavy tax regime, shows that the government is increasingly becoming anti-people, and is likely to worsen Zimbabwe’s socio-economic crisis. Zimbabweans are now paying the price for the country's pariah status — international isolation — and low credit rating as they are increasingly overburdened with extortionate taxes since the government is unable to get international funding and lines of credit, especially for capital expenditure on infrastructure. The country’s isolation has been largely caused by the government's fallout with Western countries over policy differences, human rights abuses and a series of stolen elections. This led to targeted sanctions which, put together with the government's failure to pay its debts and arrears, dried up external funding needed for boosting liquidity and funding development projects. In the 2024 budget presented by Finance minister Mthuli Ncube, the government proposed tax hikes and new tax regimes which include a "wealth tax" on house ownership, reminiscent of the colonial era "hut tax". Tax hikes were also effected in toll fees on premium roads, that is, Harare-Beitbridge and Plumtree-Mutare and other roads by between 250% and 300%, raising an outcry. Passport fees have also been hiked, with an ordinary passport now costing US$200, up from US$120, while an emergency passport now costs US$300, up from US$220. Economist Professor Gift Mugano said the proposed tax hikes will bring more pain to the already impoverished people, hence deepening the socio-economic crisis. “The decision to exclude traders without VAT certificate is very harsh and insensitive considering that more than six million people thrive on trading in the face of 85% formal unemployment and drought of economic opportunities. These people, in their individual capacities, do not have annual sales turnover of US$25 000 which is required to secure the VAT certificate,” Mugano said. “This measure is expected to impact on the manufacturing sector negatively because the informal sector helps them to push volumes especially in manufacturing industries such as food and beverages (bread, ice cream, drinks, etc). In the bread sector, for example, the volumes are pushed by vendors and tuckshops (not supermarkets) which are now supposed to be excluded from the bread value chain. This will result in a drastic fall in sales, which has a net negative effect on production and jobs.” Mugano said the Zanu PF government and the main opposition Citizens' Coalition for Change (CCC) should unite in Parliament to reject the proposed budget as it is likely to deepen the country’s socio-economic crisis. “It is my prayer that Zanu PF and the Citizens' Coalition for Change (CCC) MPs unite on this one and reject this useless budget. If Zanu PF use their majority vote to support this useless budget and overpower CCC by virtue of their numbers, they are voting for more poverty for their rural constituencies where they got most of their votes.” Economist Dr Prosper Chitambara said the current budget has done little to promote social welfare, with the ministry of Public Service Labour and Social Welfare receiving ZW$2.4 trillion, equivalent to about 0.4% of gross domestic product, 1.1 percentage points lower than the 1.5% global target. “And you also know the country is in the midst of a cholera outbreak and addressing this obviously requires significant public investments in water, sanitation and hygiene, the Wash sector. And so government is proposing to spend ZW$608.3 billion towards the Wash sector, that represents just about 0.4% of GDP. And the benchmark there is at least 1.5% of GDP,” Chitambara told The NewsHawks. “You know social dialogue has an important role to play in terms of the crafting of policies that promote social justice, which is critical in terms of preserving jobs, incomes, and also ensuring the sustainability and viability of companies and businesses, especially during periods of crisis. “In terms of the revenue proposals, the tax-free threshold has been reviewed upward, which is positive, but I think there is need for continuous reviews, especially in line with inflationary trends and developments. “This is critical in order to cushion the working class and also as a way of boosting aggregate demand in the economy. The corporate tax rate has also been reviewed upwards to the pre-Covid level of 25%. Obviously, this will result in an increase in the cost of production and doing business in general.” Several other allocations from Ncube’s budget fell short of international benchmarks. Chitambara said while the Education ministry got almost 17.7% of the total vote allocations, it still fell below the Dakar Declaration target of 20%. The health sector has received about 10.8% of the allocations, a decline from 11.2% allocated this year. However, this also falls below the Abuja Declaration target of 15%. The agriculture sector, which has been allocated ZW$4.3 trillion, which is about 7.4% of the total budget, also falls below the Maputo Declaration target of 10%. Chitambara said the government’s newly proposed tax hikes are likely to increase the cost of doing business and accessing public services. “While government has come up with a raft of other proposals, for example, the strategic reserve levy on fuel has been reviewed upwards. Toll fees have also been reviewed upwards. Vehicle registration fees have been reviewed upwards. Passport fees have been reviewed upwards. And the introduction of a sugar levy and also introduction of a wealth tax," he said. “So all these proposals will result in an increase in the cost of accessing public services, the cost of transport and logistics, and the price of fuel will also increase and the overall cost of doing business in the country is going to increase. “So the net effect will be to reduce disposable incomes while eroding the country's overall competitiveness.” Political economist Vivid Gwede believes funds allocated to the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) is likely to be blighted by the controversial recall of CCC parliamentarians should they continue unabated. The country, which held disputed general elections on 23 August, is going back to the polls on 9 December, after recalls by the party’s self-proclaimed CCC secretary-general Sengezo Tshabangu. Zec, which spent US$188 million on elections, was allocated ZW$116 600 000 000 (US$20 137 979) by the national budget, which Gwede says is likely to be exhausted through the by-elections. “These by-elections are costly if you consider that the money could be used for other purposes. For instance, our health facilities need to be more equipped. In the budget statement the minister of Finance revealed that nearly half of funding requests from ministries could not be met due to limited fiscal space. So every dollar counts. These by-elections are a further drain on that limited fiscal space,” Gwede said. Tax hikes were effected in toll fees on premium roads.
Page 12 News NewsHawks Issue 159, 1 December 2023 Raiding bank vaults to backfire NATHAN GUMA ZIMBABWEAN Finance minister Mthuli Ncube's move to raid custody vaults at any time to ascertain their contents has all but snuffed out any hope of the country becoming a regional financial services hub, with banking experts predicting a fall in confidence in the banking sector. In his presentation of the 2024 national budget, Finance minister Mthuli Ncube proposed to empower the commissioner of the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (Zimra) to raid custodial bank vaults, to abate tax evasion. People often keep title deeds, educational certificates, marketable securities and cash in the custody-service vaults. Ncube said: "In order to deter tax evasion, I propose that the Commissioner be empowered to open Custody vaults at any time to ascertain contents and that financial institutions and other companies that offer custodial services receipt the contents of cash in their custody." Zimbabwe is trying to make Victoria Falls a regional financial hub which will offer a variety of financial services and institutions. It has already established the Victoria Falls Stock Exchange as part of that. Yet the country has shown that its government and leaders cannot be trusted with any money at all. The government previously raided companies' hard currency accounts and stole people's monies through unpredictable policy shifts, particularly via currency changes and exchange rate manipulation. After badly running down the economy and shrinking its tax base, hence low tax revenues, the Zimbabwean government has resorted to extortionate taxes to squeeze more money out of the poor, while remaining extravagant, buying expensive cars and gallivanting around the world using taxpayers' money. However, Ncube's move to raid custody vaults will have far-reaching consequences on Zimbabwe’s reputation as a country where authorities always want to eye and seize people's money. While Zimbabwe is destroying its reputation and making it hard to trust it to become a regional financial services hub, another leading hub, Mauritius, is reaping the rewards of good governance and policy consistency. Since gaining its independence in 1968, Mauritius has undergone remarkable transformation. It now prides itself in having a diversified economy, with a clear economic strategy: to accelerate the established sectors, including agriculture, hospitality, financial services, research and intelligence, and fintech. Experts say Treasury’s latest move will have ripple effects on Zimbabwe’s banking sector. An economist, Professor Gift Mugano, told The NewsHawks that the Treasury’s latest move shows an increase in lawlessness by government elites. “First, it is a sign that we now have lawlessness in the country, because how can you expect a commissioner to raid vaults without a court order? So who is now the law? You would expect that if I have my privacy in a bank, I cannot just be raided like I am a criminal. And, his expectation is that he wants to force people to put money through the formal system,” Mugano said. “Already, that money is not on the balance sheet of the bank. That is where he is missing the point. The bank does not even know what is in the vault. It does not know if there is an ID or a passport. Yes, it is a common fact that people put money in those boxes, but the bank does not know. The people are going to remove their items from the vaults, and the banks are going to lose income. Mugano said the government should work to improve waning confidence in the nation’s formal banking system. “If the banks lose income and they would like to meet their operational costs, they have to raise their bank charges. This is unnecessary. If for example I am evading tax, am I going to wait for the commissioner to come and do his nonsense? No! The minister should deal with the issue on why people are not using the formal banking system and correct that. People are banking because they do not have confidence in the sector,” Mugano said. The Zimbabwe Allied Bankers and Workers' Union (Zibawu) secretary-general Peter Mutasa told The NewsHawks that Treasury’s move will see many people banking their money at home. “Banking is all about confidence. Clients put their money in banks because they believe that their money and affairs are safe with banks. The country is grappling with low confidence with very few people banking their money. This was caused by many successive government policies that caused losses to many economic agents,” Mutasa said. “This particular announcement will definitely put many people off banking. That means less business for banks and possible job losses. In addition, a lot of people and businesses will be forced to keep their money at home. This will result in increased robberies. It is a disruptive policy that will have serious ramifications.”
NewsHawks News Page 13 1ssue 159, 1 December 2023 REGINA PASIPANODYA THE secretary-general of the Zimbabwe Confederation of Public Sector Trade Unions, David Dzatsunga, has urged policymakers to go beyond lip service if the country is to desicively combat the corruption scourge. Speaking at the Accountability Lab Zimbabwe’s integrity summit held last Thursday, Dzatsunga said corruption was very rife in the public sector “starting from the top”. “Addressing corruption in Zimbabwe is still far from being achieved if the policymakers still believe in engaging in just conversations with no strict deterrent measures against the perpetrators,” Dzatsunga emphasised. “All these conversations of wanting to end corruption with adequate action that encourages the public to act as whistle-blowers, I feel that if there is no sense of sincerity then we are not having an honest conversation around the issue of corruption. “For example, China is very serious about corruption to the extent that any corrupt dealings are punished severely maybe by cutting off the hands and sometimes I feel that is what we need in Zimbabwe. "We have seen cases of catch-and-release as people who are robbing are going scot-free and this gives courage to say you can always go unpunished if you play your cards right. You can steal from the public, you can steal from your employer, you can use the money to buy anyone and get away with it. So, it is difficult to address corruption until we have honest conversations, we sit at the table and then we put in place real laws that enforce deterrence.” He bemoaned corruption in the police and the legal system, saying it was discouraging people from reporting. “At this stage, it is impossible to report corruption to the police that is already corrupt. The police itself is corrupt, the court is corrupt, and the prosecutor is corrupt. There is a whole chain of the policymakers who are corrupt and I would like to believe that there are even syndicates in the public sector,” Dzatsunga said. “At one time there was a permanent secretary, I will not say his name, who demanded a token of appreciation whenever he is asked to attend or officiate a public event. During the graduation ceremonies he would demand to be given a breeder bull, a pig bull, and furniture from the polytechnics and his wife would be showered with freebies. This is corruption and he would do that openly at a national gathering.” He said the generality of Zimbabweans had come to accept that corruption is normal and are paying people who are supposed to provide them a service. Speaking during the summit, a ministry of Primary and Secondary Education director, Taungana Ndoro, said corruption in the education sector has been normalised by parents who are now paying teachers to do extra lessons. “The teachers are now extorting money from parents as a fee for extra lessons, but the problem now is that what the teacher was supposed to teach from 7.45am to 1pm is now the lessons that she/he will do after school with those that have paid. It is now a disadvantage to those that cannot afford and as the ministry we strongly condemn such behaviour,” Ndoro said. “Therefore, as the ministry of Education, we urge all people to shun away from paying teachers to do the work that they are already being paid for. I would like to confirm that Zimbabwean teachers are being paid well and their salaries are lucrative enough to cushion their needs.” Dzatsunga commended the Accountability Lab for having an Integrity Icon initiative that appreciates honesty in the public sector, saying it could help inspire others to do their work with truthfulness. Several speakers said members of the public were unwittingly aiding and abetting corruption by paying officials to expedite service provision. Corruption rife in public sector Secretary-general of the Zimbabwe Confederation of Public Sector Trade Unions David Dzatsunga
Page 14 News NewsHawks Issue 159, 1 December 2023 NATHAN GUMA A GOVERNANCE institute, Accountability Lab (AL Zimbabwe), has honoured five public sector workers under its Integrity Icon initiative, a global campaign that names and fames honest civil servants who go beyond their call of duty, to promote good ethical conduct. The icons, selected by their communities, were honoured at AL Zimbabwe’s third Integrity Icon Summit held in Harare, featuring officials from the government, public service, independent commissions including the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission, analysts and the media. There is a general perception that most public servants are dishonest and corrupt, partly because of the poor working conditions and low salaries they receive. AL Zimbabwe country director McDonald Lewanika said the Integrity Icon campaign seeks to promote a generation of civil servants who are exemplary. “The hope is that by identifying this cohort of civil servants, this will inspire the next generation of civil servants. A generation of civil servants who will be models, not just around what is bad, but what is good for us,” he told the summit. “The campaign, no matter how exciting, is not an end in itself. This is just the beginning. We can begin to have conversations about what kind of civil servants we expect to see in our country. We can then start to have a conversation around good examples of good examples among civil servant, not just good examples of bad examples.” Among those celebrated was Bernadate Bakasa, acting district social services officer (DSSO) for Harare Central, for demonstrating integrity and exemplary behaviour in the discharge of her duties, which has earned her respect from workmates and the communities she has been serving. She is known for tackling social ills, first as a social worker in the Epworth community, and other areas equally notorious for rampant child sexual abuse, domestic violence and drug abuse, among other problems. Her peers know her for frowning on corruption, despite many opportunities to make easy money in the social service department. “From my understanding, integrity has to do with trustworthiness, image building and protection. I work for the government and I should ensure that whatever I do puts my government on the map. So, whatever I do, wherever I am, I have to make sure that I put my government on the map, by being professional and exemplary,” she says. Icons who were honoured alongside Bakasa were Gracias Zhou, Francis Mhangwa, Stewart Magaya and Alban Mandeya. Mandeya, a senior teacher at Kambuzuma Primary School, was honoured for showing honesty, strong moral principles and resisting corruption during his tenure as acting deputy headmaster at the school. This role allowed him to handle multiple tenders, which he is applauded for transparently handling while being accountable to his workmates. He has also been paying school fees for some vulnerable pupils from a small business he runs, while also offering free extra lessons. Another icon, Francis Mhangwa, an immigration officer stationed in Harare with over 30 years of experience, was also honoured for being a fair and impartial public servant. He is known not to take tips or extra credit for his work, which is helping change people's perception towards public sector workers. At work, Mhangwa has also earned respect for being a man of integrity who shuns corruption and dishonesty. Stewart Magaya, a processing officer at the Civil Registry Department in Mutare, was also honoured for treating all clients with dignity, which has helped change the long-held narrative that the department’s officials are rude, lazy, inefficient and corrupt, through offering friendly and efficient service. “Magaya is a hard-working officer, who takes pleasure in solving people’s civil registration issues. He does so with a smile, which has endeared him with the Mutare community. His work ethic and demeanor have surprised many people in the community, more so because he goes out of his way to assist the public without an expectation of a kickback or reward,” AL Zimbabwe said. Gracious Zhou, a human resources officer stationed at the ministry of Primary and Secondary Education (MoPSE) offices in Gweru, was honoured for working with an attitude of honesty and integrity. Speaking at the summit, Ethics Institute Zimbabwe director Bradwell Mhonderwa said leaders should have integrity and be ethical to cultivate good governance in the civil service and the country at large. He cited several examples at home and abroad, including the laptops scandal in Parliament in which a laptop was quoted at an incredible US$9 000, saying there is rampant corruption in the public procurement system. Mhonderwa added that good governance requires strong leadership and an ethos of integrity. Leading with integrity is an essential ethical skill that leaders badly need. Leaders who demonstrate integrity are more likely to earn the respect of colleagues and stakeholders, including citizens. Ethical leaders use their power and influence to serve their organisations, civil service and the country as the case may be, not for self-interest and self-aggrandisement. Principled and ethical leaders — who are accountable — also resign when things go wrong; they do not find excuses for failure and betrayal of public trust. Zimbabwe is choking from bad, corrupt and incompetent leadership. The heavy cost of leadership failure and corruption is being felt, with the country now in a state of collapse and decay. Accountability Lab honours icons AL Zimbabwe country director McDonald Lewanika
NewsHawks News Page 15 1ssue 159, 1 December 2023 RUVIMBO MUCHENJE THE voters’ roll that was used in the 23-24 August general elections was littered with inconsistencies, which has cast doubt over the polls' credibility, an election watchdog, the Election Resource Centre, has noted. During the launch of its research findings titled Understanding Zimbabwe’s Voting Trends in Harare on Thursday, the ERC noted that the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission announced that the number of voters stood at 6 623 511, which was 3 820 more voters than the 6 619 691 voters at the close of the roll in May 2023. “The ERC notes inconsistencies and changes between voter figures announced by Zec chairperson on 25 August 2023 and those availed on the voters' roll given candidates in violation of section 21 of the Electoral Act,” reads the report. On 31 May 2023, President Emmerson Mnangagwa announced, through a gazette, that the elections would be held on 23 August 2023. At law, those participating in the election only have two days to register from proclamation date to election date. “No person shall be registered as a voter for the purposes of voting at any Presidential election or election of members of the Parliament or councillors unless he or she lodges a claim for registration or transfer of registration under section 24 or 25 no later than the second day following the publication of proclamation referred to in section 38 or a notice referred to in section 39, as the case may be, in relation to that election,” reads section 26 of the Electoral Act. Although the law is clear, Zec went on to announce the altered figure after voting had been completed. Ahead of the elections, a pro-democracy advocacy group, Pachedu, had raised irregularities found in the voters’ roll but, instead of addressing them, Zec threatened to sue Pachedu whose only known address is an account on the social media platform X. In one of its posts on X ahead of the elections, Pachedu pointed out Zec's manipulation and distortion of the voters' roll. “This month, Zec illegally moved urban voters to different polling stations resulting in confusion. We received complaints on voting day from Marondera voters after Zec had secretly moved at least 560 voters from Mushakata to Chitanda Polling Station. Zec must explain,” read one of Pachedu’s posts on X, a month before the elections. Zec announced the total number of registered voters was 6 623 511 on 25 August 2023, which shows that there was an increase of over 3 000 voters from the original roll given to candidates as the final roll ahead of the elections. This is a direct violation of section 26 of the Electoral Act. Section 26 of the Electoral Act prohibits the addition of new voters’ to the roll beyond the stipulated cut-off date. Voters’ roll riddled with errors
Page 16 News NewsHawks Issue 159, 1 December 2023 NATHAN GUMA THE Election Resource Centre (ERC), an independent think-tank, has urged the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) to act swiftly on the shortcomings of the 23 August polls, after it unearthed several irregularities in the electoral process that are likely to blight the credibility of upcoming by-elections. Zimbabwe is going back to the polls on 9 December following controversial recalls by the main opposition CCC's self-proclaimed secretary-general Sengezo Tshabangu. The recalls, which have been endorsed, have been largely viewed as a ploy by the ruling Zanu PF to force through a two-thirds majority that would allow it to amend the constitution to bolster President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s stay in power. This week, ERC director Barbra Bhebe told The NewsHawks that the by-election are likely to be as equally shambolic as the previous one should Zec fail to address other irregularities which have been largely calculated to promote intimidation. For instance, in August, Zanu PF came under fire over exit poll desks set up by Forever Associates Zimbabwe (Faz) to collect voter information, which was largely viewed as a way of intimidating voters. As previously reported, Faz, led by Central Intelligence Organisation co-deputy director-general retired Brigadier-General Walter Tapfumaneyi, hijacked electoral processes, displacing the army’s structure called Heritage that used to perform a similar role and other functions. With three members in every ward countrywide, Faz intimidated people in the pre-election period, particularly in rural areas, collecting voter information, rolling door-to-door campaigns, night vigils, community events, technology-based messaging while monitoring all stages of the electoral process. “The situation is worrying, especially if there are going to be those exit points which were used in the August 2023 elections. Because, as a human rights commission states, those somehow intimidated the people. What are they for? “We do not need them,” Bhebhe said on the sidelines of the launch of thr ERC’s preliminary findings on the August elections. “So we hope that something is going to be done about that. We are also hoping that there are not going to be any delay of the materials, because the way ballot papers were delayed, the number of people who voted in those particular areas reduced compared to the previous elections. And, that is problematic.” Findings by the ERC in its preliminary report on the 23 August election have shown that voting was largely impacted by delays, which also saw more than 10.7% of all assisted voters casting their ballots between 3pm and 6.30pm. Of the 2 348 assisted voters cast in urban sampled polling stations, 60.9% were in rural areas, while 39.1% were in urban areas. “The ERC notes that on average, 5.4% of the votes cast between 0700hrs and 0900hrs were assisted voters. Alarmingly, at 8.6% of the observed polling stations, statistics show that over 25% of the ballots cast during this period were by assisted voters. The majority of assisted voters between the stipulated time were from Nyaradzo Primary School in Chipinge Central, which constituted 32% of all assisted voters in the constituency. On average, the number of assisted voters in the 9am to 6.30pm intervals, with Kariba, Nkayi, Shurugwi and Chipinge Central constituencies accounting for the highest number of assisted voters. “The ERC notes that on average, 3.8% of votes cast between 0900hrs and 1200hrs were assisted votes, a reduction from 1.6% in the number of assisted votes cast in relation to total votes cast between 0700 and 0900hrs,” she said. “On average, 5.0% of votes cast between 1200 and 1500hrs were assisted votes, an increase of 0.6% in the number of assisted votes cast in relation to total votes that had been cast between 0900hrs and 1200hrs.” The ERC has also shown how delays blighted the urban vote. According to its findings, voter turnout reduced by an average of 1% at polling stations in rural areas where delays in the opening of polling stations were noted, while it had a 6% reduction on the urban vote. “Voter turnout at polling stations in rural areas which opened on time and had no notable delays (70.2%). Delayed opening, voter turnout at polling stations in rural areas where delays in the opening of polling stations were noted (69.2%),” reads the ERC report. “Turnout at polling stations in urban areas which opened on time and no notable delays were noted. Voter turnout at polling stations in urban areas where delays in the opening of polling stations was noted. Voter turnout reduced by an average of 6% at polling stations in urban areas where delays in the opening of polling stations were noted.” Zec must address election management shortcomings
NewsHawks News Page 17 1ssue 159, 1 December 2023 NATHAN GUMA TREASURY has allocated the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) ZW$116 600 000 000 (US$20 137 979) in the 2024 National Budget, which analysts say is likely to be whittled down by the controversial recall of opposition legislators and councillors. Zimbabwe, which held general elections on 23 August, is going back to the polls on 9 December following the recall of main opposition Citizens' Coalition for Change (CCC) MPs by the party’s self-proclaimed secretary-general Sengezo Tshabangu. While Zec spent a hefty US$188 million on the general elections, the upcoming by-elections are calculated to eat into Zec’s new budget, which political analyst Rashweat Mukundu has described as a waste of taxpayers’ money. “There is no other way to describe this level of wastage other than failed leadership. Zimbabwe is facing a cholera epidemic and a drought, with millions struggling to get a decent meal daily, yet Zec will spend US$5 million on by-elections that were politically contrived by Zanu PF, Tshabangu, Parliament leadership and the judiciary,” Mukundu told The NewsHawks. “The country is trapped in a political crisis that is the making of Zanu PF and its desire for unfettered control of everything.” Zec is also facing funding constraints after the European Union (EU) pulled its US$5 million funding to the ZIM-ECO 2 project after the sham elections, further casting funding of the polls into doubt. The EU had been funding the ZIM-ECO 2 project to enhance Zec’s capacity to conduct the electoral process, with the aim of contributing to the improvement of the entire electoral cycle, not limited to elections alone. “The project supporting Zec, which is managed by UNDP [United Nations Development Programme] and scheduled to run until December 2024, is currently under scrutiny due to concerns raised by several international Electoral Observation Missions (EOMs) regarding the independence and transparency of Zec during the 2023 harmonised elections,” the EU said in a statement after the elections. “The recent preliminary statements from multiple EOMs, including the EU EOM, have raised concerns about Zec’s management of the electoral process, particularly regarding its independence and transparency. “The EU contributes together with other donors to a UNDP-managed project aiming at enhancing Zec’s institutional and technical capabilities to fulfil its constitutional mandate. In response to these concerns and in adherence to responsible management of EU development cooperation funds, the EU has initiated a procedure to suspend its contribution to this project.” The EU also provided funding for the purchase of a computer server for the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) before being shut out and denied access when the hardware was delivered ahead of the disputed 2018 general elections which President Emmerson Mnangagwa is accused of stealing. During the August elections, Zec failed to provide ballot paper on time, which saw some voters casting their ballots deep into the night, sparking outrage from the opposition and key election observers. Zec has however shifted blame on court challenges against it for the challenges in the production and distribution of ballot paper. “During the election activities, auditors were deployed in all the provinces including districts. The Ballot paper and voters’ rolls for the 2023 harmonised elections were printed by the Printing and Minting Company of Zimbabwe (PCMZ) formerly Fidelity Printers. The commission faced challenges in the production and distribution of ballot papers,” Zec said. “These challenges emanated largely from what has now come to be called lawfare against the commission. The commission faced an unprecedented number of court challenges (more than 100 applications) arising from the outcome of the nomination courts. “The court challenges derailed its preparations and roadmap as it sought to attend to the court challenges and to meet the proclaimed electoral timeline." Zec gets US$20m allocation CCC self-proclaimed secretary-general Sengezo Tshabangu
Page 18 News NewsHawks Issue 159, 1 December 2023 RUVIMBO MUCHENJE THE Community Working Group on Health (CWGH) has bemoaned thr government’s failure to allocate the health sector adequate funding in line with regional and international agreements. Founded in 1998, the CWGH is a network of civic community-based organisations focused on championing health issues of common concern. There are approximately 35 organisations in the CWGH. In a statement released in the aftermath of the 2024 National Budget presentation, CGWH executive director Itai Rusike said the decline from 11.2% in 2023 to 10.8% in 2024 derails Zimbabwe’s determination to reach the Abuja Declaration target. “Government spending on health and child care as a percentage of total public expenditure is projected to decline from 11.2% in 2023 to the projected 10.8% in 2024. Health spending as a share of total government expenditure is an indicator of the priority given to health. The Abuja Target remains an elusive target for the country, ” said Rusike. “Vote allocations still remain below regional and global benchmarks. Health got ZW$6.3 trillion (10.8%), a decline from the 11.2% allocated in 2023, below the Abuja Declaration target of 15%.” In 2001, the African Union (AU) member states signed the Abuja Declaration, pledging to allocate at least 15% of their national budgets each year to improving healthcare systems. To this day, fulfilling this pledge has been a struggle for Zimbabwe and fellow Southern African Development Community member states. Zimbabwe is grappling with a growing threat of cholera that has affected over a thousand people across the country just as it is coming out hard on the heels of the Covid-19 pandemic that was almost sounding a death knell for the country’s public healthcare system. Finance minister Mthuli Ncube afforded water and sanitation and hygiene (WASH) just 0.4%, another breach of the eThekwini Declaration that sets the standard benchmark at 1.5%. Rusike says Zimbabwe needs more resources towards WASH now more than at any other time. “The country is also in the midst of a cholera outbreak and addressing this requires significant public investments in water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH). Government has allocated ZW$608.3 billion towards WASH which represents just 0.4% of GDP, which is way below the 1.5% of GDP benchmark set under the eThekwini Declaration (2008),” he said. Zimbabwe has been perennially affected by cholera outbreaks since 2008 which claimed more than 400 lives. Rusike urged the government to consider access to healthcare for low-income households as a stride towards universal health coverage. “Increasing health expenditure in tandem with the increased population, disease burden and new national development goals remain a challenge to the health sector. Similarly, the sector is confronted with ensuring that the poor people and the vulnerable who include women, newborn babies, children and adolescents are also able to afford quality health services. No country can make significant progress towards universal health coverage (UHC) without relying on a dominant share of public funds,” Rusike said. He called on Finance minister Ncube and the government to improve resources channelled towards health. “It is therefore critically important to ensure that the health system is adequately resourced and that resources are efficiently and optimally utilised. “The current health financing model remains unsustainable as it heavily relies on external financing as well as out-of-pocket financing,” said Rusike. “In nominal terms the health budget appropriation has declined from 11.2% in 2023 to the protected 10.8% in 2024. This is grossly inadequate to fund the critical needs in the health sector.” Health budget allocation shrinks amid cholera crisis Zimbabwe is grappling with a growing threat of cholera
News Page 19 PATRICIA RWAFA COMMUNITY-BASED organisations have urged Harare City Council (HCC) to act fast to rehabilitate sewer bursts in the high-density residential suburbs, with some areas going for several days without being attended to amid escalating cholera cases. Latest statistics by the ministry of Health and Child Care presented in this week’s post-cabinet briefing show that cumulative suspected cholera cases numbered 1 744 as of 26 November, up from 1 259 reported in the previous week. At 705, Harare recorded the highest cumulative cholera cases, while Chitungwiza, one of the major hotspots, had 163 as of November 16 to 23. A survey by The NewsHawks has shown that several residential areas, particularly in Kuwadzana 1 and 4 and Chitungwiza have been the hardest hit, with sewer bursts now going for weeks without being attended to. Sewer puddles are a common site in these areas. In an interview with The NewsHawks, the Harare Residents Trust (HRT) expressed concern over council workers who are demanding extra charges to fix the sewer bursts, pleading incapacitation. "When they eventually attend the reports, the council workers are demanding to be paid an average of US$5 by each affected household. Broken down and clogged water and sewerage pipes are leaking, resulting in sewer mixing with underground water and the water pipes also get polluted, resulting in a continuous surge in the affected areas,” HRT said. "Replacement of underground water and sewerage pipes in the most affected communities should be a top project that can increase the amount of water reaching households and significantly reduce the number of unattended sewer bursts.” "The City of Harare (CoH) reports that they are losing around 60% of their treated water due to leakages along the water distribution network. That is most unfortunate because they all know what needs to be done, but this is not being prioritised.” Another community-based organisation, the Community Working Group on Health (CWGH), said the pandemic is being caused by the shortage of clean water, which has hit both rural and urban areas. "Many urban communities including Harare and some rural communities have gone for weeks and months without adequate water supply in a situation that has now declined over several years, leaving people vulnerable to diseases like cholera,” said Itai Rusike, CWGH executive director. "Our assessments indicated that since the unprecedented cholera outbreak of 2008- 2009, Harare has continued to have poor sanitation, overcrowding (poor living conditions), erratic potable water supplies of questionable quality; and these conditions continue to fuel the unknown killer communicable infections which used to be rare in the country. People in this situation are facing a public health crisis of considerable proportions.” "We hope that the public health community, and the ministry of Health and Child Care, will respond to this not only with an emergency response to cholera, but with a public health response and measures to rescue our public health to rescue our public health system, especially our primary healthcare services." Sewer bursts fuel deadly cholera NewsHawks 1ssue 159, 1 December 2023
Page 20 News NewsHawks Issue 159, 1 December 2023 NATHAN GUMA LEADER of government business in Parliament Ziyambi Ziyambi says the Zimbabwe Republic Police is well-resourced, which completely contradicts information in thr public record, as the police service has been pleading with Parliament to push for an upward review of its budget allocation, saying the inadequate funding is crippling law enforcement operations. The police have been incapacitated, impacting on efficiency, particularly in remote areas. For instance, the level of incapacitation was revealed a fortnight ago, after the service failed to avail body bags for deceased victims of a head-on collision along on Gwanda Road, sparking public outrage. This week in Parliament, after being quizzed by Mutare North MP Admire Mahachi on the government's policy on the welfare of the police force, which includes accommodation, uniforms and access to health facilities, Ziyambi said the government has improved in ramping up the operations of the security sector. “What is government policy with regards to the welfare of our police force? There is the Provincial Headquarters for Manicaland Province. There is Murehwa Building that is no longer fit to be used as offices for police officers as it has a leaking roof. We would want to know what steps the government is taking to refurbish police stations and police camps that were built using wood so that they can be built using bricks, such as is the case with Marange Police Station,” Mahachi asked. “There should also be boreholes in police camps so that our police officers have access to clean and safe water. I would like to give another example, that of Mudzi Police Station. They get their water from the nearby river. This water is not safe for human consumption. The police leave their work to go and fetch water from the river instead of performing their duties of arresting those who would have broken the law.” Another MP, Biata Nyamupinga, also underlined the level of incapacitation, saying while people in her constituency in Goromonzi were reporting cases, the police has been lacking transport to go to accident scenes. In response, Ziyambi said: “Actually, it is not very correct that police do not have transport. In fact, if you have noticed over the last two years, there has been renewal of the fleet for the police even in rural areas, we have had a significant increase in police vehicle presence,” Ziyambi said. “It is not very correct that they do not have. Actually, one of the best things that His Excellency has done over the last two years is to capacitate both the national army, the police and the prisons in terms of vehicles. If honourable members want to be very honest, the presence of vehicles from the security sector within the community has increased.” This is a contradiction, considering that the police, represented by police Deputy Commissioner-General Learn Ncube, appeared before the parliamentary portfolio committee on Defence, Home Affairs, Veterans of Liberation Struggle and Security chaired by Beitbridge East MP, Albert Nguluvhe, saying the capability and image of the police require a lot of resources. Ncube said the skills and the competencies of the police sometimes leave a lot to be desired due to inadequate resources, even for training police officers. “But when we look at goods and services which are our operations, under training and development expenses. We want to train police officers. Members of the committee will agree with me that the outlook of your police organisation in terms of skills and the competencies sometimes leave a lot to be desired and it is the intention of the ministry and the department to ensure that our members are adequately trained,” said the deputy Commissioner-General. Police proposed a ZW$130 billion budget towards the skilling and training of police officers, but the ZRP got only 15% of its desired allocation. “Hence under this sub-head we were allocated ZW$20 940 110 000 out of a requirement of ZW$130 000 000 000 that was our ideal budget. For us to be effective on the ground this cannot be over-emphasized as was said by the PS (permanent secretary), we need to train our officers academically and for them to get professional education,” said Ncube. “The allocated funds cater for the smart policing concept that integrates information communication technology. You can agree with me, that we are very behind with technology, very, very behind. That is why you see in our towns we are having fiasco in managing traffic because they know our technology is lagging very much behind, hence we think this sub-head can be raised,” said Ncube. In his plea, Ncube told Parliament that the ZRP has forensic and cyber labs that aid in solving crimes, but the facilities are underfunded. “Under our CID [Criminal Investigations Department] we have what we call a cyber-crime laboratory office. This is a specialised unit and under this sub-head we have requested for ZW$8.9 billion, but we were only allocated ZW$4.2 billion, which is not enough,” said Ncube. He added that failure to capacitate this lab raises the risk that innocent people may end up being imprisoned. “For the forensic laboratory equipment, we had requested for ZW$84 billion and we only received ZW$6 billion, it’s just a drop in the ocean and we are saying in crime management forensic science analysis evidence from scenes of crime, suspects and victims there is nothing easier than having an innocent person being convicted because we would have failed to carry out proper investigations. So to avoid that, there is need for us to be resourced scientifically so that our evidence which we provide to our courts is best to none,” said Ncube. In all these years, police have been outsourcing expert witnesses on cases that require forensic and cyber-crimes. “It’s so disheartening to be found in an organisation where we want expert evidence we had to outsource from neighbouring countries. We have this cyber-crime laboratory and the forensic science laboratory, we want equipment. They are in place. I can’t remember when you visited us last time, if you managed to go through these two labs, they are in place, but we need equipment to ensure that we operate at 100%. So for the cyber-crime laboratory we were given just below 50% and we are saying how about if we were given 100% and ensure that we buy the equipment and we provide the best service,” he said. In addition, Ncube raised the issue of the welfare of police officers, saying they are not receiving allowances for conducting out-of-town duties and they are the only ones in the civil service not getting such a benefit. “Mindful that the welfare of officers and members on deployments away from home stations must be effectively addressed so that the desired goals and objectives are achieved. I believe that Zimbabwe Republic Police as we speak is the only organisation in the government where you can assign someone to go and perform duties without earning T and S [travel and subsistence allowance], they go and they perform adequately, but we are saying that we ensure that the members with all this martyrdom are also remunerated accordingly in terms of travel expenses like any other government employee assigned on duty,” said Ncube. In the previous budget, the whole force got an allocation that was not adequate even to cover for three months of its annual fuel requirements. “I will then move on to fuel, oils and lubricants where we had requested for ZW$ 270 54 940 000, however, we were allocated only ZW$25 251 844 000. This amount which was allocated is not even enough to take us beyond three months because what we need in terms of our consumption, we need about 800 000 litres of diesel a month and 500 000 litres of petrol a month. This is what we are supposed to be getting so that we adequately provide the police service to our people.” Ziyambi misleads Parly on Zim police resourcing Leader of government business in Parliament Ziyambi Ziyambi
NewsHawks News Page 21 1ssue 159, 1 December 2023 NATHAN GUMA CENTRE for Research and Development (CRD) director James Mupfumi is urging the government to take national interest in the relocation and compensation of villagers who have been relocated to pave way for a US$1.5 billion steelmaking project in Mvuma. This week, the CRD received a backlash after presenting findings on the operations of Dinson Iron and Steel Company (Disco), which have resulted in more displacements after the company took over farming and grazing land. This also included the desecrating of graveyards. The civil society watchdog has lobbied Parliament to initiate an investigation into the Chinese-run steel company after raising concerns over the displacement and exclusion of the local community from the steel project. However, the findings have triggered a backlash, with critics dismissing them as false and Western-motivated. However, Mupfumi this week told The NewsHawks that the Manhize issue should be taken as an issue of national importance to avoid yet another resource curse. “Sixty percent of Zimbabweans live on communal and agricultural land where accelerated mining developments largely without due process are taking precedent. The devastating impacts of these mining impacts on people's livelihoods are matters of national interest which must be taken seriously by government,” he said. “It is foolhardy and self-serving for political elites to justify disenfranchisement and destruction of local communities in the name of protecting foreign investment. Amendments to the Communal Lands Act and Mines and Minerals Act must be a priority of government to give land holders security of tenure in the wake of increased mining developments.” “The demands of green technology have grave implications on lithium-producing countries. Needless to mention that government's ambitious quest to achieve an upper middle income economy by 2030 is hinged largely on mining. It is therefore a human rights imperative for government to adopt international best practices that balance business and human rights.” This week, the findings were met with disapproval from various critics, including wellknown pro-Zanu PF critic writing under the X moniker @mmatigari. “Once Western-funded NGOs start getting involved, just know there is a nefarious anti-China western agenda behind this. Manhize is a massive engineering project. Villager involvement in engineering can’t be driven by NGOs. In any case villagers know their leadership to engage,” said Matigari, who is suspected to be Taurai Chinyamakobvu. Another article on ZimNews Online also accused civic society and the media of pushing an anti-Chinese agenda, targeting Chinese companies. “Lobbying and propaganda are the major tools being used by the Western NGOs against Disco. A recent example is that of ‘The Centre for Research and Development’, a Western-funded civil society organisation working tirelessly to sabotage Disco,” read the article. “This CSO has already engaged opposition MPs in a bid to fund and influence the Parliament of Zimbabwe to postpone the ongoing construction of the Disco plant until the needs of Manhize villagers are met. Disco is still under construction though some of the manufacturing units are already operational. The plant is scheduled to be fully operational next year.” “Manhize villagers literally acknowledged that Disco is not yet fully operational. The villagers expressed much appreciation for the better houses built and employment provided by Disco and are looking forward to benefit more from the company after it is fully operationalised.” “It then boggles one's mind how CRD is pushing the Parliament to postpone the construction of the Disco plant until the so-called needs are met when the basic needs have already been met before the company is not yet fully functional. The anti-Chinese 'gospel' is being spread by pro-opposition media houses, with The NewsHawks being the latest culprit.” However, findings by the CRD in its latest report titled Hold Disco to Account, show that since 2021, 101 families from Mushenjere village have since lost farming and grazing land to accelerated Disco mining developments, and have continued to helplessly witness the destruction of their land by Disco which is setting up water pipelines, power plant and other infrastructure. “Others are losing land to waste dumping by Chinese infrastructural developments. The clearing of their land by Chinese is also destroying orchards and graveyards of their departed loved ones. CRD observed a long winding durawall that Disco is erecting to enclose farming and grazing land for 101 families in Mushenjere village which have become part of their mining lease,” reads the report. “138 families from Kwaedza village are also facing a similar predicament as Disco has already set pegs in their village. These villagers mainly originated from poor and densely populated communal areas of Rukovere, Mahusvu, Msasa, Unyetu villages of Chikomba district in Mashonaland East.” As previously reported by The NewsHawks in May, another watchdog, the Centre for Natural Resource Governance (CNRG) also made similar findings, on how Disco has failed to fulfill many of its promises to the local people who were displaced when the company set up its plant last year. “Recently our team visited the vast plant under construction to establish the impact of the new development on the local socio-economic, cultural, and environmental fabric of the host community,” CNRG said. “Setting up of the iron ore crushing site and the steel processing plant relocated an average of 20 families to surrounding areas around the Nyikavanhu area. The relocation was voluntary after beneficiaries were promised some money, a borehole, and a new house. “Most families agreed to the relocation plan, some refused, citing poor soils at the proposed new sites. The only promise fulfilled was the construction of a new house consisting of four rooms and a hut. Only one borehole was drilled for the families to share,” CNRG said in a report. Disco displaced villagers after the company took over farming and grazing land. Don’t betray Manhize villagers: Civil society
Page 22 News NewsHawks Issue 159, 1 December 2023 NATHAN GUMA THE Centre for Natural Resource Governance (CNRG), a civil society organisation focused on research and advocacy, says diamond-mining companies in Marange have acted dishonestly by telling the Kimberley Process (KP) plenary meeting that they have been upholding human rights. After the discovery of diamonds in Chiadzwa, Manicaland province, many families were moved off their ancestral land and resettled in the Arda Transau area between 2009 and 2011. Living conditions have continued to worsen at the resettlement facility — where people who were forcibly moved from the Chiadzwa diamond fields were relocated — with communities failing to access water, while wallowing in poverty, a report by the CNRG has revealed. Key infrastructure, such as Marange Clinic, has also been continually dilapidating, raising an outcry from watchdogs. In 2007, the government declared the diamond fields were protected areas under the Protected Places and Areas Act (PPAA) to pave the way for the exploitation of the gems. While promises were made to improve the livelihoods of the resettled families, most of the promises are yet to be fulfilled. In CNRG’s latest weekly report, executive director Farai Maguwu said huge mining companies — Anjin and the government-owned Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond Company (ZCDC) — have been dishonest by failing to present the true human rights and developmental picture of Marange at this year’s KP plenary held in Victoria Falls in November. The Kimberly Process Certification Scheme is a multilateral trade regime established in 2003 with the goal of preventing the flow of conflict diamonds in the mineral's global supply chain. “The most difficult session was the Frame Seven workshop which was held on Sunday the 5th of November — an attempt at improving human rights in the diamond supply chain. The most shocking testimony came from a man from Chivhu who was reportedly sponsored by one of the companies mining diamonds in Marange to attend the event. He shocked everyone, myself included,” Maguwu said. “The so-called community representative claimed the government of Zimbabwe was now declaring diamond dividends to the Marange community, a benefit-sharing agreement was now operational and a community concession to be operated by ZCDC has started.” “ZCDC has managed to create and maintain progressive relations with the community, " he claimed. One was persuaded to think he was describing some other community in another country, not Marange. ZCDC and Anjin also gave glowing accounts of how their activities were changing the Marange community for the better.” Maguwu said while the ZCDC has on several occasions promised to revamp Marange, the area has instead remained one of the poorest communities in Zimbabwe, despite being home to massive diamond deposits that have raked in several billions of dollars for the ruling elite. Zimbabwe, the seventh-largest diamond producer in the world, earned US$424 million in diamond earnings in 2022 from 4.5 million carats, an estimated 7% increase on the previous year. “In 2020, former ZCDC CEO De Pretto (Roberto) said he was shocked by the level of poverty in Marange: ‘It is disheartening to walk past Chiadzwa, the area is still underdeveloped since 2005 when diamonds were discovered in Marange. It is a shock to me that there is no development despite that Chiadzwa fields have one of the largest diamond deposits in the world, there is no running water, poor roads, while children are walking long distances to go to school’,” Maguwu said, quoting De Pretto. “Three years on, nothing has changed. CNRG believes it is very possible for government to transform Marange in a manner that is tangible and visible. Our understanding is that it is possible to create a governance model that ensures shared benefits among all stakeholders – mining firms, the community and the government of Zimbabwe.” Maguwu said Anjin and the ZCDC ought to urgently prioritise creating alternative livelihoods for the people in Marange, amid indications of blighting poverty. “Alternative livelihoods entail identifying economic opportunities in Marange such as irrigation schemes. This will involve drawing water from the Save River to various villages in Marange and assisting the community set up vibrant irrigation schemes and other projects such as fish farming,” Maguwu said. “The beauty of such projects is the opportunity for inclusivity and involvement of women. This will lift tens of thousands of people out of poverty as well as improving food nutrition in this drought-stricken district. The Marange Health Centre, also known as Marange Clinic, gives any visitor a perfect reflection of the failure by the government and diamond-mining firms to share the wealth with the people. “The buildings are dilapidated, and the water and sewer reticulation facilities are now obsolete. So terrible are the staff houses that some occupants use big stones to close the tap. The toilets are a health disaster. Upgrading Marange Clinic is a service that will be greatly appreciated by the community and one whose impact will be felt by tens of thousands of people.” As previously reported by The NewsHawks, Anjin’s extraction of rough diamonds in Chiadzwa has led to a sharp rise in malaria cases due to poor environmental management practices. Anjin Diamond Company is a joint venture between China’s Anhui Foreign Economic Construction Company (AFECC) and Matt Bronze, an investment vehicle controlled by Zimbabwe’s military. While the company started rehabilitating some of the pits earlier this year after the investigation, it had over the years been leaving large pits, gullies and slime dams many of which are filled with stagnant water, creating a breeding ground for mosquitoes. ‘Diamond companies dishonest’
NewsHawks News Page 23 1ssue 159, 1 December 2023 NATHAN GUMA MAIN opposition Citizens' Coalition for Change legislator Prosper Mutseyami has taken Transport minister Felix Mhona to task over the government’s plan to reduce road traffic accidents. The tough-talking Dangamvura legislator challenged Mhona to come clean during a question-and-answer session in Parliament amid indications that the ministry is incapacitated. Road accidents, largely blamed on human error and the country’s dilapidated roads, have been on the rise ahead of the festive season. A fortnight ago, 22 people were killed when an overloaded Toyota Quantum had a head-on collision with a DAF truck 17km out of Bulawayo on Gwanda Road. The accident raised public outrage after pictures emerged on social media showing the bodies of the deceased bundled into an open truck. The bodies were not in body bags, demonstrating the incapacitation of the national police. This week, in a ministerial statement, Mhona said the government is devising several strategies, including the setting up of an accident fund, to minimise the suffering of accident victims. “May I take this opportunity to inform the House that the creation of a Road Accident Fund is now at an advanced stage to minimise suffering by victims and survivors of accidents and improve our post-crash response. Work is now in progress on the legal and institutional framework to manage this fund whose details will be availed in due course,” Mhona said. However, in response, Mutseyami said Mhona’s statement failed to address key pressing issues affecting the transport sector. “Speaker, for clarity's sake to the Honourable Minister, what measures are you putting in place to address the challenges that we have, especially along the major highways? Let me give as an example, the major highway I usually travel along is Mutare to Harare highway. You find that most of the sign-posts which are meant to be in place are not there. In some cases, this results in accidents. What investments are you putting in place so that the issue of sign-posts is addressed, especially on these major highways?” Mutseyami asked. “The other thing, Honourable Minister, you find that traditionally, especially along the major highways, we used to have fences that would manage the stray cattle and other stray animals. Nowadays, we no longer have the fence on most of these highways. What measures are you putting in place so that we address this challenge because it goes a long way in terms of curbing accidents?” “Last but not least, in your presentation, I did not get the real response regarding the bags for the victims of accidents for transportation; they are being loaded into trucks without being covered whilst we should respect the dead people. “I did not hear the explanation on that one as to what measures you are putting in place so that you invest in [body] bags for the police stations or those who will be coming to attend the accidents so that they will be well equipped in terms of those bags.” Earlier this year, Mutseyami also demanded answers on the government’s failure to rehabilitate the Mutare-Mozambique highway, 20 years after the legislature raised concern over the poor state of roads which is hampering regional trade. “We have a serious problem with regard to a national road which links Mozambique, Zimbabwe via Mutare. This national road has a high flow of traffic, especially heavy trucks. It is a busy road and these trucks link Zimbabwe, Zambia, DRC and in other cases, they link Botswana,” said Mutseyami. “The problem we have is that it was put to the attention of the minister of Transport and Infrastructure Development some time in 1995. It is the Herbert Chitepo Road; part of the road links Mutare and part of the Green Market. There is a bridge there and that bridge links the flyover and the bridge at Green Market.” Mutseyami added: “The Honourable Minister knows this story because it is on the record of the minister of Transport and Infrastructure Development. There was a plan at national level for that bridge to be expanded and to expand as well the flyover — but up to now nothing has been done and, all of a sudden, it is becoming more of a national crisis because it is affecting the countries that I have mentioned in terms of movement of transport and in terms of time management.” Treat road carnage seriously: MP Dangamvura MP Prosper Mutseyami
Page 24 News NewsHawks Issue 159, 1 December 2023 RUVIMBO MUCHENJE PEOPLE with disabilities have bemoaned the failure by communities and institutions to integrate their needs into programming and inclusion. During a Cultural Café engagement on 15 November hosted by Miss Deaf Pride Zimbabwe in Harare, participants reached a consensus that there is a long way to go before people with disabilities enjoy inclusion and integration. “Stigma, discrimination and misconceptions have made it difficult for persons with disabilities. When you bear a disabled child, people in our communities barely take it well. They assume and believe that it is a curse or the disability has come as a result of some rituals. So there is need to really educate them and make them aware that it is part of life and when we go out they will not be discriminating against us because they will be equipped with knowledge,” said a participant. Closely linked to the community and institutions is the issue of family. Participants felt that awareness needs to start from parents that give birth to children with Communities must ensure inclusion of people with disabilities disability so that if there is acceptance at family level, a person with a disability may grow up knowing how it feels to be loved. “Parents also need to be counselled so that they can accept their child, because at the end of the day when we say our homes are a root cause of marginalisation, it's because of lack of acceptance from the mothers who would have given birth to children with disability. So there is need for public hospitals to have a counsellor in the maternity wards so that they can give counselling to mothers who would have given birth to children with disabilities,” said Stella Jongwe, who moves with the aid of a wheelchair. Jongwe’s sentiments were not isolated. Kudakwashe Madondo added that apart from the need to counsel parents, there is a need to raise awareness for everyone at home. “Some families isolate their children with disabilities in a way that they will not be able to play with the others or work with the others at home. So when you go out of your home unit we do not expect to be accepted because our families have failed to accept us,” she said. If family fails to love their children with disabilities, they are subject to abuse from religious leaders. “Religion is part of our society and daily life, everyone goes to church, it's either you go on Saturday or Sunday, but for us people with disabilities it’s a different situation. Talking from experience, I went to church and a pastor or prophet started to pray for people and when he got to me he said he wanted to change the colour of my skin to be black; I was shocked. I opened my eyes in shock. In another church, I was placed to sit with people in wheelchairs, on crutches, and different disabilities. We had been discriminated. I had gone to church to worship, but they thought I sought healing, of which I didn’t. So I no longer go to church because they are yet to accept us, they think we want to be healed,” said Jennifer Mudiridza who has albinism. Apart from churches, people with disabilities cannot easily access services from public institutions. “Where I stay, I need to constantly visit the social welfare department, but I cannot get inside the building to get assisted because they only have staircases, so if I cannot get inside, who is going to speak on my behalf?” queried Jongwe. “When others get there, there is no sign language for those with hearing impairments and the situation is worse when we go to health facilities. When I go there with a problem I need to tell the nurse my problem and she cannot use sign language or understand sign language,” she added. Miss Deaf Pride Zimbabwe convened the engagement with the aim of creating an enabling social and civic space for people with disabilities to continuously deliberate on critical issues as well as address negative mental models caused by societal norms. The participants also proffered solutions that can be immediately rectified to mitigate stigma and discrimination. These include elevators for thise who are unable to use stairs. On the elevator, an automated voice prompt should announce the number of the floor to enable the visually challenged to enjoy their freedom of movement. They also lobbied for the presence of sign language services in public and private institutions that deal with people. They pushed for action, beyond the recommendations of the workshop, to representatives from ministry of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare. Participants at a cultural cafe held by Miss Deaf Pride Zimbabwe in Harare stick notes describing what stigma is.
NewsHawks News Page 25 1ssue 159, 1 December 2023 BRENNA MATENDERE MATABELELAND North province is battling a resurgent HIV menace emanating from the prevalence of gold rush activities, as well as many spousal separation cases in Tsholotsho where many men cross the border to South Africa to seek employment while their wives remain behind. Gold-mining activities are rife in areas such as Ndabazinduna and Nyamandlovu. In order to put Matabeleland North in the limelight due to the emerging HIV trend, this year's World Aids Day commemorations were held in the province, at Chinotimba Stadium in Victoria Falls on 1 December under the theme "Let Communities Lead." The NewsHawks can reveal that Umguza district has since recorded the highest number of new HIV infections in Matabeleland North province, according to latest statistics. The 2022 census report shows that Umguza has a population of about 113 265 people in an area spanning into 6 043 square kilometres. Speaking during a media tour organised by the National Aids Council ahead of the International Aids Day held on Friday, as well as the International Conference on Aids and STIs in Africa (ICASSA) which kick starts on 4 December in Harare, Umguza District Aids Coordinator (DAC) Mungiwabesuthu Ngwenya said the rural area is now heavily burdened by HIV. “According to the latest 2023 statistics, UMguza district now has an HIV incidence rate of 0.27%, which is highest in the whole of Matabeleland North. Some districts such as Nkayi have as low as 0.05 % HIV incidence rate,” Ngwenya said. The figures are worrying, considering that Zimbabwe, like the rest of the world, has a target of ending all HIV new infections to zero by 2030. Ngwenya attributed the HIV situation in Umguza to mining and partly farming. “We have got scores of people coming from across the country to embark on gold mining areas here in places such as Nyamandlovu and Ndabazinduna. So these people coming from all over are overburdening the HIV situation in the district,” he said. “There is also the other cause of the high HIV incidence rate, which is farming. There are so many farming compounds here with a lot of people and so, again, these have made Umguza an HIV hotspot.” Earlier on, Matabeleland North provincial manager of NAC, Dingaan Ncube, revealed that Tsholotsho has become another HIV hotspot due to spousal separation as most male adults work in South Africa. The HIV prevalence for Tsholotsho is currently at 22.9%, which is more than the 11.1% national rate. Binga has the lowest HIV prevalence at only 6.4%. “In Tsholotsho most of the men work in South Africa where they are not documented. Because of that, they cannot access HIV services in that country and when they come back home infected, they contribute to the high figures of HIV prevalence, especially when they indulge in unprotected sexual activities with adolescent girls,” Ngwenya said. “We also have a problem in which because the province is mostly rural, it becomes difficult to communicate as we are left with mostly the traditional ways of communication on issues to do with HIV prevention like high condom use and treatment.” In order to solve the high HIV incidence rates and prevalence, Matabeleland North province has started implementing various programmes such as Sister-to-Sister and Brother-to-Brother programmes targeting young people aged between 10 and 22. In these programmes, the young people are taken into groups of 30 each where they extensively receive training on HIV prevention and treatment. In Mbembesi ward 3, Dorothy Mhlauli, the community HIV trainer of young people, told The NewsHawks in an interview that over 300 boys and girls have passed through her classes. “It has helped to reduce new HIV infections because we talk of so many preventive uses. We have also been able to reduce cases of early teenage pregnancies and marriages,” Mhlauli said. Headman Vanisha Zenzele Nkomo of ward 3 Niniva said he has allowed the HIV programmes to go unhindered in the area under his jurisdiction despite community challenges like stigma and patriarchy. “We always encourage our people to participate in the programmes of HIV. At first some subjects did not understand it, but due to continued engagements, we are now making strides of progress,” Nkomo said. HIV-related illnesses in Zimbabwe are among the leading causes of death among adults of reproductive age and children, hence the target to end all new infections by 2030. Speaking at the candlelight memorial held on Thursday evening at Chinotimba Hall in Victoria Falls dedicated to people who died of Aids, Health minister Dr Douglas Mombeshora said in order to contain the HIV situation, focus has been placed on women. "By empowering women with knowledge and family planning choices, we can significantly reduce the risk of HIV transmission. Furthermore, we will continue to strengthen existing antenatal and postnatal care services with scaling up of activities to eliminate vertical transmission of hepatitis B virus," he said. Mat North battles HIV menace
Page 26 News NewsHawks Issue 159, 1 December 2023 BRENNA MATENDERE THE United Nations resident representative and humanitarian coordinator in Zimbabwe has revealed that 20 000 people lost their lives due to Aids in the year 2022 while 1.3 million citizens are living with HIV in the country. Edward Kallon made the remarks on Friday at Chinotimba Stadium in Victoria Falls during commemorations to mark World Aids Day whose theme was “Let Communities Lead.” The commemorations were held ahead of the biennial International Conference on Aids and Sexually Transmitted Infections in Africa (Icasa) which will be held in Harare from 4 to 9 December. Up to 8 000 delegates from across the world are expected to attend. Kallon said in Zimbabwe more women than men are living with HIV. “Allow me to share some pertinent statistics. According to the 2022 Zimbabwe epidemic status report, approximately 1.3 million people, accounting for 8.7% of the total population, are people living with HIV,” he said. “Tragically, 20 000 lives have been lost to Aids-related illnesses in the same year. “The impact on women is particularly significant, as women make up 61% of the 1.2 million adults living with HIV.” Kallon said while Zimbabwe has made commendable progress in the fight against the HIV pandemic, the country still faces numerous challenges in achieving the goal of eradicating Aids. He noted that these challenges include disparities in access to HIV services based on age, gender, and geography. On the other hand, adolescent and young women are disproportionately affected by new infections, while children and key populations have limited access to services. National-scale implementation of programmes targeting adolescent girls and young women from key and vulnerable populations is yet to be achieved. Kallon said to effectively end the pandemic in line with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, Zimbabwe must undertake four critical actions. “First, we need to scale up HIV prevention and treatment programmes to cover all sub-population groups, with a particular focus on adolescent girls and young women. Second, community leadership and the engagement of men are crucial in addressing social norms related to gender equality and gender-based violence. “Third, enacting and enforcing laws and policies for key population groups is essential, and sustaining initiatives like social contracting and strengthening evidence generation for key and vulnerable populations. Fourth, allocation of adequate funding and economic opportunities to communities as they connect individuals to person-centred public health services, foster trust, and hold providers accountable . . . end stigma and discrimination,” he said. Kallon also urged Zimbabwe to prioritise the strategic priorities outlined in the National Development Strategy 1, the 2022-2026 UN Cooperation Framework, and the Global Aids Strategy, all of which put people first. Over the years, comprehensive and reliable funding, as well as capacity-building support, have been noted to be critical to delivering inclusive and quality services. Furthermore, there have been calls for creating an enabling environment that facilitates community involvement in decision-making and protects the human rights of all, especially marginalised and key populations. Kallon said the UN system in Zimbabwe is committed to standing with and for communities in the fight against HIV and Aids. “We will continue to advocate for the values, standards, and principles of the UN Charter, including respect for and protection of human rights and gender equality,” he said. “As we reflect on the progress made in Zimbabwe's journey from the scourge of HIV and Aids, it is imperative that we learn from our experiences and strategise to reach the last mile of ending Aids by 2030.” Through collaborative efforts between the government of Zimbabwe, local communities, and international partners, a comprehensive national response has already been implemented that considers both local realities and international commitments. Notably, young people are adopting safer sexual behaviours, and Aids-related deaths have been reduced through widespread availability of free anti-retroviral therapy (ART) in public clinics as well as access to treatment and prevention of mother-to-child transmission programmes in which nearly one million HIV-positive Zimbabweans can lead long and productive lives. Despite these achievements, HIV and Aids remain a threat to the socio-economic progress which Zimbabwe has made and has the potential to destabilise society and hinder human development. Experts say it is crucial to address the underlying factors contributing to the spread of HIV such as gender inequality and practices that perpetuate sexual and gender-based violence. The greatest risk of new HIV infection lies with urban, educated adults in their productive and reproductive years who typically have greater mobility and disposable income. Reducing risky behaviour by investing in behavioural science and communication for development is seen as essential in addressing the problem. 20 000 lives lost to Aids in 2022 United Nations resident representative and humanitarian coordinator in Zimbabwe Edward Kallon
ZIMFACT Claim: Zimbabwe social media platforms have been awash with claims that payment of bride-price (commonly known as lobola) is no longer a legal necessity but rather a moral decision that one has to make when getting into traditional customary marriage. Is this true or false? Verdict: False. Lobola payment is still a requirement under Customary Law Marriage, and the recent Gazetting of the Marriages Act of 2022 did not nullify that provision. What does the Act say about the payment of Lobola? Section 16 of the Marriages Act which deals with the official registration of a marriage states that a marriage officer in a customary law marriage shall put to either of the parties to a proposed marriage or to the witnesses any questions relevant to the identity or marital status of the parties to the proposed marriage, to the agreement relating to marriage consideration (lobola or roora), if any, and to the existence of impediments to the marriage. This means that marriage officers, will have to ascertain whether lobola has been paid before a customary marriage has been registered. What is the purpose of the New Marriages Act? The Ministry of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs says the Act combines the two older Acts, which are the Civil Marriages Act and the Customary Marriages Act to allow monogamous couples with a registered customary union to change to a registered civil union. The new law also implies that no person may be married under the general law and customary law at the same time. What is the difference between Civil and Customary Marriages? A civil marriage is monogamous, that is to say, it is the lawful union of two persons to the exclusion of all others and no person may contract any other marriage during the subsistence of a marriage under the general law. Whereas a customary law marriage may, subject to the customary law of the people concerned, be polygamous or potentially polygamous. What is required to register a marriage contracted according to customary law? • Registration of the marriage within three months of entering into union • Proof that marriage took place • Identity particulars of couple to be registered • Brief details of marriage consideration – what was paid or is to be paid in respect of the marriage Conclusion Lobola remains a requirement for registration of a customary marriage under the new Marriages Act though not for the registration of a civil marriage. Sources: • Ministry of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs. • New Marriages Act. • Veritas Zimbabwe. — ZimFact NewsHawks Page 27 1ssue 159, 1 December 2023 Fact Check: Has Zimbabwe’s new law banned Lobola payments? Legal Insights News
Sponsored by: REGINA RUMBIDZAI PASIPANODYA ALTHOUGH Paurina Mpariwa made a decision not to contest for a legislative position in the 2023 general elections, she has revealed that her journey in politics has not yet come to an end. Mpariwa is now a self-appointed mentor and consultant, focusing on grooming young women into political leadership. “At this stage after 23 years as a legislator I feel that it is now time that I share with other women what I have learnt in politics, and with this initiative I will not only focus on the women in my party, but even outside the MDC-T. I decided that I will remain available also to the civil society who do work to mentor other members of Parliament, and this is not a secret," said Mpariwa. Born in 1964, Mpariwa was a legislator for Mufakose constituency from 2000 until 2013 and she was nominated as a senator through proportional representation (PR) the MDC-Alliance ticket. However, Mpariwa, who is still the vice-president of MDC-T, seems to have prepared her retirement as a legislator after she decided not to contest for any position in the 10th Parliament. She is now a lecturer of ideology, as well as a mentor and consultant. “I did not file for my nomination in this year’s election because I believe that I have contributed enough as a political leader and have played my role as a mother and a woman of the country as well as in my constituency,” she said, adding: “I will help other women grow by imparting the knowledge that I have gained over the years, making them understand how to remain relevant in politics as well as how to be effective in their own circles like in the constituency, how to carry out a campaign, how to win the hearts of the people in a campaign among other things.” During her tenure as a legislator, Mpariwa said she had managed to groom several women to take up leadership positions. “I think it is high time that I pave the way for new blood and young leaders and I am happy and confident that during my tenure I had women as councillors in other political wards,” said Mpariwa. Mpariwa is one of the pioneers of the formation of the MDC in 1999 under the leadership of Morgan Tsvangirai. At that time, she was a unionist, fighting for the rights of workers. "The formation of the MDC party was an idea that we got from the late Zimbabwe president, Robert Mugabe, because when we had gone to the State House with a petition as labour unionists, he told us to start our own party which would represent workers,” she said. "He said 'I am tired of talking to you, start your own political party that will represent the interest of workers' and this is how the MDC was formed.” Since then her passion, commitment and determination have seen her career in politics flourishing and becoming one of the most influential politicians in the country despite the harsh political environment she faced as a woman. In 2009, she was appointed minister of Labour and Social Welfare as part of the national unity government. Mpariwa was also chairperson for the Women's Parliamentary Caucus, chairperson of Women in Law and Development in Africa (Wildaf), deputy chairperson of the parliamentary portfolio committee on Labour, parliamentary deputy whip, and Pan-African Parliament rapporteur for Health, Labour and Social Welfare. At one time, she scooped a medal as one of the best committee chairpersons in the 8th Parliament. "Do you know that Jacob Mudenda, the Speaker of Parliament, is not an easy person to please, but when I was chairperson for the parliamentary portfolio committee for Public Accounts, I was awarded a medal for producing results, making follow-ups, and actually making institutions jump,” said Mpariwa. “This is just who I am when I am given a responsibility. When you are a chair, you need to do oversight and summon ministries, the local government authorities and corporates, for the committee to conduct an analysis to understand whether there was deliberate neglect of duty or whether there was theft or fraud and all these things should be categorised and you present findings to Parliament.” Professionally, she trained in personnel management, industrial relations, business studies, para-legal work, social work, finance and computers. "Working across different political divides as the legislator for the MDC, as a minister in the Government of National Unity and also senator for the MDC-Alliance has made me understand political issues better,” she said. "However, what I have seen and experienced all these years shows that politics is not favourable to us as women and up until the ground is levelled it still remains difficult for women to grow in politics.” Added Mpariwa: “Recently, we have seen recalls of several legislators by Sengezo Tshabangu claiming to be the secretary-general for Citizens' Coalition for Change (CCC), and nothing much can be done about that since the constitution of Zimbabwe allows that. But these recalls have also affected women whom we thought have done their best this year, which saw a decline in women's participation in politics as compared to previous years in penetrating in the political leadership." Mpariwa’s vast knowledge and experience in politics that she gained over the years have capacitated her to become a role model as she is managing small projects like running an early child development school for children with disabilities. "Because it is my passion to promote the rights of people including persons with disabilities and this passion developed when I was minister of Labour, I signed the ratification of the Act on the people with disability, so I'm running with that as well," she said. Mpariwa is also running a poultry project as well as a clothing business. Paurina Mpariwa reflects on a solid political career Paurina Mpariwa Page 28 News NewsHawks Issue 159, 1 December 2023
NewsHawks Page 29 1ssue 159, 1 December 2023 NYASHA DUBE IN a landmark legal victory that will leave a mark on the Zimbabwean political landscape, Bekezela Maplanka of the Citizens' Coalition for Change has proven to have an indomitable spirit after approaching the High Court seeking the nullification of the election outcome for Bulilima constituency. In her petition, Maplanka argued that “voter intimidation, rigging and vote buying . . . produced an undue return.” “Being a female candidate representing the citizens of Bulilima Constituency, I wanted the voice and the will of the people of Bulilima to be heard and respected. It was so heart-breaking and disappointing that the people were not free to choose the leader of their choice because they were intimidated by Zanu PF members who were also campaigning on election day. So many strange things were happening that were contrary to the electoral law,” said Maplanka as she narrated events which led to the court case. “The environment was totally not conducive for the voters to the extent that only half of the registered voters turned out for voting, some stayed in their homes because they were afraid that they would be killed or exempted from receiving food aid. That's the reason why I approached the courts of law although l was doubtful at first,” In the disputed results, the Zanu PF candidate Dingumuzi Phuti garnered 7 185 votes, against Maplanka’s 6 660 votes. Zapu candidate Artwell Ndlovu was third with 933 votes followed by MRP’s Aleck Moyo with 509 votes. Overcoming countless obstacles, Maplanka successfully petitioned the High Court to nullify Phuti’s victory, the first court case of its kind after the 2023 elections. Justice David Mangota granted her a default judgement nullifying the poll outcome, after which Phuti unsuccessfully tried to oppose. “I feel that this is actually an encouragement to other women, that they should be brave and stand for their rights, and not allow themselves to be taken for granted especially when they are leaders,” Maplanka said, adding that the process was not easy. “I faced a lot of intimidation, use of vulgar language, discrimination and there was no freedom of speech,” she said. This extraordinary triumph not only reshapes the political landscape for women, but also serves as an inspiration as Maplanka rewrote history. Maplanka’s story does not begin with this court case. For over a decade now, she has braved Zimbabwe’s hostile political landscape. “I joined politics in 2009 when it was MDC-T led by Morgan Tsvangirai (MHSRP). What pushed me is that I grew up in a rural area, a very poor environmental set up where I would walk for 20km to and from school. Most children were dropping out of school before they even got to Grade 7 because of the distance. There were also very few health facilities. Pregnant women used scotch carts to go to the clinics. I joined politics to make sure that there is change and development. I wanted better for the people of Bulilima,” said Maplanka. “I faced so many challenges which include political violence, gender discrimination and lack of resources but perseverance, patience, confidence, focus and faithfulness took me this far. I can only encourage fellow women to be confident and have trust in themselves, stand up and take positions in the public office. Nothing impossible, sky is the limit,” said Maplanka. Asked on her roadmap for the coming election, Maplanka says she is ready to put up rigging proof measures and defend the people’s vote. “I will educate them about their rights and freedoms, map all the polling stations and train all the polling agents. I will also make sure that I get the voters’ roll on time and I will definitely report unlawful activities conducted by any political party members on the election day,” she said. Meanwhile, Women’s Academy for Leadership and Political Excellence (WALPE) says although this is a victory for the women’s political rights movement, legal battles cost women a lot of time and resources. “Constantly going to the courts takes away a lot of valuable time to implement developmental projects in constituencies and wards. Irregularities such as vote buying have been affecting women for a long time however there seems to be no political will from the principals to address the matter,” said WALPE media and publications officer Helen Kadirire. “As WALPE we highlighted these issues during the internal political party selection process but to no avail. Vote-buying affects women as they do not have resources to embark on vote-buying and campaigning at the same time. Although women may understand the difference between vote-buying and campaigning, there is very little they can do because they do not have the resources to challenge these men,” Kadirire added that women tend to face sexual harassment during election periods, and remaining in election mode puts them at more risk. “While we may not have definitive statistics of sexual harassment, this is a very topical matter which is sensitive to women in politics. WALPE in partnership with other women’s rights organisations have petitioned Parliament on the need for a comprehensive Sexual Harassment Bill that incorporates the private and public sectors including the political sphere,” Kadirire said. “If this is implemented, political parties will be compelled to ensure that they create conducive environments free from sexual harassment, intimidation and all forms of violence for women to freely and actively participate in political processes. The road is rough and bumpy. However, as women we need to stand together in solidarity with our fellow women leaders and give encouragement to continue on the course to leadership.” Maplanka proves mettle in poll battle CCC’s Bekezela Maplanka News
Page 30 NewsHawks News Issue 159, 1 December 2023
NewsHawks Page 31 1ssue 159, 1 December 2023 GURSAMARJIT Singh made millions in marketing and real estate. In Dominica, he purchased a passport. In the U.K., he bought into the political elite. Now he is under investigation back in India. Back in the early 2010s, Gursamarjit Singh was thriving. His start-up company, IndiaHomes, was promising to “revolutionize” India’s real estate market by offering tech-led, online-only property sales services. As the business prospered, Singh himself amassed a property portfolio in India and the U.K. worth millions of dollars. But in April 2015, Singh stepped down as the firm’s operational managing director during a property market crash. The next year, IndiaHomes went out of business, leaving scores of customers out of pocket. Singh then resigned as the company’s registered director. By that point, Singh had given up his Indian citizenship and purchased a passport from Dominica, a Caribbean island nation that sells its citizenship around the world. With the global access offered by his new nationality, Singh left his former life behind, and moved to the U.K. He started using his nickname, “Sam” Singh, became a major Conservative party donor, and bought a mansion now on sale for about $10 million. OCCRP has obtained a cache of documents detailing Singh’s business affairs, including bank statements, company documents, and invoices. Together with newly available legal and corporate records, they show how transnational elites can use socalled “golden passports,” coupled with financial tools such as offshore trusts, to move money, travel, and build a new life abroad. Last year, Indian police issued a socalled “Look Out Circular” against Singh, following a complaint alleging fraud filed by his sister-in-law in India. The circular requires authorities to watch for him at border crossings and arrest or detain him for questioning if he enters the country, according to two Indian lawyers. Police have not formally filed charges, but online records show the complaint is still open. In a response to a request for comment, a Delhi-based lawyer for Singh denied the allegations and told OCCRP that “the Look Out Circular relates to an unfortunate private familial dispute between our client and his sister-in-law who has personal enmity against him.” Meanwhile, scores of IndiaHomes customers have banded together online for years to complain that the company short-changed them. No legal action has been taken against Singh or the company over the complaints, which Singh denies. Singh has long since been set up in the U.K., where he has bought highend property and established companies using his new nationality, and mingled among high society. Singh’s lawyer told OCCRP that IndiaHomes was “a successful venture” and “all the decisions were taken by the executives / board of the Company and not by our client.” The lawyer added that IndiaHomes was “a multi-investor and multi-director company and the [sic] all the decisions were taken by the executives / board of the Company and not by our client.” The lawyer said “there is no doubt or lack of clarity” as to whether Singh had “the financial ability to buy properties or invest in any other businesses and there is no legal restriction on the same.” The lawyer said that Singh’s Dominica citizenship was acquired “with the purpose of easing business travel and avoiding lengthy delays for cumbersome visa restrictions.” ‘On Your Side’ Singh’s online real estate agency, IndiaHomes, framed itself as a tech-driven innovator in the country’s rapidly expanding property market. One TV advertisement opened with quickfire shots of unscrupulous real estate agents laughing menacingly into the camera while waving wads of cash. Unlike those crooks, the ad assured viewers, IndiaHomes was “on your side.” IndiaHomes worked by getting discounts from construction companies — usually between one and 2.5 percent of the property’s value — and promising to pass the savings on to customers. In one case, the company promised a discount of about $2,500, one percent of the value of a roughly $250,000 property sale. However, the buyer said he never received the discount. (Singh’s lawyer said that: “During his tenure (at the firm), IndiaHomes never issued any passback or discounting payments to anyone.”) When customers bought their homes, they received “credit notes,” which IndiaHomes pledged to redeem. But, crucially, the customers needed to pay the full price up-front before claiming the discounts. Scores of customers have said that, once the money was paid, they were not able to get their money from IndiaHomes. Extensive complaints International InvestigativeStories Businessman who bought Dominica passport and funded UK tories now under investigation in India A photograph showing the lobby of the building that housed IndiaHomes in Delhi. International Investigative Stories
Page 32 NewsHawks Issue 159, 1 December 2023 against the company appeared on India’s National Consumer Complaint forum, while homebuyers banded together informally in WhatsApp groups and online forums to try to get their discounts. One customer, Sumit Gautam, made a complaint to the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, writing that “after more than five years and consistent follow up… we have still not received this brokerage discount.” “My humble request [is] to please take appropriate action against IndiaHomes,” he wrote. No legal action has been brought against IndiaHomes over the accusations, which Singh’s lawyers said he “categorically denies.” Singh’s India-based lawyers said that the accusations — which were reported extensively in openDemocracy in 2021 — were “baseless and denied in toto.” Singh’s lawyers said openDemocracy was subject to an ongoing investigation by New Delhi police over the article. The publication said it had received no notice of the investigation. OCCRP obtained nine credit notes dated between 2011 and 2015, which had either been posted online or provided to reporters by customers who said they had not been paid the money they were owed. One note, dated Jan. 20, 2015, said that IndiaHomes’ parent company, India World Technologies Pvt. Ltd., “reserves the right in its absolute discretion to amend the terms and conditions any time without prior information.” By 2014, India’s property market had slowed down. As IndiaHomes started struggling, Singh was spending. A document outlining the company’s response to a due diligence report commissioned by shareholders showed that auditors flagged several of Singh’s expenditures that year. The document indicates the auditors had found “unsatisfactory supportings” for payments worth around $160,000 to a life coach, the online retailer Amazon, as well as travel, hotel, and entertainment expenses. The same report stated that IndiaHomes “uses Marketing Agencies to disburse and manage passbacks and discounting payments.” It added that around $700,000 worth of discounts were “pending disbursal post collection” at the end of 2014, indicating IndiaHomes was in possession of funds that were due to be paid out. It is not clear how much of this money was ever paid out. In April 2015, Singh stepped down as managing director of the company but retained his shareholding. IndiaHomes announced in April 2016 that it had stopped business activities. The company was not closed down, however, but instead was placed under the ownership of successive offshore companies in Mauritius and the United Arab Emirates. Corporate registries do not say who owns these companies. Singh still held his shares in IndiaHomes as recently as 2019, according to Indian company filings. Legally Dominican While at IndiaHomes, Singh had been laying the groundwork for a life beyond India. On March 27, 2013, Singh paid $104,765 to legally obtain a Dominican passport — which required him to give up his Indian nationality under Indian law prohibiting dual citizenship. The new Dominica passport allowed travel to 130 countries without a visa or with a visa on arrival, as well as the possibility of obtaining a 10-year U.S. visa. Singh had also been buying properties in the U.K. In 2012, property records show, he bought a house in Buckinghamshire in the U.K. for about 3.1 million British pounds (around $4 million) via a British Virgin Islands company, Linkfield Group Ltd, with part of the cost covered by a mortgage from ABN Amro bank in the Channel Islands. The offshore company Linkfield also held an investment portfolio of stocks and bonds, through a Barclays Bank account in Singapore, worth nearly $5 million, bank statements obtained by OCCRP show. (Reporters cross-referenced foreign exchange rates during the dates mentioned in the statements and checked the Buckinghamshire property investment against public records.) In 2015, using his Dominican citizenship, Singh added Hinwick House — an 18-bedroom home modeled on the original Buckingham Palace — to his property portfolio for another 4 million pounds (about $6 million at the time). As well as the U.K. property, Singh also began integrating himself into elevated British social circles. Between 2014 and 2019, he donated a little over 270,000 pounds to the ruling Conservative Party, financial disclosures show. He has not donated anything since then. In 2016, Singh was named a trustee of the Elephant Family, a wildlife charity that counts King Charles and Queen Camilla as its so-called Royal Presidents. Queen Camilla’s nephew, the recently knighted Sir Ben Elliot, became a director of Singh’s newly-formed British business, Real World Technologies Ltd, in April 2017. Elliot was chairman of the Conservative Party for three years between 2019 and 2022. Former Conservative member of parliament Baroness Kate Rock was also on the Real World board of directors. (Elliot and Rock did not respond to requests for comment.) The business said it would use artificial intelligence to offer state-ofthe-art online real estate services. As of last year, the company had just 20 pounds in cash assets, and was owed just over 10,000 pounds, company financial statements show. Its books say it has zero employees. Elliott resigned from his position in 2019, and the baroness stepped down early the next year. The company’s subsidiary now does business as an online estate agent operating in Dubai named “Memorable.” After making his UK move, the IndiaHomes founder collected photos of himself pheasant shooting, standing outside 10 Downing Street, and smiling alongside Theresa May and Boris Johnson, two Tory party leaders who would both later become prime ministers. Johnson even signed the visitors book at Hinwick House, according to a photo Singh posted on his now-private Instagram account. May and Johnson did not respond to requests for comment. ‘Winning in India’ At a glamorous launch event in May 2014 for his book “Winning in India” — a compendium of business lessons by India’s top entrepreneurs, including Singh himself — Singh talked of the importance of family. His presentation included a sign stating, “family is the raison d’etre for Indians.” At the same time, Singh was engaged in financial dealings with his own family that would eventually lead to a heated legal dispute. In 2021, his brother’s wife, Priyanka Singh, filed a civil lawsuit against Singh in the Delhi High Court, seeking the equivalent of about $2.3 million in damages. In her complaint, she said she had transferred around $1.4 million to three of his companies in 2013. Priyanka became a director in all three firms. But she had little control over the companies and was “merely made to sign some documents,” she said in her complaint. Priyanka declined to comment. In her claim — which includes bank statements, emails from Singh, and his legal response — Priyanka said that Singh had told her that her money would be put into a “safe investment” of property for around seven or eight years. She said she was told her money would triple in that time, but in reality received nothing besides one payment in May 2019 and lost her original stake. Priyanka accused Singh of “seeking to fritter away” her assets “by parking them in shell companies, some of them on foreign soil.” Priyanka said in her claim that Singh paid her 5 million rupees, worth roughly $70,000 at the time of payment in May 2019, but nothing else. By the time she launched legal action against him, Singh had cut her off, an email exchange submitted as an exhibit in the case shows. In one message to Priyanka the year before, as the two were arguing over the return of her investment, Singh had described her allegations as “naive and ludicrous.” In a legal response to her complaint, Singh said her allegations were “wrong, frivolous and misconceived.” He admitted he has not returned her money to her, but blamed a downturn in the property market. The lawyer for Singh denied that the email exchange submitted as part of the court case was real, and said the emails were part of a “smear campaign” launched by his sister-in-law. The case is ongoing and no judgment has been issued. Priyanka has also filed a criminal complaint to Indian police. That complaint remains open, though police have not filed formal charges. Singh currently splits his time between the U.K. and United Arab Emirates, according to his LinkedIn profile. He is running a new property venture focused on artificial intelligence and styles himself as a “serial entrepreneur.” Before the U.K. move, Singh’s book had offered pearls of wisdom, including “flamboyance is admired, but rarely rewarded.” He is now trying to sell Hinwick House, which is listed for nearly 8 million pounds. — Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project. In 2015 Sam Singh added Hinwick House, pictured here, to his portfolio. International Investigative Stories
International Investigative Stories TARIQ ALI AT last. He’s finally gone.The Rolling Stone headline says it all: "Henry Kissinger, War Criminal Beloved by America’s Ruling Class, Finally Dies." He was a world-class criminal and as in better times the late Verso author Christopher Hitchens, in his excellent polemical book The Trial of Henry Kissinger, many offenses huge and small must be laid at his door. I debated him in 1965 and wrote an account of this in Street Fighting Years — more recently Kissinger’s latest biographer, Niall Ferguson, tracked down the audio and heard the debate a few years ago. Kissinger’s principal crimes were in Indochina. He endlessly delayed the peace talks; suggested, organised and defended extending the war to Kampuchea; and supported the crazed Pol Pot regime that emerged in its wake. For his role in Indochina, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize by the Cold War scumbags who ran the organisation. In an attempt to cover their posteriors, they awarded it jointly to Le Duc Tho, the prime negotiator for Vietnam. He refused with a very dignified statement. In Chile, as is now well known, Kissinger was centrally involved in helping plot the Pinochet coup d’etat of 11 September 1973 that toppled the popular socialist government of President Salvador Allende, who died under a hail of gunfire inside the Moneda palace. It was not yet the custom for the United Sates (aka ‘international community’) to describe these events as ‘regime changes’ to defend ‘humanitarian values.’ Organised tension by Kissinger, Pinochet and the Generals was leading to a confrontation. What was to be done? A huge debate erupted on the Chilean left. From Havana, Fidel Castro sent a private message to Allende: … and I can imagine that tensions must be high, and that you want to gain time to improve the balance of power in case fighting breaks out and, if possible, find a way to continue the revolutionary process without civil strife, avoiding any historical responsibility for what may happen. These are praise-worthy objectives. But if the other side, whose objectives we are not able to judge from here, continues to carry out a perfidious and irresponsible policy, demanding a price which is impossible for Socialist Unity to pay, which is quite likely, do not forget the extraordinary strength of the Chilean working class and the firm support it has always given you in difficult moments…it can block those who are organising a coup, maintain the support of the fence-sitters, impose its conditions and decide the fate of Chile… Kissinger got there first. The more liberal Chief of the Army, Carlos Prats, was assassinated; Pinochet acceded to power; the golpistas triumphed. We lost. Neo-liberal economics under a brutal dictatorship was a perfect model for that period. The total casualties of socialists, communists, and left intellectuals ran into thousands. Elsewhere in the world, the US with Kissinger in the lead backed apartheid South Africa and the despatch of South African troops to crush the liberation forces in Angola. Here their side suffered a defeat. Cuba sent in troops to help the Angolans: the first major defeat for the white regime in Pretoria. Some suggest that it was Kissinger who suggested that Israel send the apartheid state in Pretoria the know-how to make nukes, which they did. It would certainly be in character for him to have done so, but I have yet to see evidence of his direct involvement in ‘Operation Samson.’ In South Asia, with India possessing nukes already, the Bhutto government in Pakistan was determined that Pakistan should get its own. Libya agreed to fund the whole show. The US got worried, not so much for India as for Israel. The latter saw this development as an ‘Arab bomb’. In his death-cell memoir, If I am Assassinated, Bhutto wrote that during one of Kissinger’s visits to Pakistan in 1976 he threatened him mafia-style. Unless Bhutto desisted on the bomb, ‘we’ll make a horrible example out of you.’ A senior Pakistani Foreign Office person present at the meeting confirmed this years later, in January 2008 to be precise, to an interviewer from Business Recorder: …Kissinger waited for a while, and said in a cultured tone, ‘Basically I have come not to advise, but to warn you. The USA has numerous reservations about Pakistan’s atomic programme; therefore you have no way out except agreeing to what I have to say.’ Bhutto smiled and asked, ‘Suppose I refuse, then what?’ Kissinger became dead serious. He locked his eyes on Bhutto’s and spewed out deliberately, ‘Then we will make a horribly example out of you.’ Bhutto’s face flushed…. On the night of July 4-5, 1977, a US greenlighted coup toppled the government. In September 1977, the large crowds greeting Bhutto throughout the country had scared the military. Bhutto was arrested and charged with murder. At 2am on 4 April 1979 after two lengthy and controversial trials, Bhutto was hanged. Yet another successful Kissinger operation. He was now worshipped in Foggy Bottom, regularly invited to the White House. His verbal advice was sought re both Mrs Gandhi and Bangladesh’s Sheikh Mujibur Rehman. Did he suggest that they were both bumped off? No evidence, but not unlikely. She was very hostile to the Zia dictatorship and Mujib had moved too close to the Soviet Union. So why not? One of her Sikh bodyguards who killed her had visited Sikh training camps outside Lahore in Pakistan. A triple murder would be quite an achievement for a once modest Harvard professor. A year before the Soviet Union collapsed, Kissinger advised the White House that even if the result was a ‘Pinochet-style dictator’ a new system could still work. Among the BRICS, China alone mourns his death. He had been very helpful in organising Nixon’s visit to Beijing and the political-economic rapprochement that soon followed and in recent months he had been critical of the Cold War tone being adopted toward Beijing. A decade ago, he was invited to The Nation’s annual party in New York. He was reluctant to attend, but couldn’t resist mingling with the enemy. A friend of mine overheard him saying to Katrina van den Heuvel: ‘strange being at a party where I know that most of the other people here think I’m a war criminal.’ Probably the truest sentence he ever spoke. — Verso Books *About the writer: Tariq Ali is a Pakistani-British political activist, writer, journalist, historian, filmmaker, and public intellectual. Tariq Ali on the death of world-class criminal, Henry Kissinger At last. He's finally gone Henry Kissinger NewsHawks Page 33 1ssue 159, 1 December 2023
Page 34 NewsHawks Issue 159, 1 December 2023 The NewsHawks is published on different content platforms by the NewsHawks Digital Media which is owned by Centre for Public Interest Journalism No. 100 Nelson Mandela Avenue Beverly Court, 6th floor Harare, Zimbabwe Trustees/Directors: Beatrice Mtetwa, Raphael Khumalo, Professor Wallace Chuma, Teldah Mawarire, Doug Coltart EDITORIAL STAFF: Managing Editor: Dumisani Muleya Assistant Editor: Brezh Malaba News Editor: Owen Gagare Digital Editor: Bernard Mpofu Reporters: Brenna Matendere, Ruvimbo Muchenje, Enock Muchinjo, Jonathan Mbiriyamveka, Nathan Guma Email: [email protected] SUB EDITORS: Mollen Chamisa, Gumisai Nyoni Business Development Officer: Nyasha Kahondo Cell: +263 71 937 1739 [email protected] Subscriptions & Distribution: +263 71 937 1739 Reaffirming the fundamental importance of freedom of expression and me- dia freedom as the cornerstone of democracy and as a means of upholding human rights and liberties in the constitution; our mission is to hold power in its various forms and manifestations to account by exposing abuse of power and office, betrayals of public trust and corruption to ensure good governance and accountability in the public interest. CARTOON Voluntary Media Council of Zimbabwe The NewsHawks newspaper subscribes to the Code of Conduct that promotes truthful, accurate, fair and balanced news reporting. If we do not meet these standards, register your complaint with the Voluntary Media Council of Zimbabwe at No.: 34, Colenbrander Rd, Milton Park, Harare. Telephone: 024-2778096 or 024-2778006, 24Hr Complaints Line: 0772 125 659 Email: [email protected] or [email protected] WhatsApp: 0772 125 658, Twitter: @vmcz Website: www.vmcz.co.zw, Facebook: vmcz Zimbabwe Raiding custody services desperate Dumisani Muleya Hawk Eye Editorial & Opinion IT is an established fact in public policy that a national budget is easily the most potent instrument at the disposal of any serious government. The 2024 National Budget presented to Parliament by Finance minister Mthuli Ncube on Thursday is the latest evidence of a clueless government which has long subverted the public interest and is now sacrificing the last vestiges of goodwill on the altar of self-aggrandisement. How on earth does a government presiding over the world's highest inflation and the world's most volatile currency proceed to burden long-suffering taxpayers with an additional raft of cruel taxes? The elephant in President Emmerson Mnangagwa's State House is corruption. The corruption at the heart of the dysfunctional Zimbabwean state is so insidious that it is now tantamount to a massive hidden tax on growth and investment. This is the long-overdue conversation Mnangagwa and his overpaid ministers should be having. Every year, journalists and the Auditor-General's office have been unearthing evidence of criminality in the management of public funds, but the Zanu PF government has repeatedly turned a blind eye. Corruption has become a lifestyle. The theft of taxpayers' money is only part of a wider governance crisis. Another glaring problem is the looting of mineral resources. Zimbabwe's vast mineral endowment is not benefitting the citizens. It is lining the pockets of the political elites and their cronies. Picture this: the President’s niece is caught at the country's main airport while smuggling 6kg of gold. What do the compromised courts do? They ensure that she gets away scot free, with little more than a rap on the knuckles. Meanwhile, when a poverty-stricken citizen is caught with just two grammes of gold, the punishment is severe. Zimbabwe is a crime scene. Corruption is no longer a mild headache; it has become a life-threatening cancer imperiling the very survival of the nation state. This pernicious privatisation of public policy has gained momentum since Mnangagwa rose to power in 2017 on the back of a military coup. From Command Agriculture to mineral smuggling and cabinet appointments, the powerful political elites and their cronies in the corporate sector are colluding to subvert public institutions, monopolise state power in their clans and sectarian enclaves and basically capture state power for private gain. The malaise is everywhere: parastatals, public procurement, state-funded programmes, mining sector, the list is endless. It is the sum total of what is known as the Zimbabwean gravy train. Make no mistake, the costs of corruption are catastrophic. If a country like Botswana can leverage its good governance ethos on just one mineral, diamonds, to deliver a decent standard of living to citizens, Zimbabwe — with its gold, platinum, lithium, chrome, diamonds, nickel and 50 other minerals — should be an astonishing economic miracle in Africa. But a country run by thieves cannot achieve desirable social outcomes. The selfish rulers, instead of working towards the common good, are preoccupied with rent-seeking behaviour, perpetuating inefficient policies and economic squalor. The results are everywhere to see: primitive diseases, crumbling hospitals, dilapidated roads, rotten parastatals, ever-rising taxes, massive unemployment, extreme poverty, worthless currency and astonishing levels of social dislocation. To add insult to injury, the uncaring Zanu PF government is pampering multinational companies with generous tax incentives while burdening citizens with scandalous taxes. This is widening the economic inequality gap between the rich and the poor in the country. But again, ultimately, a country gets the budget it deserves. Nobody is coming to rescue citizens who are too lax for their own good. Mnangagwa’s taxes are cruel
Page 26 NewsHawks Issue 76, 15 April 2022 Business MATTERS NewsHawks CURRENCIES LAST CHANGE %CHANGE USD/JPY 109.29 +0.38 +0.35 GBP/USD 1.38 -0.014 -0.997 USD/CAD 1.229 +0.001 +0.07 USD/CHF 0.913 +0.005 +0.53 AUD/USD 0.771 -0.006 -0.76 COMMODITIES LAST CHANGE %CHANGE *OIL 63.47 -1.54 -2.37 *GOLD 1,769.5 +1.2 +0.068 *SILVER 25.94 -0.145 -0.56 *PLATINUM 1,201.6 +4 +0.33 MARKETS *COPPER 4.458 -0.029 -0.65 BERNARD MPOFU FINANCE minister Mthuli Ncube on Thursday announced a ZW$58 trillion national budget to be funded by belt-tightening measures ranging from new taxes on fizzy drinks, raising toll fees, hiking surcharge on flashy cars to levying Zimbabweans with the financial wherewithal. Operating with limited budgetary support, Treasury has since the early 2000s been defaulting on arrears payments to multilateral lenders, and is now heavily relying on mainly domestic resources to finance its capital projects as well as social spending. After defaulting on arrears owed to international financial institutions, Zimbabweans are now paying the price of the country's pariah status — international isolation — and low credit rating as they are increasingly overburdened with extortionate taxes since the government is unable to get international funding and lines of credit, especially for capital expenditures on infrastructure. Zimbabwe's isolation can be largely traced to the government's fallout with Western countries over policy differences, human rights abuses and a series of stolen elections. This led to targeted sanctions which, put together with the government's failure to pay its debts and arrears, dried up external funding needed for boosting liquidity and funding development projects. Without meaningful access to international finance, lines of credit and foreign direct investment, Zimbabwe became a struggling economic dystopia The country, whose exports are driven by mineral shipments, accounting for over 60% of export proceeds, has been reeling from weakening commodity prices on the international market. According to a study by the African Development Bank a few years ago, Zimbabwe requires nearly US$20 billion for its infrastructure. Major highways are in bad shape, public health facilities under-stocked, living standards are deteriorating and schools are under-resourced. In a desperate move to mend the country’s dilapidated road network, Ncube proposed an increase in tollgate fees from the current US$2 for light vehicles to US$5 on so-called "premium roads" like Harare-Beitbridge. On "other roads", the fee will double from US$2 to US$4. While Ncube raised the tax-free threshold for salaries in local currency, civil servants also received a bittersweet message from the budget. The US$300 Covid allowance introduced to cushion the public service during the pandemic is now part of their pensionable salary, starting in January, meaning fewer greenbacks in their pockets. Ncube also introduced a new tax for multinational corporations which he called the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT). The Finance minister says global rules now demand that large multinational enterprises pay a minimum Corporate Income Tax rate of 15%. He says generous tax incentives are allowing these companies to pay less than this. He is proposing a new tax, the DMTT, which allows the country hosting the multinational to collect “top up tax” rather than the tax going to the headquarters of the company. The corporate tax has been raised back up to its original level of 25%, after it was cut to 24% in 2020 to help businesses through Covid. “Granting of generous tax incentives result in an effective tax rate of less than 15% for some multinationals,” Ncube said. “Under the Global Tax Rules, where a tax incentive results in an effective rate of less than 15%, the tax jurisdiction where the multinational is headquartered collects the difference between the effective tax under the tax incentive and the minimum effective rate of 15% (The Top-Up Tax).” The Finance minister also proposed to raised surcharge on high-value vehicles. Turning the mining sector Treasury also proposed to introduce a 1% levy on gross proceeds of lithium, black granite and other cut or uncut dimensional stones and quarry stones to ensure that they plough back into communities they operate from. This is what Ncube had to say on tax on fizzy drinks: “In response to the growing concerns on the adverse effects of consumption of sugar, in particular, contained in beverages, tax on beverages has been implemented in a number of countries, including in the Sadc region.” “The consumption of high sugar content beverages is linked to increased risk of non-communicable diseases. “It is, thus, necessary to discourage consumption of high sugar content beverages, hence, I propose to introduce a levy of US$0.02 per gram of sugar contained in beverages, excluding water, with effect from 1 January 2024. “Funds derived from this levy will be ringfenced for therapy and procurement of cancer equipment for diagnosis.” For those owning houses valued at US$100 000 or more, the Finance minister will be sending the taxman to demand a new “wealth tax”. “Mr Speaker Sir, the key fundamental of tax policy is to address the regressivity of tax that occurs when individuals in a low-income category pay a higher percentage of their income as compared to individuals in higher income brackets,” the Finance minister said. “Consequently, the tax incidences fall disproportionately on the low-income groups resulting in inequality. “In order to ensure that every person contributes to the Fiscus in line with their levels of income, I propose to introduce a Wealth Tax levied at a rate of 1% of market values of residential properties with a minimum value of US$100 000.” Ahead of the budget, the country’s business organisations such as the Chamber of Mines of Zimbabwe and the Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce had lobbied the government to review the tax regime to lower business costs and improve profitability. With few funding options, Zimbabwe’s desperate government has few options to push the envelope. ZW$58 trillion budget to be funded through tough belt-tightening plan Finance minister Mthuli Ncube l ZW$58.2 trillion budget; l Health, Education take lion’s share of budget; l Zimbabwe economy to register 3.5% in 2024; l Merchandise exports stood at US$5.2 billion during the first nine months; l Merchandise imports registered a 4.7% increase, from US$6 billion in the first nine months of 2022 to US$6.3 billion in 2023; l Current account is expected to close the year 2023 in a surplus position of US$244.4 million, slightly lower compared to US$305 million registered in 2022; l New tax for multinational corporations; l New “wealth tax" on property worth US$100 000 or more; l New surcharge bands on luxury cars; l Toll fees raised; l Passport fees increased; l Covid allowance now taxable; and l Deadline for lithium beneficiation plans. Budget highlights
Page 36 NewsHawks Issue 159, 1 December 2023 Companies & Markets BERNARD MPOFU ZIMBABWE’S exposure to Chinese loans has surpassed the level of indebtedness to Paris Club members as the southern African nation looks East to counterbalance Western isolation triggered by non-payment of arrears and concerns over growing human rights abuses. Harare has largely been relying on domestic resources such as taxes, debt instruments such as Treasury Bills as well as bilateral loans to finance some of its key projects. The country is currently ineligible to access loans from multilateral creditors such as the World Bank after defaulting on repayments. The Harare authorities are now making token payments to creditors in an effort to normalise relations and access concessional funding in future. According to the Public Debt Report, total Public and Publicly Guaranteed (PPG) debt stood at US$17.7 billion, as at end September 2023, of which external debt amounted to US$12.7 billion (72 per cent) and domestic debt of US$5 billion (28 per cent). “China is the biggest Non-Paris Club creditor accounting for 95 per cent of the total Non-Paris Club external debt of US$2 billion,” the report shows. “China’s stock of total external debt at US$2 billion, is lower than Zimbabwe’s total external debt owed to the five biggest Paris Club creditors, namely: Germany, France, United Kingdom, Japan and the United States. Non-Paris Club loans, including loans from China, were contracted after year 2000, while Paris Club loans were contracted prior to year 2000, when the country started to accumulate external debt payment arrears on its debt.” The five biggest Paris Club creditors are Germany, France, United Kingdom, Japan and the US, with a combined external debt stock amounting to US$2.9 billion, accounting for 74% of the total Paris Club external debt. Within the Paris Club external debt portfolio, penalties for these five biggest creditors account for 75% cent (US$1.5 billion) of total Paris-Club penalties. “Of the bilateral and multilateral debt amounting to US$9.1 billion, US$7 billion or 76% are principal arrears, interest arrears and penalties,” the report shows. “Bilateral external debt comprising of Paris and Non-Paris Club creditors amounted to US$6.0 billion, with principal arrears, interest arrears and penalties amounting to US$4.4 billion or 74%.” What is the Paris Club? The Paris Club is an informal group of official creditors whose role is to find coordinated and sustainable solutions to the payment difficulties experienced by debtor countries. As debtor countries undertake reforms to stabilise and restore their macro-economic and financial situation, Paris Club creditors provide an appropriate debt treatment. Paris Club creditors provide debt treatments to debtor countries in the form of rescheduling, which is debt relief by postponement or, in the case of concessional rescheduling, reduction in debt service obligations during a defined period (flow treatment) or as of a set date (stock treatment). The origin of the Paris Club dates back to 1956 when Argentina agreed to meet its public creditors in Paris. Since then, the Paris Club has reached 478 agreements with 102 different debtor countries. Since 1956, the debt treated in the framework of Paris Club agreements amounts to US$614 billion. BERNARD MPOFU SENIOR World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) officials this week met authorities in Zimbabwe during high-level meetings focusing macro-economic stability and debt resolution and re-engagement with the global community, The NewsHawks has established. Zimbabwe is desperately making frantic efforts to normalise relations with the Bretton Woods institutions which are key multilateral financial institutions. Information indicates that the director of the IMF's African Department, Abebe Aemro Selassie, who oversees the global fund's operations and engagement with 45 countries across sub-Saharan Africa, including Zimbabwe, flew to Harare this week alongside World Bank officials for the meetings with top government officials on re-engagement, reforms and macro-economic diagnostic issues. Selassie has held meetings with Finance minister Mthuli Ncube and Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe governor John Mangudya, and their respective officials on macro-economic and reform issues. Mangudya confirmed having meetings with officials from the multilateral lenders. “They were in Zimbabwe for 5 days to discuss recent macro-economic policies, re-engagement agenda, SMP and debt arrears clearance strategy,” Mangudya said. “They commended fiscal and monetary authorities for stabilising the economy and reducing the parallel market premium to below 25%. They urged authorities to continue with current efforts towards unifying the exchange rates.” Selassie, a London School of Economics and Political Science-trained Ethiopian economist who specialises in macro-economics and strives to strengthen the region’s financial architecture to support Africa to reach its true potential, will also meet President Emmerson Mnangagwa. Since late 2022, Zimbabwe has been engaged in a concerted process to resolve its debt and clear arrears with international creditors, including the African Development Bank (AfDB). Mnangagwa has invited AfDB president Akinwumi Adesina — widely recognised as one of Africa’s most ardent growth proponents — to spearhead the debt and arrears clearance strategy. As part of an implementation matrix starting with a low-hanging fruit, Zimbabwe has formally asked for a new Staff-Monitored Programme from the IMF to promote reforms. The IMF is interested in the dynamics of reforms and debt situation, having largely pushed for a solid institutional position. Reforms and macro-economic stability can contribute to positive change in a country’s image and perception, as well as credit rating. Zimbabwe’s total debt stock amounts to US$17.7 billion. Debt owed to international creditors stands at US$14.04 billion, while domestic debt comes to US$3.4 billion. Bilateral creditors are owed US$5.8 billion and multilateral creditors about US$2.5 billion. The country is in arrears with international financial institutions, including the AfDB, World Bank and European Investment Bank. Zim debt to China surpasses Paris Club IMF, World Bank officials pay visit Director of the IMF's African Department Abebe Aemro Selassie
NewsHawks Page 37 1ssue 159, 1 December 2023 Companies & Markets BERNARD MPOFU Zimbabwe’s government has set a 31 March ultimatum for the country’s lithium miners to outline their beneficiation plans as the mineral is crucial in driving exports. Lithium is becoming a highly sought-after commodity in the quest to achieve a net-zero global economy. Presenting the 2024 National Budget on Thursday, Finance minister Mthuli Ncube proposed a 31 March deadline for lithium miners to submit their beneficiation plans. While there have been concerns over the exploration of the mineral by some local communities, the southern African country has reported enormous investment in the lithium industry. “Substantial mineral revenues can be generated from beneficiation of key minerals. With a significant resource endowment of Platinum Group of Metals, gold, lithium, and diamonds, economic transformation and development can be anchored on beneficiation,” Ncube told lawmakers at the new Parliament Building in Mt Hampden. “Within this context, any lithium value addition process that does not result in the production of lithium carbonate is not regarded as beneficiation, hence, is liable to an export tax. Lithium-producing companies should submit their beneficiation plans no later than 31 March 2024. “Furthermore, no licences shall be granted to a prospective lithium company without approval of a beneficiation plan.” Treasury also proposed a new tax for lithium to augment social corporate responsibility activities for the miners. “As a token of remembrance of the mountains that nature offered, local communities should be provided with basic services that include water, healthcare, electricity and sanitation, among others,” Ncube added. “Development of mines, thus, presents an opportunity to improve conditions within these communities, hence, I propose to introduce a 1% levy on gross proceeds of lithium, black granite and other cut or uncut dimensional stones and quarry stones. “Mr Speaker Sir, merchandise exports stood at US$5.2 billion during the first 9 months of the year and are projected to increase by 4.3% to US$7.3 billion by year end from US$7 billion in 2022, on account of higher tobacco, lithium, and diamond exports.” Official figures show that in 2024, despite the softening of commodity prices of key minerals such as gold and platinum-group metals, exports are projected to remain on the increase, sustained by growth in output from lithium, coke and tobacco to US$7.7 billion. BERNARD MPOFU TREASURY has proposed to tighten the screws on the informal sector after formal retailers raised alarm over growing competition and the existential threat posed by the small businesses largely operating outside the taxmen’s dragnet. Presenting the 2024 National Budget, Finance minister Mthuli Ncube said the government will soon order manufacturers to supply goods to tax-compliant businesses only. “In order to restore the supply chain from the manufacturer, wholesaler to retailer, I propose that only licensed and Tax Compliant Operators procure goods from manufacturers and wholesalers,” Ncube told Parliament on Thursday. “In addition, I therefore, propose that only traders registered for VAT purposes and in possession of valid Tax Clearance Certificates be eligible to procure goods from manufacturers.” High levels of unemployment and weak enforcement of by-laws by the authorities in most urban centres has resulted in most sidewalks full of wares being sold by informal traders at lower prices compared to formal retailers. While the growth of the informal sector has eased unemployment pressures, experts say the traders are largely operating outside the taxmen’s eye, thereby prejudicing Treasury of revenue. According to the Finscope Survey, Zimbabwe could be losing millions of United States dollars in tax revenue after it emerged that 70% of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) do no keep accounting records. OK Zimbabwe, one of the country’s largest supermarkets by geographical presence and revenue, this week flagged uncertainty surrounding government policies and the regulatory landscape as some of the major constraints creating an unpredictable business environment. The retail group also highlighted high interest rates, limited access to funding affecting capital expenditure and investment plans and growing competition from informal retailers and traders. Untamed hyperinflation and multi-tier exchange rate distortions are also affecting pricing strategies, OK Zimbabwe says. Govt tightens screws on informal sector Ultimatum for lithium miners
Page 38 NewsHawks Issue 159, 1 December 2023 Companies & Markets The Banker
GREETINGS fellow tech enthusiasts, digital pioneers, and aficionados of the cyber realm! Today, let's embark on a light-hearted journey into the fascinating world of information communication technology (ICT) in our beloved motherland. Buckle up, and let's dive into the saga of the "ICT Budget Allocation Not Adequate." Introduction: Ah, the sweet aroma of progress! While we applaud the Honourable Minister of Finance for the recent allocation to ICT and postal services, it seems some of us in the digital trenches are left yearning for a bit more budgetary love. It is like ordering a pizza and receiving just one slice – we appreciate it, but come on, we need the whole pie! Data dilemmas and ISP struggles Picture this: Data prices soaring higher than a kite, and our dear internet service providers (ISPs) grappling with power outages more often than a teenager changes outfits. It's a real-life drama, folks! The impact of this tiny budget becomes even more hilarious when you consider the grand symphony of services that ICT conducts for our developing nation. Taxman's tech troubles The Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (Zimra), our taxman extraordinaire, is trying to collect taxes on gadgets over data networks as an effort to implement the new TarMS systems linked to other systems like SVYUDA, Registry, Deeds Office etc all with reliable connectivity. Currently I know of no statutory instrument in place so as to enable Starlink Kits acquisition and deployments . The kits are sneaking in like mischievous party crashers, and the taxman is left scratching his head. Taxman its in yoru best interests to support more allocations to the digital arena. E-Government : Imagine trying to achieve the 2030 vision with an ICT backbone resembling a wobbly chair with a leg missing – not the most promising sight. Our Service Level Agreement (SLA) is like a report card, and right now, it's certainly well below any acceptable standards. Service Level Agreements (SLAs) for telecommunications, including network availability, are typically measured using key performance indicators (KPIs). Network availability is a critical metric, and it is commonly expressed as a percentage. The acceptable value for network availability can vary depending on the specific SLA negotiated between the telecommunications service provider and its customers. However, industry standards and common benchmarks often set a target of 99.9% or higher for network availability. Green dreams and solar schemes Let's talk about the eco-friendly kind. How about we trim down on overseas trips, save some hard-earned cash, and invest it in creating a fund for operators to go green? Solar energy enthusiasts, rejoice! There are rebates waiting to be claimed. Reward the eco-warriors, and watch them reduce the load on our national grid—hello carbon green credits, where are you? Digital dreams and innovations The ministry of ICT holds the magic wand for digital dreams and innovations but, alas, the budget is not adequate and likely not be adequate but, as it stands, it is a bit on the low side. Too many variables involved. I am no economist and do not wish to become one. Our youths are raring to dive into the realms of artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), blockchain, and more, but they need a reliable internet connectivity and energy – not the kind that leaves you in the dark during an important Zoom call.We did it during Covid-19: remote working and learning . “Why can't we did it now ?” Less seminars, more action Let's cut to the chase – fewer seminars where people talk, clap hands, and then promptly forget everything discussed , but more hands-on workshops to impart hardcore skills to our youths. With no skills base, innovation hubs count for nothing. I prefer the research and design (R&D) approach. There is a 2016 national ICT policy in place that needs a makeover to keep up with the ever-evolving cyber space. Security and privacy? Yeah, we need a balancing act like a circus performer on a tightrope. Conclusion Dear Honourable Minister of ICT, I humbly implore you to revisit the drawing board, dust off the original plan, and request Treasury to more than treble the ICT budget allocation. Let those allocations be devolved to each province, like spreading margarine evenly on toast. Let's not have 90% of all things ICT congregating in Harare — it's time to share the tech drive to all corners of the country. We are all in this digital journey together ! Punitive regulations and laws will only achieve the opposite effect. Disruptive technologies follow no man-made rules. The best is to learn them, understand them and then take a proactive approach to pre-empt problems that may arise. I do not have to narrate here what text messaging and email did to the postman and his letters. Also, I always wonder why government institutions use public and free personal email platforms like Gmail ? Yours in the cyber trenches, *About the writer: Robert Ndlovu, a former engineer at Google, is a vastly experienced technology consultant based in Bulawayo. Contact: @robertndlovu | wozatel@gmail. com | Cell:+263 77 600 2605 Reframing Issues Page 39 ICT budget allocation — A plea for more gigabytes NewsHawks 1ssue 159, 1 December 2023
Page 40 Reframing Issues PROFESSOR ARTHUR G.O. MUTAMBARA MY biggest regret about our participation in the GNU is that we, coming from the opposition parties — MDC-T and MDC-M — into government, were naive and unstrategic. We lacked the Machiavellian instinct and disposition. We honestly but naively pursued the business of running the country, salvaging the economy and creating an enhanced socio-political dispensation. As a collective political leadership, we should have taken time to apply our minds to the existential question: “What next after the GNU?” We did not address this matter. This was suicidal. On the other hand, our colleagues from ZANU-PF were not interested in saving or serving the country. They took the GNU period as an opportunity to regroup and strategise, with the objective of offloading us from the government as soon as they could. Their target was the next harmonised elections in 2013. Pure and simple. They paid lip service to the GPA and GNU. They tolerated the constitution-making process as long as it did not disadvantage them in any way. Our ZANU-PF colleagues were not interested in any of the political, electoral, national healing, security sector and media reforms stipulated in the GPA. This brings me to our second shortcoming. We did not concentrate on these reforms or put them at the centre of our activities right from the beginning of the GNU. While we knew that these changes were critical in ensuring that the next elections were free, fair and credible, leading to undisputed outcomes, we did not walk the talk. It was a tragic lack of judgement. We only started making uncreative noises and throwing shameless tantrums about the need for reforms towards the end of the GNU, which was to terminate on 29 June 2013. It was too late. Shame on us! Even SADC and South Africa could not help us. However, extenuating circumstances arose from how the GPA was drafted. This lead to poor enforceability and ineffective implementation of its provisions. A fatal flaw of the GPA was the absence of an explicit and binding dispute resolution clause or provision. Such a legal instrument or mechanism could have helped us settle some of our many disagreements (the persistent GPA outstanding issues) over the interpretation and implementation of the GPA. Then, we could have made considerable progress on the reforms we needed before the 2013 polls. Nevertheless, as the MDC parties, we were part of the GPA drafting. Hence, we take responsibility for its inadequacies and deficiencies, which we should have attended to during the GPA negotiations and drafting. This negligence constitutes a third failure on our part. Guilty as charged. Our fourth transgression is that some of us started enjoying the trappings of power due to the association with the ZANU- PF grandmasters of looting (our partners in the GNU). Cases of corruption, primitive accumulation, ostentatious consumerism, conspicuous consumption and lavish lifestyles became commonplace among some former champions (MDC Ministers) of democracy, accountability, integrity, probity, anti-corruption, transparency and good governance. What a shame! Yes, the GNU was a great experience and an educational opportunity for those of us who were part of it. It also gave the people of Zimbabwe a breathing space — some respite from the unimaginative misrule and ruinous misgovernance of ZANU-PF. Yes, we stabilised the economy and improved our people’s lives. We worked on fundamentals such as a shared national vision, a national brand, industrial policies and mining law reform. Indeed, we delivered a New Constitution – the 2013 National Constitution. In fact, we showed the country how an able and united leadership could change the fortunes of a nation. We demonstrated the efficacy of an inclusive Team Zimbabwe approach. Indeed, the GNU amply made the case for a three-way Team of Rivals. However, when all is said and done, our GNU intervention was like a flash in the pan – an honourable but unsustainable, and hence largely insignificant exercise. With hindsight, we could have achieved much more and impacted the Zimbabwean political narrative better. My regrets articulated in the preceding discussion are the basis of my conclusion. We could have done better had we been more vigilant, strategic, savvy and, yes, Machiavellian. Reflections on the 2013 National Constitution With respect to the Constitution of Zimbabwe adopted in 2013 – as I write this book in 2023, 10 years later – it is imperative that I do some soul-searching. Is it a good constitution? Was the NCA correct in their reservations about the charter? What does that which has happened in the past six years – such as the amendment of the Constitution to expand the President’s appointing powers, the efforts to change the devolution provisions before they are even implemented, and many other contradictions – mean? First of all, it is vital to observe that the 2013 National Constitution did not solve the matter of disputed elections in Zimbabwe. The outcomes of our general elections were challenged in 2013 and 2018 [and, of course, 2023]. That’s a terrible indictment of the 2013 Constitution. Also, as I reflect and write in 2023, aligning some Zimbabwean laws (Acts of Parliament) with the 2013 National Constitution is still a significant concern. For example, there is a strong view that Section 22 of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act, under which 21 citizens, between January and August 2019, were charged with “subverting constitutional government”, is not aligned with the 2013 National Constitution. Furthermore, on 15 August 2019, the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) issued a prohibition notice against the holding of the MDC Alliance’s demonstration the following day in central Harare, in terms of Section 26 (9) of the Public Order and Security Act (POSA), Chapter 11:17. Clearly, POSA is not in sync with the 2013 National Constitution. Several such laws need synchronisation with the national governance charter. POSA’s successor law — Maintenance of Peace and Order Act (MOPA) — enacted in 2019, is equally an affront to Zimbabwe’s 2013 National Constitution. MOPA is just as pernicious as POSA. Same difference. In some cases, the provisions of the Constitution are not self-evident. There are always disputes that end up with lawyers proffering conflicting interpretations. A people-driven constitution’s provisions should be explicit, easily understood, and interpreted by ordinary people. An elitist document with impenetrable provisions is of limited efficacy. During the constitution-making process, I had personally pushed for the establishment of a new constitutional commission – the Zimbabwe Civic Education Commission – whose primary function was to create awareness and educate the citizenry about the National Constitution. This could have helped immensely in terms of enhancing ordinary people’s grasp of the contents of the country’s governing charter. However, somehow, the proposal fell through the cracks. There is another instructive aspect of the 2013 National Constitution that deserves commentary – the issue of protection from deprivation of private property. As young Marxist-Leninist revolutionaries in the late 1980s (1987 to 1990) at the University of Zimbabwe (UZ), Section 16 of the Lancaster House Constitution (Zimbabwe’s founding charter) was our key target. This provision sought to protect institutions and individuals from the “deprivation of private property.” As radical student leaders, we were totally and palpably incensed by this section. We used to eloquently declare: “Section 16 of the Constitution of Zimbabwe must be abolished. Sitted from left: Government of National Unity principals Arthur Mutambara, Joice Mujuru, Robert Mugabe, Morgan Tsvangirai and Welshman Ncube (standing far right). Reflections on GNU and the 2013 Constitution Book Excerpt from: In Search of the Elusive Zimbabwean Dream, Volume III (Ideas & Solutions) NewsHawks Issue 159, 1 December 2023
Reframing Issues Page 41 It is an affront and an obstacle to our socialist revolution, driven by the workers, peasants and organic intellectuals. The provision protects the capitalist system characterised by unbridled exploitation of our people by the local bourgeoisie and international capital. We seek to seize and smash this moribund and parasitic system and replace it with an egalitarian socialist society.” That is how we used to flow at the peak of our radicalism. Indeed, we were fiery hell-raisers in pursuit of the revolution. Well, fast forward to the making of the 2013 National Constitution. We have all sold out! The former revolutionaries in ZANU-PF and the MDC parties are not concerned about social revolution. We unashamedly adopt Section 71 in the new charter, which is more conservative than the old Section 16. Yes, Section 72 (a) of the 2013 National Constitution allows for the appropriation of private property, but this is strictly limited to agricultural land. There we have it. The local bourgeoisie and international capital are quite safe under the new constitutional order. This is why the Western governments and their donor agents gladly and enthusiastically supported our COPAC process. The only civil society group that challenged Section 71 and defended the case for social revolution is the International Socialist Organisation (ISO), whose key leader is the inimitable and indefatigable Munyaradzi Gwisai (Former UZ SRC Secretary General 1989-1990, when I was the President). However, Gwisai was miserably alone on this mission impossible. The inclusion of Sections 71 and 72 is one of the critical reasons that ISO, which fully participated in the constitution-making process, decided to join the NCA and campaign for a “No Vote” against the 2013 National Constitution. Of particular contention is paragraph 3(a) of Section 72, which states that: “When agricultural land is compulsorily acquired for a public purpose, no compensation is payable in respect of its acquisition, except for improvements effected on it before its acquisition.” This clause provides for compensation for the former colonisers under the guise of so-called improvements. Indeed, the revolutionaries have sold their souls for a few pieces of silver. As radical student leaders at the UZ in the late 1980s, we would never have accepted this treachery. Not a chance! Our position was that there should be no compensation for colonisers. Period. Not even for improvements! Several clauses from the rejected 2000 Draft National Constitution find their way into the 2013 National Constitution. Specifically, the land clause is virtually the same, and the contentious part of compensation being paid by the former colonial power is retained. However, unlike the 2000 National Referendum vicious fight, in 2013, there is no longer a massive conflict over the matter. This is despite Western powers and big business seeming to have accepted that the land reform programme is irreversible. However, the quid pro quo is that ZANU-PF conceded in section 71 not to extend indigenisation and economic empowerment to other property forms such as mining, manufacturing, and finance. So, in a way, the 2013 National Constitution marked the end of ZANU-PF’s radical economic nationalism. We registered some improvements in the 2013 charter over the amended Lancaster House document. There is a significant advancement in women and gender empowerment through such provisions as Section 3 on founding values of gender equality; maternity employee rights and equal pay for equal work (Section 65); prohibition of gender discrimination whether on the grounds of tradition, custom, pregnancy or marital status; and equality of women and men in all endeavours and spheres of life including economic, social and political. Gender-affirmative action is recognised through Sections 56, 80, 17, and 24 and women’s Proportional Representation seats. All these were tremendous advances on the Lancaster Constitution that did not even recognise gender discrimination and, in fact, allowed it based on custom and tradition. There are significant gains in terms of labour and socio-economic rights. Section 65, for the first time, constitutionalised labour rights such as those to fair labour practices, safety and fair wages, strikes, collective bargaining, and the right to organise (including for civil servants). However, Section 200 severely restricts the political rights of civil servants from active political party participation. As the MDC parties, this is an acute failure on our part as this provision potentially constrains a significant portion of our support base, such as teachers and nurses in rural areas. The section should have been couched to restrict senior civil servants, not the rank and file. Unlike the Lancaster House Constitution, the 2013 document recognises socio-economic rights like education, shelter, healthcare, the environment, children’s rights and gender parity. However, the major limitation is that these rights are placed as non-justiciable provisions in Chapter 2 rather than in the Declaration of Rights in Chapter 4. Furthermore, there are neither established enforcement mechanisms nor explicit funding provisions to make these rights a lived reality. Although soon after adopting the 2013 National Constitution, we are overly enthused by the virtues and strengths of our product, time — the magician — has allowed for a more objective and detached assessment. It is now 2020, and the starry-eyed appraisals have given way to soberer reflections. It must be emphasised that the ring-fencing of private property, in a very conservative property clause — Section 71 — militates against any attempts to pursue a redistributive economic agenda. As explained earlier, in the 2013 National Constitution, we abandon any pretence of commitment to social revolution. We have clearly and unambiguously sold out. The biggest weakness of the 2013 National Constitution is that it merely tinkers with and superficially curbs Zimbabwe’s imperial presidency, essentially retaining it intact. The provision for a vote of no confidence and retention of decisive presidential power in appointments of key state positions, such as the judiciary and commissions, including the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC), can illustrate this. A sitting President who is a candidate in an upcoming presidential election has total and unfettered authority to appoint the referee for the polls (ZEC). This cannot be right. It is a distinct weakness of the 2013 Constitution — a structural flaw, indeed. As if this perverted and undesirable retention of an all-powerful presidency is not enough, in 2020, ZANU-PF seeks to further embellish and enhance these egregious powers through the Constitution of Zimbabwe Amendment (No. 2) Bill. In fact, they embarked on that journey earlier by enacting the Constitution of Zimbabwe Amendment (No. 1) Act, 2016. The ZANU-PF mandarins are insatiable in their pursuit of an imperial presidency in Zimbabwe. Another worrisome democratic deficit of the 2013 National Constitution is the retention of the first past the post electoral system. The charter fails to introduce a fully-fledged Proportional Representation (PR) system as in South Africa. The limited PR introduced for the Women’s Quota and the Senate [and later the Youth Quota] is highly inadequate. That we failed to push for comprehensive PR successfully reflects incorrigible poor judgement on our part as the MDC parties, particularly the MDC-M – our party. Being a small party (the smallest of the three GNU partners), the PR system should have been one of our critical non-negotiable demands. Only through the PR system can small and medium-sized parties retain and defend a foothold in Parliament. We see this with the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), Democratic Alliance (DA) and other minor parties in South Africa. For the entire democratic opposition in Zimbabwe, the PR system is the only guaranteed and surest way of stopping ZANU-PF from getting a two-thirds majority in Parliament. Such a majority can be used to subvert the 2013 National Constitution, as we witnessed ZANU-PF brazenly doing with the two constitutional amendments discussed above. Yes, as the MDC parties, we misfired and manifested contemptible dereliction of duty on PR. A further major weakness of the 2013 National Constitution was the judiciary entrenchment provisions protecting the existing politically compromised bench of Chief Justice Godfrey Chidyausiku, thus making it both the Supreme Court and Constitutional Court for a specified period. This entrenchment was a key enabler and sustaining pillar of the Harare regime. Why? Because it guaranteed that ZANU-PF would continue to enjoy the services of a captured judiciary to do its bidding for it. This is of particular significance concerning the resolution of disputed electoral outcomes. Once formally adopted, the constitutional arrangement is difficult to challenge or attack. Constitutionalism and the rule of law now demand adherence to it. Indeed, the seeds of a captured judiciary were sown during the crafting of the 2013 National Constitution. It turned out that ZANU-PF learnt well from the best — the Rhodesians and British — that a constitutionally protected inherited judiciary from the preceding state is vital in safeguarding the elites’ entrenched political and economic interests. We, in the MDC parties, were outmanoeuvred on this one, as well. (To be continued next week) *About the writer: Professor Arthur G.O. Mutambara is the director and full professor of the Institute for the Future of Knowledge (IFK) at the University of Johannesburg in South Africa. NewsHawks 1ssue 159, 1 December 2023
Page 42 Reframing Issues NewsHawks Issue 159, 1 December 2023 FRONTLINE AIDS OUR reports show that funding from international donors remains the highest contributor to HIV prevention in Africa, especially for programmes aimed at key population communities, such as men who have sex with men, transgender people, sex workers and people who use and inject drugs. Beyond HIV prevention, governments of all nine African countries analysed in our reports are falling far short of meeting the target to spend 15% of their national budgets on health, as set out within the Abuja Declaration. This reliance on international donors threatens the sustainability of the HIV prevention response, particularly now with international funding for HIV decreasing and a number of donor countries cutting their aid budgets, or re-allocating aid to other areas. It also raises questions about each government's commitment to ending Aids as a public health priority. A new HIV Prevention & Accountability report developed by Frontline Aids and community partners in Zimbabwe show that while the government is making positive progress in areas of HIV prevention, these are not enough to curb the increasing number of people being infected with HIV each year. Zimbabwe is making positive progress in several areas of HIV prevention. Between 2020 and 2022 the number of new HIV infections reported in Zimbabwe has reduced by 7%. And there have been 73% fewer HIV infections reported among children between 2010 and 2022. It has recently developed a new Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) framework and is actively working on establishing a national digital health strategy, as well as taking commendable steps towards closing the gap in service coverage for adolescent girls and young women and adolescent boys and young men through public (social) contracting. While progress towards HIV prevention in Zimbabwe is moving in the right direction, the HIV Prevention & Accountability report developed by Frontline Aids and community partners has highlighted a number of barriers preventing the country from progressing further. These barriers have the ability to reverse the gains achieved by Zimbabwe's health budget, compromising the sustainability of the country's HIV response and reducing the likeliness of Zimbabwe meeting its target to reduce new HIV infections to 14 000 annually by 2025. Shrinking civil space Civil society and community organisations play an essential role in the HIV response, particularly in reaching people who face stigma, discrimination or criminalisation, or who are otherwise left behind. But in 2023, Zimbabwe introduced the Patriotic Act which presents huge limitations for civil society organisations (CSOs) when it comes to civic space. Under these new laws, civil society and community organisations working in HIV prevention can also be prosecuted and threatened. The Act has also resulted in changes to the registration of non-governmental organisations (NGOs), which has created more bureaucracy and discrimination against key population-led organisations - limiting their ability to hold government to account. Within the report, Frontline Aids partners recommend that Zimbabwe repeals the Patriotic Act, removing barriers to civic space and recognising the vital role that civil society has in engaging government on accountability. Growing anti-rights movements Zimbabwe has shown some commitment to human rights by repealing Section 79 of the Criminal Code on the wilful transmission of HIV. Research has highlighted an organized and well-funded anti-rights and anti-LGBTQ+ movement which is rapidly gaining influence across Africa, including Zimbabwe, posing a major threat to HIV prevention progress. The growing movements are threatening access to sexual reproductive health and rights (SRHR) services for youth in Zimbabwe, as well as LGBTQ+ communities and people who use and inject drugs. Within the report, Frontline AIDS community partners have urged the Zimbabwean government to stand up against anti-rights narratives and to defend HIV prevention services as they are essential for protecting the health and wellbeing of all communities. Restricted access to prevention technologies Zimbabwe set a precedent in Africa for the speedy approval of both Cabotegravir Long-Acting Injectable PrEP (CAB-LA), the long-acting injectable PrEP, and the Dapivirine ring (DVR), when these technologies were added to the Guidelines for HIV Prevention, Testing and Treatment of HIV in Zimbabwe in 2022. However, access to these commodities is being limited due to funding, sustainability, demand creation, the licensing of distributors, and the poor dissemination of guidelines across communities. The same can be said for condoms. Condom use across Zimbabwe is high, attributed to the implementation of a total market approach, effective awareness campaigns and specific population targets. But there are concerning challenges with stock outs due to delays in shipments, as well as policies prohibiting the distribution of condoms in schools and prisons, limited funding and myths/misinformation around free condoms – meaning that they are not as accessible as they should be. Tensions in political leadership HIV response in Zimbabwe is coordinated by NAC, and decentralised through Provincial AIDS Action Committees (PAACs) and District Aids Action Committees (DAACs). They are responsible for supporting the coordination of the response at provincial and district level. The new report has highlighted that tensions exist between NAC and PAACs/ DAACs, due to the NAC having more high-level staff than DAACs and PAACs, leading to a resource imbalance. The DAACs and PAACs are therefore underfunded and provinces with higher HIV prevalence often receive lower allocations compared to NAC. The report urges more open solidarity between these entities, to rebuild this fragile political environment, Lack in government funding Over the years, the proportion of government budget allocated to the health sector in Zimbabwe has fallen below the Abuja Declaration target of 15%, at 11% in 2023. As such, the report recommends an increase domestic funding for health to reach the 15% Abuja Declaration target. It also remains unclear whether the government still plans to roll out the National Health Insurance (NHI) scheme scheduled for 2025, and whether service packages for key populations will be included. Lois Chingandu, director of external relations, Frontline Aids, said: "It is important that countries do more when it comes to investing in HIV prevention methods but also show stronger leadership in countering anti-rights narratives within their countries. Well-funded and highly organized movements are promoting anti-gender and anti-LGBTQ+ narratives which have resulted in 7 out of the 10 countries we have recently analysed criminalising people who engage in same-sex sexual acts. "While progress has been made, barriers to HIV prevention remain. Today's reports highlight the need for further investment to prevent HIV but also the need for much stronger leadership when it comes to countering anti-rights narratives if the global community is to strengthen and progress the HIV response across these nations. "In Zimbabwe especially, it is vital that we see an increase in domestic funding, a quick repeal of the Patriotic Act, and a much sturdier political environment, in order for the country to make further progress in the area of HIV prevention and to get close to meeting it's 2025 HIV infection targets." Prof Nana Poku, chair of Frontline Aids, said: "Today's landmark report shows that while governments across Africa and in India have made important steps towards reducing the number of people newly acquiring HIV, much more can and needs to be done in the fight against HIV. "Our reports highlight that all nine of the African countries analysed are presently failing to meet the target of spending 15% of their national budgets on health, as outlined in the 2001 Abuja Declaration. With effective tools and approaches to prevent HIV, including exciting new prevention technologies, it is vital that governments take the requisite steps in order to stop more people newly acquiring HIV around the world." — Frontline Aids. *About the writer: Frontline Aids (formerly known as the International HIV/Aids Alliance (IHAA) until 2019) is a global partnership of nationally based governmental and non-governmental organisations which support community organisations which promote HIV and Aids issues in developing countries. Remove barriers to HIV prevention and its treatment in Zimbabwe
Reframing Issues Page 43 DR REWARD MUSHAYABASA THIS section deals with the theoretical context for this study. It engages with studies relevant to this research, especially concepts and theories related to digital media activism and transitology, democratic transition and the media. The study postulates that digital media play a key role in promoting political engagement among citizens. The new technologies are closely related to the notion that digital media “will leapfrog development in Africa, promote democratic participation, empower citizens and emancipate youth, women and marginalised communities” (Ndlela and Mano, 2020, p6). However, some scholars of digital media do not agree with this utopian theoretical perspective. The dystopians argue that digital tools on their own cannot effect democratic change; meaningful democratic change can only be achieved when the tools are deployed in partnership with human agency. This study posits that digital media activism is a very recent phenomenon in Africa. It is activists’ use of new technologies to create spaces for political engagement and mobilisation and in this study, the terms ‘digital media’, ‘new technologies’, ‘new media’ and ‘social media’ are used interchangeably. A fact that is often ignored is that African digital media professionals work under very difficult conditions and with meagre resources, including technology (Kupe, 2004). Nyamnjoh argues that “it is regrettable that scholarly focus has been rather on what ICTs do for Africans, instead of what Africans can do with ICTs”. In recent years there has been a plethora of scholarship on digital media activism. Now most of it is on global protest movements (Bennett and Segerberg, 2012). In her study, Kavada (2015) analysed how activists have managed to use digital technology as a ‘connective tissue’ in the creation of well-coordinated global protest campaigns. There is a symbiotic relationship between connective action and collective action. According to Bennett and Segerberg (2012), connective action helps collective action which gives insights into “the processes of negotiating common interpretations of collective identity linked to the contentious issues at hand”. To some scholars, the digital media present new opportunities for social change. New media present new opportunities for “the circulation of information, ideas, debates . . . and also the formation of political will” (Dahlgren, 2005, p148). This point is supported by other scholars like Castells (2009) and Benkler (2006) who view digital media platforms, such as social media, as a public sphere in a networked society. The network allows all citizens to change their relationship to the public sphere. They no longer need to be consumers and passive spectators. They can become creators and primary subjects. It is in this sense that the internet democratises (Benkler, 2006, p272). According to Eltantawy and Wiest (2011), digital media are among the most effective resources for mobilising collective action and their growth over the years has resulted in the creation of cyber-activism. Scholars of cyber-activism often include short message service (SMS), multimedia messaging service (MMS), social networking sites (SNS) and blogs when discussing social media (Della Porta and Mosca, 2005). In Africa, the affordances of new technologies have opened new spaces for both individuals and groups of people to make social and political commentaries on the developments in their countries. A noticeable feature of this recent phenomenon has been the use of connective action. According to Bennett and Segerberg (2012) connective action involves personalised content sharing across media networks. Digital media have transformed political communication in Africa in many ways. For instance, social networking sites like Facebook, WhatsApp and X (Twitter) are mostly appropriated to engage with the electorate during general elections (Mare, 2018; Matsilele, 2019; Ndlela, 2015; Willems, 2016). The role of the new media in Africa is mostly in countering repression and propaganda (L. Moyo, 2009; D. Moyo, 2007), and Mudhai et al; (2009) discuss the relationship between the new media and democratisation in Africa. These studies look at the impact of new technologies on political participation and they emphasise the contribution of social movements and activists. Other scholarly works have also focused on the protest movement in Zimbabwe in the past two decades. Most notable were works from Last Moyo (2009; 2011), Dumisani Moyo (2007; 2009), Chuma (2014), Mano and Willems (2008), Mabweazara (2011), Chari (2014), Mare (2014), Chiumbu and Nyamanhindi (2012), Muneri (2016) and Mutsvairo (2016). These scholars took up the critical analysis of digital media activism from different theoretical perspectives. Traditional modes of communication remain in force in some African countries, despite the advent of new technologies (Nyamnjoh, 2005). New technologies complement traditional forms of communication. Nyamnjoh (2004: 54) cites an example of “single- owner-multiple-user” in which mobile phone users act as communication nodes within their communities and share information. However, there is currently a void in the scholarship on the influence of digital media activism in countries in democratic transition in Africa. That is why this research has attempted to attempted to fill this lacuna, using Zimbabwe as a case study. The research was confined to only three forms of social media – Facebook, X (Twitter) and YouTube – which are widely used in Zimbabwe. The social media sites generated a lot of activity in Zimbabwe in recent years and have become sites for ideological struggles between the dominant and the counter powers in the current democratic transition. This study found Sparks’s (2008) scholarship on transitology very instructive. For Sparks (2008), one of the normative debates surrounding transitology is the extent to which countries emerging from decades of dictatorial rule are prepared to transform their political systems in order to avoid a “repositioning of partnerships between elites” (cited in Wasserman, 2013, p72). Sparks (2008) makes some interesting observations about the media in countries in democratic transition. Citing the former communist Eastern European bloc as a case study, he argues that the media in former authoritarian countries did not change overnight and he added that the media often find themselves entangled in what Sparks (2008) terms ‘elite continuity’. Sparks (2011) also discusses the media in post-apartheid South Africa as another example, but he calls ‘elite renewal’ the changes that occurred in that country’s media ecology. Sparks’s (2008) analysis of the media in former authoritarian countries is very appropriate and provides a perfect analogy to the state of the media in Zimbabwe under the new political dispensation of President Emmerson Mnangagwa. In the current scenario, it appears that most people are not yet clear about the direction in which the country’s media are heading. We seem to have Mugabeism without Mugabe, because even though late former president Robert Mugabe was deposed, his system remains intact. Sparks’s (2008) views are well supported by Friedman (2011, p109) who believes that the mainstream media in countries in democratic transition need to look beyond “the view from the suburbs” and foster debate on the future of journalism within a normative theoretical context that is based on democracy and equality. Friedman (2011) raises some salient points in his argument that can be used to expand the public sphere realm of digital media activism. In Marxist theory, generally, the media are viewed as a ‘means of production’ that assist the ruling classes in neutralising or side-lining counter hegemonic narratives (Mutsvairo, 2016, p165). The State media in Zimbabwe make no secret of their support for the ruling party. This is evident from the way they frame their stories. Most of the articles are meant to put the government in a good light, while negative publicity is mostly reserved for the opposition parties. For Mutsvairo (2011, p165), Zimbabwe’s State media “not only tells the truth”, but also “ensure that alternative versions” are discredited. To support his point, Mutsvairo (2011) cites an article headlined Tsvangirai Begs for the VP Post which appeared in the national daily, The Herald (2008). Although the article told the truth, it did not give details of the other options which were under consideration to accommodate Tsvangirai. It appears the details were deliberately suppressed by the national daily. However, the alternative media are not free of such biases. Chari (2009) clearly sums up the Zimbabwean media environment, adding that: The state media is unapologetic on its support for the ruling Zanu PF government while the private press seems to have signed a pact with the opposition to ‘hear no evil’, ‘speak no evil’, and ‘see no evil’ regarding its affairs. News production in Zimbabwe is thus influenced by the country’s polarised politics (Mano, 2005; D. Moyo, 2009; L. Moyo, 2009). Herman and Chomsky (1988) further discuss how the political and economic elites create a dependency relationship among consumers of media products so as to reproduce their ideological hegemony. This condition promotes the dominant narratives at the expense of the counter narratives. This point is supported by McChesney (2008), who argues that the media unintentionally naturalise these dominant power structures and inequalities. In Gramsci’s (1971) hegemonic theory, the intelligentsia play a critical role in reproducing the hegemony of the dominant classes. This may explain why in Zimbabwe, the ruling party, Zanu PF, often uses intellectuals to design the party’s ideological campaigns (Tendi, 2010). Some of these intellectuals are also active on social networking sites and online news platforms, and they help to propagate the party’s hegemonic narratives in the state media outlets. *About the writer: This is an extract from Dr Reward Mushayabasa’s PhD thesis awarded by the University of Westminster. Mushayabasa is a veteran media lecturer. Zimbabwe’s digital media activism NewsHawks 1ssue 159, 1 December 2023
Page 44 Reframing Issues NewsHawks Issue 159, 1 December 2023 PATRICK GREENFIELD THE rights over vast tracts of African forest are being sold off in a series of huge carbon offsetting deals that cover an area of land larger than the UK. The deals, made by a little-known member of Dubai’s ruling royal family, encompass up to 20% of the countries concerned – and have raised concerns about a new “scramble for Africa” and the continent’s carbon resources. As chairman of the company Blue Carbon, which is barely a year old, Sheikh Ahmed Dalmook al-Maktoum has announced several exploratory deals with African states that are home to crucial wildlife havens and biodiversity hotspots, for land that represents billions of dollars in potential offsetting revenue. The sheikh has no previous experience in nature conservation projects. So far, the deals cover a fifth of Zimbabwe, 10% of Liberia, 10% of Zambia and 8% of Tanzania, amounting to a total area the size of the UK. In October, Blue Carbon signed its latest deal for “millions” of hectares of forest in Kenya. The company said it was also working on an agreement with Pakistan. More deals are expected in the coming months. The carbon assets associated with the deals could be bought up by major polluters and used towards their own targets under the Paris agreement. Blue Carbon is based in the UAE, where the Cop28 summit will begin this week. The company hopes credits from the schemes will be traded as country-level contributions to the 2015 Paris agreement, it said in a statement. However, concerns have been raised about the agreements, as well as about the sheikh’s previous business ventures, including his role in deals to sell Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine at a premium during the pandemic, and an Italian fugitive listed as a Blue Carbon advisor. The agreements come amid widespread scrutiny of the ability of carbon markets to fund climate change mitigation effectively while protecting biodiversity and the rights of communities. “Carbon markets are an important element of the puzzle because they can really channel resources to activities that otherwise would not be implemented,” said Axel Michaelowa, a carbon markets expert at the University of Zurich. “If the rules are interpreted in a very lenient way, we see rubbish credits being generated, then of course the trust in the market could take a big hit.” Sheikh Ahmed declined to be interviewed for this article through his office. Blue Carbon said its “vision with these projects is not only to accelerate global climate action but also to tackle crucial environmental challenges at the local level thereby ushering in community benefits and advancing sustainable development in the countries involved”. ‘Huge swathes of land are being seized’ While little detail about the Blue Carbon deals has been made public, the Guardian has spoken with people involved and has viewed details of one draft contract from Liberia in July. The deal would give the UAE firm the exclusive rights to sell the credits for 30 years, taking 70% of the sale of the credits. Under the rules of the Paris agreement, countries that sold the credits would not be able to use them for their own commitments. Some of those involved in these deals highlighted that carbon markets provide much-needed financial support to African countries where other sources of climate finance were not delivering. However, others raised concerns, saying the size of the land deals amount to “a new scramble for Africa”. “Huge swathes of land across Africa are being seized by Blue Carbon via multiple, decades-long deals, sealing the fate of the very land that millions of vulnerable communities depend upon for their livelihood,” said Alexandra Benjamin, a forest governance campaigner with the NGO Fern, who focuses on Liberia and Ghana. “At Cop28, countries will meet and discuss the rules for carbon offsetting – these negotiators should call these deals for what they are: land grabs. Forest communities must have free prior and informed consent before any deal is signed,” she said. Many African leaders are enthusiastic supports of carbon markets to fund climate change mitigation following broken promises on other sources of finance. Kenyan president William Ruto who said the continent’s carbon resources are "an unparalleled gold mine". Blue Carbon said the carbon projects would benefit communities and would operate in markets with stringent auditing. They said free, prior and informed consent was key to their project development strategy, underscoring the difference between the voluntary carbon market – where human rights issues have been a serious concern – and compliance markets. In Liberia, NGOs have raised questions about the implication of the potential agreement for communities’ land rights and people’s access to the forest, which is often essential to their livelihoods. David Obura, founding director of Cordio east Africa and head of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), said: “Carbon is one of the only contributions from nature to people that is easily monetised. So, it means that all those that are not monetised get excluded or forgotten about. There are such high risks of exclusivity and obtaining access and rights away from people.” In theory, revenue from the credits would fund climate adaptation and nature conservation in developing countries, protecting carbon sinks and biodiversity. The Blue Carbon projects would be among the largest of their kind, but governments are yet to sign off their inclusion in formal carbon trading under article 6 of the Paris agreement. The carbon trading system could see large polluting countries such as the UK, Saudi Arabia or China buy emission removals or reductions from countries in the developing world to meet their own targets through offsets. The UAE has sought to pitch itself as a leading purchaser of African carbon credits, pledging to buy $450m (£356m) of African credits by 2030 at the Africa Climate Summit in September. The United Arab Emirates has the third biggest plans for oil and gas expansion in the world, analysis revealed this year. Its plans are surpassed only by Saudi Arabia and Qatar. Blue Carbon has signed a deal with First Abu Dhabi Bank, the UAE’s largest, to finance the forest carbon project investments in September. The UN Development Programme confirmed it is in contact with the firm about how to develop the schemes. Blue Carbon said it was committed to stringent rules about suitable methodologies for the carbon projects and would follow whatever governments agreed at Cop28. It said its team had previous experience developing carbon projects. — The Guardian. *About the writer: Patrick Greenfield is a biodiversity and environment journalist. The new ‘scramble for Africa’: How a UAE sheikh quietly made carbon deals for forests bigger than UK Sheikh Ahmed Dalmook al-Maktoum meets the president of Zambia, Hakainde Hichilema.
Reframing Issues Page 45 BARNABAS TICHA MUVHUTI JOHN Hlatywayo, who has died at 96, was a great painter, sculptor and mentor. However he is woefully neglected in the art history of Zimbabwe and southern Africa. Belonging to an early generation of Zimbabwean artists, Hlatywayo was overshadowed by international interest in the nation’s mainstreamed stone sculptors. Yet he was one of Zimbabwe’s most versatile artists. He could work with different media and produce intriguing conceptual pieces. But he was mainly drawn to portraying aspects of people’s daily lives. He trained in neighbouring South Africa and went on to exhibit his work in Johannesburg, Cape Town, Salisbury (now Harare) and London. His pieces are in the collections of the Wits Art Museum and the National Gallery of Zimbabwe. In 2018 I had the opportunity to interview Hlatywayo as one of the Black artist-teachers at the centre of my PhD thesis. My thesis tries to broaden Zimbabwe’s modern art canon, arguing for the inclusion of marginalised artist-teachers like Hlatywayo. A selfless individual, Hlatywayo worked tirelessly to teach and develop art in his community. His story is also important to the region as it represents the transnational sharing of art traditions between South Africa and Zimbabwe. Schooling Hlatywayo was born in 1927 at Chikore Mission in the Ndau-speaking Chipinge district of Rhodesia – today Zimbabwe. (Ndau is a Shona dialect spoken in southeastern Zimbabwe.) At primary school at the Mount Selinda Institute, a US mission school, he took an interest in art classes offered by a US expatriate. As a carpentry and building trainee, he helped the self-sustaining institution with the construction of houses. South Africa In 1948 he set off for South Africa. He told me about how migrants were screened by officials at the Musina border post. Under the system implemented by the Witwatersrand Native Labour Association, those who were fit to work in the mines progressed to Johannesburg. The rest were taken to work on the nearby farms. In Johannesburg he was settled in a compound among other migrant labourers who worked in the mines. Before long, he moved to Pretoria, finding work at a metal smelting plant, doubling as a “teaboy” serving a white manager with whom, he said, he never held a normal conversation. Back in Johannesburg he teamed up with a cousin to start a carpentry shop. It was there that he met a client who ended up introducing him to celebrated South African artist Cecil Skotnes. Art school From 1952 to 1966 Skotnes ran the Polly Street Art Centre, converting the former Adult Non-European Recreation Centre into a place where artists would train and fraternise, regardless of their background in a racially divided South Africa during apartheid. Art historians note that the teaching at the institution generally followed “international modernist styles” with Skotnes also inviting some artists of European origin to work with him. Scholars indicate that at the centre, knowledge and skills were imparted through mentorship or apprenticeship. The goal was to fast-track trainees into professional practice. Besides offering studio space and materials to Black South African artists, the centre also exhibited work along non-racial lines. Hlatywayo worked at Polly Street from 1954 to 1960, meeting many other sculptors and painters – including Ephraim Ngatane, Durant Sihlali and Louis Maqhubela. His mentors were mainly Skotnes and South African sculptor Sydney Kumalo. This community had an immediate positive impact on his artistic development. Soon he had staged his first solo exhibition, with others to follow. Praised Two accounts highlighted by academics indicate that Hlatywayo’s work stood out. In 1960, he participated in the important Urban African Art show. Commenting in the Fontein Quarterly magazine, Skotnes singled out the work of Hlatywayo and Kumalo. In 1963 he took part in a joint exhibition in Cape Town of Polly Street artists. Professor and gallerist Neville Dubow was so impressed by Hlatywayo’s work that he wrote, in the Cape Argus newspaper, that Hlatywayo shows a firm feeling for organising forms; he is adept in the monotype technique and is perhaps the most skilled craftsman of the group. Rhodesia and Zimbabwe In the mid-1960s Hlatywayo returned home and exhibited works in several institutions. His first solo show in Zimbabwe was at Gallery Delta in 1979. That same year, his work titled Woman won second prize at the annual WeldArt exhibition in Harare. After independence in 1980, Hlatywayo’s work continued to be exhibited at the National Gallery of Zimbabwe and at numerous international institutions. As recently as 2016, towards the end of his long career as a multimedia artist, Hlatywayo participated in a two-man exhibition with Tafadzwa Gwetai, a Bulawayo-based painter and collage artist. The show, The People Watchers, was also presented in London. In it, Hlatywayo presents metal sculptures that are curved and elongated to capture emotion. Teacher and mentor But Hlatwayo was also a prominent teacher. Noticing how few adults showed an interest in art, he made pleas for schools to teach the subject, especially at primary school and in lower grades of high school. As he was quoted in the Rhodesia Herald in 1971: No education can claim to be complete that does not include teaching of art. Hlatywayo dreamed of starting his own art centre. When a building in Mbare was secured by the national gallery for art classes, he volunteered to teach there on a part-time basis. He also taught students from his home. Besides creating and teaching, he also served on several panels and committees promoting art. Why his story matters Hlatywayo’s story highlights the cultural exchange between South Africa and Zimbabwe that continues to this day, with many Zimbabwean artists working with South African galleries. He also represents a gap in knowledge about Zimbabwean art that urgently needs to be filled to understand the contributions and influence of these neglected artists. — The Conversation. *About the writer: Barnabas Ticha Muvhuti is a post-doctoral fellow with the NRF/DST SARChI Chair Geopolitics and the Arts of Africa and Global Souths research programme at Rhodes University in South Africa. Hlatywayo: Remembering great Zimbabwean artist who was woefully neglected by history The late John Hlatywayo NewsHawks 1ssue 159, 1 December 2023
Page 46 Reframing Issues JEVANS NYABIAGE WHEN Zambia struck a debt deal with bilateral creditors to restructure US$6.3 billion in loans in June, Lusaka said it “a significant step” to restore debt sustainability. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) went further, saying it was a “breakthrough” and precedent-setting. The IMF said it would use the deal as a template for other nations such as Ethiopia and Ghana that are also seeking debt restructuring under the G20’s Common Framework. Under the deal, China – as Zambia’s largest bilateral lender – has the biggest burden by agreeing to restructure US$4.1 billion of the total, with France, Britain, South Africa, Israel and India shouldering the rest. As part of the agreement, Beijing and the other creditor countries – known as the Official Creditor Committee (OCC) – pushed for comparability of treatment (CoT) principle in which private bondholders would have to offer comparable debt relief. Zambia proceeded to seek debt restructuring from private bondholders but the terms they reached in October were rejected by the OCC and the IMF. The OCC also rejected a revised deal tweaked with the IMF in mid-November, saying it did not provide enough debt relief and did not meet the CoT criteria. The setbacks have not only thrown into question the prospects for the Zambia deal, they might also discourage other debt-ridden African countries to follow similar paths, according to analysts. Patrick Curran, a senior economist at research firm Tellimer, said official creditors were averse to nominal haircuts, preferring longer maturity extensions and lower interest payments instead. Bondholders, on the other hand, tended to prefer some level of upfront nominal haircuts in exchange for earlier payments in the form of higher coupons and shorter maturities. China is responsible for restructuring the largest portion of the debt and without its approval no restructuring can go ahead. Zambia and the IMF viewed the revised deal as sustainable and compatible with the CoT principle, but China and other official bilateral creditors want bondholders to take a larger haircut than what Zambia’s government or the IMF deemed necessary. This did not go down well with private investors, who said the decision was “extraordinary” and would have “significant adverse consequences, most immediately for Zambia”. Curran said the restructuring talks appeared to have hit a stalemate, with no further progress possible unless the OCC softened its position on the CoT principle. According to the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), this dispute could put restructures in jeopardy, and Zambia’s protracted debt restructuring negotiations would likely discourage other heavily indebted African nations from seeking similar deals. For Zambia, the stakes are high. It has been in a crisis since 2020 when it defaulted on some of its foreign debt at the height of the coronavirus pandemic. Until the issue is resolved, Lusaka cannot attract much-needed foreign direct investment and there is no access to the international capital markets, according to Zambian officials. Further, the protracted debt negotiations have hit domestic bond markets, with the Zambian currency the Kwacha falling by 30 per cent against the US dollar this year. Zambia’s troubles could also signal the difficult road ahead for Ethiopia, which recently also secured a debt restructuring deal in principle with its official bilateral creditors, and is seeking to start talks to restructure a US$1 billion Eurobond maturing next year. Ethiopia, which is a key Chinese ally, had already secured a debt deal with China in August when Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed met Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the Brics Summit in Johannesburg. Xi promised to suspend Ethiopia’s payments on debt maturing in 2023 and 2024 as part of the common framework for debt restructuring. China is Ethiopia’s largest bilateral creditor, having advanced an estimated US$13.7 billion in debt to China between 2000 and 2021, according to Boston University data. Curran said the rejection of the Zambian deal “is a dangerous precedent and could serve as a major hindrance not only in Zambia’s restructuring but also in future restructurings”. “We will be keenly watching how the process unfolds in Zambia and assessing the implications for other current and impending restructuring cases both within the [G20] Common Framework, like Ghana and Ethiopia, and outside it, like Sri Lanka,” he said, referring to a multilateral mechanism for forgiving and restructuring sovereign debt. Charlie Robertson, head of macro strategy at FIM Partners, an asset management firm, said foreign bondholders owned roughly US$3 billion of Zambia’s debt, “so have a bigger role than in Ethiopia but … interestingly, the gross domestic product impact from default is not very high, it is usually about 2 percentage points off growth”. However, Robertson said longer restructuring may not necessarily hit foreign investor confidence in primary commodity exporters like Zambia and Ethiopia. “It probably doesn’t make much difference in fact. A copper mine or a rose plantation might still get invested in even in a default situation,” Robertson said, referring to Zambia, which is one of the top copper producers in Africa, while Ethiopia has attracted investments in the horticulture industry. Nevertheless, Robertson said he suspected “the protracted negotiations will deter other African countries from defaulting”. “And given the bandwidth that these defaults require from institutions like the IMF … I imagine they will be keen to minimise the number of countries that do default, by being flexible, as they are with Kenya for example,” Robertson said. On Ethiopia’s restructuring, Mark Bohlund, a senior credit research analyst at REDD Intelligence, said although there was not an up-to-date breakdown of the bilateral debt, most Ethiopia’s non-Paris Club debt of US$6.85 billion was owed to China. But India and Turkey were among the larger creditors. Bohlund said he expected the “Ethiopia debt restructuring will be easier as we are likely talking about a maturity extension of principal payments rather than any writedown”. He said with bondholders well aware that Ethiopia was in no position to make the US$1 billion principal payment next December, they would most likely accept an extension of the maturity even if it was at the current coupon rate, “which is pretty attractive if you have bought the bond at the current discounted rate”. “It is clear that China will be looking closer at the comparability of treatment, as evidenced in Zambia. But should be less of an issue in Ethiopia,” Bohlund said. *About the writer: Kenyan journalist Jevans Nyabiage is the South China Morning Post's first Africa correspondent. Based in Nairobi, Jevans keeps an eye on China-Africa relations and also Chinese investments, ranging from infrastructure to energy and metal, on the continent. China, IMF and investors can’t reach a deal on Zambia’s debt. What does it mean for other distressed African nations? Zambia President Hakainde Hichilema • Bilateral creditors such as China shoulder much of the burden and want bondholders to take a bigger hit • The dispute could put other restructures on the continent in jeopardy, with Ethiopia expected to be the next in line, observers say NewsHawks Issue 159, 1 December 2023
Africa News Page 47 DANNY BRADLOW THREE years after defaulting on its foreign debt, Zambia is still trying to reach agreement with all its creditors on how to manage this situation. This has left the southern African country in a state of development finance limbo. It is handicapped in raising the funds needed to generate jobs, build infrastructure, provide health, education and social services and deal with climate change. Its president, Hakainde Hichilema, has warned that the situation threatens to undermine its democracy. Zambia’s inability to reach a definitive agreement with all its creditors is not for lack of trying. But it has had bad luck. It is the test case for the Common Framework that the G20 international forum established in November 2020 to deal with the debts of low-income countries. The framework was expected to result in all creditors making comparable contributions to help a defaulting country resolve its debt crisis. Zambia’s experience demonstrates that the Common Framework has failed to deliver. The International Monetary Fund, the global economic governance institution responsible for assisting countries in economic trouble, lacks the resources and the bargaining power needed to push other creditors to reach a sustainable debt deal with Zambia. It could only contribute US$1.3 billion over three years to Zambia’s financing gap of US$8.4 billion. Furthermore, the conditions it has attached to its financing impose tough choices on the Zambian government and require sacrifices from the Zambian people. Zambia’s official creditors have been organised into a committee chaired by China and France. The official creditors moved slowly and appear to have been more focused on reaching agreements that serve their geo-strategic interests than on what is best for Zambia. In June 2023, they finally agreed on a common template for all official creditors. Each individual creditor is now expected, based on this template, to reach its own binding agreement with Zambia. These individual agreements are still a work in progress. In October 2023 Zambia announced that it had reached agreement with the holders of its US$3 billion worth of Eurobonds. These creditors, with Zambian agreement, maintained that they were making a comparable contribution to the official creditors in resolving Zambia’s debt crisis. In November, the deal was rejected by Zambia’s official creditors and some independent experts. They argued that the commercial creditors were receiving more favourable treatment than the official creditors. While both agreed to take a haircut on their debts, they argued that the commercial creditors would received approximately 20c more for each dollar of debt outstanding than the official creditors. The result is that Zambia and its bondholders will now have to renegotiate their deal. The current approach to sovereign debt restructuring is failing Zambia and its people. A new approach is needed. It should respect Zambia’s legal commitments to its creditors and serve its need for a sustainable and fair resolution to its debt crisis. What should Zambia do? First, Zambia should state that its goal is to reach an optimal outcome to its debt crisis. I define an optimal outcome as one that: • takes into account the circumstances in which the parties are negotiating and their rights, obligations and responsibilities • offers each of them the best possible mix of economic, financial, environmental, social, human rights and governance benefits. It should also require that the parties monitor the implementation of this outcome. Zambia, by calling for an optimal outcome, will call the creditors’ bluff. Official creditors have all expressed their support for the sustainable development goals and for all countries meeting their nationally determined contributions under the climate agreements. However, they do not test whether the debt restructuring terms they offer Zambia are consistent with these objectives. Zambia should publicly state that, while it is serious about fulfilling all its contractual obligations, it is also serious about meeting its SDG commitments and its nationally determined contributions. It should state that it will work with its official creditors to determine that their proposed debt restructuring terms, in fact, will help Zambia meet all these commitments. Zambia can also point out that many of its commercial creditors have posted human rights policies or statements on their websites in which they state their support for human rights and their respect for such international instruments as the OECD Guidelines on Multinational Enterprises and the UN Principles on Responsible Investing. Some even express their support for the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. It can ask these creditors to demonstrate that they have they applied these principles in their transactions with Zambia and why they think the terms and conditions they are offering Zambia are consistent with their own policies. Second, civil society organisations in Zambia and their international allies can take advantage of the fact that in each state that adheres to the OECD Guidelines, which includes many of Zambia’s official creditors, there is an official designated as the national contact point. This officer is responsible for providing guidance to companies based in that country on how they can comply with the OECD Guidelines and on responding to complaints about specific instances where they have failed to comply. If all parties agree, the officer can help facilitate dialogue between the complainants and the relevant corporations. Thus, these civil society organisations can propose to the relevant national contact points that they encourage the creditors to engage in discussions with civil society and with the Zambian government about how they can help reach an optimal outcome to Zambia’s debt crisis. Third, Zambia should propose that all its creditors agree to meet with it in one forum and make one agreement dealing with all its debt obligations. While this will, no doubt, complicate negotiations, it will improve the transparency of the process. It will also give each group of creditors confidence that they are all receiving comparable treatment. When Zambia meets its official creditors they focus on their agreements. Similarly, when the bondholders meet with Zambia they focus only on their contractual rights. Bringing them all together in one forum will open the space for Zambia to demand that the creditors consider its other legal obligations as well as their contractual rights. These other commitments can include Zambia’s legal obligations to its public servants, its pensioners, its international treaty commitments and its constitutional obligations. —The Conversation. *About the writer: Danny Bradlow is professor/senior research fellow at the Centre for Advancement of Scholarship, University of Pretoria, South Africa. Zambia’s foreign debt stalemate handicaps the country’s ability to raise funds for education and health. Getty Images Zambia’s foreign debt tragedy: What needs to happen to resolve the crisis NewsHawks 1ssue 159, 1 December 2023
Page 44 Page 48 Rwanda’s troops in Moza have done well to protect civilians — The factors at play RALPH SHIELD RWANDA’S involvement in peacekeeping operations for the United Nations (UN) and African Union (AU) has increased since 2004. The relatively small east African nation is Africa’s most active troop-contributing country and the fourth most active worldwide. It has nearly 6,000 soldiers and police committed to UN peacekeeping missions. In recent years, however, Rwanda has deployed its army independently of the UN or AU. In 2020, it sent 1,000 troops to fight anti-government rebels in the Central African Republic. A year later, it sent soldiers to deal with jihadist militants in northern Mozambique, and now has 2,500 troops there. These two missions aim to confront and eliminate armed enemies of the host state. The operations – which aren’t under the UN and AU protocols – raise questions about the conduct of Rwanda’s army and its counterinsurgency doctrine. Specifically when it comes to avoiding civilian casualties. Traditional peacekeeping missions have a disappointing record on protecting innocent bystanders. UN and AU forces have been criticised for being risk averse and under-resourced in preventing crimes and violence against civilians. In 2015, Rwanda was one of several countries arguing that the UN should do more to defend civilians in conflict. It sponsored a set of recommendations eventually codified as the Kigali Principles on the Protection of Civilians. They identified various shortfalls that handicap many peacekeeping missions. I am a conflict researcher who has examined Rwanda’s military intervention in Mozambique. In a recent paper, I used the deployment to evaluate the Rwandan army’s commitment to protecting civilians. The Mozambique mission is independent of the UN and AU. Therefore, the Rwandan military is less subject to the monitoring that guards against excessive force and abusive practices. As an offensive counterterrorism operation, the mission is also potentially more aggressive and violent than peacekeeping. Conventional wisdom would predict that an authoritarian government like Rwanda’s would be heavy-handed in putting down an insurrection. But my findings suggest that’s not so in Mozambique. The Mozambique campaign is unlike the disaster across Rwanda’s border in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). There, Rwanda’s army stands accused of backing the M23 rebels who have committed war crimes and accelerated a humanitarian crisis. The Mozambique mission The province of Cabo Delgado in northern Mozambique had been struggling with a vicious jihadist insurgency since 2017. Efforts by Mozambique’s security forces and foreign mercenaries failed to stop decapitations, village burnings and attacks on government forces and infrastructure. When militants threatened oil and gas development projects that once promised to lift Mozambique out of poverty, President Felipe Nyusi turned to Rwanda for help in 2021. The Rwandan Defence Forces began to attack Islamic State-aligned militants. Yet, the Rwandan army has balanced the pursuit of insurgents and the protection of the population. Operations to annihilate insurgents often kill and injure civilians as well. Strategies that focus narrowly on protecting civilians, on the other hand, tend to make counterinsurgent forces gun shy. What worked My study suggests how Rwanda has been able to hold down civilian casualties while battling insurgents. The Rwandan army was in Mozambique nearly a year before inflicting its first recorded civilian fatality — a single curfew breaker in a tense recovered town. First, Rwandan troops actively patrol and interact with the community to collect information about the local people and the insurgents who threaten them. Rwandan soldiers benefit from their knowledge of Swahili, which enables them to communicate directly with the locals. It helps them tell friend from foe. The second factor is restraint: a more disciplined use of firepower. As the experience of western armies in Iraq and Afghanistan has shown, maintaining restraint under the persistent threat of ambush isn’t easy. It comes with some risk too. Other conditions likely contributed to Rwanda’s early success in Mozambique. The insurgents don’t use suicide tactics, for instance. And at least until recently they have lacked sophisticated explosives. Also, portions of the affected area in Cabo Delgado were largely abandoned when the Rwandans arrived. This helped in sorting insurgents from innocents. Still, these considerations shouldn’t discount the Rwandan army’s achievements. Its record in the Central African Republic is also consistent with its conduct in Mozambique. There as well, Rwandan forces have attained impressive battlefield results without inflicting substantial civilian harm. Rwanda in DRC The story is different in the DRC. A case has been made that Rwanda’s destabilising activities there are motivated by strategic interests that don’t apply in Mozambique or the Central African Republic. This doesn’t explain the mentality of rank-and-file soldiers, though. The army’s record in Mozambique and the DRC suggests instead that Rwandan battlefield behaviour may be conditioned by cognitive framing and service culture. Studies of the way foreign armies approach missions in places like Iraq, Afghanistan, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Lebanon have found that culture and framing often shape how troops perceive their environment, interpret threats and understand their role. Fighting in eastern DRC may be perceived differently by Rwandan soldiers because it’s so intimately tied to the traumas of the 1994 genocide. They may worry about spillover violence affecting stability in Rwanda, or about ethnic discord tearing the army itself apart. Armed forces elsewhere have demonstrated a tendency to prize their own cohesion above human rights concerns in high-stress scenarios. The civilian factor My research suggests the Rwandan army’s actions in Mozambique have been consistent with the core promises of the Kigali Principles. In response to persistent militant raids, Rwandan troops in Cabo Delgado have conducted pursuits across district boundaries. Troops have gone further afield at Maputo’s request. The presence of Rwanda’s soldiers has also helped to curb the mistreatment of local inhabitants by Mozambique’s police and armed forces. These forces have a history of corruption and abuse. The Islamist insurgency in Mozambique, however, has yet to be defeated. A long-term solution will require more fundamental political and social measures, as well as reform of Mozambique’s security services. Rwandan army operations have demonstrated what a competent African force can do when properly resourced and committed to the mission. It also suggests that soldiers are more effective when empowered to exercise discretion in applying force. — The Conversation. *About the writer: Ralph Shield is a conflict researcher at the US Naval War College. Rwandan soldiers on patrol in northern Mozambique in 2021. Emidio Jozine/AFP via Getty Images Africa News NewsHawks Issue 159, 1 December 2023
NewsHawks World News Page 49 1ssue 159, 1 December 2023 PETER VALE HENRY Kissinger, who sexed up the art of diplomacy in the eight years between 1969 and 1977, has died at the age of 100. In the obituaries that have been written, some laud Kissinger’s role in the shaping of East-West relations while he was in office as US secretary of state. And many in their commentary on the decades beyond call him a “statesman”. Radical critics have pointed to Kissinger’s ruthless methods – like encouraging the coup in Chile in September 1973 – and called for him to be put on trial for “war crimes”. Traditionally, diplomacy was staid – a near-hidden enterprise for grey-suited men who (mostly by intuition) understood the grave matters of war and peace. Kissinger turned it into a site of celebrity, the jet-set and expert opinion. The world watched where he went. Kissinger’s diplomatic achievements were quite astonishing – the recognition of China (1971/72) by the US was simply breathtaking. But domestically more important was America’s withdrawal from Vietnam (1973) and the Nixon administration policy of détente (easing of hostility) with the Soviet Union, which led to a series of strategic arms limitation talks. These helped to secure Kissinger’s global brand. But his track record in the global south – especially in Africa – is dismal. Not a little of Kissinger’s fame – or infamy, depending on the particular issue at hand – was facilitated by “shuttle diplomacy”, a tactic first used in the Yom Kippur War of 1973. In an effort to mediate between the warring Egypt and Israel, Kissinger very publicly jetted between the two countries. A year later, a form of shuttle diplomacy was necessary in southern Africa as it became plain that Kissinger had misread the region’s place in world affairs and its politics. This was evident from a 1969 leaked policy document which had set out America’s approach to regional affairs. The policy recommended that the US “tilt” towards the region’s white-ruled and colonial regimes to protect US economic (and strategic) interests. As the grand narrative of Kissinger’s life story is written, his southern African interventions must be judged a failure as he neither ended colonialism nor minority rule in the region. White minority rule Famously, Kissinger’s doctoral thesis at Harvard was on the diplomacy of the Congress of Vienna (1814- 1815). He argued that “legitimacy” in international affairs rested on establishing a balance between powerful states rather than promoting justice. But 19th century Europe was no guide to managing 20th century southern Africa, when the legitimacy of states was seized with liberation rather than the niceties of big power diplomacy. In April 1974, a coup in Lisbon had signalled an end to Portuguese colonialism in Africa. This exposed the vulnerability of white rule in Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) and South African-controlled South West Africa (now Namibia). Although hidden at the time, it is nowadays clear that the events in Lisbon helped to prime the fire that was to come to South Africa. With the stability of the “white South” under threat, US policy required rethinking. It was Cuba’s intervention in Angola that helped Kissinger reframe Washington’s approach to the region in Cold War terms. South Africa and the United States supported the rebel Unita movement to fight the government of the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) which was allied to Soviet Union. It required drawing the apartheid regime closer while, simultaneously, urging change in Zimbabwe and Namibia. The shuttle started with a speech in Lusaka, Zambia, which put pressure on white-ruled Rhodesia to accept the idea of “majority rule”. More gently, Kissinger asked South Africa to announce a timetable to achieve “self-determination” in Namibia. Kissinger then travelled to Tanzania to make a similar address. A series of high-profile meetings followed with apartheid’s then prime minister, John Vorster. These took place in Germany and Switzerland. The record of these encounters make interesting reading. Over dinner on 23 June 1976, the ice was broken over a racist joke which established a bonhomie between a dozen white men who deliberated on the future of a sub-continent of black people for two hours. The apartheid regime had catapulted directly into Kissinger’s star-studded orbit. An official record of the talks suggests the South African delegation appear dazed. Were they overwhelmed by the occasion, or were they reeling from the events the previous week in Soweto, when apartheid police killed unarmed school children protesting against the imposition of the Afrikaans language as a medium of instruction? For their part, the American side seemed keen to learn – at an early moment in the proceedings, Kissinger declared that he was “trying to understand”; at another, he was being “analytical”. True to diplomatic form, apartheid was not discussed even though some attention was given to South West Africa. The discussion remained focused on Rhodesia. Eventually a strategy was agreed: Vorster would get the recalcitrant Rhodesians to agree on majority rule; Kissinger would get the Zambians and the Tanzanians to support the deal; movement on the Namibian issue would be slower. The high moment of the entire exercise was Kissinger’s September 1976 visit to Pretoria. By happenstance, Rhodesia’s prime minister, Ian Smith, was scheduled to be in town to watch a rugby match. The New York Times reported that Kissinger was received with a small guard of honour – of black soldiers – at the Waterkloof Air Base when his plane landed. And Kissinger and his entourage – including the all-important press – set up camp in Pretoria’s Burgerspark Hotel. For four days an increasingly isolated and internationally condemned South Africa basked in the spotlight of world attention – undoubtedly, it was the high point of apartheid’s diplomacy. The drama of the weekend turned less on whether Kissinger met black leaders who were critical of apartheid – the activist editor Percy Qoboza was the only one – than on whether Kissinger, as an envoy of the US, could meet directly with Smith, whose regime was not internationally recognised. In the event the two men met for four hours on the Sunday morning, and a deal was sealed. A tearful Smith, then prime minister, announced that Rhodesia would accept the principle of majority rule. But the follow-up processes were fumbled. The illegal regime limped on for another four years. Kissinger had two further visits to South Africa. One was in September 1982 when he delivered the keynote address at a conference organised by the South African Institute of International Affairs. The second was when (with others) he unsuccessfully tried to solve the crisis over Inkatha Freedom Party leader Mangosuthu Buthelezi’s rejection of South Africa’s interim constitution in April 1994. Kissinger’s interest in southern Africa in the mid-1970s was predicated on the idea that balance would return if the interests of the strong were restored. He failed to understand that the struggle for justice was changing the world – and diplomacy itself. — The Conversation. *About the writer: Peter Vale is a senior research fellow at the Centre for the Advancement of Scholarship, University of Pretoria, and visiting professor of international relations, Federal University of Santa Maria, Brazil, University of Pretoria. Henry Kissinger: History will judge the former US secretary of state’s southern African interventions to be a failure Henry Kissinger
JONATHAN MBIRIYAMVEKA THEMED parties, for the fairer sex of an outgoing nature, have been around for as long as one can remember. Ladies who know how to rock the night away know these bashes of yesteryear. Not so long ago, women used to throng what were known as stokvel parties (mukando), baby shower, kitchen party/tea and china chemadzimai, an inter-denominational gathering. So, you boys really thought you were the only ones who know how to have a good time alone? Nah! Sorry, chaps! Apparently, what we dudes can do, lassies can do it too. Oh well, perhaps even better! Yvonne Chaka Chaka once told us in a song that Every Woman Needs A Man. Tell one of our beautiful ladies today, she will tell you that she needs their own space and time. Nowadays, women have found a new pastime – doek and slay. The doek and slay is in fact a dress code for attendees and what changes from one edition to the other are the colour codes. So every Sunday after attending church, whichever church they go to, women will pack their picnic baskets, load their cooler boxes, dress up in colours of the day, wear their doeks and hit the ground running. The doek and slay craze has not only hit the capital city Harare, but organisers are taking it around Zimbabwe to ensure that women from across all walks of life get to experience it. There have been doek and slay editions successfully held in Bulawayo, Gweru, Kadoma and Mutare. There is a planned edition set for Kadoma on 3 December and another one for Harare on 17 December. The allure of the concept is not only the braai and booze that you see at every other outdoor event such as Fiesta Fiesta, Cookout or BraaiOut. So far, the appeal of the dress code and the key factor: "women only", are the draw cards for the doek and slay. You only find men perhaps at the gates or working as service providers. Other than that, men are not allowed in. And so far this concept has proved to be popular with women of all ages, sizes and shapes. Make no mistake, the doek and slay concept has also helped the downstream sectors like those in clothing shops. Because organisers are strict on dress code prior to the event, most women throng different clothing shops and malls to buy the best outfits for the day. Organisers say their unique selling point (USP) is that doek and slay is a “safe space for girls, where ladies slay, flourish in doeks, unite and celebrate.” Contacted for comment, one of the organisers, Anesu Rwanga, said he wanted to confirm whether or not to speak to The NewsHawks. He promised to call back and respond to questions, but he never did! STYLE TRAVEL BOOKS ARTS MOTORING Porsche just got angrier Being a Fashion Model Life&Style Page 50 Issue 159, 1 December 2023 Doek and Slay: New craze for the ladies! Take that, guys!