VIGIL PRESENTS PETITION DEMANDING UN ACTION

tide of people who were saying Mugabe must go. “It’s the beginning of the end,” she told the Zimbabwe Vigil.
Kate Hoey was speaking at a demonstration outside Parliament during which she was entrusted with a petition signed by many thousands of people from all over the world who had passed by the Zimbabwe Vigil held outside the Zimbabwe Embassy every Saturday afternoon. The petition calls on the UN Security Council to intervene in Zimbabwe. It was handed over by Vigil Co-ordinator, Dumi Tutani, and Kate is to deliver it to a UN representative in London.
Ephraim Tapa, a key member of the Vigil and Chair of MDC UK, paid tribute to Kate’s work for Zimbabwe. She was visibly moved when Vigil supporters broke into applause. In return, she said how important the Vigil is. “Everyone wants the diaspora to be active”, she said. Ephraim expressed disappointment about the lack of action by the UN, despite being approached by the Vigil several times. He said Zimbabwe had become Mugabe’s private property and Zimbabweans his slaves. He condemned as robbery the recent change to the Zimbabwean currency and declared “We expect the UN to take action. We want to go home.”
Kate was accompanied by a prominent Liberal Democrat MP, Limbet Opik, who is also a member of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Zimbabwe, and by a trustee of the Zimbabwean Association, Mike Steele of the Parliamentary Press Gallery. Also there in support were representatives of the Refugee Council. They were all serenaded with Zimbabwean protest songs by some 40 Vigil supporters, who had sung and danced their way in brilliant sunshine all the way from the Zimbabwe Embassy ending up in the shadow of Westminster Abbey.
Our banner “End murder, rape and torture in Zimbabwe” could be seen from Parliament. Supporters also carried posters “Vigil 4 Freedom” reflecting the fact that the demonstration marked the 4th anniversary of the Vigil.
For this week’s Vigil pictures: http://uk.msnusers.com/ZimbabweVigil/shoebox.msnw.
FOR THE RECORD: 168 signed the register. NB: there is only one register and some people either do not know of it or for personal reasons do not want their names recorded. We respect their privacy. There are also some Zimbabweans who gather in the vicinity but are frightened to be photographed at the Vigil so one assumes that Vigil attendance is more than we record here.