Zimbabwe Vigil Diary – 7th July 2007

as the Tour de France. Jean-Francois helped in our campaign to prevent Mugabe’s visit to the Franco-African summit in the south of France in February. His elegant translation of the Vigil’s letter to President Chirac may have helped sway the French decision. (Part of his translation was adopted by the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Zimbabwe in their letter to France.)
We now have a battle with the Portuguese over the planned AU-EU summit in December. Despite the current talks underway in Pretoria, the South Africans are insisting that Mugabe be invited and the Portuguese have indicated they might well give in. The Vigil is putting the case against this in a letter to the Portuguese government. Just in case, we are advising supporters to get their travel papers in order to mount a protest in Lisbon – perhaps another attempt at a citizen’s arrest for what the Sunday Times calls “a hidden genocide”.
Vigil Co-ordinator Dumi, who recently won the right to stay in the UK, is not out of the woods yet. He is trying to get a national insurance number to allow him to work but the Home Office has lost all his paperwork! Many of our asylum seekers report similar experiences. We despair of the Home Office.
There was anxious discussion at the Vigil about the economic collapse in Zimbabwe. Just about everyone here is sending money home to help family but we know nothing we do can be enough.
For this week’s Vigil pictures: http://www.flickr.com/photos/zimbabwevigil/
FOR THE RECORD: 86 signed the register.
FOR YOUR DIARY:
-Monday, 16th July 2007, 7.30 pm. Central London Zimbabwe Forum. Upstairs at the Theodore Bullfrog pub, 28 John Adam Street, London WC2 (cross the Strand from the Zimbabwe Embassy, go down a passageway to John Adam Street, turn right and you will see the pub)
-Friday, 17th August 2007, 12:00 – 14:30. The Zimbabwe Solidarity Campaign (ZSC) in Belfast plans to hold a Vigil outside City Hall, Belfast. All supporters welcome. The ZSC has agreed with Ian Paisley Jnr that they will present their petition to Stormont on 10th September – more information to follow.