LONDON
Messages of support and solidarity have flooded in from all over the world following the torching of the South African-registered 14-ton truck delivering 60,000 copies of the Africa Day issue of The Zimbabwean on Sunday by suspected government agents.
South African driver, Christmas Ramabulana, and his Zimbabwean assistant Tapfumaneyi Kancheta, who were both savagely beaten by eight men in plain clothes brandishing brand new AK-47 assault rifles, are thankfully recovering well. Although traumatised by the attack, both men have received medical attention and are recuperating at home.
The International Committee to Protect Journalists, Reporters Without Borders and numerous others expressed horror at the barbaric act.
Earnest Mudzengi, director of the National Constitutional Assembly, said: Surely this is a barbaric act that must be condemned in the strongest of terms by all who are still in their right frame of mind. This deplorable incident confirms how Zimbabwe has been driven back to the medieval era by a regime that thrives on fostering ignorance. Keep up the good work. Do not be deterred by these barbaric forces of autocracy.
The Media Institute for Southern Africa said: MISA-Zimbabwe condemns in the strongest terms possible this unwarranted onslaught on the citizens’ right to access alternative information and ideas through independent publications such as The Zimbabwean on Sunday.
MISA said the act was a serious breach of the 1991 Windhoek Declaration which stressed that the establishment and maintenance of an independent, pluralist and free press was essential to the development and maintenance of democracy.
The Zimbabwe Union of Journalists said it was appalled by the act and called on authorities to investigate the matter and bring the culprits to book.
South African truckers have expressed fears about the safety of their vehicles and drivers following the attack.
Hatiende – Grace Mugabe
.. we’ll never leave State House, even if Morgan wins
BY CHIEF REPORTER
HARARE
Grace Mugabe has said she and her husband Robert will never leave State House even if MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai wins the presidential election run-off.
Robert Mugabe would only hand over the keys to State House to a Zanu (PF) official – not to traitors like Tsvangirai, Grace told Zanu (PF) supporters in Shamva on Thursday.
She was speaking after meeting victims of alleged MDC political violence in the company of her husband.
Even if people vote for the MDC, Morgan Tsvangirai will never step foot inside State House, Grace said. He will only get to hear about what it looks like inside State House from people who have been there. Even if Baba (Mugabe) loses, he will only leave State House to make way for someone from Zanu (PF).
Grace’s implicit hints that Mugabe is planning to stage a coup in the event of electoral defeat lends credence to a recent report by International Crisis Group that Mugabe could use the military to refuse to hand over power if he loses the June 27 vote.
Analysts say her statements must have been cleared by her husband and therefore constitute the clearest indications so far of Mugabe’s thinking.
This demonstrates clearly that the run-off is a complete waste of time, said a political observer.
But others maintain her utterances were just the barking of an expired regime.
While Zimbabweans battle for survival with horrific inflation rates, as the life expectancy drops by decades, as the unemployment rate nears 90 percent, Grace Marufu Mugabe is well-known for her insatiable appetite for shopping and her lavish spending sprees in the Far East.
Her threats that Tsvangirai would never set foot in State House, over our dead body have been frowned upon by the majority of Zimbabweans who voted for him in the first round.
Mbeki talking nonsense – Annan
BY TRUST MATSILELE
PRETORIA
The former United Nations Secretary General has lashed out at South African President Thabo Mbeki for his reckless statements dismissing the need for external intervention in Zimbabwe.
“The tendency for some to think this is an internal matter is nonsense,” said Kofi Annan.
The crisis in Zimbabwe has sent millions of refugees into neighbouring countries and has prevented countries that once bought from food from Zimbabwe from doing so — proof that the problems are not simply an “internal matter,” Annan said.
His harsh words come a few days after Mbeki wrote a letter to United States President George Bush telling him (Bush) to butt out of the Zimbabwean crisis.
The South African President and his Ambassador to the United Nations have barred the Zimbabwean crisis from being at the United Nations Security Council saying, its magnitude did not warrant attention by the UN body and other international forums.
Mbeki, who has made no secret of his support for Robert Mugabe, has in the past few months made inflammatory statements that have even angered some members of his cabinet and his peers in the ruling African National Congress.
Zimbabwe Youth Network coordinator Munjodzi Mutandiri dismissed Mbeki does as a hypocrite.
“We expect Mbeki to do exactly what he advises other countries and leaders to do. If he advise some countries to back out as our crisis is an internal matter then we expect him to back off as he is not qualified to speak on behalf of Zimbabweans,” said Mutandiri.
The ANC was at the forefront of organising international solidarity against apartheid and enjoyed support from Africa and most of the west. The ANC leadership lived in exile in many SADC countries, including Zimbabwe. Nobody told them that it was an internal matter and that they should not seek international intervention.
Post published in: News