Supporters were disappointed to learn that Lovemore Madhuku, Chair of the National Constitutional Assembly, could not attend the next vigil. Zimbabwean activist Givemore Chindawi told members that Madhukus passport had been seized at the airport as he was about to leave for the UK.
There were suspicions that this was an attempt to muzzle an alternative view of the situation in Zimbabwe to that presented in June in London by Morgan Tsvangirai.
The chair of the UKs Southend branch of the MDC, Stanford Biti (brother of Tendai), condemned what he described as efforts by the MDC in the UK to blame the vigil and ROHR for the booing of Tsvangirai in Southwark Cathedral. He expressed his support for moves to challenge the leadership of the MDC in the UK. He said it had moved away from the people and had become a corrupt, self-serving patronage system.
During the vigil, Zimbabwe Broadcasting Network News interviewed supporters, including Fungayi Mabhunu, Dumi Tutani and Simon Mambongo, about the new constitution.
Supporters were appalled that the mayor of Harare had been voted US$150,000 for a car. They urged a delay while the vigil sourced a combined ambulance/fire engine/hearse/rubbish truck, so it could be usefully employed when the mayor was not swanning around in it.
They pointed out that the mayor of London goes to work on a bike. If his counterpart in Harare did the same, the money saved could help out the water ministry, whose minister, Sam Sipepa Nkomo (MDC), has said his ministry is being ripped off by Zanu (PF) middlemen so that the price of imported chemicals to treat water is ten times higher than it should be. Nkomo said he was not doing anything about it because his officials had told him it would cause trouble.
The vigil takes place every Saturday from 2pm to 6pm, outside the Zimbabwe Embassy, 429 Strand, London. It was started in October 2002 to protest against gross violations of human rights in Zimbabwe and will continue until internationally monitored, free and fair elections are held in Zimbabwe. www.zimvigil.co.uk.