Living Zimbabwe

Tag: Violence

  • A Violent Response: New Documentary Film by Hopewell Chin’ono

    The award winning Journalist and Filmmaker Hopewell Chin’ono is at it again. He has put together another documentary film called A Violent Response. The documentary covers some of the actions carried out by the government after the March 2008 elections. Here is the trailer of the film which is due to be released in December:

  • White Farmers, You Are Not Welcome in Zimbabwe

    That was a video of a recent farm invasion. In one foul swoop, these farmers have lost everything that they have spent most of their lives building and it is not an easy thing for anyone (white or black) to go through. In addition to the farmers losing their livelihood, their employees suddenly find themselves without a job which only adds to the ridiculous unemployment rate that is already above 90%.

    “Land distribution will continue. It will not stop,” Mugabe said. “The few remaining white farmers should quickly vacate their farms as they have no place there.” These were some of the words recently spoken by Mugabe. Farm invasions are continuing and they seem to have stepped into high gear. Last weekend in the Zimbabwe that has a unity government, one of change, an elderly couple were beaten by thugs who invaded their property just outside Harare.

    A number of farms have been seized in recent weeks, 100 or so farmers are facing prosecution, some are under siege and some have gone into hiding. Majority of the farms being invaded are run by white Zimbabweans and the animosity towards them will not make life comfortable for those who are not even remotely involved in farming. Britain announced plans to evacuate its older and vulnerable citizens from Zimbabwe, a plan that Mugabe responded to by saying, “They are free here. They are quite comfortable. It’s queer, strange thinking by the British. We don’t understand.” Whether or not they really need help, Mugabe’s words and actions towards whites have done nothing to make them feel at ease.

    During his 85th birthday celebrations, Mugabe said, “In the areas of mining, agriculture and manufacturing, a methodological and systematic identification of areas in which the state and indigenous entrepreneurs can participate, is being carried out, in line with the Indigenous and Empowerment Act.” This law is supposedly in place to facilitate the majority control of industry by blacks. One point to note is that it is not only white farmers who have been kicked off their land. It has happened to black farmers as well. The Zanu PF greed has extended beyond moving white farmers off their land. If a minister or someone else with a voice within the ruling party sets their eyes on a black owned farm, they do what they can to get their hands on it. This is going against what is stated in their own laws if they are taking something that a black person lawfully owns.

    There are so many inconsistencies with the farm invasions, related laws and statements made by the government. It has gone from eviction to allowing some farmers back with 99 year leases on resettled farms to evicting them all over again. It is almost impossible to keep track of or figure out exactly what the government is trying to do or think they will achieve.

    Has Mugabe not seen what effect the land invasions had in the past? The collapse of the agricultural sector and people facing starvation can be in part attributed to the invasions. After the invasions, a number of the farms became pieces of land with zero productivity. But still Mugabe continues to press on with land reform programme and calling on white farmers to leave and say they are not welcome.

    This is all CRAZINESS!!

  • Perence Shiri’s would Be Assassin Captured!

    Air Marshall Perence Shiri aka Black JesusAbsolute rubbish! That is what I thought when I read through reports that Frank Muchirahondo, an employee of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) was captured at the Forbes border post in Mutare on January 22nd whilst trying to flee the country. Absolute rubbish was the exact same thing I thought when reports first surfaced in mid December that there had been an attempt on Perence Shiri’s (aka Black Jesus) life. Reports stated that he was ambushed whilst travelling alone to his farm and was shot in the hand or arm or shoulder (there are a number of different versions of the story). After the incident he was said to have received medical attention at the Manyame Air Force Base hospital. Ever since that alleged attempt on his life, he has not been seen in public and there is no real evidence that he was in fact shot.

    All of this I find very hard to believe because for one, the likelihood of someone like Perence Shiri travelling alone are slim to none not only because of him being the Air Marshall or a member of Joint Operations Command (JOC) but also because of his history of being at the forefront of Gukurahundi. These are more than enough to warrant that he is escorted wherever he goes. To add to that, an unnamed Senior Air Force of Zimbwbe official said it totally false that Shiri had been admitted to the military hospital.

    At the time the reports came out, Minister of Home Affairs, Cde Kembo Mohadi stated, “The attack on Air Marshal Shiri appears to be a build-up of terror attacks targeting high-profile persons, Government officials, Government establishments and public transportation systems.” The alleged incident was seen by many as something that was made up so that Mugabe could declare a state of emergency which would effectively sideline MDC and leave him in complete control of Zimbabwe.

    It is events like this that are among the increasing number of lies that the government has told in the past few months. Some weeks before the ‘shooting’, a number of activist including Jestina Mukoko were abducted and for weeks the authorities denied having any involvement in the abductions. Not to everyone’s surprise, the abductees were found to be alive and in police custody just before Christmas.

    All of these events are just a taste of the lies that the Zimbabwe government is capable of coming up with. They can blatantly lie to its people and the world about what they are doing and not doing and it even more evidence to show that they cannot be trusted. Even with that being the case Tsvangirai and a number of other leaders still believe that a unified government can be formed in Zimbabwe. What is the point of going ahead with a unity government if you know for sure that one party cannot be trusted?

  • Zimbabwean Soldiers Gone Crazy!

    A Store Looted By Zimbabwean Soldiers

    Alex Magaisa wrote an insightful post, “Why did the soldier cross the road?” which highlighted the actions of the soldiers who looted vandalized shops in Harare at the beginning of the month. In the article he highlighted speculation as to why the soldiers acted they way they did. The more commonly held theory that he highlighted was that of the soldiers being sent to wreak havoc by Zanu PF so that a state of emergency could be declared. A state of emergency would effectively put an indefinite hold to any sort of unity government. But, this is only one of the theories out there as to why they behaved they way they did.

    Being a soldier means having a high standard of discipline which entails following orders given by high ranking officers and carrying them out without question. So, if the theory of Zanu PF wanting to shake things up was in fact true and soldiers in the Zimbabwe Army were still loyal, it could have some truth to it. Another likely scenario is that the soldiers may have been acting on behalf of their disgruntled Generals who have had enough of the whole Zimbabwe situation. The Generals in a show of just how much power they and the army wields may have wanted to make a point to show the powers that be that things can change. There are so many examples in history where the military has taken over which is something that could happen in Zimbabwe.

    Another scenario could be that it wasn’t in fact members of the army but individuals in possession of military clothing. In the past, certain groups of people were given army clothing to go out and intimidate the people of Zimbabwe. For some reason, that uniform strikes fear into the hearts of average people who will only be thinking about staying out of harms way when confronted by someone in uniform even if they are unarmed. These individuals who in the past were given uniform to wear on their ‘missions’ got a bit to carried away with their actions and tarnished the image of the Zimbabwe National Army which is why it became forbidden for civilians to wear camouflage material. These individuals may have banded together and seen it as a way of getting their hands on something to carry them through a few days.

    Or, it could simply be a case of soldiers just having had enough and in a moment of madness decided to go on a rampage through the streets of Harare. As Alex pointed out in his article, soldiers are not immune to the economic meltdown, collapsed infrastructure, cholera………… and the list goes on. They and their families have to contend with all of these woes like the rest of Zimbabwe and they being human are bound to snap at some point. It was reported that they went on the rampage after they failed to withdraw cash from a bank. The difference with them is that being soldiers they have to behave accordingly especially when in uniform.

    Whatever the truth is, it is scary to see people who are trained to kill acting in such a manner. Even for Mugabe himself (if it was not his doing) it must leave him worrying a bit and with a few ‘what ifs?’ going through his mind. Whatever the case may be, hopefully the events do not escalate into yet another difficult situation that Zimbabwe has to deal with.

  • Dare To Wear Camouflage Clothing in Zimbabwe

    Zimbabwean Soldiers Who Beat Civilians Haphazardly!Camouflage clothing has for a very long time been popular urban clothing. If you are lucky enough, you can get yourself a pair of camouflage pants for as little as $1 on eBay. That bargain you get for your piece of clothing could get you into more trouble than you bargained for if you decide to wear it in Zimbabwe. According to the Defence Act (Chapter 11:02), wearing of camouflage materials by civilians, whether Zimbabwean or from any other country, is forbidden. This was something that was mentioned to me a few years ago but didn’t pay much attention to and quickly forgot about simply because of how in most parts of the world it is just a piece of clothing. At the time I was told that people wearing camouflage clothing were beaten up by soldiers and faced possible arrest.

    Some weeks ago, a popular Zimbabwean DJ, DJ Squila was accused by soldiers of wearing army replica pants without permission. The soldiers proceeded to assault DJ Squila and threw him into a vehicle and drove off. They later threw him out of the vehicle whilst it was moving and he sustained serious head injuries. Luckily enough, a passer by took him to hospital where he received treatment. The Defence Act also states that anyone who without authority sells, offers or exposes for sale, wears or uses any uniform supplied to or authorized for use by any member of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces or other military forces shall be guilty of an offence.

    The act may state that one shall be guilty of an offence but even if one is guilty, it does not give the soldiers such as the ones that assaulted DJ Squila the right to take justice into their own hands. Hearing of such behaviour reinforces all those statements about soldiers being illiterate people who don’t think about what they are doing and the consequences of their actions. This makes them very dangerous group of people who you don’t want to provoke in any way. In a country full of lawlessness it just isn’t worth it wearing camouflage clothing even more so when you have to contend with very poorly paid and disgruntled soldiers.

    Would you dare to wear military clothing in Zimbabwe?

  • Zimbabwe Election Violence Report by Ian Pannell

    Even though the BBC is banned from reporting from Zimbabwe yet another one of their correspondents has managed to enter the country and report on events taking place in Zimbabwe. Ian Pannell has reportedly spent the last month in Zimbabwe following the election campaign. Below is Ian Pannell’s report from Manicaland.

  • Post Election Violence in Zimbabwe

  • Independence and the An Yue Jiang

    It has been 24 days since the presidential elections and the official results are still to be released by ZEC. A lot has been going been going on in Zimbabwe since the 29th of March with one of them being the April 18th Independence Day celebrations. Just how independent Zimbabwe is, is something much left to be desired. I took a look at the dictionary definition of independence:

    Independence – the quality or state of being independent, freedom from control or influence of another or others
    freedom – the condition of being free; the power to act or speak or think without externally imposed restraints: autonomy, liberty – immunity from arbitrary exercise of authority: political independence

    Freedom of speech is something that is basically unheard of in Zimbabwe and the government tries to keep a tight lid on what sort of information is distributed via the various media channels and the journalists who come into the country to report on the situation. Some people live in fear that they may be subjected to beatings, torture, jail sentences or even death for speaking up for what they believe in which in most cases is basic human rights. What kind of independence is that?

    Zimbabweans are in a state of limbo as they await the very overdue results of the presidential elections. In the mean time, the streets of the nation’s cities and towns have been filling up with personnel from the armed forces and the odd Chinese military official has also been spotted. MDC activists and supporters have been subjected to violent beatings and this violence is something that may continue or even escalate especially with the large arms consignment destined for Zimbabwe from China.

    A Chinese ship the An Yue Jiang which is carrying a large amount of weapons and ammunition destined from Zimbabwe was turned away from South Africa and Mozambique and is now destined for Angola from where its cargo can make its way to landlocked Zimbabwe. The United States is trying to intervene to convince governments of African nations to prevent the ship from unloading its cargo. There have been reports that a second shipment destined for Zimbabwe will be flown into the country, a step that may have been taken to circumvent the problems and controversy surrounding the first consignment. What all of this weaponry will be used for at a time like this is a question that a lot of people are asking?

    Whatever the case may be, the people of Zimbabwe continue to suffer at the hands of a few people who could very easily put an end to it and allowing new leaders with the right mind set to take over. Are Zimbabweans going to have to go through the struggle of gaining independence all over again?

  • Zimbabwe Listed as One of the Most Dangerous Destinations?

    Zimbabwe Police Brutality - This is NOT what Zimbabwe is about. I was reading through Forbes last week and came across an interesting article: World’s Most Dangerous Destinations. I was curious to see if Zimbabwe was listed amongst the likes of Iraq and Afghanistan and that it was. Forbes gathered the information from iJet, a company that specializes in assessing global threats. Zimbabwe was ranked five meaning – Control Risks: High security risk, insignificant terrorism risk and medium travel risk.

    I disagree with it because on a whole Zimbabwe is not a dangerous place and her citizens do not live in fear of losing their lives. Yes, Zimbabwe is experiencing a few problems at the moment but Zimbabweans are more worried about getting by than going out and causing chaos. Most of the violence that has taken place has been perpetrated by people with strong political affiliations. When situations have turned violent, these events have been isolated and died down pretty quickly.

    I don’t like seeing Zimbabwe being included on the list of the world’s most dangerous destinations. Even if it is only ranked as a ‘Control Risk’, being branded as a dangerous destination is enough to further tarnish the image of a nation. If someone was to see a country they intend on traveling to on such a list it would be a big deterrent for them visiting regardless of what kind of a risk it is said to pose.

    Various nations worldwide have warned their citizens against traveling to Zimbabwe, a step which I see as being a little extreme. A few tourists still do visit Zimbabwe and come out unscathed with pleasurable memories and hopefully a different perspective of life. On the whole Zimbabweans are peaceful people and Zimbabwe does not deserve to be branded as a dangerous destination.

  • The Fifth Brigade and Gukurahundi Massacres

    Gukurahundi which means ‘the early rain which washes away the chaff before the spring rains’ is what Mugabe chose to call a military operation to combat civil unrest. In 1980 signed an agreement with North Korean President Kim Il Sung to have the North Korean Military train a brigade for the Zimbabwean Army. This brigade was known as the Fifth Brigade. Some have gone on to say it was the launch of organised genocide.

    On completion of their training and lead by Colonel Perence Shiri, the Fifth Brigade went out on their campaign of silencing dissidents. Their campaign mainly targeted the people in Matabeleland who were mostly loyal to Joshua Nkomo’s Zimbabwe African People’s Union (ZAPU) who posed a threat to ZANU PF.

    The red beret wearing Fifth Brigade was not integrated into the army and only answered to Mugabe. They used a number of terror tactics to strike fear in the hearts of people. Countless numbers of people lost their lives. No-one really knows how many people lost their lives but estimates put it at 20,000.

    No-one has been held accountable for these atrocities and more and more people are urging the need for reconciliation and to start a commission similar to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in South Africa. A more detailed report Gukurahundi in Zimbabwe is available for purchase.