Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, left, and Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe shake hands, after addressing a press conference after signing a memorandum of understanding between Iran and Zimbabwe at State House in Harare, Thursday, April 22, 2010.
Originally uploaded by Pan-African News Wire File Photos
Herald Reporters
The Zimbabwe Military Police should remain focused and resolute in defence of Zimbabwe’s sovereignty, a senior army official has said.
Addressing military police at the directorate’s 30th anniversary celebrations in Harare at the weekend, Brigadier-General Chancellor Diye — who is in charge of administration at the Zimbabwe National Army — urged them to resist any attempts by Zimbabwe’s detractors to undermine the nation’s independence.
"As members of the defence forces and custodians of the defence of our country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, we should remain focused and resolute," he said.
Brig-Gen Diye said the military should follow the example of those who fought for national independence.
"The resilience demonstrated by our forefathers, brothers and sisters during the struggle for our independence should act as an inspiration to us," he said.
Brig-Gen Diye slammed the illegal sanctions on Zimbabwe as well as the undue Western meddling in the country’s diamond industry, especially in Chiadzwa. "Our detractors do not wish us well, they will always endeavour to frustrate all economic revival efforts our country introduces as shown in the current diamond certification process," he said.
Military police were commended for diligently carrying out their duties despite the lack of resources.
"Through your department, you have the mammoth task of investigating all complicated cases of theft, fraud and other criminal cases related to State property.
"I am glad that, in that area, you have done well despite the logistical constraints attributed to the lean budget allocated to the ZNA this financial year," he said.
Military police donated 300 textbooks to 2 Brigade Primary School.
Handing over the books, Colonel Fidelis Mhonda said: "Through this, we are taking a lead and conforming to our motto of leading by example."
The celebrations were held under the theme "Zimbabwe Military Police: The Custodians of Discipline in the ZNA".
Mbeki backs inclusive Govt
Herald Reporter
FORMER South African president Thabo Mbeki has defended Zimbabwe’s inclusive Government as the best model created by Zimbabweans to move the country forward.
The inclusive Government was formed in February last year after protracted negotiations brokered by South Africa between Zanu-PF and the two MDC formations.
Cde Mbeki played a key role in the negotiations that culminated in the signing of the Global Political Agreement on September 15 in 2008, which gave birth to the inclusive Government five months later.
In an interview with the National Public Radio in the United States recently, Cde Mbeki said he was confident that the inclusive Government would hold up.
"They (the parties) have no choice about it. They came to that agreement because they could see that this was the only way out for the country. I am quite confident that that Government will survive. It will work together," the former South African leader said.
He said Zimbabweans created the GPA without any external interference.
Cde Mbeki said: "It (the GPA) actually was drafted from page one to page last by the Zimbabweans themselves. It’s them. They wrote this thing. They debated it among themselves . . . And then they said, okay, we’ve agreed on this, let’s draft it. It’s a Zimbabwe agreement."
Cde Mbeki said regional leaders spent many years persuading Zanu-PF and the MDC formations to work together adding that any solutions to the country’s problems should come from Zimbabweans themselves.
Since its formation, the inclusive Government has registered notable progress in stabilising the economy and bringing political stability in the country.
The inclusive Government has also established a number of constitutional bodies agreed in the GPA such as the Zimbabwe Media Commission, Zimbabwe Electoral Commission and the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission.
Last week the principals in the inclusive Government — President Mugabe, Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and Deputy Prime Minister Authur Mutambara — jointly launched the constitution-making outreach programme that is expected to gather views on what Zimbabweans want to be included in the new constitution.
The immense progress was made despite of spirited efforts by some Western countries to destabilise the country through setting up parallel structures in PM Tsvangirai’s office and maintaining the widely discredited embargo against the country.
The parallel structures reportedly financed by the United States government were, however, widely condemned by Sadc as an attempt to build "a government within a government".
US in fresh bid to divide Zim
Herald Reporter
The United States Congress is pushing a piece of legislation to maintain the illegal sanctions on Zimbabwe and to bolster parallel government structures in the Prime Minister’s Office.
The Zimbabwe Renewal Act of 2010 will amend the Zimbabwe Democracy and Economic Recovery Act that instituted the current sanctions regime.
In a Press release this week, the US Information Centre in Zimbabwe said the proposed law maintains what it called "targeted sanctions".
The new legislation will extend financial assistance to ministries under MDC-T in the inclusive Government while sidelining the rest of the State.
Observers yesterday said the proposed law exposed American "hypocrisy and insincerity".
The proposal says "some members of Zanu-PF" are obstructing democracy, while lauding PM Morgan Tsvangirai and Finance Minister Tendai Biti.
"It reflects strenuous debate in both the Democratic and Republican parties, influenced by the (Congressional) Black Caucus," it reads in part.
Political analyst and Tsholotsho House of Assembly legislator Professor Jonathan Moyo said the US Congress was trying to create divisions in the inclusive Government through the new law.
"The notion of singling out Tsvangirai and Biti in the inclusive Government is mere nonsense because Government is a collective enterprise.
"We don’t know of anything they have done as individuals and these are only attempts by the US to cause chaos and confusion in the inclusive Government.
"Heaping of praises on these two officials is an attempt to create a government in another government, a move that was even criticised by President (Jacob) Zuma," he said.
Zimbabwe Revolutionary Volunteers Front chairman and political analyst Mr Godwine Mureriwa added: "The continuation of sanctions is a campaign strategy to prop up the MDC-T position ahead of polls.
"The US cannot claim that it wants to help Zimbabwe when it is maintaining sanctions. This seems to be contradictory."
He said Zanu-PF should make it clear that no elections could be held as long as sanctions and parallel government structures subsisted.
Another observer with the University of Zimbabwe asked: "Why does the United States think that it has the right to legislate on behalf of another country?
"The arrogance displayed is not only staggering but also nauseating. It is amazing that Tsvangirai and Biti do not show their public embarrassment when their names are used in such shameless onslaughts on their own country."
Regime change politics affecting Zim diamonds
The United States and Britain are frustrating Zimbabwe’s efforts benefit from its diamond resources Chiadzwa, Marange in eastern Zimbabwe because they have not given up their regime change agenda in the country, Zimbabwe has warned.
In a hard hitting statement, the Zimbabwean embassy in Namibia said the diamonds carry the hopes of many Zimbabweans but the country’s efforts to benefit from them were being thwarted at every turn.
Zimbabwe currently has four million carats of diamonds in stock but cannot sell them before the Kimberly Process Certification Scheme has given the green light.
The issue of Zimbabwe’s diamonds will be on the agenda when the KPCS meets in Israel next week.
"What has irked the US, UK and their western allies who imposed an all encompassing sanctions regime on Zimbabwe and have refused to lift them is that the sale of our diamonds , as a God given natural resource, will derail their efforts to illegally effect regime change in Zimbabwe," said the statement.
"While the same countries advocated and applauded the formation of an all inclusive government in 2009, they are now more vocal on the operations of the government because their ultimate objective, that is, the unconstitutional removal of the President H E R.G Mugabe from power, has not been met."
The embassy listed cited four "provocative" actions from what it called agents of illegal regime change.
The USA has proposed a new Act called the Zimbabwe Transition to Democracy and Economic Recovery "which are in effect new sanctions" as the Act seeks to help those parts of the transition government and parliament that demonstrate a firm commitment to democratic reform while renewing and ramping up pressure on hardiners curbing illegal diamond activities by pushing for Zimbabwe’s suspension from the Kimberly Certification Process , said the embassy.
The US secretary of State Hilary Clinton was quoted last week as saying "the ruling clique within Zanu-PF continues to benefit from diamond trade."
Clinton acknowledged that the Obama administration had renewed sanctions in March this year as part of the strategy of maintaining pressure on President Mugabe to vacate office.
The statement from the embassy noted: "the Australian government last month tabled a bill called the Autonomous Sanctions Bill 2010 meant to strengthen its sanctions against Zimbabwe."
The KPCS sent a monitor South Africa Abbey Chikane twice to Zimbabwe to first check then assess progress on the country’s suitability to trade in diamonds.
In his latest report, Chikane reported that Zimbabwe had met the minimum requirements to be allowed to export the germs.
The embassy said it was "illustrative" that Chikane’s first report had concluded that.
Zimbabwe had not met minimum requirements and the government had consequently banned the export of all diamonds in May 2010 until KP certification, which had now been given.
Zimbabwe had further met the Joint Work Plan as agreed at the KPCS meeting in Namibia last year.
The embassy dismissed press reports of so called military elites benefiting from the Chiadzwa diamond fields being peddled by Global Witness, a member of the KPCS.
"The Global witness report is part of the plot to ensure that we don’t benefit from the exploitation of our natural resource," charged the embassy.
It added: "A Canadian based organisation, Partner ship Africa Canada has gone a step further in the wake of the Chikane report, recommending that the KPCS should redefine the term blood diamonds so that it covers germs mined at Chiadzwa."
In its June 2010 report titled "Diamonds and Clubs, the militarised control of diamonds and Power in Zimbabwe", the PAC claims Government sponsored smuggling of diamonds and human rights violations at Chiadzwa.
The PAC recommended that the KPCS suspends Zimbabwe immediately and that mining licenses given to the two mining firms, Mbada and Canadile be revoked.
The report also wants the United Nations to place an immediate embargo on Zimbabwean diamonds "until such a time as there is legitimate and competent governance" of the country’s resources."
The new coalition government in Britain has also made it clear that there will be no change of policy in Zimbabwe with the new British Foreign Secretary William Hague saying his government would focus on supporting a process that gives Zimbabwe a chance "to state their democratic preferences and that leads to a stable government genuinely representing the people’s will.
The embassy hit back: "The above are just a few cases of gross interference in Zimbabwe’s internal political and economic processes."
It noted that President Mugabe had recently observed: "We want to be orderly to do like what other countries in the region are doing but countries like the US, Britain Australia and Canada want to take advantage of us by ensuring the process creates the same effect like sanctions on us that we should not be allowed to sell our diamonds.
"They have been heard saying what happens to our sanctions if Zimbabwe sells its diamonds. It is the regime change agenda all the time."
Said the embassy: "The diamonds carry the hopes of many Zimbabweans who are struggling to make ends meet under the present illegal sanctions regime.
Zimbabwe has over the past year been knocking virtually every door of any creditor including the Bretton Woods Institutions but to no avail and now Zimbabwe is trying to promote domestic led growth through harnessing its own resources, spanners are being thrown into our efforts.
Reports indicate that the first two licensed operators at Chiadzwa, Mbada Diamonds and Canadile might be sitting on gems worth more than US$200 million.
"Surely, Marange/Chiadzwa is not a war zone and the diamonds are not sold to finance insurgency or an invading army, so why should Partnership Africa Canada call them blood diamonds.
"Whilst Zimbabwe voluntarily joined the KPCs process (a non-binding protocol) which it respects, it can also easily leave the grouping," the embassy said. — The Southern Times.
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