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Copyright ã 2000-2004
Lorraine |
News – Page 4
Wednesday 1st November 2000
I have had to create another page. Thanks for linking to it. I am trying a new format here, nothing like using this website as an experiment ! I am learning all the time though, and one day, what I have learned may come in very handy. Now on to some news.
Firstly, I am busy packing and getting everything ready to go to Kariba on Friday. We are so looking forward to it. My children arrive tomorrow, and are joining us on the trip. Can't wait !
Our situation has not changed in any way. The newspapers have been full of the court case in the US, suing Mugabe. According to our Independent papers, the plaintiffs won the case and it is now being decided on the amount of the damages that he has to pay. According to our Government, no such thing happened, and they have referred the reports (by the papers) to the Attorney Generals office. They are considering suing the papers. We are all in confusion here. Was the judgment given ? Does anyone out there have the true facts ? Please let me know. Our fuel has gone up again. I just can’t believe it ! How much more can we pay for ? It goes on and on. I have copied this table in from the newspaper.
Our farms are in chaos at the moment, There has been a mad
scramble for land as our rains have started. It is all such a mess. I am
providing a direct link to the article on the subject, which is entitled Chaos hits land reform. Please
link to it after you have read this. There are so many interesting articles
on that page. There is also the story of the man who was thrown in jail for
the night, and is under investigation after calling the President a thief. I
think I have called him worse than that ! The queues for fuel are blocks long again. I don’t know how I
always manage to survive. I must have
a guardian angel. I get down to a few litres in my tank, drive past a garage
where a queue is just forming, and manage to get filled up ! Friends have waited
over 8 hours ! I really have been lucky. Our farmers continue to be attacked, but the culprits are being
arrested where possible. At last, some response. But it is too little, too
late ! Hundreds are being freed on the general amnesty. They are responsible
for the most horrific acts, and they are all walking away smiling. It’s just
too awful. I read a report today, done by a black graduate from the
University, on “Independence and African States”. From the studies he has
done, he says that ALL African states that have gained their Independence
show prosperity in the first 10 years after Independence. Then there is a steep decline in the
economy, and poverty worsens until over 75 % of the population is living
below the bread line. A perfect description of Zimbabwe, but we lasted a bit
longer than 10 years. I’m afraid that’s it for tonight folks – I have too much to do
– I’ll be up till midnight packing food etc. I will try my best to get a last
update in tomorrow night before we go. I have been given a digital camera
!!!!!!! (from my husband). I an THRILLED !!!! and will take LOTS of photos of
Kariba. I promise. Back later. Thursday 9th November Hi all !!!! Back from Kariba and busy getting everything
unpacked & washed etc. I have started on the new Kariba pages and can't
wait for you all to see the photos. We had a near-disaster on the 3rd day
there, but you can read all about it at the wekend (should have uploaded the
pages by then.) I am back at work tomorrow (Friday) as a terrible thing
happened while I was away. One of my employees, Francisca, passed away last
Friday. I didn't get to know until I got home. Do you remember me telling you
about the couple who were forced into a bus and trundled off to a ZanuPF
rally one Sunday morning. It was Francisca & her husband. She was a
faithfull employee, and dear friend. I will catch up on the political front
tomorrow. Saturday 11th November Hello. I am still working on the Kariba pages, and will upload
as soon as poss. I would like to copy in an email here that I received from a
young woman here in Harare. It is so encouraging to me, and I really want to
share it with you all. Hi Lorraine, I saw your web-page on www.thezimbo.co.uk, while searching for
my friends overseas (I now have more over there than here!) When I opened your site, I thought to myself, I will have a
quick look at ths site. But it is probably another pretensious site of gory
news and "oh you must all feel sorry for us, look what we have endured"
I was totally wrong, unlike many many articles I have read on
the internet, your site didn't make me angry or laugh at its totally
inaccuracy's. YOU MADE ME CRY!!! And for that I thank you. Your insights have been open and honest and uncondemning. As a
young white woman who like everyone had to make the decision this year to
stay or go, you have put into magical words, what we have all been fighting
inside. Like most people I have been too scared to express what has been
happening here. I take my hat off to you. Finally, when I read your diary of Kariba, I cried the most. My
heart sings when I am in Kariba, I feel totally at peace. Kariba to me
epitomises the very essence of who Zimbabweans are. We and I include whites
and blacks in this, are an amazing people, we are (except for a few!!!) good,
kind and happy people. I can only hope that through sites such as this, the rest of the
world will stand up and take notice of Zimbabwe, and I hope that the
Zimbabweans in the rest of the world also stand up and say "we cannot
let that happen to our people" Perhaps if everyone came home to fight,
we would have a future in the beautiful country that will always be home, no
matter where I might end up. It is the very essence of who I am and who all
Zimbabaweans are. The saying is that your home is where your heart is, I beleive,
your home is where your soul is. And mine and most Zimbabweans soul is in
this land, the mozzies, the braiis, the sunsets, even the ET's!!! etc etc There are just too many things to list about Zimbabwe. It really
is heaven on earth. If she is reading this, she knows who she is, and I thank her
from the bottom of my heart ! I will be emailing her today to thank her. We got back from Kariba to relative calm. Not much seems to
have happened since we have been away. Once again, I did not want to come
back to Harare. It's awful, isn't it - not to want to come back to your own
home. It's so much nicer to escape the reality of our situation and ignore it
! But, as I have said many times, that is impossible for me. I cannot go
quietly. There seems to be a general feeling that Mugabe will be out by
December. I can find no facts whatsoever to base this prediction on, but
everyone is saying it, even Morgan Tsvangirai. The MDC may have something up
their sleeves that we dont know about. There are queues at garages again. One good thing about a queue
- it means that there is petrol at the garage. I really don't know how long
this will go on for. Could be months. The weather is extremely hot at the moment, and we have had a
lot of rain, which is really good news. It will help the farmers who have
been brave enough to plant their crops. Their situation has not changed at
all. The war vets continue to sit tight, awaiting the day when they will get their
piece of the pie. Experts on land reform are saying that our "fast-track
land re-distribution programme" is an absolute shambles, with no control
whatsoever. Governors of provinces are handing out parcels of land, war vet
leaders are handing out parcels of land, in fact, almost everyone is handing
out parcels of land. There is no set plan, no foundation on which the
programme is based, and no follow-ups in the form of aid or assistance to
those who are receiving land. It is a recipe for agricultural ruin, and it
won't be long before all of us here will be feeling the full effects of it.
God help us next year when the time comes to reap what we have sown ! We will
find ourselves very short of local foodstuffs! With 75% of the population
living below the breadline as it is, we are going to need serious help. We
all believe that aid will eventually come. Most people are saying that the
foreign donors are just waiting for Mugabe to step down and the aid will come
flooding in. Once again, this is all heresay. On the home front, we carry on. We have no choice. We made the
decision to stay after months of thought (we really were on the point of
leaving), and so now we have to make the best of a very bad situation. It has
it's good points though, and we live for these ! The sunshine, our family
& friends, our lifestyle - all these things go a long way towards keeping
us here. I hope, in the long run, that we don't find that we have made a big
mistake. Only time will tell. I am off now to do some more work on the Kariba pages. I really
would like to have them up and running before Sunday evening. Then you can
enjoy it as much as I did. My new digital camera is absolutely wonderful -
the best present I could ever have been given. So, if you want me to take
photos of anything,(even your old house in Harare) and put them up as
webpages, please let me know and I will gladly oblige. Back later. 10.30pm. I have been at it for hours and have finally uploaded
the Kariba Trip. Enjoy it ! Sunday 19th November 2000 What a week this has been - late again updating, I'm afraid. My
son-in-law, daughter and children were here for the week. He had his face
repaired after that nasty accident a few months ago. He is looking much
better, and we are all sure it will improve as time goes on. I had minor
surgery on my foot. During THE storm at Kariba, while I was in the water, I
stood on a massive thorn which went right into the instep of my left foot,
and I couldn't get it out. My foot had blown up like a balloon by last
Monday, so Tuesday I had to have the wound lanced, but the thorn couldn't be
found. The foot is up once again, so I'll be off to the doctor again this
week. I'm a real coward, and not looking forward to it ! On the political front, the 2001 budget was announced this
week. It is a very appeasing budget (the government has a lot of appeasing to
do - looking forward to the presidential elections no doubt !). I am busy
doing up a page with the main features of it, which I should be uploading
today. The fuel situation seems to have eased a bit, I hope it lasts.
It is always such a worry when you notice that the fuel tank has reached a
1/4. I would like to copy in an email here, received from the MDC press War Veterans Attack MDC Supporters 18 November 2000 A group of MDC supporters were attacked in Beatrice today on the
road from Beatrice township. One of the supporters was seriously injured and
is currently at Harare Central Hospital. About twenty five MDC supporters in an open truck, and five in a
twincab went today to continue their campaigning in Marondera West, in
preparation for the bye-elections next weekend. The group went to Beatrice
Township, passing along there way by a public football field, on which
approximately 30 war veterans have set up tents and made their camp. The MDC
campaigners toured Beatrice Township, distributing flyers, singing, and
encouraging people to vote MDC next weekend. The group finished their tour,
and came back up the road past the war veteran camp. Arriving by the field, they found the road blocked by a large
log. The group then disembarked from their vehicles and began to move the
log. While moving the log, they were stoned heavily by Zanu PF supporters.
Four were injured by this stoning. When the MDC supporters continued to move
the log, one of the war veterans pulled out a gun and fired three shots in
the air. Panic ensued, and people ran in all directions. Many got back on the vehicles, but one man, Charles X, was
tackled by five of the war veterans. Once they had caught him, they beat him
with sticks on his back. They also took an axe to his head. Charles suffered
two severe lacerations to his skull, and a cut above his eye. The group were
taken to the police station, but Charles was so severely injured he was then
taken to Beatrice Hospital. The charge nurse there sent him to him the Harare
Central Hospital. He is reported to be in serious by stable condition. His
skull is fractured, and he is being xrayed to see if there is any bleeding in
the brain. At the police station, the MDC supporters were accused of
inciting the violence, and their vehicle was impounded. The Deputy
Officer-in-Charge at Beatrice charged that the MDC were responsible for the
attack, as the war veterans were simply present in a public place, and the
MDC supporters provoked the war veterans to their reaction. Please contact
the Beatrice Police Station for more details. At almost the same time, another group of 48 MDC campaigners
arrived in Mahusekwa Township. They came in three vehicles. Arriving at the
township, they were immediately surrounded by 300-400 individuals, both
youths and adults, in Zanu PF t-shirts. This group is suspected to have
camped outside the township overnight, waiting for the arrival of the MDC.
When they arrived at the township, many MDC supporters got out of their
vehicles. When they realised how many Zanu supporters there were, however,
they tried to get back into their vehicles. A fierce struggle ensued between
the two groups, and many MDC supporters received minor injuries. The three
vehicles eventually escaped safely, and regrouped in Seke. The MDC is outraged at these latest
incidents of violence and intimidation against its membership. It seriously
jeopardises any hopes that the residents of Marondera West had for a free and
fair by election. As long as the ruling party continues to turn a blind eye
to such flagrant violations of the principles of democracy, the people of
Marondera West, and of Zimbabwe, continue to be denied their constitutional
right to good governance. I really get so frustrated and fed up with it all. I wonder if
it will ever end. Some people just do not, and will not ever, understand the
TRUE meaning of democracy & freedom of speech. I get emails from
ex-Zimbabweans who are happily settled in another land, and wonder whether we
should have left long ago. Then I look at the Kariba photos, think of my
children & grandchildren, think about the coming trip to Nyanga next
month, see the faces of my co-workers and their trust in my ability to keep
them employed, walk around my garden, - and it's a tug-of-war, with my heart
in the middle of the rope ! This really is one of the most wonderful countries in the
world. If we could just get the right government & leadership to lead us
to prosperity. We are still seeing families leaving by the week. They are
convinced that the economy will not recover, and that they would be better
off elsewhere. Back later. Sunday 26th November 2000 How quickly time goes ! First of all, I need to say that I will be changing the page
format on the next news page. This format is not much use with blank columns
on either side and this l..o..n..g column down the middle. Life goes on ! Corruption goes on ! Mayhem goes on ! And we
seem to be going no further forward than we were six months ago. We are in the middle of a by-election in Marondera at the
moment. This is about 100 kms west of Harare. Folk say there are clear
indications of intimidation, and of course, the run-up to the by-election has
been plagued with the same sort of political violence that we experienced, as
a nation, earlier this year. Voting started yesterday morning, continues
today, and we should have a result by Tuesday. It will be interesting. Ian Smith, the ex Prime Minister (when we were Rhodesia) has
apologised publicly for the killings and massacres of innocent civilians,
which took place during the Liberation war in the late 60's and 70's. He has
also challenged Robert Mugabe to do the same, but says he doesn't believe
Mugabe will do it. Smith is always very outspoken in his criticism of Mugabe,
and always has been. He actually said, this week, the country was run far
better when his government was in power. I agree with him. It was. He said
"“Rhodesia, it must be noted, was one of the most successful economies
in the whole world even under sanctions when we had to export at a discount
and import at a premium.” "For many years, the Rhodesian economy
recorded growth rates of 10 percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP)". He
accused government officials of corruption and added that as long as the
current leadership remained in power the economy would not recover.
"We’ve got to get rid of the gangsters who are bleeding the country.
It’s not going to be easy. We’ve been sucked into a dreadful quagmire but
we’ve got to start somewhere. We now live in a country where the richer are
getting richer and the poor are getting poorer". Well said ! On the farming front, not much has changed. The farmers have
taken their cases to the courts and are awaiting the outcome. Farm invasions,
and squatting continue. It must be so frustrating for the farmers. I will
copy in the latest updates on the farm situation in the column to your right
! I think that any ex-farmers will be thankful that they are well out of it
all. Those that have left Zimbabwe, and there are many of them, I wish them
the best of luck & prosperity wherever they are. We were supposed to be taking part in some kind of mass action
to try and get rid of Mugabe. This was to have been organised by the MDC, but
it now seems that plans for the action have been shelved. I don't know all
the details, but will find out. Folk have been asking me (via email), how I feel about the
situation at the moment. How do I feel ? It's hard to analyse. I am still
very angry and frustrated with the continued mismanagement of this country. A
few of the elite have prospered at such a cost to everybody else (both
financial & emotional). The whites here have always been the scapegoat
for anything that goes wrong in the life of the black. Even my black friends
admit this. They themselves say that it has always been too easy to blame the
whites, and the oppression/suppression they suffered at white hands. But they
have finally admitted that this is no longer an excuse ! Mugabe has governed
this country for over 20 years, and instead of bettering his people, they are
in a worse position than they ever were. Who do they blame ? Not the whites
anymore, I'm glad to say. Swift action is needed here to save us, but anyone
who has lived in Africa knows about "Africa time", and so things do
not seem to be moving at all. I can see no progress on restoring our economy.
There are continuing rounds of summits, debates, meeting, and very little
action. We wait. Sunday 10th December 2000 I really am sorry that I haven't been able to update for a
while. Anyone in business knows how busy the last few weeks of the year
usually are, and this year-end has been no exception. I am hoping to upload
NEWS Page 5 later today, and will then place a link to it from here. Thanks
for your patience. Tuesday 12th December 2000 At last, I have managed to upload the next news page News Page 5 |
I have put up a website on Gardening if anyone is Interested ! I have called it and I am alternating working on the two sites. All the work
done on this site, since the 3rd June, makes me so much more aware
of our situation, and is very stressful. The gardening site is actually
giving me another interest, and getting me working on my garden, which I have
seriously neglected the last 6 months ! There are a lot of photos on it, all taken around my garden, so
please be patient while the pages load. Thanks ! REGIONAL REPORTS:Farm Situation Mashonaland Central General - Widespread work stoppage and illegal planting around the
province continues unabated. An initial survey indicates at least $ 750
million in potential lost revenue due to work stoppages. Large numbers of
cattle are being illegally driven onto commercial farms. Centenary - 20 families have been resettled at Ashmere by Governor
Manyika. Mvurwi - Invaders continue to plough and plant at Govete and
Bradjulie. Mutepatepa - Invaders are planting haphazardly on Condwelani and have
instructed the owner to get rid of his cattle, as they will interfere with
their cropping programme. Mazowe/Concession - A complete work stoppage and illegal planting
continues at Sunnyside. Duncombe has been unofficially fast tracked and today
50 'settlers' are planting maize in land prepared for soyas. The police
(Concession) appear to have plots among the settlers as well. Shamva - Complete work stoppages and illegal planting continues at
Dawmill, Beacon Hill and Woodlands A although none of the properties are even
listed for acquisition. The last of the rhodes grass pastures has been burned
at Avilion and land preparation/planting by invaders is ongoing. Mashonaland East Bromley/Ruwa - The work force on Xanadu stopped the farm invaders tractor from
ploughing one of the lands and insisted on meeting with the Land Committee.
Farm invader Likomba tried to put pressure on the owner of Sheena Farm, which
is not listed, for land. When the farmer resisted he left he farm. On Surrey
farm farm invaders have burnt the cattle paddocks in preparation for their
land preparation. A DDF tractor arrived on Middleton and started ploughing
the cultivated pastures. The DA was not available to help. Enterprise - The Provincial Veterinary Officer advised invaders on Oribi
that they could not bring cattle from outside the area onto the farm. Harare South - Invaders on Marirangwe complained that their huts had been
destroyed by the farm labour. The farm was delisted but hut building
continues. Marondera - A Section 8 order was served on the foreman of Toplands
farm. Three tractors (one from the Municipality), illegally ploughed on the
farm last week end. Maize was planted using uncertified seed. Tree and fence
cutting continues and the owners cattle are being pushed out. Marondera North - The individuals who were resettled on Cambridge last week
end have been cutting trees and poaching fish. Macheke/Virginia - The DA arrived Chilinda farm with a lorry load of about 60
people and would not speak to the farmer. There are still ten resettled on
the farm. Invaders planted more maize and insisted that the tractor driver
take the tractor out of the land so that they could plant on Riverlea Farm.
The police were informed but said that the incident was political and therefore
they could not help. 8 individuals from the Ministry of Lands and Agriculture
arrived on Chigari to peg the farm with no authority. Invaders on Koodoo
Range (John Whaley) prevent labour from planting soyas. There is a lot of hut
building on the farm again. A section 8 order was served on Longridge farm. Wedza - A motorbike was stolen from Newton Farm. The reaction team
recovered the motorbike but the back wheel had been stolen. Two gates were
destroyed on Shaka and the cattle have all been mixed together. Two fish
poachers were arrested on Msasa and another two on Imire. On Southlorne there
was an attempt to arrest fish poachers but they retaliated with catapults,
hitting the guard, and escaped. There was a DDF Nissan High Rider with four
individuals carrying asbestos sheets around Collace Farm. The group claimed
that they were there to do some surveying for four weeks but had not notified
anyone on the farm. When leaving the farm they tried to go through the front
gate and noticed that it was locked. They approached the farm owner and were
rude demanding an answer as to why the gate was locked. When they were
informed that it was a private farm road and not a public road they left.
There is a lot of activity in connection with the elections this week end. Mashonaland West (North) Karoi - (from 10 - 23 November). Illegal ploughing and planting is
taking place on La Rochelle, Fuzen, Rondawyn, Kupeta, Pitlochry, Gremlin and
Nyararamda. Work stoppages have been reported on Toekoms, Laughing Hills and
Good Hope farms. Fast-track resettlement has either taken place or is due to
take place on Tavoy, Kevlyn and Good Hope farms. The owner of Buffalo Downs
was verbally abused by invaders. The owner of Ruwanzi Ranch received a very
threatening letter from "base Commander Moyale", but police have
not reacted. When the owner of Fuzen Farm approached invaders who were
planting in prepared lands, they armed themselves with axes and pangas.
Police instructions for the invaders to stop planting are being ignored. Two invaders
on Ardingly who were arrested and charged for stealing fencing were returned
to their base camp in a police vehicle. War vet Jethro has threatened the
owner with violence and death for seeking an eviction order. Mashonaland West (South) General - The ZRP Officer Commanding Mashonaland West has issued
instructions not to remove illegal occupiers off farms until there is
clarification regarding the High Court order that Justice Chidyausiku issued.
Finance - Local Government officials refuse to write letters required
by banks regarding whether the property is to be fast tracked or not. Norton - War vets, Mrs Rusike and Mutasa continue to prevent work on
Saffron Walden and have made severe threats. Police reaction has not been
good and farm workers are prepared to protect themselves if necessary. The
work stoppage on Parklands caused by Mrs Rusike has been ongoing for over two
weeks. Mrs Rusike's group visited Aberdeen last night - one of the group was
armed with an AK, another with a shotgun. Chegutu - After police intervened to break a work stoppage, the owner
of Just Right was held hostage in her car by war vet Gilbert Moyo and his
group for two hours. Eventually, Eiffel Flats police came to the rescue.
Today four farm guards were chased out of the lands again. Kadoma - Illegal occupiers on Railway Farm 4 continue to plant
despite police instructions to the contrary. Manicaland Nyanga - One cow and one sheep were slaughtered on Glen Spey Farm.
Illegal ploughing has started again on Stockdale and Glen Spey. Chipinge - The DA is attempting to force the owner of Elizabethville to
sign over 130ha out of the 340 hectares to illegal occupiers. This farm was
only bought in December and has Export Processing Zone status. Burma Valley - DDF have been ploughing on Manyera since Tuesday. Masvingo Masvingo East and Central - There are indications that the
100-150 illegal occupiers on Southwill Estates may be moved off. Invaders
have attempted to move farm workers out of their houses. Deliberate fires and
illegal ploughing continue on this property. The owner of Good Hope Farm has
been notified by war vets that plots will be allocated to 'settlers'. The
owner was threatened that if he did not comply, they would do a
"Marshall Roper" on him. An official delegation fast-tracked
Lothian farm. Invaders have moved their cattle onto Vredenburg Farm and have
locked away the owners sheep as it was alleged that they had damaged their
illegally planted maize. Mwenezi - The DA Mwenezi is attempting to get farmers to sign away
their farms in an agreement - "Acquisition of Land in Substitution for
land specified in a Preliminary Notice, with the consent of the owner".
A large number of invaders have moved on to Quagga Pan B - tree cutting and
hut building continues. With about 300 small trees per hut, about 30 000
trees have been cut down on this property alone. Poaching, tree cutting and
illegal ploughing continues on Ngwane Ranch. The foot and mouth veterinary
fence along the boundary with the Mkwasine Canal has been extensively damaged
allowing free cattle movement. Illegal ploughing has commenced on Oerwoud
Ranch. Large numbers of invaders are moving onto Sossonye Ranch despite the
fact that it has been officially delisted. Save Conservancy - Poaching continues, with some poachers being arrested. Maize
is being illegally planted on Makore Ranch. Chiredzi - Illegal maize planting and cattle movement is taking place
on Crown Ranch and illegal cattle movement is reported on Samba Ranch,
Bangala Ranch, Crown Ranch, N & B Holdings, Dawlish Ranch and Palm River
Ranch. Gutu / Chatsworth - Invaders continue to chase cattle off Chatsworth
Estate. Midlands Gweru East - Illegal ploughing and planting is taking place on Divide
Farm. Zvishavane - The Lundi Section of Manjere Ranch is due to be fast-tracked
today. Lalapanzi - In the break in at Chishuku Ranch that was reported
previously, 35 people entered the homestead, the house-maid and guard were
assaulted and about $270 000 worth of property was stolen. 15 suspects have
been arrested. |
