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Friday 29th December 20000
Well, we are back from
Nyanga, had a wonderful time, and I am busy working on the Nyanga pages,
which should be uploaded before I go back to work on Tuesday. Thank you to
all those who emailed before we left. I will get around to answering
everyone.
Nyanga and the surrounding area, was very peaceful. I
think everyone there, holidaymakers and locals, had decided to forget the
troubles and enjoy the Christmas period. And it really was wonderful to see
so many people enjoying themselves. All the hotels, motels, lodges, resorts,
cottages etc. were full, and I haven’t seen the area so busy in years. It was
great. I spoke to a few of the hotel & resort managers, and they said
they were really pleased at the turnout. They expected to be full for the New
Year long weekend, and they were dreading the start of January, as they will
then be feeling, once again, the effects of our troubles since February 2000.
As we left Harare last week, the fuel situation seemed to be the worst
it has been this year. I have never seen such queues ! They were kilometres
long. But it has eased this week – we must have had deliveries from
some-where.
Now on to some news.
A report in today’s Daily News
told of the poverty and hardship facing most of the population, and of the
lack of good cheer over Christmas. To some, Christmas Day had been like any
other day, with so many families struggling to make ends meet. We are
expecting another devaluation of the Zimbabwe dollar, so things will not be
improving in the short term.
Once again, the papers are all filled with tales of corruption.
Investigations are being carried out, it seems, in almost every government
department, town council, parastatal etc. The worms are all crawling out of
the woodwork, and if you rattle any door these days, a skeleton drops out.
The latest is in Beit Bridge (our border town with South Africa),
where a $ 6million fraud case is under investigation. The Treasurer of the
Rural District Council, and two of the councilors have appeared in court on
charges of prejudicing the council to the tune of $6,033million. A large sum,
even by Zimbabwe standards. The three have been remanded in custody, because
of “many other ongoing cases of corruption linked to the accused” the
prosecutor said. How long has this been going on for, and why doesn’t anyone
ever pick up the irregularities that now seem to be surfacing everywhere ? We
have another scandal on our airwaves, where musicians are going to name DJ’s
on local radio stations, who will only play the musicians music after
receiving a bribe. In another case, senior veterinary officials have been
accused of stealing diesel fuel belonging to the Veterinary Dept. The list
goes on and on. Most of the corruption being investigated has been going on a
long time.
On the farming front, not much has changed. The war vets and other
squatters continue to hamper farm work, threaten farmers and their labourers,
and generally make a nuisance of themselves. I have typed in a short article
from the Daily News here.
“War veterans
continue to prevent farmers from planting maize although government has
allocated them land under the fast-track resettlement programme, the Zimbabwe
grain Producers Association has said. Government has resettled thousands of
war vets, peasants and people from the urban areas since July this year.
“Although war vets have been given land, farmers are
complaining that he war vets are still forcing farm workers from the land
that has not been allocated for compulsory acquisition. ZGPA Chairman, Andrew
Meikle said the following. “The ongoing land invasions and work stoppages
have resulted in many maize producers being unable to plant, exacerbating the
future of food security in Zimbabwe, and making a bad situation even worse.”
Both the ZGPU and the Zimbabwe Farmers Union have
indicated that maize production next year will not meet domestic
requirements. Many farmers cannot even borrow from their banks as their farms
have been listed for compulsory acquisition.
The situation
on our farms is critical, but those in a position to stop the madness, are
totally ignoring the gravity of it all. Robert Mugabe, war veteran leaders,
and the war veterans themselves have openly defied supreme court rulings that
they vacate the farms and allow the farmers and their labourers to continue
with their work in peace. The Police were told to step in and DO something
about it, and they have defied this order. It seems that the courts have lost
their authority. It is a very frustrating situation all round, and the Law
Society of Zimbabwe, chaired by Sternford Moyo, seems to be tearing it’s hair
out at the total lack of respect for the Rule of Law. It is my feeling that
as long as this sinking ship has Robert Mugabe and his cronies at the helm,
there will be no saving us !
The
President’s annual New Year dinner was held here in Harare on Wednesday
night. The papers quoted many MDC MP’s and officials as saying that they
would not be attending. It was a gala
affair, and Mugabe wined & dined the elite, and fiddled while Zimbabwe
burned. The BBC, in a report on the 27th December 2000, says
Zimbabwe has the fastest shrinking economy in the world at present. It is a comfort to know that our country’s
leaders enjoyed themselves at the banquet, which incidentally, was paid for
by me and the other taxpayers. Wonder why I never got an invite ?
We are facing
a by-election in the Bikita area next month. At a meeting held by the Police
in Bikita, ZanuPF, the MDC and the Police have agreed to work together
peacefully, and end political violence in the area. Bikita West has been
plagued by violence that has left hundreds of people injured, and millions of
dollars worth of property destroyed. War veterans turned the constituency
into a terror zone from the 19-25 December. Let’s see if this latest
initiative works. I hope so. The people have had enough violence and
intimidation to last a life-time.
On a personal
note, I have decided to really look at the positive next year (no, this is
not a New Year’s resolution – I always break those !). There is so much that
is good, and honest, about this country. I am going to find it, and tell YOU
all about it. Of course, I cannot help but be aware of the corruption, the
mismanagement, and the devastating effect of the bad leadership, and I will
not be able to ignore that. But you all need to know that there are good
things here, that there are good people, who want nothing more than to be
left in peace, earn and honest living, and grow old gracefully in the country
of their birth. Is that too much to ask ? I don’t think so.
Saturday 30th December 2000
Hi folks. Last update for the old year !
The weather here in Zimbabwe is beautiful at the moment, but very wet ! We
have had so much rain, it's wonderful to see everything so lush and green.
Very hard to get the washing dry though. But I plan to enjoy every minute of
it. Only a few more months and everything will be as dry as a bone and
turning brown.
Only one more day and it's the year 2001. I can hardly believe it ! It feels
like yesterday that we were all waiting for the fanfare that brought us into
2000. I must be getting old. This year has gone by faster than any other.
What will the new year bring ?
Looking back over the year 2000, it's so hard to believe all the terrible
things that happened. During the run up to the elections, and even
afterwards, I could not believe what had taken place. Zimbabweans, all
Zimbabweans, were horrified, and shocked at the extent of the intimidation
& violence, which, we all know, was perpetrated by ZanuPF, the governing
party. Our farmers, and their workers suffered really badly and continue to
suffer at the hands of the war veterans who have openly defied court orders
to leave the properties they are squatting on. They are encouraged in their
actions by our President himself, and the Police (who have also been ordered
by the courts to evict the squatters) stand by and watch. Our country has
suffered a steep decline in tourism; inflation and unemployment are higher
than they have ever been; the extent of the corruption being exposed on a
daily basis is absolutely amazing; companies are closing every day as a direct
result of the war vets actions. The future looks bleak, and I think that only
the strong will survive ! I hope we are up to it - on a personal level, and
in a business sense.
Yes, there have been times over the last 10 months when I have thought that I
must be crazy to remain here ! We even got to the point, as a family, when we
decided that we had had enough, and were going to leave. But we could not go
through with it. How do you start again ? Where do you go ? We just couldn't
do it. Many folk from all over the world have asked me if I regret our change
of mind, and I must admit that some days I do. I long for a return to normal
life. I cannot imagine what it would be like never to have to worry about
personal safety, never to constantly watch for the death of another farmer
(maybe a relative) at the hands of murderers, never to have to continually
watch what you say (and to whom), never have to scour another newspaper,
(reading every word), in order to keep myself and others informed. Normality
seems a world away. I have forgotten what it feels like.
I had an email from a young man who felt I was fighting a losing battle, even
by running this website. He said I should just call it quits and go and make
a life somewhere else before it's too late. I must admit that I do have days
where I agree with him (and start indulging in a lot of self-pity !), but I
seem to be able to pick myself up again and continue the fight. I spend hours
on this computer, and the internet, spreading the word of the plight of the
people of Zimbabwe. I spend hours emailing any one I can who I think will
take notice. I have emailed US senators, congressmen, British MP's,
Australian MP'S - anyone who I think will listen and perhaps in some small
way have an influence on our Government. It takes me ages to gather email
addresses, so if you folk have any, or could help with the search, I would
really appreciate it. I need the email address of your congressman, or MP, or
anyone who could make a difference, and bring this country back from the
brink of disaster.
Why am I bothering ? Because it's my home, my country, my life, my head, my
right to freedom of expression, my basic human & civil rights that the
politicians are messing with with. And they should NOT be allowed to get away
with it, no matter who they are or how hard and long they fought for these
very same rights that they are taking away from Zimbabweans.
We thought we saw light at the end of the tunnel when the MDC won almost 50%
of the seats in the general elections in June, but they have yet to show
their mettle. I hope we are not disappointed.
Where to from here ? We carry on, as we have always done. I have promised
myself to focus on the "good" in Zimbabwe in the coming year, and I
will try my best to do this. This is for my own sake more than anything else.
Zimbabwe is my life, my passion, and I love this country. I owe it a debt !
It has provided my family with a good living for so long, so I need to let
YOU know how wonderful this country CAN be.
Overall, this has been a pretty grotty year, but it has brought a lot of
people together - people who would never have known each other; never known
each other's feelings, traditions, culture etc. and for this I am thankful. I
have met so many wonderful people through this website, and I am eternally
grateful for their friendship, their emails, their words of encouragement,
(even their advice as they are telling me to LEAVE) ! Then there are those
who send me jokes, regularly, just to make me laugh. You don't know how much
it all means to me.
Please join me in praying for a better year ahead for the people of Zimbabwe.
We are all worth far more than the raw deal we are getting at the moment.
Happy New Year to you all.
Thursday
4th January 2001
Hi folks ! This year has started on a gallop, but I will be doing a full
update of the week's news this weekend. In the meantime, I have managed to
upload the December Nyanga Trip. I hope you enjoy the
photos. Please remember that the pages are very graphics inrense and will
take a while to load.
Saturday 6th January 2001
The weather at the moment is absolutely glorious! Today was warm with clear
blue skies and a gentle breeze. As I type, there is a clear night sky, and so
many stars; it looks like a fireworks display. Beautiful night !
The first week of the new year has passed and it has been a very busy one.
There are a few items of interest on the news front.
The MDC candidate for Bikita, Bonnie Pakai, has gone into hiding. We are due
to have a by-election in Bikita this month, and the MDC fears that the
rampaging ZanuPF supporters in the area, may kill Bonnie. How unbelievable is
the politics in this country ! That he should have to keep such a low profile
at the time when he should be campaigning the hardest, must be placing such a
strain on him. ZANU PF has been accused of openly starting a reign of terror
in the district about two weeks ago when it deployed war veterans leader
Chenjerai Hunzvi and the bearded self-styled leader of illegal farm
invasions, Joseph Chinotimba. Chinotimba originally comes from the area.
Chenjerai Hunzvi was picked up by police for questioning in connection with
the violence in the area, but was later released. He is alleged to have led a
group of Zanu PF supporters at Nyika Growth Point in clashes during which
four MDC vehicles were petrol-bombed. This same man is a Medical doctor by
profession, who was once married to a white woman ! and has two sons by her.
She featured in an article in our papers some months ago, and told of her
marriage to Hunzvi. She said it was a nightmare: that he openly brought his
girlfriends home, and that he treated her very badly. Anyway, after being
questioned, he openly criticised the police who had picked him up and said
that all police officers who support the opposition should be transferred or
risk being dealt with by the war veterans.
I want to copy in an article from Bulawayo here.
"The
nationwide fuel shortage has hit the Bulawayo City Council transport fleet
hard, with most vehicles being restricted to 20 litres a day.
"According to the recent council minutes, the fuel shortage was
affecting most of the city’s service delivery. Last month a water pipe burst
in Mahatshula suburb and could not be repaired for days. Elsewhere in the
city, the backlog on burst pipes is 302, leaks 4 760 while that of water
connections is 1 860 cases, according to the minutes. Other areas affected by
the fuel shortage are the clearing of blocked and collapsed sewers and vacuum
tanker services. The council reported an increase in the number of blocked
sewers and this has been worsened by continued vandalism of manholes. Repairs
on collapsed sewers were still to be completed to Imvutsha Farm and Nkulumane
Outfall. The low-bed contractor was unable to move the excavators when
required because of the fuel situation.
"There is only one working tanker as the other two are in the workshops
for service. This has resulted in only 114 tanks being drained and several being
left unattended. Besides the fuel problem, council has been crippled by
transport problems because of vehicle breakdowns which has forced authorities
to transfer vehicles on other works to sewer blockages. Teams working on new
connections had to work in the same area because there would normally be only
one truck available".
Bulawayo has been far less affected by the fuel
situation than Harare (obviously - there are far more people using fuel in
Harare than Bulawayo), but the crisis seems to be affecting all areas.
Below is an article written by an MJ Vidler, and published in our Daily News.
I think it makes interesting reading.
"MOST Zimbabweans will look back over the past 12
months with a great deal of sadness rather than joy. For, despite the year
representing the start of a New Millennium and as such one that we could all
look back on with fond memories, we find ourselves instead wishing that we
could turn the clock back and block it from our memories forever!
"Annus horribilis! (A horrible year!)
"But to pretend about what has happened over this past year would be a
betrayal of those families that have suffered so much at the hands of those
who were charged with their protection! When we look back at the chaos that
has taken place and continues to rain down upon the majority of us we are
left pondering what 2001 holds in store. There are many who subscribe to the
view that the New Millennium only commences in the year 2001. I hope that
they are right, for the past 12 months have not been a period of great joy
and prosperity that it should have been. It has been a tragic way to mark a
normal year, let alone a special one. Historians are going to have a field
day when they rewrite the history of this country. This period will reflect a
time when great suffering has been inflicted on the majority by the minority!
What democracy is this?
"Our problems started when the referendum on a home-grown constitution
as seen through the eyes of the government of the day, resulted in a defeat
for the President and his party. No sooner had this result been acknowledged
as the will of the people by the President, the problems of farm invasions
commenced. Was this a mere coincidence? Or was it planned? Many believe that
this would have happened even if the ruling party had won the referendum!
Over the period February to the present time we have seen many people
murdered, maimed, dispossessed of their homes and their livelihoods on the
basis of the colour of their skin or that they supported the wrong party. Is this
what democracy is all about? I find it very difficult to accept that this can
be the case when we have the highest office bearer in the land urging his
followers to deal with anyone who dares to challenge his authority on the
state of the economy and the way this country is being governed. Minority
groups, and opposition party members in particular, have seen the bitterness
and contempt with which he holds them that many have decided that there is no
future for them in Zimbabwe. Where does United Nations Secretary-General Kofi
Annan stand on Zimbabwe? He has said and done very little to bring sanity
back to this country. There have been suggestions that he has personal
reasons for not wanting to use his office to influence events in Zimbabwe.
The one thing that both he and the Secretary-General of the Commonwealth, Don
McKinnon, share is their continued silence on the suffering of the people and
the total disregard by the government for the rule of law! Let us hope that
history will reflect that and that they are able to sleep at night with their
consciences. For make no mistake, they and the rest of the Commonwealth have
failed the people of Zimbabwe in their hour of need. Many of those who were
bold enough to seek change through the ballot box were either denied the
right to cast their ballot or were intimidated into voting against their
wishes for a party they no longer supported. A very large number of farm
workers have been displaced, in many instances to make way for a smaller
number of people being resettled - all in the name of redressing the land
imbalance! We have a police force which has bent the rules to the point where
most sane people now believe that law and order does not exist in this
country. We have seen poorly disciplined and trained policemen issued with
weapons which have the ability to kill, using them in circumstances under
which innocent people have been murdered. The incident on the weekend of 16
November where a policeman discharged his weapon without due regard for the
safety of the public bears testimony to the fact that they do not have any
idea of the rules of engagement. The end result of this tragedy was that an
innocent vendor was shot and killed by a law enforcement officer who, it
would appear, was trying to stop a commuter omnibus driver who had violated
the law.
The President has, through his actions, sent a message to the nation that
provided the people support his party and his policies, Zanu PF and the
government are free to do what they want. Marcus Tullius Cicero was a Roman
lawyer who lived in the 1st Century BC. Throughout his life he campaigned
tirelessly for the rule of law. He tried to save Rome from corruption,
lawlessness and dictatorship. He was, in fact, a lifelong friend of Julius
Caesar, who said of him he was the only man in Rome he could trust. Some of
his sayings are repeated below:
€ Where power is
exercised in an unlimited fashion, there is no law;
€ A government rarely
represents the people; and
€ Love of the country is
often confused in the simple minds with love of the government.
"Prospects for this country, its economy and stability look grim.
Despite this, the powers-that-be have decided to press ahead with their plans
to liberate the land no matter what the cost in human and economic terms.
This is very short-sighted and can only bring at best short-term relief to
their ability to remain in power. When the ruling party looks back on this
year, they will reflect on the fact they and they alone have been responsible
for: killing the country’s economy; continue to break its own laws;
sanctioned murder, rape and beatings; deprived its citizens of their
democratic rights in terms of freedom of speech and association; and
alienated the whole world by their actions, telling the donor community to
find a destination for their assistance as it is not needed. The
"benefits" of these actions are: land is being resettled although
in most cases it is lying idle and unproductive; no foreign currency for fuel
and other essential imports; increased unemployment and along with it crime;
food shortages due to the lack of planting; and interest rates and the cost
of living will continue to rise. The rest of the world will continue to shun
us.
On the tourism front, not much has changed. We do not
see ANY tourists anymore, and this is such a great pity. I can understand the
fear felt by the International community, and of course, there is always the
danger that this situation here could get completely out of hand and blow up
in our faces, but the tourists are missing out on so much. I just hope that
when sanity finally prevails, and Mugabe is no longer in power, our tourism
will return to normal, and you can all have the chance to come out here and
enjoy the natural beauty of this country.
The hope that there WILL be a return to sanity is what keeps us all going
here. So many Zimbabweans have grown more and more discouraged over the last
few months. So many have left Zimbabwe for greener pastures (well, maybe not
greener, but more peaceful), and we who are left behind are really beginning
to feel the results of the mismanagement of this country. The high inflation
rates, high interest, high costs of everything, are even starting to be felt
by the more affluent of our society. I cannot help but think that the
situation MUST be affecting our President and his cronies in the same way.
Many of the elite band of Mugabe followers borrowed millions to start
indigenous businesses, and they, too, have to repay this money at the same
interest rates as the rest of us. Cold comfort ! We have seen many of these
businesses closing in the last few months, but that brings no gloating, only
more unemployment and hardship for our people.
On looking back over the last year, and really analysing everything that has
happened, I have come to the conclusion that our leaders must be
panic-stricken. There is just over a year to go to the Presidential
elections. In that time, should the economists predictions prove true, we
will have a major food shortage, prices will rise even more and unemployment
will increase dramatically. This does not auger well for our President. Hre
has to muster votes - and his popularity is waning by the hour ! The
Presidential election is won on the number of votes - nothing more, nothing
less - so it will only take Morgan Tsvangirai to have one more vote than
Mugabe, and it will all be over. Our ruling party knows this, and must be
tearing their hair out. Mugabe will definitely NOT get the urban vote, and he
is only holding on by the skin of his teeth in the rural areas - hence the
constant stirring up of the war veterans. If I were not on the stage, it
would be an interesting drama to watch !
PS I am going to Mermaid's Pool tomorrow, after church, for a braai lunch
with family & friends. Of course I will be taking the camera, and putting
up a page on Mermaid's Pool !
Back later !
Tuesday
9th January 2001
Hi folks. Hope all is well wherever you are, and hope you enjoyed the photos
of Mermaid's Pool.
I am off to
Bulawayo early tomorrow morning on business and will be back on Thursday
afternoon. Unfortunately, I will be unable to access the Internet until I get
back, so will not be answering any emails until Thursday or Friday - but
please keep sending them !
There is still peace and calm in all major cities, thank goodness. I have
heard no rumblings of any trouble at all. There are rumblings among the
people though. More and more are finding it almost impossible to make ends
meet.
I heard a very sad story this week. A young friend of mine went to visit his
elderly parents last Friday night. He is unemployed (a picture framer), and
he and his family are really struggling financially. His parents live in a
modest home in one of our high-density suburbs. His mother is a domestic
worker and his father a bricklayer. When he got to his parents home (around
supper time) they were already in bed. He was surprised and when he asked
them why, they didn't answer. He expressed his concern and finally his mother
began to cry. She said it was easier to sleep than to sit and think about
food. They had not eaten for 2 days !!! She had lost her job as the family
she worked for could no longer afford her services; his father had walked the
streets looking for part-time work for almost 2 weeks but found nothing, and
then the money had run out. They knew the pressure that my friend was under
trying to feed his own family, and so had not approached him for help.
I am appalled, shocked, horrified at the thought of those two elderly people
going two days without food. Charles, my young friend, immediately took them
home with him. He houses his own family (2 children) and two younger
brothers. He is at the point of begging himself. This is a man who is a
superb picture framer, had been employed by the same company for 14 years,
but the company has closed down due to our current situation. This is only
one horror story, and only one starving family - there are thousands of them
here. It is too awful. I have started contacting organisations who could help
these folk, only to find that they are so bogged down, very little help will
be forthcoming. I would like to ask our President and the leaders of his
party what they are going to do about this family and all the other like them
? Who is going to feed them now that they can no longer afford to feed
themselves ? Does Robert Mugabe sleep well at night knowing that his own
people are starving as a direct result of his actions ? Does he even care ?
Nearly 30 police officers who attended a party given by an MDC MP in December,
are facing severe disciplinary action, and may even be fired. They are also
being charged under the Police Act !!!! Morgan Tsvangirai, leader of the MDC
said "I am dismayed that a professional institution should behave in a
manner, which victimises its ranks for socialising. It is not only unlawful,
but also unconstitutional for the police to restrict its members' right to
socialise. This gives credence to the widely held view that this government
wants to turn national institutions into partisan institutions. The police,
army and CIO are behaving as if they are Zanu PF organs. The MDC is not an
illegal organisation. We are in Parliament and are the legal
opposition." According to the charge sheet served on one sergeant who
has been in the police for almost 20 years, he is accused of "unlawfully
associating" with Matibe (the MDC MP), "a well-known MDC
member".
What next ???
Bulawayo, the town I am traveling to tomorrow, is in Matabeleland, in the
west of Zimbabwe. It is the home of the Matabele people, descendants of Shaka
(the Zulu king, Mzilikazi and Lobengula, the fathers of the Ndebele nation.
It is very anti ZanuPF, and the MDC captured the majority of Matabeleland in
the general elections last June. It will be interesting to hear the views of
the folk there, and I will be sure to talk to as many people as I can while I
am there.
That's it for tonight - too much to do and too little time !
Back on Thursday.
Monday
15th January 2001
Back safe & sound ! I spent a day longer in Bulawayo than anticipated,
and have not yet had a chance to update. I will be doing a full update later
tonight.
We are expecting the results of the Bikita West by-election at any time ! The
voter turn-out was high, and both ZanuPF and MDC have claimed that their
respective candidates are sure to have won. I will let you know the results
as soon as I am able. Bikita West, you may remember, has been subjected to a
reign of terror since before Christmas !
Bulawayo was peaceful and calm, and extremely hot. Anyone who has been there
knows how hot it can get, and they were having a heat wave ! Did we suffer !
And there was no rain to cool anything down. They are in serious need of
rain, but none seems forthcoming.
I had a good chat with staff on our current economic situation, and
encouraged them as much as possible. They, too, are feeling the impact of
increased prices etc. and are all extremely worried about the country. As I
mentioned earlier, Matabeleland seems to made up of MDC supporters, and they
were quite emphatic on their feelings towards Zanu PF ! Whereas Harare folk
are not too outspoken in their views, Bulawayo folk are ranting at the tops
of their voices. I told them all that it is a time to tighten the belts, and
work harder than we have ever done, if we hope to survive the year ahead.
They all understood that this coming year will be the decider between the
weak and strong businesses. I have had to cut down expenditure in all areas,
and push and promote the business more than ever before. The costs of our
stock have more than doubled in the last six months (when we can get stock!),
and we seriously need to watch our cash flow. There is a great challenge
facing all businesses throughout the country at the moment.
I spoke to a farmer who farms approximately 30 kms from Gweru. He has been
invaded by more than 60 war vets, but as he said, they come and go -
sometimes there are 60, sometimes 30-40 ! They have camped and started
building their houses 150metres from his house ! He said that they had not
been too demanding up to now, but started interfering with farm work just
last week. He farms cattle, which are separated into various paddocks. The
war veterans told him to move the cattle as they were going to plant their
crops there. He did not comply, and woke up one morning last week to find his
cattle had all been released and were scattered over hundreds of acres. He
was amazingly calm about the whole thing, and said he was in the process of
rounding up the cattle and returning them to their fields. His farm has been
designated for compulsory acquisition, and he is challenging this in the
courts. He had a wonderful attitude, far better than mine (I'm ashamed to
admit), and said the legal route was the only way to go, so he would await
the court decision. Our farmers are made of very stern stuff !!!
Fuel was not a problem at all during our trip. All garages along the route
seemed to have fuel, and we did not see any queues. Bulawayo has been feeling
the effect of the fuel crisis, but we didn't have any problems.
I'll be back later with a more detailed update.
Tuesday 16th January 2001
I have just uploaded the latest news page, News Page 7.
Please follow on to it. Thanks !
Lorraine
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