Columnists
Apr
14
2010
The Zimbabwean Anglican Battle - Is The Devil Laughing All The Way To Hell?
The Devil must surely be laughing all the way to Hell as for the past two years Zimbabwe's Anglicans have been fighting each other every Sunday as they battle for control of church assets and the right to worship. In fact fierce legal battles have ensued in the saga which has openly turned political since the Anglican Church in Harare split in 2007.
Scores of people have been injured in the skirmishes which have seen several parishioners in different Anglican parishes in and around Zimbabwe hospitalised.
At the centre of the controversy is Bishop Nolbert Kunonga, self confessed Zanu (PF) supporter, who is close to President Robert Mugabe.
Kunonga lost control of the church in 2007 after he withdrew his diocese from the Anglican Church Province of Central Africa, ostensibly in protest against the tolerance of homosexuality by Anglicans in the United Kingdom and the United States of America.
Mugabe is a well known anti-gay basher. At one-time he referred to homosexuals as “worse than pigs.”
But sources familiar with the Anglican Church saga say Kunonga has ably exploited the issue in order to ingratiate himself with President Mugabe so as to gain full control of the Anglican diocese in
Mar
07
2010
Bitterness And Unease In Bankrupt Zimbabwe
It has been a grey, drizzly week here.
In the wealthier suburbs of Harare, Zimbabwe's shrinking white population is once again feeling nervous.
Pat, who runs a small hairdressing salon, and whose family has lived here for four generations, is finally planning to leave.
They don't want us "whiteys" here any more she says. The writing is on the wall.
Pat has been spooked by a new law, introduced this week, which is supposed to correct the enduring economic legacies of colonialism, and give black Zimbabweans a controlling stake in almost all companies.
The main focus is Zimbabwe's rich mines and its industry.
But the indigenisation law also seeks to prevent white people from owning things like hairdressing and beauty salons.
In a few years, says Pat, we will be like an extinct species. They will come for our houses next.
The reaction may well be extreme.
Many white Zimbabweans have been slow to acknowledge the debt they owe to the black majority here. Economic empowerment is clearly necessary.
But after a decade of economic chaos, horrific violence, and the brutal seizure of white-owned farms, it is easy to understand why so many Zimbabweans - of all colours - are
Feb
13
2010
Zimbabwe's National Healing Elusive
The three political parties who are part of the GPA, set up a national healing Ministry, headed by top officials from the three parties. The Ministry will spearhead a national healing process and promote re-building of the country following a decade long political strife and economic decline. The Ministry is headed by John Nkomo (Zanu PF) (now Vice President), Gibson Sibanda (MDC-M) and Sekai Holland.
However, a year later after the inclusive government was set up, Zimbabweans are disillusioned as healing appears elusive.
Civil Society organisations say they fear another escalation of political violence if the new unity government does not reform uniformed forces and state security departments.
“With the increasingly polarized political landscape, a resurgence of is institutionalized human rights violations, particulary in regard to harassment of human rights activists and increased use of repressive legislation are expected...and if Zimbabwe is not to return to the pre-June 2008 era, there is an urgent need for institutional reforms,” warns the Civil Society Monitoring Mechanisation (CISOMM).
CISOMM is a grouping of civil society organisations independently monitoring and evaluating performance of the inclusive government.
“The conduct of the Police, Army and Prison officials has remained in breach of the spirit of the
Feb
07
2010
Zimbabwe's Cholera Outbreak Was A Blessing In Disguise
Thirty-five year old Amos Maparamhaka starts his day each morning by fetching water for his family, a role traditionally reserved for women. He and other men and boys in his community in the small farming town of Karoi situated about 204 kilometers north-west of Harare, say they were forced to take up this role as a way of assisting the women in the community and also to prevent another cholera outbreak in their area again.
''I wake up as early as five in the morning to fetch water and at times the search can last for 4 hours around town without success as not all houses have water everyday in the same area,'' he says, pushing a wheel-barrow with buckets full of water.
Maparamhaka, a married man with two daughters aged 12 and 8 years, does this in addition to his work as a vendor at a local flea market. "I could not leave this arduous task to my pregnant wife," he says.
Shorai, her wife, is proud of her husband whom she says has become a "role model'' for some men in the town. ''What he has been doing is now normal for the majority of men as water
