Interview with Zimbabwe Exiles Forum activist Gabriel Shumba

Gabriel Shumba is one of Zimbabwe’s most prominent human rights defenders and provides regular expert commentary to national media in South Africa and international media. He is a human rights lawyer who fled Zimbabwe in 2003 after he was arrested and brutally tortured for providing counsel to a representative of the Movement for Democratic Change, President Robert Mugabe’s chief political opposition.

In 2004, he appeared before US Congress to testify on behalf of victims of political violence in Zimbabwe. In October 2006, Gabriel petitioned the Canadian government to indict President Robert Mugabe under Canada’s Crimes Against Humanity and War Crimes Act.

 listen to an interview with him about the current situation in Zimbabwe

South Africa accuses the UK for the Zimbabwe crisis/ L’Afrique du Sud accuse le Royaume-Uni comme responsable de la crise au Zimbabwe

(Lien en anglais/ link in english)

Selon le Guardian, de Londres, l’Afrique du Sud accuse le Royaume Uni d’imposer des barrières contre le Zimbabwe, contribuant à la crise actuelle qu’il vit et contraignant les discussions avec les autres gouvernements africains de la région.

According to the London Guardian, South Africa accuses the UK to impose barriers creating the crisis the country actually lives:

South Africa blames UK for Zimbabwe crisis

Chris McGreal, Africa correspondent
Monday August 13, 2007
The Guardian

South Africa has blamed Britain for the deepening crisis in Zimbabwe by accusing the UK of leading a campaign to “strangle” the beleaguered African state’s economy and saying it has a “death wish” against a negotiated settlement that might leave Robert Mugabe’s Zanu-PF in power.

According to a South African government document circulating among diplomats ahead of a regional summit this week, President Thabo Mbeki will paint an optimistic picture of his efforts to broker an agreement between Mr Mugabe [see picture] and the Zimbabwean opposition.

But the document, a draft of the report the South African president is expected to present at the meeting, says Britain remains a significant obstacle by spearheading sanctions that Mr Mugabe blames for his country’s economic collapse.

“The most worrisome thing is that the UK continues to deny its role as the principal protagonist in the Zimbabwean issue and is persisting with its activities to isolate Zimbabwe,” the report says.

“None of the western countries that have imposed the sanctions that are strangling Zimbabwe’s economy have shown any willingness to lift them.”

Britain pressed the European Union to impose “targeted sanctions” against Zimbabwe’s leadership by refusing visas, freezing bank accounts and other measures that the UK said were aimed at individuals without harming Zimbabweans.

But Mr Mugabe has blamed what he describes as the “illegal sanctions” for the economic collapse and said his government is a victim of British imperialism because it seized white-owned farms for redistribution to poor blacks.

His opponents say the crisis is the result of a brutal strategy to hold on to power by violently suppressing the opposition, rigging elections and trying to buy support by seizing the farms. This last move devastated the tobacco export industry that provided Zimbabwe with much of its foreign earnings.

The wholesale printing of money helped fuel inflation now estimated to be running at about 20,000%. Shops are virtually empty of basic foodstuffs.

Some African leaders have been willing to criticise Mr Mugabe, although a Zambian opposition leader, Michael Sata, urged the region’s leaders to “join hands and launch strong protests against attempts by the west to recolonise Zimbabwe”.

The South African report describes the crisis as “Zimbabwe’s bilateral dispute with Britain”. However, the focus of Mr Mbeki’s efforts is to reach an agreement between Mr Mugabe and the opposition Movement for Democratic Change ahead of elections next year.

Mr Mbeki has not had a smooth ride. Mr Mugabe’s two negotiators, both cabinet ministers, failed to arrive for talks in South Africa last month. The ministers, Nicholas Goche and Patrick Chinamasa, finally arrived in Pretoria a week ago.

The document says some issues, including constitutional reforms, have been “worked out”. “There are strong indications that the two sides are sliding towards an agreement,” it says.

But MDC sources say that agreement is not near and they suspect that Mr Mugabe is playing for time until the end of the year when the focus will shift to the presidential election campaign. Meanwhile, the economic crisis is expected to deepen. More than 3 million Zimbabweans have left the country in search of work.

Le salon international du livre du Zimbabwe/ Zimbabwe International Book Fair

(Liens en anglais/ links in english)

Le salon international du livre du Zimbabwe vient de se terminer Samedi. Cet événement annuel existe depuis 1984 et a été considéré comme le plus grand salon du livre du continent africain. En l’an 2000, l’Association pour le développement de l’éducation en Afrique confirmait qu’il était le plus grand d’Afrique. La version 2007 du salon n’est malheureusement plus que l’ombre de ce qu’elle fut comme le présente cet article du Miami Herald (plus bas en anglais).

The Zimbabwe International Book Fair ended this Saturday. This yearly fair, which started in 1984, was the biggest book fair in Africa. The Association for the Developement of Education in Africa confirmed it in its 2000 Newsletter:

The Zimbabwe International Book Fair (ZIBF) is Africa’s publishing showcase, the largest and most diverse exhibition of books, magazines and journals in Africa. In addition to being a market place, it embraces a varied program of seminars, workshops and round tables on different aspects of book development.

Despite the political and economical situations in the country, this book fair has managed to keep its activities going. But the Miami Herald tells us that the 2007 edition of the fair is just a shadow of what it used to be in the past:

Zimbabwe book fair a shadow of past days

By ANGUS SHAW
Associated Press Writer

HARARE, Zimbabwe –
The Zimbabwe International Book Fair once attracted agents, publishers and authors from around the world.

This year, amid the country’s deepening economic and political crisis, the fair was a shadow of its former self. The only foreign exhibitor at the event, which ended Saturday, was the embassy of Iran – offering Islamic tracts and political brochures.

“What is amazing is that this fair happens at all,” said Kudzi Kaparadza, a high-school teacher visiting from Bromley, 25 miles east of Harare.

Zimbabwe is facing acute shortages of gas, food and most basic commodities in its worst economic crisis since independence in 1980. Inflation is officially at 4,500 percent, the highest in the world. Scores of businesses have closed down and state health and education services are short of supplies, with up to 10 children sharing one textbook.

To stifle potential political unrest, longtime ruler President Robert Mugabe has clamped down on opposition movements and asserted increasing control over media and communications.

After the inaugural fair in 1984, Harare attracted hundreds of agents, publishers and literary figures from Europe, the United States, Asia, Australia and within Africa. But there is little incentive for foreign publishers to attend now – after all, few Zimbabweans can afford books.

This year’s fair featured just 84 exhibitors – mostly local publishers, booksellers, church groups and aid and human rights organizations.

“Whether we are still an international book fair is a vexing question,” said Greenfield Chilongo, executive director of the independent nonprofit association of organizers.

This time around, writers and academics came from Kenya and nations around the region for workshops, discussion groups and poetry and theater readings, he said. But bright souvenir T-shirts with the fair’s symbol were not produced, and the coffee bar no longer resembled a literary cafe.

“Like everybody, we have had our budget constraints. We have done our best to survive and our participants and supporters want to see it continue,” Chilongo said.

Maverick former politician, guerrilla leader and a ruling party founder Edgar Tekere arrived a few hours before the closing of the five-day event to sign copies of his autobiography, “A Life of Struggle.”

He said he had to “scrounge” for gasoline in his home city of Mutare on the eastern border with Mozambique to reach the fair.

Officials with a free-speech lobby group said some visitors, evidently supporters of sweeping media laws passed by the ruling party in 2003, were openly hostile over the group’s exhibit of literature and fliers on media repression, arrests of independent journalists and pro-Mugabe propaganda in the dominant state-controlled media.

In addition to controlling print and broadcast media, the government is now intent on monitoring the Internet. The official Herald newspaper reported Saturday that Mugabe had approved a new law giving authorities power to monitor and intercept communications on the Internet as well as fixed and mobile telephones.

There were no violent incidents at the fair. There have been scuffles over past controversial exhibits and the government one year banned a display of literature by gays and lesbians after Mugabe described same-sex partners as “lower than pigs and dogs.” Ruling-party militants trashed the display.

GALZ, the Gays and Lesbians of Zimbabwe, had a stand this year that displayed only a sign and a logo.

Just 500 people passed through the gates in the central Harare park on the first day the fair was open to the public, compared with thousands in previous years.

“I guess people are preoccupied out there searching for food and necessities,” said Kaparadza, the high school teacher. “All the same, I’m inspired by the hard work of the brave, committed people who put this fair together against everything that’s going on.”

Émission Amandla du 18 juillet 2007/ Amandla show from July 18th 2007

Voici les thèmes qui ont été abordés pendant l’émission Amandla du 18 juillet dernier sur les ondes de CKUT 90.3FM (Montréal). Vous pouvez la télécharger ici (lien valide pour deux mois seulement).

Émission entièrement en anglais

L’artiste zimbabwéenne Stella Chiweshe (voir photo plus bas) vient à Montréal pour donner un spectacle dans le cadre du festival Nuits d’Afrique. Elle est la première femme du Zimbabwe à diriger son propre groupe et elle joue le mbira (aussi connu sous le nom de kalimba). Nous vous présentons une entrevue qu’elle a donnée à un membre de notre équipe d’Amandla. Sa présence au Festival Nuits d’Afrique à été couvert par le journal “Le Devoir“.

The Ravaging of Africa: Coporate Plunder. Rediffusion d’une émission radio en quatre parties qui traite des impacts destructeurs de l’impérialisme américain en Afrique. “Corporate Plunder” détaille les effets désastreux de la présence de Royal Dutch Shell au Nigeria et ceux de la canadienne Tiomin Resources au Kenya. On souligne aussi les façons dont les entreprises occidentales réussissent à ne payer aucunes taxes en Afrique. Avec Ifieniya Lott, Mwana Siti B. Juma, Charles Abugre and John Christensen.

Here are the subjects that were addressed in the July 18th Amandla radio show on CKUT 90.3 FM (Montreal). You can download the show here (link valid for two months only).

Show entirely in english

The Zimbabwean artists, Stella Chiweshe (see picture), comes in Montreal to perform at the “Festival Nuits d’Afrique” . She’s the first woman in Zimbabwe to lead her own group and she plays the mbira (also known as kalimba). We air an interview she gave to one of our Amandla crew member. Her presence at the Festival Nuit d’Afrique was alos covered by “Le Devoir” (in french).

The Ravaging of Africa: Corporate Plunder. It is a four-part radio documentary series about the destructive impact of U.S. imperialism on Africa. “Corporate Plunder” details the disastrous effects of Royal Dutch Shell’s operations in Nigeria and those of Canada’s Tiomin Resources in Kenya. Also highlighted is the massive tax looting of Africa by Western corporations. With Ifieniya Lott, Mwana Siti B. Juma, Charles Abugre and John Christensen.

Voici une petite video d’un spectacle donné par Stella Chiweshe en 2006. Here is a video showing a performance by Stella Chiweshe in 2006:

Zimbabwe: un coup d’état (attendu depuis longtemps) déjoué/ Zimbabwe: a (long expected) coup d’état thwarted

Nous avons parlé, dans ce blog, de la possibilité de voir un coup d’état renversant Robert Mugabe, au Zimbabwe. Un des acteurs principaux pouvant être Solomon Mujuru. AllAfrica.com, un site de nouvelles africaines bien connu, vient nous confirmer qu’une telle tentative a été déjouée par le camp Mugabe.

We already posted in this blog, the possibility of seeing an attempt of coup d’état against President Mugabe in Zimbabwe. We mentioned Solomon Mujuru as one of the potential protagonists. AllAfrica.com, a well known African news site, just released the news saying a coup d’état was thwarted by the Mugabe camp.

By Tichaona Sibanda.

Unconfirmed reports say influential retired Zimbabwe Defence Forces commander, General Solomon Mujuru has been placed under house arrest following reports of a foiled coup plot against Robert Mugabe.

Accurate information about the country’s military activities is notoriously difficult to find and a highly reliable army source told Newsreel it was too early to put the ‘pieces together’. He confirmed military intelligence officers were following up on the names of some ‘big guns’ believed to be involved in the plot.

‘The problem with Mujuru is that even under house arrest no soldier can stop him from venturing out. The best they could do is put him under surveillance and monitor his phone calls which they might have been doing all along,’ said our source.

Another serving officer told us information circulating widely in the army was that Mujuru was placed under house arrest a few days after Major General Engelbert Rugeje and Air Vice Marshall Elson Moyo were picked up after being fingered as the coup leaders. Mujuru still wields vast influence over many military officers who came through Zanu (PF)’s armed wing, ZANLA.

Retired army Colonel Bernard Matongo said the implications of the alleged coup plot have left Mugabe in limbo because he has no-one else to trust. Mugabe has always banked on the support of his loyal defence forces to sustain his rule. His party has split into two, with both factions fighting to get rid of him.

‘If reports of the coup plot are true then Mugabe has been left standing alone. The only people he can trust now are his bodyguards, many of whom are his close relatives, otherwise his position as head of state is becoming less secure by the day,’ Matongo said.

Reports of the coup plot were suppressed in the country until Thursday when the weekly Financial Gazette carried the story. Some details had first emerged last week when The Zimbabwean and The Zimbabwe Times both published reports of the coup.

Sources in the army told us this is the first time since independence that investigations over a coup plot have been carried out in the country. Usually a barrage of denials from the army meets any mention of a coup against Mugabe.

But the army has not uttered a word or issued a denial this time, suggesting reports might be true. Defence minister Sydney Sekeramayi last week took the unusual step of confirming to The Zimbabwean newspaper that several soldiers had been arrested, but for ‘misconduct.’

First reports of the alleged plot filtered through when a Major Sigauke was reportedly instructed by General Rugeje to put his B squadron of the armoured regiment on standby. Sigauke once served under Rugeje at Inkomo barracks but became suspicious of the order and informed the chief of the defence intelligence, Brigadier Mike Sango. Sango in turn passed on the information to General Constantine Chiwenga, who immediately briefed Mugabe of the plot.

Newsreel is also reliably informed that the army’s Presidential Guard, headed by Brigadier Armstrong Gunda and the Special Air Services under the command of Colonel Panga Kufa, were put on high alert following reports of an impending coup. It is not known what role top co-accused Air Vice Marshall Moyo might have played in the alleged plot, but it’s believed almost all pilots in the Airforce of Zimbabwe are loyal to him as the only high ranking officer able to fly an aircraft. After independence Moyo was a flying instructor at Thornhill Airbase in Gweru where he trained the majority of pilots who are senior officers now.

Other senior commanders like Air Marshal Perence Shiri and his deputies Air Vice Marshals Henry Muchena and Abu Basutu don’t have flying wings.

Meanwhile the UK Daily Telegraph also carried reports of the ‘coup’ Thursday and said that seven serving and former officers of the army have been charged with plotting against Mugabe.

The paper said the men were arrested in stages, beginning on May 29, and appeared twice in closed hearings at Harare magistrates’ court earlier this month. A police record of the arrests said that the officers were accused of ‘treason’ over a plot in which they aimed to overthrow Mugabe and install Emmerson Mnangagwa, the rural housing minister, in his place.

There are conflicting and different reports about the coup, suggesting that this is all part of the bitter infighting in Zanu (PF) as both factional leaders have been mentioned as being involved. It is known Mujuru and Mnangagwa don’t see eye to eye and that both men are reportedly plotting behind Mugabe’s back to oust him from power. It also seems one camp is now blaming the other for this plot.

Émission Amandla du 30 mai 2007/ Amandla show from May 30th 2007

Voici les thèmes qui ont été abordés pendant l’émission Amandla du 30 mai dernier sur les ondes de CKUT 90.3FM (Montréal). Vous pouvez la télécharger ici (lien valide pour deux mois seulement).

Entrevue avec l’auteur Bernard Nantet – en français. Bernard Nantet est écrivain, journaliste, archéologue et photographe de profession . Son expérience dans le monde de l’éducation en Afrique et son désir de montrer au monde la richesse de l’histoire africaine on fait de lui un auteur incontournable pour quiconque veut se renseigner sur l’histoire de ce continent, qu’il soit africain ou non. Voici quelques livres écrits par M. Nantet:

Au coeur de l’Afrique, Milan Jeunesse, 2004, 255 pages

Dictionnaire de l’Afrique, Larousse, 2006 (nouvelle édition), 303 pages.

Le guide de la Mauritanie: sur les traces des nomades, Ibis Press, janvier 2007, 250 pages.

Actualité africaines – En français. On y traite, entre autres, de l’accession au pouvoir de Umaru Musa Yar’Adua comme nouveau Président du Nigéria et aussi de la création de le première chaine africaine d”information continue: CNBC Africa de Johannesburg.

Extradition du mercenaire Simon Mann vers la Guinée Équatoriale – en anglais. Le mercenaire sud-africain d’origine britannique Simon Mann (voir image) est accusé d’avoir dirigé un groupe de mercenaires pour exécuter un coup d’état en Guinée Équatoriale. Lui et son groupe s’est fait arrêté au Zimbabwe le 7 mars 2004. Il doit être extradé vers le Guinée Equatoriale pour être enfermé dans la sinistre prison de Black Beach.

Here are the subjects that were addressed in the May 23rd Amandla radio show on CKUT 90.3 FM (Montreal). You can download the show here (link valid for two months only).

Interview with the author: Bernard Nantet – in french. Bernard Nantet is a writer, journalist, archaeologist and photographer. His teaching experience in Africa and his desire to show the world the richness of african history makes a him “must-read” for anybody, African or not, who wants to learn about Africa. Here’s a short list of some the books written by Mr. Nantet:

Au coeur de l’Afrique, Milan Jeunesse, 2004, 255 pages.

Dictionnaire de l’Afrique, Larousse, 2006 (new edition), 303 pages.

Le guide de la Mauritanie: sur les traces des nomades, Ibis Press, january 2007, 250 pages.

African news – in french. We talk about Umaru Musa Yar’Adua sworn as the new President of Nigeria and the creation of the first African business news channel: CNBC Africa in Johannesburg.

Extradition of Simon Mann , the mercenary, to Equatorial Guinea – in english. Simon Mann (see picture above), the south-african mercenary of british origins is accused of leading a group of mercenaries to execute a “coup d’état” in Equatorial Guinea. He was arrested in Zimbabwe on March 7th 2004. He will be sent to Equatorial Guinea and will be imprisoned in the infamous Black Beach prison.

Émission Amandla du 9 mai 2007/ Amandla show from May 9th 2007

Voici les thèmes qui ont été abordés pendant l’émission Amandla du 9 mai dernier sur les ondes de CKUT 90.3FM (Montréal). Vous pouvez la télécharger ici (lien valide pour deux mois seulement).

Interview avec la présidente d’AMARC-Africa (World Association of Community Broadcasters (AMARC) Africa): Grace Githaiga (photo ci-contre) – en anglais. Elle est aussi directrice-exécutive d’Econews Africa. Elle nous parle de l’impact des radios communautaires en Afrique de l’Est (Ouganda, Kenya, Tanzanie). Elles opèrent dans différents contextes politiques et abordent les sujets liés à la justice sociale.

Analyse sur une division au sein du parti d’opposition zimbabwéen, le MDC – en anglais. Analyse tirée du New-York Times. Le Movement for Democratic Change vit un tumulte interne, alors que la situation sur le terrain s’aggrave. En effet, depuis longtemps déjà, la population du Zimbabwe est affamée et rien n’est fait pour améliorer sa condition (voir Zimonline).

Mini-revue de la musique ghanéenne – en anglais.

Les agro-industries, nourrir la planète ou gonfler les profits?- en français. Analyse de l’industrie agro-alimentaire tirée du site d’Agoravox. On s’inquiète de la mainmise des multinationales de l’alimentation qui contrôlent la chaîne alimentaire et qui transforment la faim en marché.

Scandale à la Banque Mondiale - en français. Analyse du pétrin dans lequel Paul Wolfowitz, président de la Banque Mondiale s’est mis.
Here are the subjects that were addressed in the May 9th Amandla radio show on CKUT 90.3 FM (Montreal). You can download the show here (link valid for two months only).

Interview with the president of l’AMARC-Africa (World Association of Community Broadcasters (AMARC) Africa): Grace Githaiga (see picture above) – in english. She’s also the executive director of Econews Africa. She talks about the impacts of community radios in eastern Africa (Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania). They operate in different political contexts and are located in places where there are no other radios. They address social justice issues which makes them popular and the public response is important.

Mini-review on music in Ghana – in english.

Analysis of a split within the MDC, the zimbawean opposition party – in english. Taken from the New-York Times. A split occurs within the MDC (Movement for Democratic Change) while the situation in Zimbawe worsen. People are starving and nothing seems to be done.

The agrobusiness, feeding the world or pumping up profits ? - in french. Analysis of the agrobusiness from the Agoravox website. The influence of that industry is worrying. The agro-multinationals control the food chain and turns hunger into a market.

Scandal at the Worldbank – in french. Analysis of the trouble that Paul Wolfowitz, president of the Worldbank, has fallen into.

Les États-Unis voulaient-ils renverser Mugabe?/Did the United States want to topple Mugabe?

Il semble que les États-Unis auraient bien voulu renverser Mugabe et appuyer Morgan Tsvangirai. Il semble qu’un rapport du Département d’État (“Supporting Human Rights and Democracy report (2006)”, Téléchargeable ici) nous laisse entendre que oui.

Cliquer ici pour voir l’article qui nous indique la nouvelle (en anglais).

Did the USA wanted to topple Mugabe and support Morgan Tsvangirai? It seems that a report from the US State Department (“Supporting Human Rights and Democracy report (2006)”, Download here) makes us believe so.

The following article talks about it:

By Ewen MacAskill, Guardian 6/4/07
Apr 7, 2007, 09:58

The US admitted openly for the first time yesterday that it was actively working to undermine Robert Mugabe, the president of Zimbabwe. Although officially Washington does not support regime change, a US state department report published yesterday acknowledged that it was supporting opposition politicians in the country and others critical of Mr Mugabe.

The state department also admitted sponsoring events aimed at “discrediting” statements made by Mr Mugabe’s government.

The report will be seized on by Mr Mugabe, who has repeatedly claimed that the US and Britain are seeking regime change.

The comments are contained in the state department’s fifth annual Supporting Human Rights and Democracy report. It sets out in detail actions the US government is taking worldwide to promote human rights. The report has had a troubled history. Three years ago publication had to be hastily delayed when details emerged about US human rights abuses at Abu Ghraib prison outside Baghdad.

The US, compared with the UK, was initially slow to criticise Mr Mugabe, but has since adopted an increasingly critical stance, most recently at the Human Rights Council in Geneva last month.

In an unusual piece of candour, the state department report says: “To encourage greater public debate on restoring good governance in [Zimbabwe], the United States sponsored public events that presented economic and social analyses discrediting the government’s excuses for its failed policies.

“To further strengthen pro-democracy elements, the US government continued to support the efforts of the political opposition, the media and civil society to create and defend democratic space and to support persons who criticised the government.”

While the US and British governments still insist their aim in Zimbabwe is not regime change, they have been encouraging the main opposition leader, Morgan Tsvangarai, who was beaten up last month.

The report says that while Zimbabwe is nominally democratic, the government of Mr Mugabe is “now authoritarian”.

At a press conference to launch the document, the assistant secretary of state, Barry Lowenkren, said the US goal was not necessarily regime change but to create a level playing field for all parties. He added that where there was a country with record levels of inflation, denial of basic human rights and other abuses, the US had a duty to speak out so that people in Zimbabwe knew they had support.

Asked whether US efforts to promote human rights worldwide were being undermined by the hundreds of of people being held at Guantánamo, Mr Lowenkren insisted the issue was not raised by non-governmental groups at conferences he attended and participants were more interested in what the US could do to help them in their own countries.

He also denied the report was softer on authoritarian governments allied to the US, such as Belarus, than to Zimbabwe.

Émission Amandla du 4 avril 2007/ Amandla show from April 4th 2007

Voici les thèmes qui ont été abordés pendant l’émission Amandla du 4 avril dernier sur les ondes de CKUT 90.3FM (Montréal). Vous pouvez la télécharger ici (lien valide pour deux mois seulement).

ISO 26000 sur la Responsabilité sociale des entreprises – en français. Un projet initié par “l’International Standard Organization”en 2004 afin de forcer les entreprises à adopter un comportement responsable dans le cadre de leurs activités économiques. La société civile pense que les entreprises ne tiennent pas leur rôle social au sérieux. L’ISO 26000 viendrait répondre à ces inquiétudes mais aussi aux pressions des investisseurs et assureurs qui verraient une façon d’identifier les entreprises qui prennent leur responsabilités. L’élaboration de l’ISO 26000 a inclus pour la première fois, la participation de pays en développement. Mais les travaux sont originairement en anglais, ce qui bloque les pays d’Afrique francophone. Il demeure que ce nouvel outil n’assurerait pas nécessairement un développement Nord-Sud équitable. Le document explicatif de cette norme ISO est disponible ici (pdf en anglais).

Contrats miniers défavorables en République Démocratique du Congo – en français. La RDC est un scandale géologique car elle demeure un pays dont la population est extrêmement pauvre mais dont les ressources minières sont énormes. On parle de la révision des contrats entre 1996 et 2003 que veut faire l’État de RDC dans la foulée des conclusions du rapport Lutundula. Ce rapport parle de contrats signés pendant la guerre au Congo, et recommande qu’ils soient reconsidérés. En effet, des politiciens de haut niveau étaient impliqués dans la négociation des contrats. Cette décision de réviser les contrats date de cette semaine et est bien saluée. Des détails sont disponibles ici (en anglais). Le rapport Lutundula peut être téléchargé ici (pdf).

Solidarité Afrique entre les communautés d’Afrique du Sud et du Zimbabwe – en anglais. Ce blog a parlé plusieurs fois de la situation préoccupante au Zimbabwe. Mais notre collaborateur, Terna Gyuse, à Cape Town (Afrique du Sud), a fait une entrevue avec des personnes qui affichent leurs solidarité avec le peuple zimbabwéen, contrairement aux politiciens qui demeurent muets. On fait remarquer que c’est la situation des femmes qui est la plus déplorable dans ce pays. Vous pouvez télécharger l’entrevue de Terna ici: Radio4all.net (- mp3). (ou aller sur le site).

Point de vue économique du conflit au Darfur, la perspective pétrolière -en anglais. Analyse sur l’économie du pétrole derrière le conflit au Darfur, tel que déjà présenté dans notre blog.

La responsabilité sociale des entreprises – en anglais. On annonce la sortie du rapport du Groupe consultatif desTables rondes canadiennes sur la responsabilité sociale des entreprises minières dans le Tiers monde. Il sera analysé la semaine prochaine. (Vous pouvez aller ici pour plus d’infos).

Les Organismes modifiés génétiquement, les batailles de la Zambie et du Zimbabwe; le poids de l’Afrique du Sud – en anglais.

Here are the subjects that were addressed in the April 4th Amandla radio show on CKUT 90.3 FM (Montreal). You can download the show here (link valid for two months only).

ISO 26000 on Corporate Social Responsibility – in french. A project initiated by the International Standard Organization in 2004. It wants to compel the companies on adopting a responsible behaviour while they’re doing their activities. The civil society doesn’t think companies take their social responsibility seriously and ISO 26000 could come and fix the problem. Also, this new standard was asked for by investors and insurers who wish to identify companies that are responsible. A document explaining ISO 26000 is available here (pdf).

Revision of the mining contracts in Democratic Republic of Congo – in french. DRC is a geological scandal. It is a country where the population live under extreme poverty but where the mineral resources are extremely abundant. DRC has decided to revise the mining contracts signed with mining companies between 1996 and 2003, following the conclusions from the Lutundula report. This report criticizes the conditions under which the contracts were signed during the Congo wars. High ranking politicians were meddling with the negotiation process. The government’s decision to reconsider those contracts dates from this week and is well perceived. Details are available here. The Lutundula report can be downloaded here (pdf – in french).

Solidarity between the South African and Zimbabwean people – in english. We talked several times about the situation in Zimbabwe in this blog. But our collaborator, Terna Gyuse, in Cape Town, interviewed people from South Africa who show their solidarity with the people from Zimbabwe. It is a high contrast compared with the silence of the political class. That interview shows us that women are the persons the most affected by the lamentable situation in this country. You can download Terna’s interview here: Radio4all.net (- mp3). (or go to thw website).

Economic point of view on the Darfur conflict, the oil perspective – in english. Economic analysis of the Darfur conflict with the oil implication as shown in our blog: here.

Social responsibility of Canadian mining companies – in english. National roundtables were held in the past 10 months where the Canadian government asked the population what can be done to make Canadian mining companies responsible when they operate abroad. The conclusions are written in the “Advisory Group report” that came out this week. The report will be fully analyzed in next week’s show. (go here for more info)

Genetically modified crops, the fight of Zambia and Zimbabwe; the weight of South Africa – in english.

Mugabe and the rest of Africa/ Mugabe et le reste de l’Afrique

Voici un article de Tawanda Mutasah (directeur exécutif de l’Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa) qui nous indique que les chefs d’États africains commencent à confronter Mugabe qui semble s’être tirer dans le pied en ayant voulu persécuter l’opposition. Cette dernière, sous l’initiative de la centrale syndicale ZCTU (Zimbabwe Congress of Trades Unions), a déclencher un mouvement de grève générale qui n’a malheureusement pas été suivi partout (lien en anglais). Il faut comprendre que la présence policière a été forte. D’ailleurs, le travail des journalistes devient de plus en plus difficile. The Independent nous annonce même la mort d’Edward Chikombo, un caméraman de la chaîne nationale ZBC, qui a été assassiné.

Here is an article by Tawanda Mutasah (executive director of the Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa) who tells us that leaders from African states start confronting Mugabe, which seems to have shot himself in the foot by persecuting the opposition. The opposition, under the initiative of the ZCTU (Zimbabwe Congress of Trades Unions), started a general strike movement that unfortunately wasn’t followed everywhere. But we have to understand that the police presence was strong. The journalists’ work has become difficult and the Independent even tells us that Edward Chikombo, a cameraman for the state broadcaster ZBC, was assassinated.

Mutasah:

When the leaders of other Southern African countries met Robert Mugabe last week in Tanzania, they talked tough behind closed doors – telling him to stop his regime’s brutal oppression of dissidents and the slow starvation of his people. But in a troubling public gesture, the same leaders called for the removal of “all forms of sanctions against Zimbabwe.”

In fact, the sanctions on travel for Mugabe and his henchmen are one form of pressure that has actually been successful.

Why should Mugabe be able to “bash” his people – in his own words – and then leave them without electricity and water while he commandeers the national airline to go to London and shop at Harrods? Before the current travel restrictions, he was famous for doing just that.

For a decade, Mugabe has shored up his regime by violent suppression of pro-democracy movements at home, coupled with Africanist appeals for legitimacy abroad. But in the aftermath of shocking attacks this month on opposition leaders, his position looks increasingly precarious.

It is increasingly unclear whether Mugabe is fully in control in Zimbabwe. The current crackdown defies even the perverted logic of self-preservation.

Why would Mugabe shoot himself in the foot by ordering mass arrests of activists and passers-by alike in the vicinity of the Harare headquarters of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change? The arrest of the movement’s leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, and the abduction and torture of prodemocracy organizers have fueled outrage.

It is possible that the government has already started to disintegrate, and Mugabe – though he would not admit it – has lost control of the security apparatus of his party, the Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front, or Zanu-PF.

Human rights defenders in Africa worry that Mugabe may continue to hide behind African regional mechanisms while he destroys Zimbabwe. Many leaders in our region have been reluctant to reject Mugabe’s attempts to use his Africanist credentials to shield himself from criticism – as when he questioned the “Africanness” of the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights after it criticized abuses in Zimbabwe.

Mugabe and his inner circle have consistently tried to pull the wool over the eyes of their African neighbors, using a combination of diversionary theatrics, and poker-faced lies – such as the 13-page document recently issued to African embassies that claims that Tsvangirai was “at no time” assaulted while in police custody, despite the photographs of his wounds that appeared in newspapers worldwide.

Some African leaders have taken encouraging steps in recent weeks. In addition to the Southern Africa Development Community meeting in Tanzania to discuss Zimbabwe’s crisis, the African Union’s chairman, John Kufuor, and commission head, Alpha Konare, raised concerns about human rights abuses in Zimbabwe. South Africa finally expressed its discomfort over events; and Zambia’s president, Levy Patrick Mwanawasa, called Zimbabwe a “sinking Titanic.”

In the face of the Mugabe regime’s dissembling, African leaders must be crystal clear in their demands. First, they must insist that Zimbabwe adhere to democratic standards – and the African treaties that Zimbabwe has signed.

Second, African leaders must hold Mugabe accountable to an immediate process to end his country’s crisis. This should include, in the year remaining before Zimbabwe’s next presidential elections, a credible road map for a democratic constitution, an immediate restoration of the rule of law, a framework for free and fair elections under international supervision and transitional guarantees of non-partisan control of key state institutions such as the army an the police.

African leaders must overcome their reluctance to criticize one of their own. In the face of the disaster in Zimbabwe, we should all be speaking up.