News

New constitution not yet ready

http://www.swradioafrica.com

By Tichaona Sibanda
05 July 2012

Drafting of the country’s new constitution appears to be nearing its final
stage this week, Constitutional and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Eric
Matinenga said on Thursday.

The MDC-T cabinet minister told SW Radio Africa that only a few minor issues
were unresolved and the new charter would be ready by next week.

‘God willing, the draft will be ready by Monday when we meet to deliberate
on it as many of the contentious issues have already been resolved,’
Matinenga said.

But last week Douglas Mwonzora, the COPAC co-chairperson representing the
MDC-T, had indicated that the new charter would be ready by Wednesday.

Matinenga however said there were ‘unforeseen’ issues that needed to be
dealt with before releasing the constitution. He said the COPAC management
committee met on Tuesday but agreed to meet again on Monday next week to
allow for ‘technical adjustments to be made on the charter.’

‘Look whenever people from different political backgrounds meet to work on a
program or document, it’s always difficult to produce a document that is
agreeable to everybody.

Parties deadlocked over voters' roll

http://www.newzimbabwe.com/

03/07/2012 00:00:00
by Staff Reporter

ZANU PF and the MDC-T have failed to agree on whether the voter’s roll
should be polling-station specific or ward-based in a development that will
likely stymie key amendments to the country’s Electoral Act.

Changes to the Electoral Act are among a raft of reforms parties to the
coalition government are negotiating ahead of new elections now expected
sometime next year.

While Zanu PF wants the voters roll to be based on polling stations, the
MDC-T insists the present arrangement where the roll is based on Wards
should remain in place.

Said Zanu PF negotiator, Patrick Chinamasa: “There is now a tug-of-war on an
issue that we had already agreed as parties.

“We had agreed that we will have polling station specific voters’ roll, but
our friends in the MDC-T are now singing a different tune.”

Chinamasa claimed that a polling station-based roll would help address the
problem of ghost voters and prevent people from voting more than once.

“The MDC-T says they want the ward-based voters’ roll, but we are saying the
polling station specific voters’ roll will help us to discover deceased
voters so that we can fish them out, he said.

“It also helps to eliminate double voting because in a ward we can have five
polling stations, where one can vote at one station and go to another.”

But MDC-T spokesman, Douglas Mwonzora, said basing the roll on polling
stations would expose voters to possible victimisation.

Concern for Zim acivist facing second UK deportation attempt

http://www.swradioafrica.com

By Alex Bell
03 July 2012

Concern has once again been raised for the safety of a UK based Zimbabwean
activist, facing a second deportation threat by the British authorities this
week.

Nottingham based Trevor Chanetsa is set to be forcibly removed Wednesday
night on a Kenya Airways flight from London’s Heathrow Airport. He insists
that as an activist who openly opposes ZANU PF he faces serious danger if he
is returned to Zimbabwe.

Chanetsa arrived in the UK in 2002 and has been trying to secure asylum ever
since. In May this year he was arrested during his routine reporting as an
asylum seeker to the UK Border Agency and detained for two weeks. He only
escaped deportation following the last minute intervention by his
solicitors.

Chanetsa told SW Radio Africa last month that he believed he was being
deliberately targeted because his Zimbabwean passport was about to expire.
He accused the UK authorities of fast tracking his case deliberately, to
ensure his deportation before his passport expired.

One of Trevor’s supporters is Regis Manyanya, from the Nottingham Zimbabwean
Community Network. Manyanya told SW Radio Africa on Tuesday that this
“victimisation” is now continuing.

“This is victimisation because it is not safe to return to Zimbabwe
especially towards forth coming elections. The British government talks
about human rights and equal rights and condemnation of violence so why do
they want to deport this young man who will obviously be targeted on his
return to Zimbabwe as he is an activist and strong member of the MDC party,”
Manyanya said.

Diplomats want transparency in Marange

http://www.dailynews.co.zw/

Written by Gift Phiri, Chief Writer
Tuesday, 03 July 2012 11:39

HARARE - Western diplomats have urged government to clarify issues related
to ownership, taxes and revenue from the Marange diamond miners.

A contingent of foreign diplomats were last week given a guided tour of the
Chinese-owned Anjin operations, Marange Resources; and Arda Transau, a
settlement where villagers ejected from the diamond fields were resettled
about 330 kilometres southeast of Harare.

The tour was the latest public relations offensive by a government grappling
to head off allegations by rights groups that there were violations of human
rights by security forces who allegedly use deadly force to push out illegal
miners.

It was the first visit by the foreign diplomats to the heavily-protected
Marange diamond fields, and the delegation included ambassadors from
Australia, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Spain
and the Netherlands. The delegation was led by EU ambassador Aldo Dell’Ariccia.

Describing the operations as “professional”, the diplomats said it was
important that the diamond industry benefits the development of Zimbabwe as
a whole.

“Visiting certain parts of Marange Resources and Anjin has been
interesting,” the Dutch embassy said in a statement after the tour.

SA mediation team 'losing patience' with Zimbabwe

http://www.swradioafrica.com/

By Alex Bell
02 July 2012

The regionally appointed Zim mediation team is believed to be losing
patience with the lack of progress in the country, to the point that it
could hand the problem over to the African Union (AU).

This is according to political analyst Professor John Makumbe, who told SW
Radio Africa on Monday that the lack of change and the snails-pace of reform
in Zimbabwe could spell the end of regional mediation efforts.

The South African team is headed by President Jacob Zuma, as part of SADC’s
commitment to solving the ongoing political crisis in Zim, which remains
unresolved despite the formation of the unity government.

Zuma’s mediation efforts have been centred on trying to force the
implementation of key reforms, listed in the Global Political Agreement
(GPA). But more than three years later there is still a list of outstanding
issues that have stalled any progress in the government.

The most recent SADC summit in Angola once again called for key reforms
before an election is called in Zimbabwe. But there has still been no
movement towards any change.

Professor Makumbe said Monday that Zuma and his mediation team are reaching
the end of the road in their mediation efforts, and a harder line is now
widely expected.

ZEF Letter to His Excellency J Zuma

News

New constitution not yet ready

Parties deadlocked over voters' roll

Concern for Zim acivist facing second UK deportation attempt

Diplomats want transparency in Marange

SA mediation team 'losing patience' with Zimbabwe

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