Violence Continues Against MDC

​Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s MDC reports that ZANU-PF and the security forces are continuing and intensifying a campaign of violence and intimidation against its members. MDC political rallies have been disrupted by police. ZANU-PF militants went on the rampage in Highlands, damaging property and injuring MDC members. Robert Mugabe, who is 88 years old, has ruled Zimbabwe with an iron fist since Independence in 1980. Mugabe is pushing for early elections without the constitutional safeguards and electoral reform demanded by the Movement for Democratic Change. Mugabe is wanting yet another five-year term as president. Despite having lost a number of presidential elections, he continues to remain in power.

​Zimbabwe's Blood Diamonds
​Zimbabwe's Finance Minister, Tendai Biti, has blamed the economic troubles of Zimbabwe on the governments' refusal to direct revenue from the lucrative Marange diamond fields to the public treasury. The ZANU-PF controlled Fifth brigade and presidential guard seized control of the Marange diamond fields in Eastern Zimbabwe, Manica Highlands, in 2009. Horror stories of atrocities, murders, slave labour and channelling of vast quantities of Zimbabwe's blood diamonds to China in exchange for weapons, have not stopped the Zimbabwe government from being able to sell these diamonds abroad. Yet, the Minster of Finance reports that the Treasury is bankrupt and the revenue that should have been raised by the Marange diamond fields has simply disappeared into the private pockets of Mugabe and his ZANU-PF politburo.

Campaign to Seize Businesses from Indians
The Indigenisation and Youth Development Minister, Saviour Kasukuwere, has instructed ZANU-PF youth to seize shops, supermarkets and businesses owned by Indians as part of their Youth Empowerment Programme. Kasukuwere declared that Indians should not be allowed to run shops in Zimbabwe while there are unemployed black youth. In the 1970s, dictator, Idi Amin forced all Indians out of Uganda and seized their businesses. This precipitated the total economic collapse of Uganda.

State Sponsored Torture and Terror
Amnesty International have compiled dossiers from eye-witness accounts of systematic political violence, assaults, beatings, rape and torture by ZANU-PF controlled security forces in Zimbabwe. Amnesty International has the names of at least 600 people who have died in State sponsored violence in Zimbabwe.

Western Bankrolling of African Dictators Under Investigation
Members of Parliament at Westminster are asking British firms to explain how UK taxes could have been used to help dictators build arsenals to suppress dissent and oppress their populations. An official all-party enquiry, into the government Export Credits Guarantee Department (ECGD) underwriting these loans, has begun calling witnesses. The parliamentary group is investigating more than 40 years of British involvement in supporting dubious regimes overseas. Among the items on the agenda is to ask why £35 Million was lent to Zimbabwe to buy 5 Hawk fighter jets from BAE systems and how over 1,000 land rovers could have been provided to the Zimbabwe police who have been guilty of systematic human rights abuses amongst the population of Zimbabwe. The oil company, BP, and multinational defence corporation, BAE Systems, will be asked to account for why hundreds of millions of pounds of taxpayers money was used to help military dictatorships facilitate environmental and human rights abuses across Africa.

Frontline Fellowship

P.O. Box 74 Newlands 7725
Cape Town South Africa
Tel: 021-689-4480
Fax: 021-685-5884
Email: mission@frontline.org.za