The Gorbachev Factor
By David Coltart Bulawayo 8th November 2007 The recent passage of Constitutional Amendment 18 through the Zimbabwean Parliament with the consent of both Zanu PF and the opposition MDC has caused much alarm and confusion within Zimbabwean civil society and even amongst MDC supporters within Zimbabwe and abroad. Some have gone so far as saying
Zimbabwe: Crisis Talks Resume in South Africa
SW Radio Africa (London) 31 October 2007 By Tichaona Sibanda The SADC led mediation talks on Zimbabwe resumed in Pretoria on Wednesday after a month long break. The talks, which are already behind schedule on several fronts, missed Tuesday’s key deadline for agreement on a broad framework for free and fair elections. A source told
Cemeteries in Zimbabwe Reflect Gravity of Crisis
By VOA News Bulawayo, Zimbabwe 22 October 2007 The cemeteries of Zimbabwe are filled these days with fresh graves, many of the smallest mounds covering some of what was the southern African nation’s future. An opposition leader says the acres of freshly dug graves are evidence of the ruin President Robert Mugabe has left Zimbabwe.
Zimbabwe Tourists Flood to Victoria Falls, Shun Other Sites
By VOA News Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe 20 October 2007 Blessed with natural beauty, Zimbabwe was once a destination for thousands of world travelers. Amid an economic and humanitarian crisis, tourism in the southern African nation is at an all time low — except at The Victoria Falls. There, the government shields tourists from the privation
Activists in Zimbabwe Suffer Arrests, Beatings
By VOA News Bulawayo, Zimbabwe 19 October 2007 The southern African Nation of Zimbabwe is suffering from massive inflation, rampant poverty and a 90 percent unemployment rate. But when people try to speak out against the situation and the current government under President Robert Mugabe, they say they are subjected to harassment, arrest and even
Rare Video Inside Zimbabwe Shows Impact of Hyperinflation, Food Shortages
By VOA News Bulawayo, Zimbabwe 18 October 2007 We bring you a rare look inside the troubled southern African nation of Zimbabwe. Today, this nation of between 10 million and 12 million is teetering on the edge of what a member of its own parliament is calling “the world’s gravest humanitarian crisis.” But few outside
Understanding the Zimbabwean crisis: A first step in planning its recovery
By David Coltart The sudden and dramatic collapse of Zimbabwe in the last decade has perplexed many in the international community. Furthermore the seemingly intractable nature of the crisis has caused some to believe that Zimbabwe is doomed to become a failed state in Africa. How can it be that a country, which in the
Statement re Professor Kader Asmal’s statement in Cape Town 4 October 2007
Statement by David Coltart Professor Asmal’s statement (attached below)is one of the most important to come out of South Africa in the last decade since Zimbabwe began its slide into chaos. It gives the lie once and for all to the notion that there is no crisis or that it is the result of western
Bulawayo could shut down soon
Independent Online 29 September 2007 Bulawayo, Zimbabwe’s second city and a stronghold of the political opposition, is literally drying up. If the summer rains don’t come early, it may do so. One million people there only have water once every three days – at best. Some are going for more than a week without water
Mugabe was meant to be a saviour
Sunday Telegraph 23 September 2007 By Graham Boynton I spoke to old friends in Zimbabwe this weekend. They sounded pleased with themselves, mainly because they’d managed to scavenge 25 chickens and a bottle of Teacher’s whisky from some unnamed connection.They’d shared the chickens among friends and, having had a few shots of Scotch, were barbecuing