Ken Rankin, at that timeConsultant Orthopaedic surgeon at Mpilo-Hospital in Bulawayo and Dr. Davis, then mission doctor at St. Luke's Hospital in Lupane documented the atrocities and reported them directly to Robert Mugabe. However nothing changed."
According to Amnesty International (Monitor 3 April 2007) on 13 March 2007 two ZCTU officers, Gilbert Marembo (m) and Michael Kandukuti (m) were assaulted by members of the Zimbabwe Republic Police. On 13 September 2006 in Harare, Lovemore Matombo - ZCTU President, Wellington Chibhebhe - ZCTU Secretary GeneraL and Lucia Matibenga - First Vice-President of the ZCTU, were arrested while attempting to engage in peaceful protest about the deteriorating social and economic conditions in Zimbabwe.
On 11 March 2007 in Harare, 50 activists from the main opposition party, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) were arrested in Harare after attempting to attend a prayer meeting organised by Save Zimbabwe Campaign, a coalition of churches and civic society organisations. John Gweru (22), who joined the National Youth Service in late 2005 out of desperation, related graphic and often stomach-turning details of secret prisons and torture camps, systematic rapes at the Bindura farm training camp and secret jails across the country.
In a voluntary written statement to the Mail & Guardian running to more than 50 pages and several hours of videotaped evidence given to human rights activists, Gweru painted a picture of a regime that has descended to thuggish depravity in its attempt to "hang on to power" (Mail & Guardian, 5 April 2007). Chilume sees this as the West propaganda and calls Tsvangirai a thug? I am an African, so is Morgan, Mugabe, Chilume and of course many others. It is absurd to reduce the problems bedevilling Zimbabwe to a tug of war between Africa and the West, or to label those who oppose Mugabe as imperialists.
Africans who upon usurpation of state power commit or allow commission of heinous acts of crime and human rights abuses should face the wrath of the law.
Chilume in Monitor of 11 September 2006 said: "A leader of an opposition party that is bankrolled by the West was reported to have pointed out that "it was wrong for Mogae to enjoy his 'friendship' with Mugabe at the expense of Batswana," and further quoted saying:"Another opposition leader, obviously with an eye to being a recipient of Western funding, was reported to have complained that Botswana was losing a lot in providing for the welfare of the illegal immigrants".
Mogae's Botswana Democratic Party benefited immensely from then outgoing British administration at independence who abhorred the nationalist Botswana Peoples Party. "The leadership in the legislative council, especially of Seretse Khama and Quett Masire, hoping to prevent nationalist feeling from congealing around the BPP, formed a competing organisation- Bechuanaland Democratic Party (BDP) in 1962. This new moderate African party, supported by many Europeans, became available to participate in the Constitutional Review. Seretse Khama was groomed for the senior position with the Government Secretary"; from Botswana Rural Development in the Shadow of Apartheid by Richard Vengroff. BDP led the nascent independent Botswana and has ruled since. To demonise and trivialise the West when they associate with the opposition is sheer double standards and speaks volumes about the sordid pen of Chilume.
His latest gruesome articles in Monitor are nauseating. He is at liberty to sing praise poems for his sickening, callous political bigot whilst he is enjoying his freedoms in Botswana, impervious of the sufferings of the Zimbabweans, he however should respect the voice of season that speaks against compelling inhumane acts against the tyrant.
Moncho Moncho
by email
