Chisumbanje Villagers resist being cowed into submission by Green Fuel

The land dispute between Chisumbanje villagers and Green Fuel has taken a new twist with the company shelving aside peaceful negotiations for a more confrontational and forceful means of winning their battle. On Tuesday, 25 October 2011, villagers woke up to the sight of the Green Fuel representatives, Arex and a few handpicked headmen telling them in no uncertain terms to accept the company’s offer of what villagers referred to as shameless 0.3ha of land.

The company together with officials from ARDA continues to fly in the face of justice. On the fateful day in question, villagers were told to follow their traditional leadership to the prepared fields where each family was to be allocated 14 lines of land measuring 0.3ha. Reacting to this imposition, the bulk of village heads resisted against such an anti-people stance. Much to their dismay their resistance was met with intimidation and threats leading to some succumbing to the company’s demands.

Villagers are still confused as to the meaning and purpose of the imposition. Wedzerai Gwenzi, spokesperson of the villagers described the event as shocking. “No development is imposed, let them use force but the villagers will stick to community consensus. We will see the victor,” he said.

Those who refused to get the pieces of land argued that they were being cheated and therefore are awaiting the court verdict.

Trust between the villagers and the investor has deteriorated to alarming levels to the effect that the company will struggle to win support and confidence of the surrounding communities even after the dispute is over. The company together with misinformed sympathisers want the villagers to submit their livelihood to the chagrin of the selfish investor.

The relationship between Green Fuel, ARDA and the government of Zimbabwe remains shoddy and suspicious. There is no clear government position on the land deal and the continuous silence by the government is the stumbling block to the finalisation of the matter.

The company looks clueless in communicating with the surrounding communities and seems unwilling to address this disparity. This has led villagers to threaten disruptive actions if the company goes on with its superior tendencies.

The villagers have taken a step further by approaching the courts to have the matter adjudicated as the countless initiatives aimed at bringing a lasting solution to the matter have hit a brick wall.

The locals are even more confused on the role of the Minister of Agriculture; Dr Joseph Made in the matter. Dr Made is accused of corrupt relations and lack of handy information on the nitty-gritties of the matter as he failed to answer very simple questions when quizzed by the parliamentary portfolio committee on Agriculture, Water, Lands and Resettlement.

There is no economic justice when the company takes away over 5 hectares from a communal farmer in return for 14 lines of land. Most villagers’ survival is attached to their pieces of land and such an arrangement will impoverish the community as it takes away their source of livelihood. As the ploughing season gets on track, the villagers have resolved to go and till their land as a way to start up the confrontations.

Claris Madhuku, whose organisation (Platform for Youth Development) has been mandated to provide representation, bemoaned this sad approach by the company. “We are concerned with the manner in which the company is behaving despite our call for engagement,” Madhuku said.

It is becoming clear that Chisumbanje Ethanol Plant is yet another giant operation that seeks to blindly pursue profit by displacing communities. As far as PYD is concerned, this is an immoral way of doing business and therefore must be condemned by the whole world.

“We will remain calm and collected as we will use the villagers mandate to seek economic justice. I am very much convinced that we are doing the right thing to resist those foreigners who are stealing our land regardless of their political and economic power.

Information and Communication Department

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Violence erupts in Chipinge South

Political violence erupted in Chipinge South over the weekend with war veterans and Zanu PF functionaries running amok, beating MDC-T supporters attending party meeting at Garahwa Business centre.
The war veterans led by one Micah Jerera went to the business centre where the MDC-T Youth committee was addressing party supporters and disturbed proceedings leading to the clashes that resulted in the injury of MDC supporters. This resulted in two youth committee members Nyasha Madhodha and Forget Hlomani being arrested and detained for two nights at Chisumbanje Police Station.
The two who were thoroughly assaulted were rushed to St Peters Mission Hospital at Checheche Growth point. Wedzerai Gwenzi said that medical staff at the hospital refused to give medical attention to the injured members. Chipinge South vice chairperson, Wedzerai Gwenzi said that police followed up on the two at the hospital and took them to the police station where they were detained.
The war veterans and Zanu PF thugs led by one Micah Jerera are said to have disturbed a peaceful meeting and this is not the first time such an instance has happened. War veterans have since 2000 been known for taking the law into their hands without actions of the state security.
The incident has left villagers scared as they have been reawakened to the tragic memories of June 27 2008.
It is shocking that the injured victims were the ones arrested instead of the perpetrators. The two had to spend a night at Chisumbanje police station before they were released.

Discovery of diamonds in Manicaland brings more harm than good for the province

The discovery of diamonds presented great opportunity and hope for the Chiadzwa and Marange villagers as well as the generality of Zimbabweans. For a country still reeling from effects of an almost decade long economic meltdown this was a God given opportunity to turn around the economy.

In the midst of excitement, people from all corners of the country flooded Chiadzwa and Marange diamond fields to try and make a living. Foreigners could not be left out in the trepidation as they saw an opportunity to amass wealth. Faced with disorder and chaos in the fields, trigger-happy and overzealous state security agents moved in, mercilessly butchering innocent and vulnerable villagers desperately in search of livelihood. Apparently, the locals could no longer access the diamond areas as the deployed security officers went on a looting rampage creating syndicates only for their selfish and political gains. Though government reports and company spokespersons’ deny these allegations as inaccurate and untrue, evidence is abound and have been recorded by civic societies monitoring the process.
Three to four years down the lane Manicaland is still in its old state if not worse off. Locals have since been forcefully evacuated without adequate compensation to Arda Transau farm detaching them from what is rightfully their birth right. The trillion dollar question remains, what exactly is development and economic justice when the supposed beneficiaries are turned into biggest losers?
Is it not an open secret that numerous syndicates linking government officials and China’s are plundering what should benefit the majority of Zimbabweans?  With each passing day thousands of gems and carats are disappearing and being looted out of the country by known economic barons for their personal aggrandisement. We know very well how Obert Mpofu’s life has suddenly changed the moment he was appointment Minister of Mines in 2008. He is not alone in this game as many Zanu PF party heavy weights are linked in this mafia style syndicates. No one has ever taken a minute to ponder what is left for the young people who are the future of this country? A case in point is the well recorded clash between Finance Minister Tendai Biti and a minister of Mines and Mining Development Obert Mpofu over the whereabouts of US$ 300 million proceeds from diamond sales. This episode is evidence that the precious stone in Manicaland is not being managed with transparency and neither is there accountability.

The behaviour by the resident Governor of Manicaland Christopher Mushohwe has also triggered concern. Whilst the expectation was that he would stand on the side of the people, the reality is that he has chosen to respect his belly.Mbada Diamonds, Canadile and other Chinese Investors operating in Chiadzwa and Marange are doing very little to service the communities in which they are doing business. The companies are at the forefront setting up dogs in a spirited effort to drown the voices of the poor villagers. People are literally starving, and company handouts of foodstuffs and exercise books are far away from justifying the millions of profits they are reaping from diamond sales each day.
The problem with Chiadzwa and Marange companies is taking precedence at Chisumbanje Ethanol Project where employment has been awarded to foreigners and outsiders at the expense of locals. This is clearly impoverishing Manicaland province which houses the minerals and projects but failing to improve her fortunes in practical terms. In Chisumbanje, the company management talks of employing six thousand locals, figures that only exists in the press. One wonders why our government fails to challenge this mischief against the peace loving people of Manicaland.Young people are getting irritated and impatient for being taken for granted by such unthankful foreign investors.
After the discovery of the minerals, it was predicted that Manicaland was poised for development only to discover that the actual diamond business was the privilege of Harare where the processing and trading is now being done. The building of the diamond processing in Harare is clear indicator that people of Manicaland are being taken for granted. Who can explain why the processing is not being done in Mutare or Chipinge. This decision flies in the face of decentralisation and economic sense.
In conclusion, it has become apparent that diamonds in Marange has failed to make economic impact in the Manicaland province despite Zimbabwe being ranked among the top seven diamond producing nations in the world. Zimbabwe now joins nations like Angola, Sierra Leone and Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) where the discovery of diamond only attracted disastrous conflict as opposed to economic development.

Information and Communications Dept