source:http://allafrica.com/stories/200705150770.html
Take the US government, for instance. On December 21, 2001, President George W. Bush signed into law Zimbabwe Democracy and Economic Recovery Act of 2001 with the aim of cutting off all financial aid to Harare, including all debt cancellations that Zimbabwe would otherwise have been eligible to! This piece of legislation was sponsored by Senator William Frist and co-sponsored by four others including Senator Hillary Clinton.
How could this deliberate freezing of grants and aid not have negatively impacted Zimbabwe's financial standing, even marginally, within a global economy? With such measures, should it then surprise anyone that Zimbabwe would churn out the highest inflation rate in the world? By contrast, would the British economy survive under similar sanctions and assault?
They have done these not because they question the land redistribution programme as inherently unfair, but because the ultimate losers within the programmes' framework are their kin. Had the US been so objectively concerned with "human rights abuses" across the world, it would have passed similar legislation before the Rwandan genocide spilled out of hand.
In the 21st Century global economic situation that is racially-inclined, Mugabe's Zimbabwe presents a classical case of the bleak odds confronting a black-led African nation struggling to survive against the relentless onslaught of the West's economic might.
Clearly, the target of the economic sanctions is the crippling of his government, as though Zimbabwean "problems" lie with Mugabe himself. Perhaps they do. But this reasoning deliberately fails to differentiate between the government and its policies, managed by Mugabe on the one hand, and the Zimbabwean economy on the other, which is manned by a heterogeneous mix of actors, majority of whom have completely no say in, and are actively removed from engineering his policies.
'Start Heifer Scheme With Resettled Farmers'
GOVERNMENT has asked owners of Surrey Farm along the Harare-Marondera Road to start a heifer scheme with resettled farmers on nearby farms since Surrey cannot carry the 2 500 cattle on its 500 hectares.
Under the scheme, the resettled farmers would retain the calf and give the cow back to the farm in a scheme where the new farmers would breed cattle to sell to the farm's abattoir.
The farm runs an abattoir but fears abound that if the cattle do not get adequate grazing pastures they could all die.
The farm owners used to irrigate grazing pastures and were able to feed their cattle. There is inadequate drinking water for the cattle since the farm dam has dried up.
The Governor and Resident Minister of Mashonaland East Province Cde Ray Kaukonde visited the farm on Monday and agreed with farm owner Mr Phillip Dechassart that he should pass on some cows to resettled farmers.
source:http://allafrica.com/stories/200705170133.html
Meltdown Murambatsvina one year on: A special report from The Solidarity Peace Trust a non governmental organisation registered in South Africa read on.
Dua,It is not true that the opposition want to return the land to the whites neither does the white Zimbabweans refuse with the land, the problem is the politicians under Robert Mugabe who took land for themselves. The list underneath is of confirmed VIP's allocation of land conducted in 2000's up to 2002.
WOW!Poor black Zimbabweans do not have land up to now, prime farms which used to produce the majority of food in the country now lie idle under the named politicians who do no have a clue about farming.
On Mrambatsvina Operation:- The operation was initiated by a well respected, educated woman - Harare Commission Chairperson - Dr. Jameson Kurasha. At what cost?...well, same happened in Dar with the Machingas, Mauaji ya Pemba na Mwembechai.. we did condemn but no one asked the President to step down.
Traditionally communal farms (blacks) used to produce the great portion of food crops way back before land redistribution reform, most of these farmes have moved to cities looking for better way of life. The only food crop commercial farming produced (white farmer) was maize.
Now, lets ask ourselves, . How many blacks Zimbabweans out there could run commercial farming sector?..How many do have capital to invest?.Is this any defferent from what we are facing here at home?
In my opinion there is no easy answer to all this. Land grabbing by VIPs is happening at home right before our eyes and strange enough the country's economy is said to be Booming while the land lie idle!
It is an insult to Zimbabweans to say that the operation was similar to what happened in Dar etc. 700,000 people lost their homes the population is nearer to that of Zanzibar. The UN referred this to as 'indiscriminate and unjustified' and more than two million suffered in one way or another. If you remember well Mrs Tibaijuka was sent by UN to assess the situation.
I don't believe the above are facts and the communal farms proportion of food was not that high, you better revisit the statistics of Zimbabwe Farmers Union - you can recall as well that the White-Zimbabwean farmers were about 5000 only but with their skills over the years they managed to organise themselves in what they knew best but at the moment most of them left or stopped farming altogether
By Peta Thornycroft in Harare
(Filed: 07/08/2003)
Zimbabwe's commercial farmers held their 60th annual congress yesterday, but it was a day of heartache, gloom and tears for the dwindling band, some of whom now depend on charity to survive.
As another appeal went out for international donors to replenish emergency food stocks for almost half Zimbabwe's population, President Robert Mugabe renewed expired notices of acquisition on 152 farms yesterday, including five prime ranches in the Matabeleland province, belonging to the Oppenheimer mining dynasty of South Africa.
White commercial farmers hear nothing to lift their gloom at their 60th annual congress Doug Taylor-Freeme, the vice-president of the farmers' union, told the meeting that Mr Mugabe's policies had destroyed the agricultural sector. "Zimbabwe continues on its downward path to economic ruin with no relief in sight," he said. Agricultural production had fallen more than 50 per cent in the past year, he added.
One farmer who survived the three-year campaign against the mainly white commercial farmers only to succumb a month ago is Bruce Stobart, 40, who was attending his last congress.
"I went into every deal available to stay on my farm, but when a mob arrived at my house and ate my son's pet rabbits, and did all the other usual stuff, we had to go, and now there is nothing, absolutely nothing I can do."
To try to stay on his farm in Mazowe, about 20 miles outside the capital, Harare, he gave two thirds of his land, about 1,600 acres, to Mr Mugabe's supporters. Last summer he ploughed for them, planted their crops and gave them technical help.
He was supported in his effort to remain on his farm by one of Zimbabwe's two vice-presidents, Joseph Msika and the local governor, Peter Chanetsa.
But it wasn't enough. Mr Stobart, his wife and three children fled after about 25 supporters of the ruling Zanu-PF party surged towards the family home, and they are now living in rented accommodation in Harare, planning to emigrate to New Zealand next January.
Until three years ago, agricultural produce accounted for 40 per cent of Zimbabwe's exports. Now it cannot sell beef to the European Union under preferential tariffs, not only because it does not have enough quality cattle left, but because the chaos allowed foot and mouth to spread across the country.
Tobacco production is down more than 60 per cent, and Zimbabwe will grow less than 10 per cent of its normal wheat production this year. "It is catastrophic," said Alan Stockil, a farmer in charge of a national evaluation committee.
"Zimbabwe will continue to slide until agriculture recovers. That is why we are gathering data for compensation for farmers. So far fewer than half of those who have been evicted have completed estimates of what they have lost. Many are too heartbroken to do so, but we are pushing them."
Out of 4,000 productive white commercial farmers three years ago, fewer than 400 remain on their land. About 300,000 black workers and their families working and living on former white commercial farms are in abject poverty, according to the union's president, Colin Cloete. They were left out of Mr Mugabe's land reform programme and are jobless, homeless and hungry.