ZIMBABWE is becoming increasingly dependent on South Africa for its economic revival and even security matters.
South Africa last year provided the country with agricultural inputs and this year advanced a US$30 million budgetary support loan. Shops are awash with imports mainly from the regional power house.
Last week government asked for a further US$30 million loan from South Africa to finance the education and health sectors.
The latest on Zimbabwe's shopping list from South Africa, according to that country's apposition party, the Democratic Alliance (DA), is military hardware.
Two DA legislators -- Wilmot James and Kenneth Mubu -- last week claimed that Zimbabwe was procuring "more than a million rounds of both types of bullets" from South Africa, Venezuela, Cuba and North Korea to be "used against civilians"
The MPs were on a three-day fact-finding mission to Zimbabwe two weeks ago and reported to parliament that "credible sources" in Zimbabwe had told them that President Mugabe was in talks with Venezuela, Cuba and North Korea "to fund a war chest ahead of the next election".
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In a report after visiting Zimbabwe the MPs said the country had since taken delivery of some of the ammunition.
"On August 21 2008, the first of many arms shipments, containing 32 tonnes of (ammunition) was flown from the Democratic Republic of Congo to Harare," read their report citing a Belgian research group -- International Peace Information Service -- as the source of the information. On August 30 a second shipment of 20 tonnes of AK-47 (ammunition) arrived. This was flown in via Angola (and also) included mortar bombs and rockets."
The MPs said Zimbabwe did not have legislation regulating the importing and exporting of weapons and "as a result, no one in the country is providing oversight of what (President Robert) Mugabe is up to with the result that the Zimbabwe executive and Zanu PF are circumventing whatever sanctions -- the European Union's in particular -- are in existence".
The legislators added: "We regret to report that our country South Africa is planning to export 7,62 and 9mm ammunition to Zimbabwe. Our colleague David Maynier MP recently revealed -- on 2 August 2009 -- that Parliament's National Conventional Arms Control Committee is considering authorising more than a million rounds of both types of bullets for export."
Though on Monday the committee chairman Jeff Radebe said South Africa was "considering selling arms" to Zimbabwe, the ruling African National Congress's parliamentary caucus said it would ask parliament to investigate the DA for putting national security at risk after disclosing details of government arms deals.
James and Mubu said before they embarked on the fact-finding mission they "did not appreciate how well oiled is Mugabe's repressive" machinery.
They said: "We heard from credible sources that Mugabe is talking to Venezuela, Cuba and Korea to fund a war-chest in preparation for the referendum and election following on the implementation of the Global Political Agreement (GPA) brokered by former President Thabo Mbeki on behalf of the Southern African Development Community (Sadc)."
During their mission, the lawmakers held meetings with the Human Rights NGO Forum, Justice for Agriculture, the Legal Resources Foundation and the Research and Advocacy Unit.
They also held talks with Regional Integration and International Co-operation Minister, Priscilla Misihairabwi-Mushonga, and Foreign Affairs Deputy Minister, Moses Mzila Ndlovu.
James and Mubu called on President Jacob Zuma to impose an arms embargo on Zimbabwe.
Mugabe, however, on Tuesday during the Defence Forces Day commemorations rejected accusations that soldiers had committed abuses during last year's campaign.
According to the MDC, close to 200 of its supporters were murdered while more than 5 000 people were displaced internally, leaving hordes injured and homeless.
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ammunition and then one reads an article that the Doctors in Zim are on strike what a muck up - should it be medical equipment TOP PRIORITY?? THIS WORLD IS REALLY GOING POTTY FOR AMMUNITION!!!
And when the apartheid government assisted Ian Smith in the then Rhodesia, the ANC and its international backers went hysterical. Now they sell arms to dictator Mugabe knowing full well that it will be used to suppress and intimidate the population. The help to Ian Smith was another nail in the apartheid government's coffin, and so will be this action by the ANC in its own coffin. Make no mistake it will come to haunt them.
My my my, where's the quiet diplomacy now, so this is the way how the ANC ARE GOING TO HELP THE gnu, ARM THE TERRORISTS? Helping Bob to commit murder on a grand scale. So jacob says he's going to bring Bob to book and then ok's the sale of arms to Zimbabwe, even though his own dock workers refused to offload chinese weapons of mass destruction for Zimbabwe. So the ANC refuse to do the will of the SA public and help Bob to oppress the people again. Come on Jacob put your words into action and do what you said you would do.