SW Radio Africa (London)
Alex Bell
20 October 2009
column
Chegutu farmer Ben Freeth, who last week concluded an awareness-raising trip to the United States, on Tuesday said that the intervention of the United Nations will be critical for Zimbabwe's future. He also expressed concern that nations such as Britain will not move against Robert Mugabe.
Freeth travelled to Washington last week to appeal in person to the Barack Obama administration, asking them to pressure the Zimbabwe government to stop the ongoing seizures of commercial land. Freeth has previously written four times to Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai pleading for him to intervene in the wave of farm invasions that have in the past year alone resulted in the forced seizure of more than 80 farms. The farm attacks have left over 66,000 farm workers without jobs and homes, while at the same time absolutely no food is being produced, despite the country still facing a critical food crisis.
But Freeth's pleas have fallen on deaf ears and Tsvangirai has done nothing to intervene despite the worsening situation on farms across the country. Freeth insists that, "Tsvangirai could at least be calling for action. He doesn't seem interested in doing anything to get the rule of law respected". In desperation Freeth decided to take his case to Washington, where he met several concerned legislators, NGOs and other groups sympathetic to the Zimbabwe crisis. He has now taken his case to the UK. But Freeth told SW Radio Africa that his hopes for international intervention still rest on the US, and its ability to force to the UN to intervene.
"It would appear that the British are more politically correct and seem to have fallen into Mugabe's propaganda trap," Freeth said. "The Americans will hopefully force the UN to see reason and make them intervene in Zimbabwe's crisis."
The attacks against the remaining commercial farming community meanwhile are continuing, with observers expressing fears that the land 'reform' programme, initiated in 2000, will be completed by the end of the year and there will be no commercial farmers left. The attacks themselves have proved the motive is not land redistribution, but rather greed, with one of the country's most successful indigenous black farmers being illegally evicted from his land last week.
Luke Tembani, 72, has been successfully farming in Manicaland since 1983, but in the past year he has fought an increasingly difficult battle to stay on his land. He first faced eviction earlier this year after the state run Agricultural Bank of Zimbabwe (Agribank) sold his farm to recover a loan he had borrowed more than a decade ago to expand his farm. In desperation Tembani turned to the human rights court of the Southern African Development Community (SADC Tribunal), telling the court that the bank had reneged on a deal to allow him to sell part of his farm to settle the loan.
According to court documents, Tembani defaulted on part of his repayments in 1997 as Zimbabwe's economic crisis unfolded. Documents filed with the Tribunal stated that the bank had sold the farm in 2000, without any court hearings, even though Tembani was still living on it. In June the SADC Tribunal ruled that Agribank's repossession and sale of Tembani's farm was 'illegal and void', and ordered the government to take all necessary measures not evict Tembani and his family. But as with all other orders by the Tribunal, which the government has decided it no longer recognises, the ruling has been wholly ignored, and Tembani's eviction was carried out last week.
At the same time, the rampant theft on Charles Lock's Karori farm in the Headlands district has continued, despite the intervention of Judge President Rita Makarau. Lock has received numerous court orders against Brigadier General Justin Mujaji, who is heading the invasions on Karori Farm. But Mujaji, who is related through marriage to Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa, has ignored every order including those passed down by Makarau. Mujaji last week even appeared before Makarau to say her orders would be honoured, but the theft has continued regardless. Makarau has reportedly given Mujaji two weeks to comply with her orders, but by that time, there will be nothing left for Lock to claim.
Meanwhile, there has been no move by the government to claim the money offered by the European Commission for a comprehensive and 'transparent' land audit. The head of the Commission, Xavier Marchal, last week said the money was available to the government to complete the audit, the promise of which had been shelved because of the government's financial restraints. But the money is yet to be claimed, and it is widely understood that the ZANU PF dominated government does not want the full truth of the land 'reform' programme made public, as it would clearly show how the ruling party chefs are mostly the ones who have benefited.
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Boy are you the idiot....Mugabe has not given farms to black people instead to all his murdering cronies...Mugabe is an embarrsment to Africa...as he just wont let go..thanks to the white people..Mugabe took over the bread basket of africa in 1980...yep he took 29 years to screw that up...Mugabe should be isolated from the world..Zimbabwe is a raciest country, and should not be judged on black and white...Why cant you move forward...we are all so tired of hearing the same speech from mugabe, about how zim will never be colonized again....BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH...The whites in zim have just as much right to farm and live there as the next peron...WE GET IT IT WILL NEVER BE COLOINZED AGAIN....LETS MOVE ON.....
Suzi, Zimbabwe was never a “Bread Basket” for Africa now or in 1980. The term “Bread Basket” is a redundant term and at now time did Zimbabwe white farmers supply massive food to the rest of Africa. Rather Zimbabwean white farmers grew a lot of tobacco and cotton for export. Yes, they did a good job for it. Most of their products, as was today and then was strictly for export “out of Africa”. This term is now redundant and is used for propaganda purposes.
Not true that Mugabe did not give farms to blacks…Another propaganda from white former Rhodesian farmers. For your information there are about 15,000 commercial black farmers in Zimbabwe today and about 250,000 communal farmers. Contrast that to the overly glorified white farmers who number only 400!! Today, it is the black farmer who is the bread and Breakfast of Zimbabwe and Africa. Our focus should be with the black farmers who truly hold the key for local food security as pointed out by the UN.
MR Phiri, what about all the maize, suger, wheat that was grown, Zimbabwe in years gone by exported many thousands of tonnes to neighbouring countries who were then starving. You have a very short mind. Please do take this subject up with Me on judgement day. You do make yourself very silly. reserch your articles before printing.
Why should anyone listen to someone who is a fool enough to call himself God? You supporters of the British colonialism keep hitting new lows.
D-bokk, tell the forum one lie about what i have said, go on. Because the father in heaven will take it up with you on Judgement day. go on, what's keeping you so long. Be very carful what you say.
The arrogant fool who calls himself God and capitalizes the pronoun "me" when he refers to himself should be the one taking precautions on how he speaks.
So you've read the Holy Bible from cover to cover and still don't understand the word of God. Some one who is upset about being called to account for what they have done and gets upset. So I'll put it to you this way, better for you to sort your life out now rather than later, because if you have not accepted what Jesus did for you before Judgement day, guess what, you stand with the goats.
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No, Zimbabwe land issues does not require the UN. Nor does it require the SADC to intervene. Mr. Ben Freeth in his visit to the USA does not even understand that the US has Eneminent dominain on land issues. That means the state, not the individual, can decide what to do with land. Mr. Freth also forgets that the USA has not entirely settled land claims from the Native people of North America (American Indian)
Canada has the same problem. The absurd and audicity of his visit is very foolish indeed!!!. Land issues will always be state controlled, especially as related to farming. Mr. Freeth and propaganda lobby (SW Radio) think they can win over unknowing people in the USA, but you are wrong. Land issues are actually more completed and unfair in the USA. Corporations in the USA wishing to built a big supermarket on somebody's plot can easily do so.
Food security in Zimbabwe lies with black farmers, not white Rhodesians farmers. The vast majority of food in Zimbabwe is grown by a black farmer and not a white farmer. The number of white farmers (400) is just too small to make any meaningful impact on feeding the Zimbabwean population. The Bread basket for Zimbabwe is the black farmer and it is she/he we need to support. White farmers will continue to be a liability to any politician in Zimbabwe. That is the reason why Mugabe is in power, because people have assurance that he will guanratee that blacks control land , rather than be slaves on white farms!!!!