ZIMBABWE — HARARE  — South Africa, the only African country that is a member of the G20 grouping,  had a difficult time in London last week as it tried to persuade the West to help SADC raise $10 billion needed to pull Zimbabwe out of the abyss.

 

A senior South African official who was part of the delegation that went to Britain for the summit said despite making a spirited pitch for Zimbabwe, western countries were adamant Zimbabwe’s ageing dictator Robert Mugabe had not met their demands for aid to start flowing into the southern African state.

 

 

Said the official, who preferred to remain anonymous for diplomatic reasons:  “They all told us no money was going to come our way if things remained as they were in Zimbabwe.”

Of their concern were, among others, the continuing detention of political prisoners, fresh farm invasions, violations of human rights and the continued presence of Gideon Gono at the central bank.

“As SADC, we do not have the financial muscle. That is why we need western countries to help us,” he  said.

 

“Unfortunately, the aid has conditions, conditions that should be met by Harare.”

 On Monday last week Zimbabwe’s despot Mugabe returned from the SADC conference in Mbabane, Swaziland, with only  $2 billion  —  $1 billion in aid and another billion in form of loans — about $6 billion short of what that country needs to repair the economy.

 

The rest were just pledges — pledges to persuade the West to chip in with the remaining sum to make up the $8,5 billion approved in Mbabane.

Last month, western countries met in Washington, United States, to discuss ways of helping Zimbabwe and resolved that the southern African state had to show its commitment to reforms before more assistance was provided.

However, they said they were still going to provide humanitarian assistance.

Political analysts believe SADC’s efforts will be hampered by Mugabe’s intransigence.

Right now, MDC activists are still languishing in jail on trumped up charges despite the formation of the unity government.

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Those still locked up include Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s former personal assistant Gandhi Mudzingwa and the MDC’s director of security Chris Dhlamini. The pair is facing  banditry and terrorism charges.

A freelance photojournalist, Anderson Manyere, is also locked up at Chikurubi Maimum Prison.

 

Dhlamini and Mudzingwa are under prison and police guard at a private clinic in Harare where they are being treated for injuries sustained while in custody.

Many other MDC activists were still missing, said MDC spokesman, Nelson Chamisa, and the party was frantically trying to locate them.

“We are still trying to account for many others, but we believe they are locked up  and surely they are political prisoners,” Chamisa was quoted this week by a Zimbabwean weekly newspaper as saying.

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There have also been some fresh farm invasions chasing away some of the few white commercial farmers still in Zimbabwe.

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JOKE OF THE DAY - "A Lovely Arab poem.

 

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Beautiful isn't it? I almost cried where it said:

 

Þ??á Çá??ÑáãÇä ÇÚÊãÇÏÇð Úáì äÊÇ??Ì."

 

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