Vavi Puts COSATU into the Fray

Here are comments from Zwelinzima Vavi, General Secretary of COSATU (Congress of South African Trade Unions). They show both an overt disgust with the events going on in Zimbabwe as well as a position that is in stark contrast to the 'softly, softly' , pro-Mugabe approach of South African President Thabo Mbeki.

This is part of a speech given at a trade union rally on August 10 in solidarity with freedom fighters in Zimbabwe and Swaziland.

Our message is clear – Zimbabwe and Swaziland cannot continue to be islands of dictatorship surrounded by a sea of democracy in our region. We demand freedom and democracy for citizens of both countries. We want democracy for the citizens of our neighbouring countries today and not tomorrow. For the freedom of workers in those countries we will fight until the last drop of blood in our bodies is dried up. We shall, with the same determination as we fought against the apartheid monster, continue to wage a struggle until all of us in the region can proclaim that we succeeded to free human kind from not only the bondages of oppression and repression but from the clutches of poverty.

As I said to the preparatory meeting for this conference, to us international solidarity is the lifeblood of trade unionism. To us there are no borders when it comes to practicing the universal slogan of the working class – an injury to one is an injury to all.

The need for this conference is underlined by deepening crises in both countries. The human rights abuses in Zimbabwe have scaled new heights. The beatings of ordinary people, the burning down of their property, the killings and torture continue as though the current negotiations means nothing to the illegal Mugabe regime.

Let us again statethat we support the ongoing efforts to negotiate a political settlement to the Zimbabwe crises. We accordingly wish President Thabo Mbeki and the other facilitators of these negotiations together with all parties involved good luck and success as they try to find lasting solutions to the Zimbabwe crises. We must however hurry to say we will not give these negotiations unconditional
support. To us the following issues are not negotiable.

Any settlement that does not recognise the will of the people as expressed in the 29 March elections will not be acceptable. It will represent an elite accord that can never enjoy legitimacy in the eyes of the ordinary people of Zimbabwe.

• The June elections were illegitimate and therefore the outcomes must not be recognised.
  
• The government to be formed should be an interim government whose main task should be mainly limited to preparing for a fresh round of elections that will strictly adhere to the SADC elections protocols.
  
• Violence, intimidation and use of state of institutions in a factional and partisan fashion must come to an end.
  

Whilst all these negotiations proceed and whilst we wish these talks
success, we know that we cannot let up the pressure on the Mugabe government.
There is no contradiction between negotiations to find a peaceful settlement
and the mass struggles and pressure. There is no settlement. There are rumours
to the fact that the settlement is near. We shall accordingly continue to pile
pressure until a settlement is reached that is based on our demands.

In the meantime we do not recognise Mugabe as the President of Zimbabwe. We insist that he should not be invited in the SADC heads of state summit that takes place in South Africa on 15-17 August 2008. We shall accordingly protest his presence here. We call on COSATU members in Gauteng, as well as all progressive civil society formations and other freedom lovers to join us to register our disgust
at his presence through a march we are organising for 16 August 2008.

In this summit we shall present the draft programme we developed in the preparations meeting for discussion and adoption. We want a total isolation of Mugabe and his cronies.

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Botswana's Bravado

All hail Botswana as the first African country to refuse to recognize the sham government of Robert Mugabe. According to reports in the Botswanan media, the government of Botswana felt that the events leading up to the last election were undemocratic so therefore the results could not be considered valid. On the other hand, government spokespeople have made it clear that they will consider reevaluating their opinions in the light on current discussions between Mugabe and opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic change.

If only more African leaders had taken off their 'solidarity' blinders and been willing to look truth in the face, the situation in Zimbabwe may have come to a head much sooner, and many more innocent people would still have their lives and livelihoods.

This blog takes a dim view of South African President Mbeki's role in all of this, even given the fact that the role of mediator was foisted upon him by his weak-sister compatriots in the Southern Africa Development Community. The real deciding factor in the current negotiations is whether the deal that western backs of Tsvangirai offer to Mugabe will be enough to satisfy his ZANU-PF henchmen. Part of that deal will likely be immunity from prosecution and a large pile of cash.

If that's what it takes to put Mugabe into mothballs then everyone should jump on it, though one suspects that Mugabe is not quite finished with Zimbabwe. Not by a long-shot.

Mugabe's 'Golden Girl' Wins Africa's First Medal

Despite the fact that she neither lives nor trains anywhere near Zimbabwe and speaks English with a distinctly American accent, children in Harare have been named after her and even the arch-racist Robert Mugabe seems to swoon in her presence.

Last night Kirsty Coventry, swimming for her native Zimbabwe, won silver in the women's 400 meter individual medley. This after attending the spectacular opening night's ceremony - an event that many of her fellow competitors avoided for fear of fatigue.

Let's hope that Ms. Coventry's success will be a shot-in-the-arm for the morale of all Zimbabweans and that further success on her part might melt the heart of the little Hitler of Harare.