News From Zimbabwe

Dear Friends,

On the eve of the anticipated official signing ceremony concerning the political settlement in Zimbabwe due to be signed at 10 am Zimbabwe time tomorrow, Monday 15.9.08, civil society has made 8 minimum demands to the transitional period.

Today 14.9.08 resolutions on Transitional Justice options for Zimbabwe were released. These were adopted at a workshop hosted by the Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum. The workshop strongly urged the government of Zimbabwe to consider establishing a transitional justice mechanism. Held in Harare from the 9th – 10th September 2008, the workshop drew participants from a broad spectrum of civil society in Zimbabwe . Participants reiterated their full commitment to truth, justice accountability and the need for sustainable peace in the country. We attach here the statement resulting from the workshop, the resolution concerning the need for transitional justice and the minimum demands for such a process.



The Executive Director of the Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum will be visiting the UK tomorrow Monday 15/9-08. He can give further clarifications. He can be contacted through the Forum’s International Liaison Office, see details below.



Further to the above, the National Association of Non Governmental Organisations (NA NGO ), one of the participants at the above mentioned workshop issued the attached Press Release on 10.09.08 reiterating that Zimbabwean civil society demands transitional justice in the form of justice, truth and reconciliation and demanding that there be no impunity for gross human rights violations.



NA NGO released a further Press Statement on 12.9.08 acknowledging the announcement of the political settlement anticipated to facilitate the possible formation of a unity government, the details of which are yet to be announced. Entitled ‘Not Yet Uhuru’, NA NGO expresses the hope that the agreement will include enforceable interim or transitional rules to guarantee the rule of law and upholding of all fundamental freedoms of assembly, speech and association. NA NGO expresses the particular hope that the agreement will also create an environment conducive for NGO s to carry out their humanitarian, civic education and developmental objectives.



Our member organisation, the Media Monitoring Project of Zimbabwe, (MMPZ) issued the attached Weekly Media Update 2008-26 noting with extreme concern the official media’s ongoing campaign to vilify all alternative sources of information that do not conform to the ‘official view of developments in Zimbabwe’.



Veritas released the attached Bill Watch 36/2008 on 12.09.09 giving an overview of anticipated events this week with regard to the signing ceremony, the composition of a new Government, Parliament and an update on the land case in the SADC Tribunal.



In a further Bill Watch Special of 10.9.08 attached here, there is an update on the lifting of the suspension on NGO Humanitarian Field Work.



Finally, The Combined Harare Residents Association (CHRA) issued the attached statement on 12.9.08 containing disturbing reports of cholera and other diarrhoea related illnesses and deaths around the capital in recent weeks following the deepening water and sewer crisis.