ANB-BIA SUPPLEMENT

ISSUE/EDITION Nr 363 - 01/03/1999

CONTENTS | ANB-BIA HOMEPAGE | WEEKLY NEWS

Zimbabwe

From a reader

by B.M., Zimbabwe, 17 February 1999

THEME = POLITICS

INTRODUCTION

Recently, ANB-BIA published an article in the Supplement of issue number 361, entitled:
"How to hang on to power - Mugabe style" (1 February 1999).
Since then, a reader has sent in some commentaries and updates on this article, which,
because of Zimbabwe's present situation, we think interesting to publish

  • - 1. The collapse of the social services occurred after, not before the government turned to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). It can clearly be shown to be result of their policies; cutting taxes (government income) dictated a cut in expenditure. Civil service salaries and military spending are sacrosanct in a modern state, so the social services make a soft target for cuts. In fact, due to careful management by the then Minister of Finance, Bernard Chidzero, the debt incurred to set up social services was being paid off, and the burden of doing so was decreasing as planned after 1987.
  • - 2. The days of Sunday party meetings are past. They met with too much resistance.
  • - 3. There are about a dozen political parties at the moment and they are mostly pretty vocal. Of course, like many other ruling parties (Botswana's BDP is a fine example) ZANU(PF) knows how to exploit this divisiveness.
  • - 4. While it is true that, even at the last election, determined efforts were made to turf out the six most independent- minded ZANU(PF) Members of Parliament and only one of them secured re-election, there have been signs that Parliament is less of a rubber stamp today than at any time since Ian Smith came to power in 1964. Last year, for the first time, the government budget was debated clause by clause, which took most of a month.
  • - 5. The restrictions of which he speaks on diplomats, exists in many countries and suit their temperament. The only diplomats I am aware of who mix socially with ordinary Zimbaweans, were Cuban or Nicaraguan in the days of "Nicaragua libre", and the ambassadors of Palestine and the new South Africa. The Chinese were the only ones, who, when invited to send someone to visit rural people, sent two cars full of people who sincerely felt confined in their offices. And perhaps we should add the last British Assistant High Commissioner.

    • END

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