Howzit

I found it of great interest this morning to read on ZW News that the written report on violence against the opposition party, the MDC, by ruling party bodies, such as the CIO, the police, the war veterans and the youth militia, has been dismissed largely by the Home Affairs Minister, Kembo Mohadi.

So it would appear that ZANU PF are not intending to take the report seriously, and obviously have no intention of standing down their perpetrators of this violence.

That Mohadi felt it necessary to claim that the violence needs to be reported to the police and/or ZANU PF directly is a foolhardy statement as many times the very people that are taking the reports are the very perpetrators.

How can it be that the same body that takes the accusations, is the same body that practises that violence?

I note that Mohadi claimed that the reports of violence were ‘hearsay’.

I looked up ‘hearsay’ and perhaps you will see where I am going with this – so just allow me a little latitude here.

“Hearsay”: information heard from another. Evidence based on the reports of others rather than on a witness’ own knowledge, and knowledge, and therefore generally not admissible as testimony.

Now, what of the videos that we have seen on the internet of the violence? The beatings handed out to women in African Unity Square? What of the pictures of the MDC hierarchy lying in hospital held together with bandages? Are they classed as ‘hearsay’?

What of Mugabe’s praise of the police for perpetrating that violence on the MDC and associated civic groups? What of Mugabe’s threat to repeat the violence?

No one in Mugabe’s government said, “Hang on! Why should we continue with the violence? It’s wrong!”

I then thought to myself, that a simple act of alphabetic lexicon would allow us to arrive at a better word.

Not ‘hearsay’… ‘heresy’!

“Heresy”: a controversial or unorthodox opinion or doctrine in politics, philosophy, science or other fields.

If I am not mistaken, in some countries in the world, a heretic can be executed for their beliefs and actions.

ZANU PF is populated by heretics… The report on violence is not hearsay, but those people who do not wish to come forward are petrified of that same violence being visited upon them again…

The report handed to Mohadi contained the details of 4122 incidents of political violence and human rights abuses were recorded between January and June 2007.

These included seven murders, 18 rapes, 459 cases of torture, 34 cases of discrimination in food aid, 69 abductions, 2323 cases of intimidation, 1141 cases of assault and 152 cases of unlawful detentions.

If Mohadi was sincere in his endeavours to address the problem, there would be alarm bells going off in his head. The figures alone are cause for some concern. There is no way that all of these cases are ‘hearsay’ – it just does not compute.

But Mohadi’s rationale is queered by the ZANU PF thinking.

And therefore, I believe that this tête-à-tête is just a showcase with no intention by the ruling party of mending its ways. The file will be used as a gauge by the ruling party of their success of their oppression of the opposition party and all who stand allied with it.

Take care.

‘debvhu