Features

The race for Zimbabwe’s resources

Udo W. Froese

2009-11-05, Issue 456

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/features/60019

Printer friendly version

There is 1 comment on this article.

cc Sokwanele‘Greedy colonial-racist interests’ are ‘the common historic cause for Africa’s woes’, including those of Zimbabwe, Udo W. Froese writes in this week’s Pambazuka News. The ‘Rhodesian lobby’ has 'to date worked hard at destabilising and isolating Zimbabwe' in order to retain its 'interests in agriculture, mining and resources', Froese argues. The Movement for Democratic Change’s links to this lobby and to the West, Froese suggests, make the party a ‘non-starter’. ‘SADC heads-of-state would find it difficult to support an old colonial, race-based order, where their kith-and-kin have no access to land and the wealth of their land,’ writes Froese.

It is much clearer today in 2009 that every African country governed by a former popular black African struggle movement against Caucasian international Western colonialism, is under severe pressure. This includes particularly those countries that trade with China, who bear the brunt of the interfering US/UK/EU/Canadian/Australian/Israeli punishment. African countries included in this unfair war-of-attrition and destabilisation are Kenya, Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Madagascar and of course, Zimbabwe.

During the times of the Cold War there was a balance of power between the Soviet Bloc of nations and the international West. History reveals that ‘the Soviet and Cuban intervention was to undermine China’s influence in Africa rather than to help the MPLA (Angola’s ruling party) to win for its own sake, or even to weaken Western influence’. In fact, this is documented as early as in April 1976, in two essays in the book After Angola: The war over southern Africa – The Role of the Big Powers by Colin Legum, and How the MPLA won in Angola, by Tony Hodges.

It is recorded history that the Chinese backed Zimbabwe’s President Robert Mugabe in his struggle against colonial British Rhodesia.

RACE FOR ZIMBABWE’S RICHES

Meanwhile, the Rhodesian lobby has finally come out in full force. Their influential lobby, well used by the international West, has to date worked hard at destabilising and isolating Zimbabwe in order to retain its interests in agriculture, mining and resources, otherwise also known as ‘land’.

Their henchmen have been deployed and have thrown their considerable weight behind the protection of the forever hopeful deputy minister of agriculture in Harare, the MDC’s Roy Bennett, as well as the CEO of British mining company African Consolidated Resources plc (ACR), Andrew Cranswick. Both have made their respective contributions to political party MDC-T, led by Morgan Tsvangirai.

Bennett, a white commercial farmer in Zimbabwe, is a known funder of the MDC-T. Researchers in history and politics delved into the background of Roy Bennett as well as that of Andrew Cranswick. They claim that Bennett was a member of the notorious Selous Scouts. Bennett also served as a policeman in Ian Smith’s Rhodesian government.

His colleague, David Coltart, revealed that Bennett had served in the British South African Police, founded by the British arch-conqueror of Africa, Cecil John Rhodes.Roy Bennett was also a member of Ian Smith’s Rhodesian Front (RF) political party. As soon as that had fallen apart, Bennett assisted to create two white, right wing political parties and later threw his weight behind the MDC, urging his fellow Rhodesians to follow suit.

Then there is Andrew Cranswick, the Rhodesian born Zimbabwean, shareholder and CEO of the British mining company, African Consolidated Resources. In their admission to the London Stock Exchange’s AIM, on 30 June 2006 ACR plc stated under the sub-title ‘Operational Focus’ in paragraph seven:

‘Zimbabwe is a highly rich mineral province – in 1975 the country was ranked as the fifth largest gold producer in the world. Zimbabwe also has one of the best documented geological databases of the world’s developing nations, with a sophisticated mining environment and continues to possess an excellent logistics infrastructure when compared with most other African states.’

Andrew Cranswick publicly threatened that Zimbabwe is under US/UK/EU/Canadian/Australian/Israeli sanctions, ‘a fate that would befall anyone who dared to take a stake in the diamond fields (of Marange)’. ACR plc took over the diamond claim of Marange in Zimbabwe from De Beers. The global diamond cartel distanced itself from its diamond fields at independence of Zimbabwe in April 1980. Only two years ago, Cranswick and his British ACR went into operation of Marange.

Zimbabwe’s ministry of mines as well as the judiciary would be well advised to re-visit the agreement De Beers entered into with the Rhodesian regime. It would make good sense if an astute team of expert researchers and mining and contractual law specialists would re-visit the transfer of the diamond mining rights from De Beers to ACR plc in 1980.

It would also make good business sense to investigate the agreements since then and whether or not the land had been dormant and thus, the DeBeers ‘sale’ of the Marange licenses would by now have been forfeited. Which government and which ministry signed those mining rights over to ACR plc, when and under what conditions?

Meanwhile, ACR offered the Zimbabwean government (whom exactly?) an equity partnership in this venture and still seems to await a response. According to Cranswick, ‘the board remains hopeful that good sense will prevail and the deposit can be exploited for the good of all Zimbabweans’. Zimbabwe’s minister of finance, the MDC’s Tendai Biti, backs the aforementioned approach.

It is the same similar tactic the world diamond cartel, De Beers, has pushed through in many of the diamond producing countries. These include Botswana (DebTswana), Namibia (NamDeb) and South Africa (De Beers).

It seems Zimbabwe would have to follow that example. Until this has happened the diamond cartel will stop at nothing to discredit Zimbabwe’s diamond industry. Zimbabwe could be facing expulsion from the international diamond community and the Kimberly Process Certification. The diamonds could even be declared as ‘illegal blood and conflict diamonds’.

THE STRUGGLE FOR SUCCESSION

Zimbabwe’s president Mugabe expressed his disapproval of senior officials’ involvement in the diamond industry. He described it as an industry where ‘suspicion could easily be raised’. Mugabe asked, ‘How do you become involved in this sort of thing when you are a Politburo member, partnering white businessmen, why?’

Retired general and war hero, Solomon Tapfumanei (directly translated: How did you get this rich?) Mujuru, alias Rex Nhongo, is the only Politburo member who is publicly known to have a direct interest in Zimbabwe’s diamond fields. As a Zanu PF member of parliament he serves on the board of the diamond field, River Ranch Limited.

General Mujuru is allegedly also a close friend and business ally of Andrew Cranswick. His legal counsel at River Ranch Limited is George Smith. Smith is a retired judge who served under Ian Smith and Robert Mugabe as a cabinet secretary. It is interesting to observe that Mujuru’s role is never publicly questioned, as he remains a war hero. Meanwhile, he has amassed great wealth over the years.

The Zanu PF committee of Matabeleland North under its governor, the current minister of mines, Obert Mpofu, also comprises Solomon Mujuru, Thoko Mathuthu and former minister of finance, Simba Makoni.

It is further alleged that Mujuru is often labelled as Zanu PF’s ‘kingmaker’. This misconception seems to come from some of his loyal army supporters. If this would be the case, President Mugabe would have long been ousted, as the retired general is certainly not on the side of the president.

The fugitive director of the failed NMB Bank in Harare, James Mushore, is Mujuru’s nephew. Mushore allegedly exposed the rather limited influence of his uncle when he flew to London early 2004.

Despite his wife, Joyce’s position as deputy president of Zimbabwe, retired General Mujuru’s political influence seems waning. According to well-informed sources, Mujuru has no presidential ambitions, yet wants to have his ally as president of Zimbabwe.

But, Mugabe’s criticism of Politburo members’ participation in Zimbabwe’s diamond run seems to have marginalised Mujuru further. His wife Joyce is of lesser influence than ever before, the same senior sources say. Like in most African countries, the above-mentioned financially and politically ambitious elite could at best be described as the ‘native assistants of the G-8’.

Dr Tafataona Mahoso, head of Zimbabwe’s Media Commission described the above scenario in an article of the New African news magazine aptly, ‘The Africans in these business bodies are mainly managers or subsidiary shareholders of a residual Rhodesian rump capital which does not want a proper African national business class.’ In fact, such behaviour undoes what Mugabe tried to build in his lifetime.

THE HISTORIC OUTCOME

In above context, the likes of Tsvangirai, Biti, Mukoko, Bennett, Cranswick, the Rhodies and their MDC simply are non-starters, despite, or most likely because of their aggressive support of the international West.

Their sponsors push them. It is realistic fact that not one of the heads-of-state of the SADC region will allow any one of them to mislead them, no matter what Tsvangirai tells Mozambique’s Guebusa, South Africa’s Zuma, Angola’s Dos Santos or DR Congo’s Kabila. The ‘Government of National Unity (GNU)’ stands. That’s fact too. SADC heads-of-state would find it difficult to support an old colonial, race-based order, where their kith-and-kin have no access to land and the wealth of their land.

The international West led by Washington DC and its sanctions against Zimbabwe ordered the MDC-T’s Tsvangirai to take out the chestnuts from the burning fire. In other words, Tsvangirai would have to get his party colleague Roy Bennett out of the serious trouble he finds himself in. Honestly now, which head-of-state would allow that?

Meanwhile, the Zanu PF-led government under President Mugabe remains under international Western pressure in their hope for a ‘regime change’. And of late, the diamond industry is being used to assist.

The foreign-funded and owned ‘civil society’ has long showed its hand as the tool to implement destabilisation on a grand scale. The foreign ownership of ‘civil society’ and their aims and goals for all SADC members are also known to the respective heads-of-state.

A further tactic to isolate Zimbabwe from the SADC raised its ugly head. A Namibian on-line community publishes its virulent attacks against Zimbabwe’s diamond industry on the Internet. After some research, the reality came to the fore – it is just another tactic to destroy the relations between the two countries and isolate Zimbabwe further. When Zimbabwe’s senior minister Emerson Mnangagwa visited Windhoek, Namibia recently, his hotel room was broken into and all his belongings were stolen. Both above mentioned actions are not Namibian. Namibia’s name is being abused.

Whatever the international West plans to achieve its ‘regime change project’ in Zimbabwe, both MDCs would most likely not be part of the historic developments. The ruling Zanu PF might undergo various changes, rejuvenation, possibly even a modification of the name. But, Zimbabweans, Africans know that they are not part of the self-interested international Western strategies for their continent.

The harder and more desperate the international Western attempts to re-colonise Africa become, the broader the gap between the two cultures.

All of Africa’s wars, strife and problems are of typically ruthless materialistic nature. But, they are not an African creation. Greedy colonial-racist interests are the common historic cause for Africa’s woes.

BROUGHT TO YOU BY PAMBAZUKA NEWS

* Udo W. Froese is based in Johannesburg, South Africa.
* Please send comments to editor@pambazuka.org or comment online at Pambazuka News.

Readers' Comments

Let your voice be heard. Comment on this article.

↑ back to top