Harare (Fides Service)- “Make war on poverty rather than on the poor” said representatives of the Christian Churches in Zimbabwe in an appeal in which they joined the opposition and civil society in calling on the government to stop security forces vexation of poor people.
In the capital Harare police continue to arrest street vendors, their poor barrows and dwellings. Besides the Protestant Churches the appeal was signed also by the Justice and Peace Commission of the local Catholic Church, the association of human rights lawyers, the Human Rights Trust of Southern Africa and representatives of the university world.
Today in Zimbabwe 80 per cent of the population of 11 million is unemployed. President Robert Mugabe’s policy of land re-distribution destroyed the country’s economy. Zimbabwe once south Africa’s granary is now dependent on foreign food aid the crisis is affecting neighbour countries who used to buy food from Harare.
While poverty tightens its grip on the nation the government increases its means to control the people and repress opposition. Despite the desperate economic conditions the government assigned more funds to the armed forces and the Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO) which recently acquired technology to control and block communications, telephone, television and radio at home and to and from abroad.
Mugabe’s latest campaign is against street vendors. These people were convinced by Mugabe with a 1991 law to become street vendors to encourage private businesses. Now the pressure is on. Already 500 families have been told to evacuate homes in an outer northern district of Harare despite a 2002 Housing Ministry agreement.
The Opposition says that President Mugabe wants to send most of the poor people away from cities back to rural areas where they can be more easily controlled by distribution of the scarce food supplies in the hands of the President’s supporters. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides 30/5/2005 righe 43 parole 390)