When the world realizes that an equilibrium can exist and those few at the top can come crashing down with the will of the many then this world, this humanity can be saved. [James Blood, American anarchist]

Yet I figure the few at the top will surely never realise that equilibrium, which could then mean rather ominously that we are in for the long haul. Dictators, like any other foolhardy human, those adrenalin junkies, drag racers for example, who court death as a form of fun, see Gbabgo and others before him and say, that will never happen to me. We heard it from “analysts” who have said the Maghreb events cannot be supplanted in sub-Sahara Africa, but then we know the human spirit is full of surprises, and James Blood could be right after all.

Given the political posturing and harassment which seems the norm in Zimbabwe these days, it’s easy to wonder what difference any of us can make.

But two pieces of recent news have left me encouraged by the opportunities for small change, at least, and have renewed my conviction that speaking out does matter.

Firstly, Parliament has reconsidered sections of the General Laws Amendment Bill following concerns raised by the public and during the Portfolio Committee review stage. Specifically, sections that would have changed procurement regulations to reduce the power and autonomy of local authorities, and changes in copyright laws which would have restricted the ability to copy and share national legislation have come under scrutiny. As such, Parliament has agreed to rewrite the legislation to omit the problematic sections.

I was also encourage to see a recent report from the Voluntary Media Council of Zimbabwe (VMCZ) which demonstrated the power of their complaints mechanism.

According to VMCZ:

MISA-Zimbabwe filed a complaint with the MCC over a Redds advertisement carried in the Standard Newspaper of 06 March 2011. The advertisement showed the posteriors of four women each holding a bottle of Redds. MISA-Zimbabwe said the advertisement objectifies women. After a complaint was lodged with the MCC, Delta beverages withdrew the advertisement and apologised to MISA-Zimbabwe.

Speaking your mind, voicing your concern really can make a difference.

Subscribe to the Veritas and SAPST mailings to stay informed about events in Parliament, and use the VMCZ complaints mechanism to air your concerns about the media.

Never mind the MDC rallies which were blocked last month.

On Wednesday mourners were beaten at a memorial service organised by the Heal Zimbabwe Trust.

And now today, riot police stormed a prayer for peace. According to the statement below from Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights, they assaulted congregants who were inside and outside the church, and they used tear gas to disperse congregants.

Ironically, according to ZLHR, one objective of the service was to “commemorate the events of the 11 March 2007 Save Zimbabwe Prayer Meeting, where one activist Gift Tandare was shot dead while over 100 political and human rights activists were arrested, tortured and detained through similar heavy-handed police action.”

Read the full ZLHR statement below:

ZLHR condemns police abuses in suppressing prayer for peace

Anti-riot police on Saturday 9 April 2011 violently stormed and suppressed a church service organised to pray for peace in Glen Norah suburb of Harare.

The church service had originally been scheduled for St Peters Kubatana Centre in Highfields, but the venue was changed after police camped in Highfields overnight and sealed off the venue to block people from accessing the grounds.

A truck load of riot police carrying tear gas rifles and truncheons descended on the Nazarene Church in Glen Norah while the service was underway, stormed the church hall during prayer, and dispersed the congregation, which included many church, civic and community leaders.

The police, numbering about 20, assaulted congregants who were inside and outside the church and used tear gas to drive congregants out of the church and eventually out of the volatile suburb.

The police went on to indiscriminately fire tear gas canisters at residences and churches surrounding the venue of the church service. Even children who were within and outside the parameters of the church were affected by the tear smoke and the police clampdown.

The police arrested Pastor Mukome, the Resident Priest at the Nazarene Church, Pastor Isaya and some other congregants.

A team of lawyers from Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) observed police indiscriminately arresting people walking near the environs of the Church of Nazarene even after they had suppressed the service and hounded congregants out of the suburb.

ZLHR lawyers have been deployed to attend to those who have been arrested.

The service was organised by a coalition of churches under the theme “Saving Zimbabwe . . . the unfinished journey”. The church service was aimed at presenting an opportunity to pray for peace in Zimbabwe as part of the process of finishing the journey to save the country. It was also meant to commemorate the events of the 11 March 2007 Save Zimbabwe Prayer Meeting, where one activist Gift Tandare was shot dead while over 100 political and human rights activists were arrested, tortured and detained through similar heavy-handed police action.

ZLHR unreservedly condemns the events of Saturday 9 April 2011 and the indiscriminate violence meted out by police whose responsibility is to see that fundamental freedoms such as freedom of assembly, expression and worship, are enjoyed by all Zimbabwe citizens. Such criminal behaviour makes a mockery of the SADC Troika Communique, issued in Livingstone on 31 March 2011 in which the Zimbabwe government was warned to immediately end the harassment, arbitrary arrests, intimidation and violence which is currently prevailing in the country. It also calls into question the sincerity of pleas from political players such as Oppah Muchinguri who, only the previous day, urged people to turn to prayer as a contribution to efforts towards national healing and reconciliation.

ZLHR urges restraint by the police, an immediate investigation into the unlawful conduct of the police involved in Saturday’s disruptions, and calls for an opening up of space for people to freely assemble, associate and worship rather than the criminalisation of such lawful activities.

Daniel Maposa, Director of Savanna Arts Trust, spoke to me about his work in protest art in Zimbabwe. Click here to listen and read more . . .

Have you faced any political resistance to your work?
Quite a lot, especially during our formative years. We had artists who were arrested in 2007 & 2008 and some were beaten up. We then devised strategies of going around these problems. That is when we said communities should also be able to produce their own work; they should talk to their own issues, instead of us using a top-down approach. We have had events that were banned but we have always found a way out of this. If communities are doing it, it is difficult to ban because it is a movement from that particular community.

Upenyu Makoni-Muchemwa recently interviewed Farai Muguwu a Zimbabwean activist working in the area of natural resource extraction and its effect on local communities. Here’s an excerpt from the interview but please visit this link to read and listen to more.

What do you foresee in the future for Marange and by extension Zimbabwe’s natural resources and their extraction?

I think Marange diamonds are the tip of the iceberg. It’s revealing the secretive nature of the extractive sector in Zimbabwe whereby you have the political elites getting into some dirty partnerships with some foreign business people to milk these resources under the guise of black empowerment. There is really no transparency, no accountability and no political will to ensure that these resources have downstream effects on the ordinary Zimbabwean. It’s not just about diamonds. There are many funny companies, which just arrive in these rural areas and start mining. There is no consultation with the local leadership, there is no participation of the local population, and there is no tangible benefit to the local community. It’s something that our government has allowed and they have participated in this corruption. We can’t expect Zimbabweans to benefit from these natural resources. They have been corruptly acquired by individuals and groups and they are not willing to let go, and therefore there is a need to see this natural resource extraction as a serious human rights issue which is contributing to further impoverishment of rural communities

Would you like a be.Inspired newspaper filled with interesting and amusing examples of activism and defiance from around the world? Please email your name and postal address to products [at] kubatana [dot] net with Inspiration in the subject line. You won’t be disappointed. As always we would appreciate it if you share your copy with friends.