Zimbabwe civic organisations ZimRights and Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) recently issued a joint statement drawing attention to the rising repression directed at human rights defenders in this country.

The statement says that various members of the ZimRights board have received threatening text messages.

ZimRights and ZLHR also said:  “We urge the inclusive government and particularly the co-Home Affairs Ministers and the Police Commissioner-General to unequivocally guarantee the safety of all these human rights defenders and to assure them of their security pending full investigations into the alleged threats.”

Here are some of the text messages:

Nunurai Jena, ZimRights Regional Chairperson for Mashonaland West received a message saying, “If we give you a task to ask your ZimRights colleagues to slow down and forget about the constitution making process will you do that or else…? Just comply.”

Chitungwiza regional chairperson, Netsai Kaitano’s message read, “Chipositori nekodzero, kana matongerwo enyika zvinopindirana papi? (How are apostolic faith and rights or politics linked?) Have you forgotten the pain of those beatings. Bidi and Tsunga are gone, Pelagia, Ok, Phulu and Tshuma won’t be there anymore, when we will come for you.”

Jabulisa Tshuma, the organisation’s treasurer’s message said, “Mr Treasurer Tshuma, who are your sponsors? You are all over the country. Are you turning ZimRights into a political party? What is the motive of your donors?”

Please get in touch with ZimRights and send them a message of solidarity.

And while these abuses take place under the Government of National Unity, the MDC is responsible for them. Email the MDC on mdc.internationalrelations@gmail.com and ask them to demand a full investigation.

For Mugabe’s birthday we asked subscribers what gift they thought he should give to Zimbabwe. Responses have continued to come in, with retirement – and civil servants salaries – as the most popular suggestions. Here is some more of what people had to say:

• Retirement letter.
• THE OLD MAN SHOULD JUST RETIRE AND GIVE OTHERS A CHANCE
• He should retire
• Goodbye Zimbabwe i quit.
• The best he can give
• Civil servant salaries
• Cde President is going to offer us nothing good yesterday
• The gift is Mugabe must increase civil servants salary tired of paying incetives
• Act  on  allows  and  salaries  for  civil  servants
• Let him cushion the civil service.
• Mugabe should give back Zimbabwe  to the people as a bday present.
• Birthday gift – taking a final break and deserved rest.
• One act of kindness
• A new beggining to zim and let the young stars rule
• The greatest gift to the people would to fully implement GPA and for put the interests of Zimbabwe first and ZANU(PF)’s.
• Mugabe should give Zimbabweans a special gift of leaving the office!
• HE SHOULD RESIGN AD CAL 4 ELECTIONS. O GIVE PRESIDENT TSVANGIRAI OTHORITY 2 LED E NATION 4 HIS SAFE EXIT. MORE INFO ON POLITICAL
• Mugabe have  to give  his position to Tsvangirai as a gift to Zimbabwe.
• His retirement
• HE WIL GIVE POVERTY AND DESPAIR
• Mugabe will give us   suffering  and hunger. M D C dont  lay us  down we  trust you! you  are   the  angels of  us we support you thank you.
• Mugabe should give a resignation letter 2 Zimbabweans as a gift
• He must step down…
• Resigination is the only present we need from Bob.
• Mugabe must give us his resignation today
• The greatest gift to the people would to fully implement GPA and for once put the interests of Zimbabwe first and ZANU(PF)’s last.
• To resign or give civil servants ngoda & better salaries
• He should give back the legimate winner  of 2008 election
• Give the country to others he is old enough
• His farewell speech!
• Mugabe should just QUIT his position as president & admit TOTAL FAILURE.this would be the best gift he can ever give to the suffering Zimbabweans.
• Freedom
• RESIGNATION LETTER
• The gift packet should have freedom
• The president shld give Zim a budget for the construction of roads and fixture of water pipes. Thank you.
• HE  SHOULD  SAY  PUBLIC  I  HAVE  WALKED   MY  JNY WELL. ‘ NOW   ITS  MY  TIME  TO  REST ‘
• He should give democracy to zim
• Retirement
• He should leave the office  for retering (step down) he is old  (dhokoza remunhu) mombe yakadya plastic iri nani.
• Mugabe should assure zimbabweans that he is resigning from active politics as a matter of urgency.
• Mugabe ìs going to iam going to gvn this cantìry til ìdie.
• Mugabe should be given a farewell birthday wish because he has long lived enough to destroy our country
• The best he should do for the country of Zimbabwe on his birthday’s to handover power to young
• A gift which we are expecting from Mugabe is He must resin from the G.V.T
• It’s only  his resignation as it worth more than a fleet of luxurious cars.
• Apology&Resignation.
• He should parcel out more land for agric purposes
• Mugabe will give Zimbabweans
• Mugabe should give a gift of a good farewell live on the national broadcaster .
• Mugabe will offer nothing. Shd only offer  is  2  resign. Thank  you.
• Retirement!!!
• He shouid announce his retirement .Release  Tony Bennet and appoint him Deputy Minister of Agricultare.Fire Tomana and Gideon Gono .Have free and fair elections internationally supervised .Repeal draconian laws such as Aippa and Posa .Equal righs for Gays and Lesbians Legalize gay marriages.
• to give power to mdc t leader
• Resignation and Bennet please thats the gift
• Resignation letter
• Mgabe’s gift to Zim should be a  resignation as of y’st’ yr.
• THE BEST GIFT ROBERT SHOULD GIVE ZIM IS TO GIVE US A REST BY RETIRING IN HIS RURAL ZVIMBA.
• He should call it quits and give us peace of mind.
• THE BIGGEST BIRTHDAY PRESENT FRM MUGABE TO ZIM AND THE WORLD IS FOR HIM TO STEP DOWN OR DIE .
• The best birthday present we can get from mugabe is for him to resign ‘pronto’
• He must gve zmbwns peace by resigning.
• Nothing good we can expect from this old man except spending huge amount of taxpayers’money.
• His retirment in April on the 3Oth Ind.day.
• He should give up democracy not dictatorship
• MUGABE MUST GAVE ZIM FREEDOM AND PEACE
• RETIREMENT
• Mugabe should give the nation a present of retirement on his birthday.
• The ONLY greatest gift Old Bob can give to the people of Zimbabwe is RESIGNATION!!PERIOD.
• The only gift mugabe should give Zimbabweans is the fulfilment of what he has signed for in the Global Political Agreement.
• Resign and disappear from the face of this earth he has caused too much suffering
• Resignation
• The present dat mugabe shld gve zim is his presidency. Nothn more
• Mugabe’s ONLY acceptable gift 2 Zimbabweans on his birthday ………. RETIREMENT
• I THINK HE MUST GIVE US A PRESENT OF ANOUNCING HIS RETIREMENT AND CALL FOR ELECTIONS
• Mugabe will never give Zimbawe any benefit but is eroding the contry
• He should hav announced his resignation
• The best present he can give Zim is to bring sanity to Zesa and telone. Their rates are  ridiculously high. A look at rentals too is long overdue. Zim 4 RESIGNING OR OWNERING ALL OUTSTANDING GPA ISSUES.
• The best gift R.G. can give us as Zmbabweans is to resign.
• As he approaches 90 Mr Mugabe should give back the country to the people of Zimbabwe. The Presidential chair must surely be getting uncomfortable after so long in it, let him give it back to the country and move into something more suitable to his age. It is not too late for the people to accept this gesture and in return give him the benefit of a dignified old age. This is something which he may never know if he does not reach a compromise and step down now.
• The best Birthday present the ‘President’ should give to this country  is tell us that he is winding up his political career and Zimbabweans should prepare for a ‘difficult’ life after him and we should learn to be ‘self reliant’ because he has tried his best to ‘empower’ us. He should sign off by saying “Don’t cry for me Zimbabwe”!
• A good gift would be to apologise for the Gukurahundi massacre
• what i think mugabe should do as he celebrate his 86 birthday is to handover total power to Mr Richard Morgan Tsvangirai for our better future and of our kids
• The only acceptable and appreciated gift every Zimbabwean can wish to get from this oldest dictator on the planet on his birthday is to resign
• As he approaches 90 Mr Mugabe should give back the country to the people of Zimbabwe. The Presidential chair must surely be getting uncomfortable after so long in it, let him give it back to the country and move into something more suitable to his age. It is not too late for the people to accept this gesture and in return give him the benefit of a dignified old age. This is something which he may never know if he does not reach a compromise and step down now.

Bev and I were interviewed last month as part of the Global Voices research project and podcast series Technology for Transparency research project. Victor Kanoga asked us some interesting questions about what we do, why we do it, and what difference it makes. It’s a bit rough and ready – we know from our experience with Inzwa how difficult it can be to accurately transcribe recorded interviews, particularly when they’re conducted over the phone. But it’s still a useful overview of our work and some of the challenges we’re facing. You can read more – and listen – here.

Citizen activist Michael Laban has done a great job of sharing some feedback with us on various local community meetings he’s attended lately.

Her are some interesting snippets:

Ward 7: we again had no word, no apology, no excuse, from our Councillor, Masiya Kapare. Just . . . blank. Strikes me he serves the MDC – his party, and not the residents – the people who elected him.

Ward 8: I attended a Ward 8 meeting at Highlands Church, and that was well attended (over 100 people). The Councilor was there and ran the meeting with some skill, and there were many Heads of Departments there, who answered questions! I was impressed.

Waste:  The city needs 45 vehicles to do the job, it only has 8. 20 new vehicles are ‘under negotiation’. However, has the City (and everyone around it) learnt the lessons? The vehicles need to be maintained, which cost money you cannot put into your pocket, and you have to hire and pay qualified people to maintain them, not your friends (all of whom need to be fired to pay those qualified).

Parliamentary Portfolio Meeting: The city is in chaos. Most significant fact – the budget/finances have not been audited in ten years! People have been billed for water for 3 years, but not received any water in that time. Then, the first thing the city does is buy nice, fancy cars. Is it a wonder people just don’t pay – if they do not know where the money is going, why should they? There are tolls on the roads, but the potholes are still there.

Corruption: Just too much. From the airport road to allocation of stands.

Students in tertiary institutions have faced a lot of challenges in their academic lives due to the governance crisis in Zimbabwe. Hence the Student Christian Movement of Zimbabwe has given them a platform to say out their anger and bitterness through the ‘I’ Stories Booklet, aimed at helping the students to heal, accept and forgive.

I spoke to the National Coordinator of the Student Christian Movement of Zimbabwe, Mr Innocent Kasiyano, and asked him why they put together the ‘I’ Stories Booklet. I also ask him what challenges were highlighted in the booklet that students are currently facing in tertiary institutions and what the vision of the Students Christian Movement of Zimbabwe is. Listen here

ZimRights recently engaged in various consultative meetings around Zimbabwe to get grassroot views on the constitution.

According to the feedback they received, Zimbabweans “have expressed concern over the president’s term of office” while registering other demands, such as:

- No one over the age of 60 should be President

- Each President should serve a maximum of two five year terms

- A President’s age should not be less than 40

- Every person who gets into office must first declare all their assets

Sounds reasonable except in Africa where scared old men cling to power.