I met a distraught woman this week and my went heart to pieces. This is a fifty something year-old Zimbabwean grandmother who I see each day and pass the usual greetings and that’s where it ends – no personal stories, just the mutual goodwill that comes with African ubuntu. She went on and on about how she had made two long trips to the city’s largest referral hospital on foot and wasn’t looking forward to making another two trips the next day. Who are you visiting there and what are the doctors saying is the problem? I ask. No, the person died last week and the people at the hospital have been giving us all sorts of stories about why they have not been able to perform a post-mortem so that we may be able to begin funeral arrangements, the poor woman says. All this has taken seven days, I exclaim in disbelief. Ah, other people who came after us have had their post-mortem papers and left to bury their relatives and I think the hospital staff wants us to give them money for the post-mortem to be done and the body released to us. There she said it! Let’s be grim and morbid a bit: Imagine a relative rotting in what we know are malfunctioning morgues just because some poorly paid government person wants a bribe? Is that what the hardships here have turned us into? They say all this evil began at the top, but I refuse to be turned into that group of Africans for whom African-ness long departed from their consciousness and conscience. I wish I could go on about the poor woman’s grief but I’m so damn pissed off.

Just come back from two trips to Eastern Highlands. Tolls both times, both ways. Now, I’ve seen a newspaper that says, “$15 million has been collected. Toll booths built. Roads paved.”

The only pavement I have seen laid is the rumble strips at the approach to these toll booths.

No potholes have been filled, edges maintained. I haven’t seen a new sign, or even new road markings painted.

Strikes me the whole scheme is job creation. New employees, or old employees now able to sit outside. And new places for the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) to sit and do nothing (which they do so well).

And I see ‘new’ things (who sold them those?). E.g. caravans, road cones, porta loos, solar panels.

Can someone show me, (not tell me), the point of this exercise? Not verbage – aims, objectives, uses, plans – but actual things? What has been done aside from collecting $15 million?

A couple of months ago Amanda Atwood blogged about a faith healing leaflet she found pushed under her door. Apparently the astrologer, herbalist and healer Dr Nkhaima can, amongst other things, help you if your privates are either too big, or too small.

Herbalists of fine talents abound!

A classified advert in the most recent Mail & Guardian publicises the work of Dr Allen, who can solve all your problems. His list includes:

- Bring back lost lover (R200)
- Magic stick to bring your money (R550)
- Magic wallet for double change (R200)

Apparently unfinished jobs are welcome . . .

The Zimbabwe Election Support Network (ZESN) has just issued the following press statement:

ZESN sent a delegation to Kenya to draw lessons on the constitutional review process and the referendum. Kenya has come a long way on its journey in making a new constitution and finally on the 4th of August 2010, the Kenyans voted for a new constitution. Kenya shares a number of similarities with Zimbabwe, namely that both were British colonies in the past, both have had a Lancaster House Constitutions, and more importantly that both currently have power sharing governments that emanated from the contested elections results. They also experienced post-election violence after their polls. Similar to Zimbabwe as part of the power sharing settlement they had to make a new constitution before elections which are scheduled in 2012 after all the laws had been made.

While the two countries share some similarities, they are unique in a number of ways. Notwithstanding these unique attributes, a number of lessons can be drawn from the Kenyan experience and this statement provides reflections on the lessons we can draw from the Kenyan experience.

* In their efforts to draft a new constitution, the Kenyans did not begin from scratch. They built on the progressive aspects of previous drafts such as the Bomas draft, the Guy draft and the Naivasha drafts, all drafts which had failed to sail through but from which they were able to sift through and get the positive aspects.
* There was a commitment from the onset that Kenyans would do participate in the referendum meaningfully. This was ensured through the provision of civic education by the Committee of Experts and the civic society groups.
* A Committee of Experts was set up to be in charge of the drafting of a new constitution and this committee was responsible for taking submissions from the public in written form. After this process, the committee presented the first draft to the citizens to make comments on. It is interesting to note the stage at which the people participated in the process. Drafts of the constitutions were disseminated in a number of languages and millions of copies were circulated for people to make their submissions.
*  Kenya had a clear road map for the review process and there were timeframes for each activity that were adhered to, hence they were able to keep the timeframe for the drafting of the new constitution and putting it to referendum within the agreed timeframes.
* More importantly, the constitution review process for Kenya was rooted in an act of parliament entitled the Constitution of Kenya Review Act of 2008 which provided benchmarks for the constitution making process and the manner in which it would be done. In addition, Kenya had comprehensive referendum regulations which had been made by the newly sworn in Interim Independent Electoral Commission (IIEC), an Electoral Code of Conduct and an Election Offences Act for political parties enshrined in an Act of Parliament. All these legal provisions provided for a transparent and open process that increased the credibility, openness, transparency and inclusiveness of the review process and the IIEC.
* There was a strong political will to follow the provisions of the legal framework that had been put in place for the review process. ZESN noted that all stakeholders were consulted in all processes; there was constant dialogue and collaboration between the IIEC, civic society, media, and the Committee of Experts. This solid relationship made processes such as accreditation of observers less cumbersome.
* The success of the referendum was a function of number of factors. There was the political will to follow the spirit of the laws that had been enacted specifically for the constitutional review process.
* Violence early warning systems were put in place by civic society organisations to provide early warnings for possible violent hotspots and deter the ensuing of violence. These were published in state and private media.
* The IIEC ensured that over 10000 observers were accredited for the referendum in order to protect the integrity of the vote.
* Agents for the green (groups in support of the constitution) and reds (groups opposed to the draft constitution) were accredited to monitor the processes.
* Campaigns for the constitution and against the constitution were closely monitored for the presence of hate speech and any aspects that violated the Electoral Offences Act.
* Results were announced timeously and in some polling stations counting was done live on television. The process of tabulating results was open and results were announced with 48 hours.
* While there was opposition to the draft constitution especially on issues of abortion and Islamic courts these issues did not take away the fact that the Kenyan constitution was a progressive document   crafted in an inclusive and participatory manner by all stakeholders.

In conclusion, ZESN observed that the constitution review process in Kenya was grounded in a solid legal framework with benchmarks that provided timelines and specifications for the conduct of the process. Processes were not left to chance. In additions, institutions responsible for the review and the conduct of the referendum that is the committee of experts and the IIEC respectively were independent in the carrying out of their mandate and were open to the scrutiny of civil society and all stakeholders.

Once more we travel the spiral.

Once more, it is the dry season
beige grasses laid to waste on pink soils
dust and gold leaves drifting in gusts of wind

Tree of Life members from the communities and organizations meet at Kufunda to reflect on our journey
It has been a long hard walk
‘where have we been?’
‘where are we going?’

Slender resources  have begun to take their toll
faces in the circle are drawn with the hardships they have endured
they spoke of the difficulties of healing in the continuance of adversity
and of the debilitating effects of lack of funding
and of the first tremors of violence that begin to be felt in their communities as talk of the ‘constitution’ and elections fill the air

and we see  how this paucity allows us to loose our trust
and feel,
once again,
our isolation.

It is the dry season

but the days grow longer
and warmer
and life begins to stir
old familiar patterns….

Small explosions punctuate time
as Masasa pods split
flinging flat round seeds to the winds

The promise of the future forest

In the dry branches, feathers are displayed, nesting material  collected, territories  claimed
and birds of prey sit in the tree tops – waiting

As if touched by magic
the faded bush is lit with crimson flashes of flowering Erythrinas
and Masasas begin pumping underground water into new leaves of red and gold

waiting for the rains

Sitting under the thatch, remembering who we are,
the roots that hold us in this ground
Remembering the moments of inspiration
the magic of what has been done
and been forgiven
and how far we have come
and the faces lightened

Remembering the agreements which hold us together
the connections between us
and the web of people out there in the world who have held us in their hearts

remembering our resources

And at the centre of the circle there is the deep knowing that this is the work we have chosen to do,
the work of nourishing this growing forest
for it is only in healing that we can resist our old fears

Outside the thatched rondavel
the granite rocks echo our laughter
and small insects fill the air with a throbbing hum

life continues

Out there, in the confines of our tiny solar system,
Venus and Mars and Saturn and Mercury
slip past each other at sunset
and move to the other side
of our modest sized star

The rat in the A-frame has discovered a way of levering the fitted lid off the bird seed tin
does he stand on the top and bounce?

everything is everything

Everyone knows by now that Zimbabwe’s education has deteriorated to levels that will be tough to reverse without any radical policy changes. Other commentators have however opined that until there is a new political dispensation, we cannot expect any real change for the better, which could in effect rather ominously mean these woes will be with us indefinitely – of course with the post-September 2008 political power games being read as pointers to predict the country’s future. Others have pointed at the diamond windfall as just what the doctor ordered to fix the abject education and health services, but inveterate pessimists who know gemstones in the hands of an African politician are not holding their breath.

There still is unabated brains flight in the country’s once awed institutions of higher learning as academics apply for or are offered staff development programmes outside the country but never return to their varsities. And with good reason, some would say. Meanwhile, students who graduate with what have been mocked as unbaked degrees return as teaching assistants, something that would be frowned upon by serious academics. But then this can be found all over the whole education sector here where unqualified teachers are taking children for their O’ and A’ level classes and straight to university!

As we speak, for the umpteenth time the opening of some varsities has been pushed further and some students are already saying they are imagining the academic year may well begin in December when classes should have begun this month. I know a number of National University of Science and Technology students who have left for South Africa as they say they cannot just sit and wait for the unknown. While they have said they will be coming as soon as they are informed that classes have started, such stories have been heard before with many abandoning their studies altogether after having found jobs during their sojourn. All this despite the fact that once upon a time getting an opportunity to study at university was literally embraced with both hands as it was a guarantee that one was set for life. Now students abandon their studies without any second thoughts, after all they are failing to pay their fees, so why pay the exorbitant fees only to have lecturers absent from their posts? It makes sense then to exchange one’s academic cap for hustling in the mean streets of Johannesburg when a degree ought to provide one with a middle class lifestyle – at least in a normal economy.

Zimbabwean students themselves attending university here are witnessing how standards have gone down and one quipped that while some are quitting their studies and complain that they is no learning going on to give weight and meaning to “degree”, she will stick it out as long as in the end she gets that piece of paper that says she went to university and has “qualifications.” But the circumstances of young people who have university education become heart-rending when other countries we always thought viewed our education with awe become “suspicious” of these university degrees and have second thoughts about employing a Zimbabwean graduate.

A young man told a sad story recently about how his “degree” failed to get him a job in South Africa. You see, he got a degree from one of the “state universities” that were once teacher training institutions, but prospective employers in South Africa told him they did not recognise his institution and therefore his degree. He reports he was told the only Zimbabwean degree these people would accept would be from the University of Zimbabwe, but also with reservations. And their reasons? There is no meaningful education going on in Zimbabwe’s universities! How’s that coming from a bunch of people whose education standards is something people here have always mocked?  Now the young man is back in the country clueless about what to do with his future despite having invested four years of his life studying toward his now useless degree. The superiority of Zimbabwean education is no doubt under scrutiny not just among Zimbabweans themselves, but also in the region if not across the globe and the unfortunate part is that young people who enter university and those who acquire other tertiary qualifications have their sights set on regional and overseas job markets as there are no employment opportunities here to match their “qualifications.” So where does that leave them? Skills development is no doubt every nation’s richest investment that overlaps generations but Zimbabwe’s circumstances raise the spectre of diminished returns, after all students are already virtually teaching each other and graduates being produced out of those “interactions.”  The list of top 500 universities in the world was released recently and some watchers did not even bother to check where ours are placed.