Following on from last week’s controversy, a Herald headline today reads: Tsvangirai flip-flops on gay rights.

One gets the impression some Herald editor was appalled at how “positive” last week’s article would have been for Tsvangirai in the eyes of many. I can almost hear the discussion in the newsroom – How dare you write something that makes Tsvangirai look anti-gay? Do you know how much popularity he’s going to gain for that? How much support that will win him? Quick, write something that makes him look pro-gay and tarnish his name again!

The article is venomous and unconstructive, but in the absence of any official statement from the MDC on this issue, is it any wonder that The Herald is taking the opportunity to further muddy the waters.

The content of The Herald article is too petty and preposterous to even engage with. But the point is that, of course, the MDC isn’t, and could never be swayed by a few “wealthy gays.” Who one does hope the MDC can be influenced by, however, are the variety of Zimbabwean individuals and organisations who agree that human rights are indivisible, who value tolerance and diversity, and who are appalled that the MDC would be willing to author a Constitution which discriminates against a minority.

I was more interested in reading the comments on an article about the postponed New Zealand cricket tour to Zimbabwe on NewZimbabwe.com, than the actual article itself. The assertion by David Coltart that Zimbabwe is safer than the UK and other countries is resoundingly accurate. That is if you’re a member of a visiting sports team. But if you’re a human rights defender, an information activist, or a member of the general public who wants to wear an MDC t-shirt, you’re in big trouble. One of the readers who commented on the Coltart article likened Zanu PF to a terrorist organisation. How right, or wrong is this suggestion? Another reader berates Coltart for flip-flopping because until fairly recently, Coltart would have grabbed with two hands, any excuse for a sports boycott whether the grounds for the boycott were defendable, or spurious. Then again, I’d be interested to know whether this same reader who thinks Coltart has flip-flopped would praise Coltart for calling for a boycott of any international soccer team that wanted to play in Zimbabwe? I think not. New Zealand is using security as an excuse. They don’t want to tour Zimbabwe because of the Mugabe regime. And perhaps they have issues with Mugabe being the patron of Zimbabwe cricket. In which case they might well have to stand to attention on the green grass of Harare Sports Club and shake Mr M’s hand. And of course, Coltart, in a bid to woo the Kiwis, like many other politicians, suggests that the GNU has replaced a dictatorship when it clearly hasn’t.

The caption from The Herald front page on Friday sums up more than this photograph – it seems sadly apt for the progress of Zimbabwe’s inclusive government as well: “Morgan Tsvangirai (out of picture).”

Writing in Business Day last week, Allister Sparks argues that Zimbabwe’s inclusive government is not working – and that it needs to be scrapped. Whilst there’s a lot about the inclusive government not working that I’d agree with, the solution Sparks outlines is optimistic – if Mugabe isn’t willing to see the inclusive government work, why would he consider internationally supervised elections in which all citizens can vote – without the ability to gate keep through the voters’ roll. And in the mean time, what about Zimbabwe’s dream of a new Constitution – and a new political framework that guarantees democratic elections which can usher in a government elected freely by the people?

It’s time for South Africa, as the leading power in SADC, to say, “Enough!” If President Zuma has any political balls at all, he should tell Mugabe so during his visit to Harare this week.

He should tell him the GPA is obviously not working, that it is clear Mugabe is determined not to allow it to work, and that the South African Government is therefore going to call on SADC, as guarantor of the deal, to declare it to have been irretrievably violated and so nullified — and to demand the holding of an early election so that a new government with a genuine public mandate can take over.

This election should be supervised — not just observed — by a large team of electoral specialists from the SADC countries, especially South Africa. Moreover it should not be run on the basis of Zimbabwe’s hopelessly defective voters’ roll but by letting all adult citizens vote as has been done with the first elections of all newly independent countries in Africa.

Zuma should tell Mugabe, too, that if he and his ZANU-PF cohorts refuse to accept such a process, South Africa will press for Zimbabwe’s membership of SADC to be suspended, and for any regime that might be unilaterally installed not to be recognised by SADC and the African Union. The country would then be isolated.

Only South Africa has the influence and power to do this. If necessary we could do it unilaterally. It’s time we acted on behalf of the people of Zimbabwe and the whole region, to say nothing of our own image as a nation whose internationally assisted rebirth surely imposes a moral obligation on us.

But don’t hold your breath. Decisiveness is not Zuma’s strong suit on any issue.

From one of Kubatana’s subscribers living in Glen Norah, Harare:

My dreams for Zimbabwe are to see a transformed nation. A nation where rule of law exists. A nation united and growing to be Africa’s power house. My dream for Zimbabwe is to make Zimbabwe the breadbasket that it is supposed to be. It is to see a Zimbabwe with freedom of expression and democracy. I mean real freedom, not talked freedom. To see the politicians respecting the human race; not treating them as their stools to stand on, and only to throw them away. – James

Self interview by Mgcini Nyoni, Poet, Playwright and freelance writer based in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe. With poetry published in FIRE IN THE SOUL 100 poems for human rights (New Internationalist / Amnesty International UK 2009), Intwasa Poetry (Amabooks, Bulawayo 2008), Poetry for Charity Vol 2 (Nigeria 2008). Creative director of Poetry Bulawayo www.poetrybulawayo.webnode.com.

Q: Why poetry?
A: Poetry liberates you. There is no right or wrong way of writing poetry, really. I remember Loyd Robson saying you can paint a picture and call it poetry.

Q: Sounds confusing.
A: Only if you don’t understand poetry. I don’t appreciate hip-hop so I was a bit confused when a hip-hop person was trying to explain that there is good shit and bad shit.

Q: But hip-hop is poetry.
A: What aspect of life is not poetry?

Q: What inspires your poetry?
A: Life. Like if I am thing that I would love bacon with my bread and I can’t afford bacon; It sort of formulates into a poem, like:

they are eating
bacon and eggs
in the state house
The man in rags
eating burnt bread . . .

Q: That’s political.
A: Life is political. Everything can be traced back to a politician either doing well or messing up. Most times they are screwing up.

Q: Is there real hope for poetry?
A: The numbers of artists who write poetry is increasing. And because everyone is literate, there is a lot of self-expression using poetry. Poetry Bulawayo is trying to give all these people a platform.

Q: There is a sort of rebelliousness associated with poetry.
A: Not really. There are people who always take things too far in anything: eating, sex, poetry…

Q: Last word.
A: Brace yourselves; the poetry movement is about to take over the world.