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Hundreds of children are being forced by Zimbabwe's army to dig for diamonds to bankroll senior lieutenants of President Robert Mugabe, a Human Rights Watch investigation has found.
Researchers believe that revenue from illegal trading of the gems is being funnelled to Mugabe's senior lieutenants in his Zanu-PF party, as well as the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe, which has underwritten some military operations. The money could prove a lifeline for Zanu-PF as it regroups ahead of the next election, expected in two years' time.
The report, published today, claims the army is torturing and beating villagers on the diamond fields of Marange district in eastern Zimbabwe. The atrocities follow a massacre last year in which more than 200 people were killed when troops seized control of mining and trading.
The army rapidly formed syndicates, often using forced labour, Human Rights Watch found. It is estimated that up to 300 children continue to work for soldiers in the diamond fields. A 13-year-old girl said: "Every day I would carry ore and only rest for short periods. We always started work very early in the morning, before eight, and finished when it was dark, after six. All I want now is to go back to school."
The HRW report, Diamonds in the Rough, threatens to embarrass the unity government. The prime minister, Morgan Tsvangirai, of the Movement for Democratic Change, has spent the past fortnight trying to convince foreign leaders that its reforms now merit financial support. But the police and army remain under the control of Mugabe's Zanu-PF.
i am simply amazed you are this naive.....you wanna feel sorry for the kids...well the kids in the mines have it a lot better than the little boys forced to go fight in wars.....that still happens....people still kill girl babies since they are of no value....people kill their women like you would kill a spider....look at muslims and the honor killings....i could go on and on but it would just be depressing....
always here to help....
children have no power...no voice....even in this country where we claim to value children...everyone is upset over the death of the king of pedofiles....
btw there is nothing wrong with being naive....why would one truly wish to see the world the way it really is?
The Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association has been a pillar of support for the 92-year-old leader for decades, but it released a statement criticizing the man it had long been quick to defend. The veterans are known for unleashing violence on those opposing the government. The surprise revolt by Mugabe's aging corps of loyalists comes after nationwide anti-government protests organized via social media. Many in Zimbabwe are frustrated by a rapidly deteriorating economy, a currency crisis and alleged corruption. "We note, with concern, shock and dismay, the systematic entrenchment of dictatorial tendencies, personified by the president and his cohorts, which have slowly devoured the values of the liberation struggle," the statement said after dozens of veterans' representatives from around the country met Thursday, changing anti-government slogans.
The group said it would no longer support Mugabe's political campaigns, accusing him of abandoning the veterans for the youth league of the ruling party ZANU-PF. The veterans' group, whose members are in their 60s and older, blamed the southern African country's economic crisis on "bankrupt leadership," and it accused Mugabe of corruption: "This rot needs to be uprooted, and right now." There was no immediate comment from the government. Mugabe has repeatedly said he plans to run again in 2018 and rule until he dies. Thursday's announcement "delegitimizes Mugabe in a big way, not least because he is always quick to flaunt his war credentials and revels in his title as patron of the war veterans association," said political analyst Gabriel Shumba, chairman of the South Africa-based Zimbabwe Exiles Forum. "The youths may provide him with the muscle he needs right now, but they don't command any meaningful political stock."
Mugabe, who has been in power for 36 years, has recently turned toward the youth league for political support, including two rallies attended by tens of thousands of people. Earlier this week, the world's oldest head of state responded to the recent anti-government protests, telling critics to leave Zimbabwe if they are unhappy with conditions at home. The veterans' group indicated it has had enough of such talk from the president. "We are dismayed by the president's tendency to indulge, in his usual vitriol against perceived enemies, including peaceful protesters, as well as war veterans, when the economy is on its knees," their statement said. "He has a lot to answer for the serious plight of the national economy."
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President Robert Mugabe made his first public response to a scathing statement by veterans of the country's 1970's liberation war. They called him dictatorial, manipulative and egocentric. The Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association long had been quick to defend Mugabe, even with violence. Mugabe demanded new leadership for the association, claiming Western countries have infiltrated it. "We have ordered an investigation to identify authors of the statement. ... The punishment will be severe," he said to thousands of supporters at the ruling ZANU-PF party's headquarters in the capital, Harare.
Robert Mugabe speaking to supporters on July 19
Mugabe insisted he will not step down. "As long as the party still wants me to serve, if I still have the energy and still have the life, I will continue," he said. The surprise revolt by Mugabe's aging corps of loyalists comes after nationwide anti-government protests organized through social media. Many in Zimbabwe are frustrated by a rapidly deteriorating economy, a currency crisis and corruption. One protest organizer, pastor Evan Mawarire, is now staying in neighboring South Africa after Mugabe accused him of being sponsored by the West.
The veterans' criticism has unsettled Mugabe, said Eldred Masunungure of the University of Zimbabwe's political science department. "This is a result of his failure to hand over power. The succession war is driving towards a tipping point," Masunungure said. The veterans accuse Mugabe of dumping them for a more youthful group associated with his wife, Grace, whose political power has dramatically increased in the past two years.
Zimbabwe's president Mugabe vows 'severe' punishment for loyalists who turned on him | Fox News
