COMMERCIAL FARMS: SITUATION REPORT

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 HARARE 001900 SIPDIS STATE FOR AF/S, AF/EX NSC FOR SENIOR AFRICA DIRECTOR JFRAZER LONDON FOR CGURNEY PARIS FOR CNEARY NAIROBI FOR PFLAUMER E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EAGR ECON PHUM PGOV ZI SUBJECT: COMMERCIAL FARMS: SITUATION REPORT REF: A. A. HARARE 1827 ¶B. B. HARARE 1830 ¶C. C. HARARE 1871 ¶D. D. HARARE 1882 ¶1. Summary: Arrests of farmers by the Zimbabwean authorities continue, with no break in the official party rationale and no indication of respite. Most farmers are being released on bail an receiving future court dates. There is little consistency throughout the various regions as to the conditions attached to the farmers' release, with some being ordered to vacate the property immediately, some being given 2-3 days, and some being given to the end of August. End summary. ¶2. According to reports published by the group Justice for Agriculture (JAG),over 196 identified farmers had been arrested as of August 20. In several cases, contrary to published reports of farmers "going into hiding" and forcing the police to hunt them down, farmers whose land is not even subject to the final Section 8 acquisition orders have voluntarily presented themselves at police stations in solidarity with their colleagues and in order to clarify their legal status. ¶3. In another break with reality, the government-controlled Herald has reported that one farmer attempted to "kill cops" in a plot which backfired. According to a farming source in the area, however, the farmer -- Ian Barker -- was working in his fields when he received reports that his elderly mother was being arrested and hauled off from his homestead in a police vehicle. Barker reportedly jumped into his own vehicle and went speeding off to try and reason with the arresting authorities. When Barker rounded a blind curve and came upon the police convoy, which was driving along the gravel road, he slammed on his brakes, causing his vehicle to lock up and skid to a halt about one meter from the police vehicle. Due to the presence of the District Administrator and two war vets in the convoy, the police immediately arrested Barker on charges of four counts of attempted murder, since four police officers were riding in the other vehicle. As an indication of the "seriousness" of this offense, Barker was subsequently released on Zim $5000 bail (about US $7.25 at parallel market rates),the same bail granted to other farmers in the area. ¶4. The majority of farmers have been released on bail with the terms of their release varying according to the region in which they live. Farmers in some regions, including Masvingo, were released on Zim $5000 bail and given 2-3 days to leave their property. Farmers in other regions, including Mashonaland Central, were released on Zim $5000 bail and given until August 30 to vacate their farms. Farmers in yet other regions, including Mashonaland Central, were released on Zim $10,000 bail and given 24 hours to vacate their properties. Some farmers were prohibited from returning to their farms altogether, others were allowed to visit their farms only with a police escort, and still others were allowed to attend to their farming chores during the day but were not allowed to spend the night in their homes. Some farmers had all charges dropped because of technicalities which rendered their Section 8 orders invalid or because the 90-day period in which they must vacate their properties had not yet expired. Several farmers, including a 67-year-old farmer in ill health who was assaulted while in police custody, have been denied bail and will be kept in custody until their respective hearing dates. As expected, the conditions vary according to the political personalities in control of the various provinces. ¶5. In one region, a farming contact reports that all farmers arrested are required to appear before a "board" consisting of two police Internal Security personnel, two Central Intelligence Organization (CIO) personnel, and two war vets. The farmers have reportedly all been asked how much they are prepared to downsize their current operations. In one case, a farmer who has only received a Section 5, or preliminary notice of acquisition, has been ordered to turn over his title deed and one-half of his 800 hectare operation, after which he would receive some as-yet undetermined document confirming his ownership of the remaining portion. The farming contact reports that the authorities seem to be "shaking the tree to see what will fall." ¶6. Comment: In a not-too-surprising development, Colin Cloete, president of the Commercial Farmers' Union (CFU),was also arrested. Several farming contacts have reported that the CFU is no longer perceived by its constituents as a viable advocacy group, but that it has now taken on the role of simply another "professional organization." The arrest of Cloete is indicative of the disregard in which the group is held by the GOZ, and also seems to close the door on any attempt to revive the moribund Zimbabwe Joint Resettlement Initiative (ZJRI),in which the CFU attempted to work with the GOZ in identifying and ceding commercial farmland for resettlement. The GOZ's actions seem to confirm the JAG's assertions that you cannot negotiate with the government, and that the CFU's attempts to extricate its members from this situation via dialogue were doomed to failure. We expect these arrests to continue, but the next major challenge concerns how the courts deal with the actual merits of each case. Some farmers whose Section 8 notices have been overturned on technicalities expect an immediate re-issue of the notices with scrupulous attention to the letter of the law. Of course, in the end, the Mugabe government may not even acknowledge the magistrates' actions, and ultimately it can simply ignore any judicial decisions with which it does not agree, as it has done in the past. End comment. SULLIVAN