Special reports

As guns flow in from neighboring countries, armed robberies spike

Published

1 year ago

March 28, 2023

BY EVIDENCE CHENJERAI

Christopher Holland believed he had done all he could to secure his home: two vicious dogs permanently stationed in the front yard and wall-to-wall security. But as he arrived home from work one day and turned off his alarm, two men in ski masks stormed in after him.

“They started shouting, ordering me to lie down on the floor,” Holland recalls of the evening in February 2017, when he found himself alone in his home with two violent intruders. “They tied my hands, punched me ruthlessly and demanded to know where everything valuable was.”

Holding a gun to his head, the intruders marched him around his home while taking his most valuable possessions. Holland, 67, says he begged for his life, but only when he asked for water, dehydrated by the ordeal, did the men leave his home.

In response to the attack, Holland added more security to his home, but two years later, it happened again — this time when his wife was with him. As the gate to his yard closed behind the couple, two masked men approached him from behind, and one held a gun to his head while the other grabbed his wife. Unlike the first incident, Holland fought back but was hit three times in the head. As he tackled one of the masked intruders, his attacker aimed the gun at him and pulled the trigger. “By some divine intervention he missed,” he says.Holland is one of the more than 1,000 people who experience armed robberies annually in Zimbabwe, a number that has been rising steadily and is linked to an increase in the number of illegal firearms smuggled in from neighboring countries. Last year, President Emmerson Mnangagwa held a gun amnesty for the first time in two decades. More than 530 firearms were surrendered to the police during the nearly two-month-long amnesty, compared with the previous one, when no guns were surrendered.

While the amnesty was hailed as a success, the number of guns surrendered is small compared with the 264,315 unregistered guns believed to be in the landlocked country, according to the most recent figures published in 2017 by Small Arms Survey, an independent research project. Meanwhile, armed robberies continue to rise. According to the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency, robberies increased from 2017 to 2019, with the number of armed robberies almost doubling from 2018 to 2019.

Inmates serving sentences for armed robbery admit the guns they used in their crimes were smuggled into Zimbabwe through its many porous border posts with South Africa and Mozambique. According to the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime, an independent civil society organization based in Switzerland, southern Africa is “awash with illegal firearms fueling violence.”

The organization estimates about 3.8 million unregistered illegal firearms are in circulation among the three countries.Michael Sithole and Stanley Tigere, both serving sentences for armed robbery at Mutare Farm Prison, say the guns they used were sourced from Mozambique. Sithole was an aspiring musician when he was recruited by a friend from Mozambique who gave him a gun and taught him how to use it. They both targeted homes in 2009 and 2010, until Sithole was caught and given a 26-year sentence.

Tigere says he and his friends targeted businesses taking cash. “The guns we used, we got them from Mozambique, where we would take them from those patrolling along the Forbes Border post in Mutare,” he says, referring to stealing or forcefully taking guns from the soldiers who guard the border between Zimbabwe and Mozambique.

John Sithole, who is serving a 31-year sentence for several counts of robbery and possession of firearms, says the gun he used in armed robberies belonged to his partner, whom he wouldn’t name. “My partner had connections in South Africa and got the guns from there,” he says.

Anyone possessing a gun without a certificate could be jailed for up to five years in Zimbabwe, according to the country’s Firearms Act, established in 1957. Legal practitioner Miriam Tose Majome says there have been no recent changes to laws regarding gun ownership, possession and usage as illegal gun ownership continues to rise.

“In my view, it [gun ownership] has more to do with economics, rising poverty and unemployment levels,” she says. “Personal values have been eroded, there is growing weakening of traditional values and principles of hard work and delayed gratuity in preference for a get-rich-quick value system. If Zimbabwean law enforcement authorities do not put in enough measures to curb gun crime, it has the capacity to even exceed South Africa’s levels. Anything is possible.”Ruth Mavhunga Maboyi, deputy minister at the Ministry of Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage, considers the most recent gun amnesty a success. “If we had not called for the amnesty, those guns surrendered would still be out there, but people decided to bring them in, which means now there are less unregistered guns out there,” Maboyi said in a phone interview.

Following the amnesty, Paul Nyathi, Zimbabwe Republic Police assistant commissioner, said in a press statement that officers would continue the fight against illegal arms coming into the country and are carrying out checks on properties where they suspect illegal firearms are kept. Nyathi says they are also focusing on reducing armed robberies. In a texted statement, he told Global Press Journal that police have a “coterie of measures to fight armed robberies” that include “campaigns, patrols and community policing initiatives such as neighborhood watch committees.” Nyathi added that police do not have any figures on illegally owned guns in the country.

Holland would like to see stricter gun laws in place given the change in gun culture; he remembers a time when people had guns for shooting small animals and thieves didn’t carry them. Now he and his wife are afraid to go out at night.

“Being robbed is traumatic, and I do not wish that experience on anyone,” he says- Global Press Journal

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Health ministry urges caution as Mpox cases rise

Published

1 week ago

August 30, 2024

VicFallsLive

BY WANDILE TSHUMA

The Ministry of Health and Childcare has issued a statement urging citizens to take immediate action to protect themselves and others from Mpox, a viral disease that can be transmitted from animals to people.

As cases of Mpox continue to rise, the ministry is advising residents to avoid physical contact with anyone showing signs and symptoms of the disease, including a rash, fever, and swollen lymph nodes.

Additionally, citizens are cautioned against sharing personal items, eating undercooked meat, and having unprotected contact with wild animals.

“Wash your hands regularly with soap under running water or use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer,” the statement reads.

“Wear a mask if you cannot avoid close contact, and ensure that all foods containing animal meat or parts are thoroughly cooked before consumption.”

The ministry’s guidance comes as the World Health Organization (WHO) has expressed concern about the spread of Mpox in the African context.

According to WHO, the outbreak has resulted in over 15 600 cases and 537 deaths, with the number of cases increasing steadily over the past year.

“Mpox is a significant public health threat,” said Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Regional Director for Africa. “

We urge communities to take proactive measures to prevent the spread of the disease.”

WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has declared the situation a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC).

The declaration comes after an Emergency Committee of independent experts met to review data on the outbreak, which has affected several countries in Africa, including the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, and Uganda.

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Good rains expected for SADC region, bringing hope to Zimbabwe and other countries

Published

1 week ago

August 29, 2024

VicFallsLive

BY NOKUTHABA DLAMINI

The Southern African Development Community (SADC) region is expected to receive good rainfall in the coming 2024-2025 summer cropping season, bringing hope to countries such as Zimbabwe, Angola, Botswana, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Mozambique, and Namibia.

This is according to the 29th Annual Southern Africa Climate Outlook Forum (SARCOF) report, which forecasts normal to above-normal rainfall for the bulk of the region.

“The remainder of the region is likely to have normal to below-normal rainfall during this period of the 2024/25 season, including the island states of Comoros and Seychelles,” the report states. This is a welcome relief for countries such as Zimbabwe, which experienced one of the worst El Nino-induced droughts in years.

The report also notes that northern Madagascar is likely to receive above-normal rainfall during this period of the 2023/24 rainfall season, while the temperature outlook for the entire 2024/25 rainfall season is expected to be mostly above long-term averages over the whole SADC region.

“The outlook is broadly consistent with the forecasts generated with the multi-model ensemble of international dynamical climate forecast models presented by the World Meteorological Organisation,” the report says.

Regional experts say there are good chances of normal to below-normal conditions during the October to December (OND) period for south-western Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, and north-east South Africa.

Below-normal rainfall is expected to expand to cover northern DRC and northern Tanzania by the December to February (DJF) period.

“The forecast probabilities are broadly consistent with the known influence of La Niña on the regional climate,” the report says.

A national forecast for Zimbabwe is expected to be made in the coming few days as the country steps up efforts to prepare for the summer crop.

Climate experts say La Niña events are also associated with heightened risk of cyclones – tropical storms that bring winds, heavy rains, damage, and destruction to countries in the region.

Tropical storms have caused severe humanitarian impacts in Madagascar, Mozambique, Malawi, and Zimbabwe, including deaths and injuries, infrastructure damage, and long-lasting socio-economic impacts.

In summary, the SADC region can expect good rainfall in the coming summer cropping season, which is a welcome relief after the devastating El Nino-induced drought.

However, climate experts caution that La Niñas don’t always result in widespread rain, and the region should be prepared for any eventuality.

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WHO declares mpox outbreak in Africa a public health emergency of international concern

Published

3 weeks ago

August 15, 2024

VicFallsLive

BY STAFF REPORTER

In a move to combat the growing mpox outbreak in Africa, World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has declared the situation a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC).

“The emergence of a new clade of mpox, its rapid spread in eastern DRC, and the reporting of cases in several neighbouring countries are very worrying. On top of outbreaks of other mpox clades in DRC and other countries in Africa, it’s clear that a coordinated international response is needed to stop these outbreaks and save lives.”Ghebreyesus said.

According to WHO, the outbreak has resulted in over 15 600 cases and 537 deaths, with the number of cases increasing steadily over the past year.

The emergence of a new virus strain, clade 1b, which appears to be spreading mainly through sexual networks, has particularly concerned experts.

WHO Regional Director for Africa Dr. Matshidiso Moeti said significant efforts are already underway to curb the outbreak, with country teams working closely with communities and governments to reinforce measures.

The organization is scaling up its response through coordinated international action to support countries in bringing the outbreaks to an end.

Committee Chair Professor Dimie Ogoina emphasized that the current upsurge of mpox in Africa is not only an emergency for the continent but also for the entire globe.

WHO has released $1.45 million from its Contingency Fund for Emergencies to support surveillance, preparedness, and response activities and is appealing to donors to fund the full extent of needs for the mpox response.