Zanu-PF Women's League, war vets clash over mine

Zanu-PF Midlands Provincial Women's League and the war veterans provincial leadership are at daggers drawn over the control of a mine believed to be having diamond deposits in Somabula area with the former accusing the latter of trying to hijack the women's project.

The mine in question was formerly owned by the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe subsidiary, Carslon, before the Midlands Province Women's League successfully applied to take over the running of the mine under the indigenisation and economic empowerment drive.

A group of Zanu-PF Provincial Women's League members led by Politburo member, Tsitsi Muzenda, yesterday went to the mine and staged a demonstration in protest over the takeover of the mine by a group of war veterans.

When Chronicle visited the mine yesterday, about 70 women led by Muzenda were singing and chanting Zanu-PF slogans at the mine plant.

A group of contracted employees were busy erecting a new fence over an already existing fence at the mine.

Chairman of the war veterans association Midlands province Terry Shumba later arrived at the mine resulting in an exchange of harsh words between him and the demonstrating women.

In an interview at the plant, Muzenda accused the war veterans of trying to hijack the women's project.

She said the Zanu-PF Women's League successfully applied to take over the running of the mine in 2007 but faced some delays as they were looking for an investor.

Muzenda said the situation was worsened by a group of people who engaged them in battles as they sought to forcibly take over the mine.

She said the war veterans, led by Shumba, were the latest "invaders" who were trying to hijack the women's project.

"We are saying as women, we also want to venture into mining and we have for long been sidelined in the mainstream indigenisation and economic empowerment programme. We then met as Zanu-PF Provincial Women's League and applied for the takeover of this mining project and we got all the papers of approval from both the Ministry of Mines and Mining Development and the Ministry of Youth, Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment, which gave us the green light as women to work on this diamond mine.

"While we were still running around looking for serious potential investors to partner with, we then saw the war veterans starting work at the mine without our knowledge and this is why we then decided to stage a demo protesting against the move," she said.

Muzenda said it was not the first time their mine was "invaded" by a group of people in the province whom she said were not keen to see women venturing into mining.

"Last year, a British investor was also brought in by some powerful people from the province but we managed to block them through the courts. Now the war veterans are trying to take away the project from us and we are saying this a women's project and we do not have money to continue going to the courts to fight for our empowerment, let them respect us as women," she said.

Shumba said he was not at liberty to comment on the matter when he arrived at the mine.

He later gave in after being pressed by this reporter.

"We fought a war to liberate the country and we fought for the land and all its resources. I just don't know why these women are trying to disrupt this project. All these women who are demonstrating are fighting a losing battle and they are being used by some people who want to push their selfish interests," said Shumba.