UN UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS.

 Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Preamble

Whereas recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world,

Whereas disregard and contempt for human rights have resulted in barbarous acts which have outraged the conscience of mankind, and the advent of a world in which human beings shall enjoy freedom of speech and belief and freedom from fear and want has been proclaimed as the highest aspiration of the common people,

Whereas it is essential, if man is not to be compelled to have recourse, as a last resort, to rebellion against tyranny and oppression, that human rights should be protected by the rule of law,

Whereas it is essential to promote the development of friendly relations between nations,

Whereas the peoples of the United Nations have in the Charter reaffirmed their faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person and in the equal rights of men and women and have determined to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom,

Whereas Member States have pledged themselves to achieve, in co-operation with the United Nations, the promotion of universal respect for and observance of human rights and fundamental freedoms,

Whereas a common understanding of these rights and freedoms is of the greatest importance for the full realization of this pledge,

Now, therefore,

The General Assembly,

Proclaims this Universal Declaration of Human Rights as a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations, to the end that every individual and every organ of society, keeping this Declaration constantly in mind, shall strive by teaching and education to promote respect for these rights and freedoms and by progressive measures, national and international, to secure their universal and effective recognition and observance, both among the peoples of Member States themselves and among the peoples of territories under their jurisdiction. 

Article 1

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.

Article 2

Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. Furthermore, no distinction shall be made on the basis of the political, jurisdictional or international status of the country or territory to which a person belongs, whether it be independent, trust, non-self-governing or under any other limitation of sovereignty.

Article 3

Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.

Article 4

No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and the slave trade shall be prohibited in all their forms.

Article 5

No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.

Article 6

Everyone has the right to recognition everywhere as a person before the law.

Article 7

All are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to equal protection of the law. All are entitled to equal protection against any discrimination in violation of this Declaration and against any incitement to such discrimination.

Article 8

Everyone has the right to an effective remedy by the competent national tribunals for acts violating the fundamental rights granted him by the constitution or by law.

Article 9

No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile.

Article 10

Everyone is entitled in full equality to a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal, in the determination of his rights and obligations and of any criminal charge against him.

Article 11

Everyone charged with a penal offence has the right to be presumed innocent until proved guilty according to law in a public trial at which he has had all the guarantees necessary for his defence.

No one shall be held guilty of any penal offence on account of any act or omission which did not constitute a penal offence, under national or international law, at the time when it was committed. Nor shall a heavier penalty be imposed than the one that was applicable at the time the penal offence was committed.

Article 12

No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to attacks upon his honour and reputation. Everyone has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks.

Article 13

Everyone has the right to freedom of movement and residence within the borders of each state.

Everyone has the right to leave any country, including his own, and to return to his country.

Article 14

Everyone has the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution.

This right may not be invoked in the case of prosecutions genuinely arising from non-political crimes or from acts contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations.

Article 15

Everyone has the right to a nationality.

No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his nationality nor denied the right to change his nationality.

Article 16

Men and women of full age, without any limitation due to race, nationality or religion, have the right to marry and to found a family. They are entitled to equal rights as to marriage, during marriage and at its dissolution.

Marriage shall be entered into only with the free and full consent of the intending spouses.

The family is the natural and fundamental group unit of society and is entitled to protection by society and the State.

Article 17

Everyone has the right to own property alone as well as in association with others.

No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his property.

Article 18

Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance.

Article 19

Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.

Article 20

Everyone has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association.

No one may be compelled to belong to an association.

Article 21

Everyone has the right to take part in the government of his country, directly or through freely chosen representatives.

Everyone has the right of equal access to public service in his country.

The will of the people shall be the basis of the authority of government; this will shall be expressed in periodic and genuine elections which shall be by universal and equal suffrage and shall be held by secret vote or by equivalent free voting procedures.

Article 22

Everyone, as a member of society, has the right to social security and is entitled to realization, through national effort and international co-operation and in accordance with the organization and resources of each State, of the economic, social and cultural rights indispensable for his dignity and the free development of his personality.

Article 23

Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and favourable conditions of work and to protection against unemployment.

Everyone, without any discrimination, has the right to equal pay for equal work.

Everyone who works has the right to just and favourable remuneration ensuring for himself and his family an existence worthy of human dignity, and supplemented, if necessary, by other means of social protection.

Everyone has the right to form and to join trade unions for the protection of his interests.

Article 24

Everyone has the right to rest and leisure, including reasonable limitation of working hours and periodic holidays with pay.

Article 25

Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.

Motherhood and childhood are entitled to special care and assistance. All children, whether born in or out of wedlock, shall enjoy the same social protection.

Article 26

Everyone has the right to education. Education shall be free, at least in the elementary and fundamental stages. Elementary education shall be compulsory. Technical and professional education shall be made generally available and higher education shall be equally accessible to all on the basis of merit.

Education shall be directed to the full development of the human personality and to the strengthening of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. It shall promote understanding, tolerance and friendship among all nations, racial or religious groups, and shall further the activities of the United Nations for the maintenance of peace.

Parents have a prior right to choose the kind of education that shall be given to their children.

Article 27

Everyone has the right freely to participate in the cultural life of the community, to enjoy the arts and to share in scientific advancement and its benefits.

Everyone has the right to the protection of the moral and material interests resulting from any scientific, literary or artistic production of which he is the author.

Article 28

Everyone is entitled to a social and international order in which the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration can be fully realized.

Article 29

Everyone has duties to the community in which alone the free and full development of his personality is possible.

In the exercise of his rights and freedoms, everyone shall be subject only to such limitations as are determined by law solely for the purpose of securing due recognition and respect for the rights and freedoms of others and of meeting the just requirements of morality, public order and the general welfare in a democratic society.

These rights and freedoms may in no case be exercised contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations.

Article 30

Nothing in this Declaration may be interpreted as implying for any State, group or person any right to engage in any activity or to perform any act aimed at the destruction of any of the rights and freedoms set forth herein.

MDC/CCC failed to implement even one token reform in 24 years because they ARE "motivated by greed". W Mukori

 There are many reasons why Zimbabwe is a failed state and one of the reasons has to be the disconnect between what those in positions of power and authority say and reality. Leaders like Nelson Chamisa and Emmerson Mnangagwa live in their own cloud cuckoo land!

Ever since the 2017 military coup tat ousted the late dictator Robert Mugabe, Mnangagwa was cocksure he was the man to revive the country’s economic fortunes. “Zimbabwe is open for business!” he announces soon after taking over. The disconnect from reality was obvious; nothing had changed! Zimbabwe was still a pariah state ruled by corrupt and tyrannical thugs who rigged elections top stay in power. 

And just to rub it in that nothing had changed, Mnangagwa promised to hold free and fair elections only to continue blatantly rig elections. He promised to stamp out corruption and corruption has gone into overdrive under his rule. Zimbabwe is sinking deeper and deeper into the abyss and yet Mnangagwa continue wittering about the country attaining upper middle income status by 2030. Vision 2030, as he calls it, is a mirage by moonlight!

The people of Zimbabwe have risked all to elect MDC/CCC leaders these last 24 years for the primary purpose of implementing the democratic changes to stop Zanu PF rigging elections. Last year Mnangagwa and company, yet again, blatantly rigged the elections - proof that the MDC/CCC leaders are corrupt, incompetent and utterly useless.

Addressing the issue of defections among opposition leaders to the ruling Zanu-PF party, as well as growing frustrations among citizens over Zimbabwe's prolonged struggles, Chamisa reiterated that the fight for freedom demands consistency and selflessness.

"The struggle to liberate the country is neither a one-day wonder nor an instant coffee affair. It's not a walk in the park or a fly-by-night task. One needs to be consistent, conscious, and strong. The fight is not a fight for opportunities, but a fight for values,” said Chamisa.

"We need strong leaders. Leaders who are not after serving themselves but who serve others. Leaders who are not motivated or driven by a galloping appetite for material gains. Leaders must be driven by the broader and collective objective of making a difference.”

One is tempted to laugh even thou this is no laughing matter! And so, I will cry!

Yes, implementing the democratic reforms to end the Zanu PF dictatorship was not “a one-day wonder”! You and your MDC/CCC friends have been on the political stage for 24 YEARS including the 5 years in the 2008 to 2013 GNU, when you had the golden opportunity to implement the reforms. Yet you have failed to implement even one token reform. Not even one!

Worse still, ever since the GNU debacle, MDC/CCC leaders have participated in flawed elections to give Zanu PF legitimacy and perpetuating the dictatorship the nation’s suffering out of greed. 

Of course, Chamisa and company know of the sheer futility of participating in these flawed elections. they are selling out.

“Look, you can't keep on participating in flawed electoral processes that serve to give big benefits to dictators such as Robert Mugabe. Mugabe has perfected the art of winning elections. So it will be very foolish for the opposition to continue legitimizing these sham elections which don't deliver. This country will go through a serious economic crisis in 2020 caused by Zanu PF. And yet, this is the only country where a government doesn't perform, it is encouraged by a super majority in parliament,” said Tendai Biti in a 2015 interview with Isaac Mugabi.

“So you can't continue subjecting Zimbabweans to processes where their hopes just get crushed.”

When Tendai Biti failed to stop his colleagues participating in the flawed elections; he joined them for his share of the spoils. David Coltart was a lot more explicit on why the opposition has been participating in the flawed elections.

“The (2013) electoral process was so flawed, so illegal, that the only logical step was to withdraw, which would compel SADC to hold Zanu PF to account. But such was the distrust between the MDC-T and MDC-N that neither could withdraw for fear that the other would remain in the elections, winning seats and giving the process credibility,” confessed David Coltart in his Book, The Struggle Continues 50 years of Tyranny in Zimbabwe.

Chamisa conned the nation to participate in the flawed 2023 elections claiming he had “plugged all the Zanu PF vote rigging loop holes. #Godisinit!”He knew he was lying because the nation did not have even something as basic as a verified voters roll. Freeman Chari and his Team Pachedu friends had shown that the voters’ roll was a shambles. 

Zimbabwe is a failed state precisely because the nation has been stuck with this corrupt and tyrannical Zanu PF dictatorship. For 44 years and counting Zanu PF has blatantly rigged elections or be it the last 24 years with the connivence the MDC/CCC sellouts. The nation has been led by demagogues who think themselves as God Almighty’s gift to the nation when in reality they are the curse to the nation!

MDC/CCC leaders have failed to implement even one token reform in 24 years because they ARE “motivated or driven by a galloping appetite for material gains!” Cry, the beloved Zimbabwe.

Parting shot! 

A healthy and functioning democracy - government of the people, by the people and for the people - demands that the people must be educated, knowledgeable, objective and diligent in their task of holding leaders to account. Zimbabweans, we are an ignorant, naive and gullible lot, easily conned. Both Zanu PF and MDC/CCC have exploited this weakness to no end. If the nation is ever going to get out of this hell-on-earth we are in, we will have to be a hell lot smarter than this.

Zanu PF has sown the seeds of hatred and destruction of Zimbabwe.

 @ Developer

 

“Former liberators have sown seeds of hatred and  destruction of Zimbabwe.

Warning ⚠️ and advice.

12 December 2024

Had our parents known that this so-called Chimurenga was meant to position crooks and thieves in power so that they and their families only  would enjoy the huchi nemukaka (fruits of the war),  none of them (our  parents) would have participated in that struggle.

Right now, even the well-respected warvets are wallowing in poverty, while they are fed with falsehoods. They are told to believe that their poverty is caused by someone not even near them, but here is a simple question that the poor innocent warvets must ask : 

If indeed the country is poor because of the ones always named by the current leaders as culprits, how and why are they, leaders becoming  richer and richer in a then sanctioned and western ravaged nation? 

👆🏾 Warvets must ask these questions, and they must get answers!

What development has so far been done in villages of the majority of citizens who are also voters? 

Why investors are failing to improve the roads and health facilities in Mberengwa and Mutoko where they are mining lithium 

Can we always praise parliament and border post improvements (not development) that have  no positive impact on the lives of a villager in Mberengwa, Bikita, Gokwe, and Esigondini rural? 

The trick is: the eastern foreign investors focus on infrastructural development that benefits themselves, eg, the Beit Bridge-- Harare highway, which they use to ferry our siphoned raw resources to the ports of collection. 

They focus their development on airports, port of entries, and parliaments to comfort the target, who is also blissfully unaware of how this game is played and who benefits most

What would happen is, after the investors have long gone, fight will ensue in Zimbabwe among ourselves. 

The reality is that, mark these words, the children and grand children of the current few ravagers and sellouts of Zimbabwe will bear the brunt after their patents have long gone. 

I would advise the current Zanu-PF (Zapu and Zanu) to mend its reactions with the public now.

Let the current leaders unite the nation now because this would be highly impossible to try to do so from graves after nature has taken its course. 

I beg the current leadership to have foresight and defuse the impending bomb explosion.

If we see it happening in other countries and in Zim in 2017,  what will block this from happening anytime soon after the oldies have been called by God? 

Akson Potera.”

How many of the same war veterans wallowing in abject poverty have played a pivotal role in imposing the Zanu PF one party dictatorship even to the extend of harassing, beating and even murdering the people to cow them into submission. In the 2008 Operation Mavhotera Papi Zanu PF used the war veterans as the party’s foot soldiers in punishing the people for daring to reject the party in the March 2008 vote - the nearest the nation had ever come to holding free, fair and credible elections. 

As much as Mnangagwa and his Zanu PF cronies never tire of praising themselves as the nation’s liberators the truth is they were mercenaries who reward was that they must rule until the donkeys have horns and, as divine rulers, they will have the lion’s share of all the nation’s wealth. In short, in 1980 we removed the white colonial oppressors only to replace them with new oppressors, the Zanu PF thugs. 

Many of us did not want to believe blacks could oppress fellow blacks but after 44 years of corrupt and tyrannical oppression the penny has dropped. 

Alas! Zanu PF is now deeply entrench in society ending the dictatorship is now near impossible. 

The people have risked all to elect MDC/CCC leaders for the express purpose they would implement the democratic reforms to dismantle the Zanu PF dictatorship, for example. Zanu PF bribed Morgan Tsvangirai and company with the trappings of high office the MDC leaders have failed to implement even one token reform during the 2008 to 2013 GNU when they had the golden opportunity  to do so. Ever since the GNU MDC/CCC leaders have participated in flawed elections to give Zanu PF legitimacy for a jackal at a lion’s kill share of the spoils of power. 

The voters have yet to wake up to the reality MDC/CCC leaders have been running with the povo hare and hunting with the Zanu PF hounds! MDC/CCC leaders have conned the people to participate in flawed elections to give Zanu PF legitimacy and perpetuate the nation’s own suffering. The people have again and again believed the idiotic lie the opposition can win RIGGED election even after 44 years of rigged elections.

Mnangagwa is a buffoon and not the "intelligent" leader Mutsvangwa claim!

 Zanu-PF spokesperson Chris Mutsvangwa has publicly declared President Emmerson Mnangagwa as the intellectual and ideological leader of the ruling party, emphasizing his quick absorption of new ideas and his practical approach to implementing them. Mutsvangwa made these remarks in a recent podcast hosted by economic analysts Tinashe Murapata and Rufaro Zengeni, where he also dismissed claims that Vice President Constantino Chiwenga is the strategic thinker or military leader of the organization.

According to Mutsvangwa, President Mnangagwa's ability to swiftly grasp new concepts and translate them into actionable policies sets him apart as the ideological guide of Zanu-PF. He described Mnangagwa as an "intelligent" leader who drives the party's ideational activities, contrasting his leadership style with that of Vice President Chiwenga, who is often associated with the military wing of the party.

Mutsvangwa scoffed at the idea of comparing Chiwenga to the late Josiah Magama Tongogara, the revered military commander of the Zimbabwe Liberation Army (ZANLA) during the liberation struggle. He stressed that there is no comparison between the two, highlighting the difference in their natural endowments and capacities. While Tongogara was lauded for his strategic thinking and military acumen, Mutsvangwa argued that Chiwenga does not possess the same qualities, particularly in the realm of ideation and strategy within Zanu-PF.

The comments come as a surprise to many, as Mnangagwa is not typically regarded as the intellectual and ideological leader of the party. Instead, he is often perceived as a pragmatic securocrat and enforcer, who rules with a firm hand. Critics have long referred to him as a "brawn and no brains" leader, focusing on his background as a military leader and security chief rather than his intellectual contributions.

In the context of Zanu-PF's history, intellectuals and strategists have always played a crucial role in shaping the party's narrative and policy direction. For years, the late former president Robert Mugabe, who passed away in 2019, was seen as the intellectual and ideological cornerstone of the party. Under his leadership, Mugabe was revered for his ability to craft policies and narratives that resonated both domestically and internationally.

Mutsvangwa's assertion, however, signals a shift in how President Mnangagwa is viewed within the party, positioning him as not only a political enforcer but also as the ideological driving force of Zanu-PF's future.

Mnangagwa’s intellectual incompetency is there for all to see already from his failure to revive the Zimbabwe economy his taking over in 2017, for example. He was cocksure his “Zimbabwe is open for business!” mantra was going to open the flood gate of investors. No such thing! Investors are a shrewd lot they knew the November military coup was nothing but musical chairs game that saw one dictator being replaced by another. 

Zimbabwe was a pariah state ruled by corrupt and murderous thugs who rigged elections to stay in power. Many businesses had collapsed because it was notoriously difficult to do business in a pariah state. It was laughable to even suggest that the swapping of one dictator for another could ever be viewed as ending the pariah state and “opening Zimbabwe for business.”

Mnangagwa’s Vision 2030, by which date Zimbabwe is supposed to have risen from the ashes of the failed state it has sunk into to be a upper middle income status, is a mirage. corruption was bad under Mugabe but since Mnangagwa took over in the November 2017 corruption has gone into overdrive. 

An Al Jazeera documentary showed that 80% the country’s US$2 billion gold was lost to smugglers. In 2019 the then Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe Governor John Mangudya said Zimbabwe could pay off its US$20 billion foreign debt and still have money to finance its development needs without borrowing another penny if the looting of its gold and diamonds alone were stamped out. 

Mnangagwa is just a buffoon and not the “intelligent” leader Mutsvangwa portrayed! But then, Mutsvangwa himself is just another buffoon, a toad, masquerading as a genius!  

Freeman Chari confirm why SADC and AU did not deny Zanu PF legitimacy irrespective of damning election report!

 Freeman Chari, a prominent United States-based Zimbabwean opposition activist, has voiced his concerns over the direction of the Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC), particularly criticizing former leader Nelson Chamisa for personalizing the movement through his doctrine of "Strategic Ambiguity."

Chari, who was involved in the formation of the opposition party, claims that when CCC was established, there was a consensus on the necessity for a clear constitution and organizational structures. However, he argues that Chamisa's focus on Strategic Ambiguity undermined these initial agreements, leading to internal turmoil and ultimately contributing to the party's challenges.

In a series of posts on X (formerly Twitter), Chari shared his perspective, reflecting on the early days of the movement and the disappointments that followed.

"When CCC was formed in my conversations with NC [Nelson Chamisa], a number of us said to him, we will defend you with our lives out there, but in private, we will tell you the things that need to be fixed so we don't fall into the same predicament we did with MDC-Alliance," Chari wrote.

He continued, "Top was the need for a clear constitution with clearly articulated roles. I believe a draft constitution was made. Secondly, it was about structure, and I remember giving him a document that had an alternative structure which I worked on with Dr. Magaisa. Lastly, it was about branding, etc."

Despite these initial agreements, Chari lamented that the principle of Strategic Ambiguity—essentially leaving key aspects of the movement's operation unclear or open to interpretation—took precedence. This, he claims, left the party vulnerable to exploitation by opportunists, particularly among the Harare crew, who ultimately distanced themselves from Chamisa after the election.

He also expressed frustration over how the party handled elections and candidate selection, referring to some of the decisions made, such as the controversial "bereka mwana" incident, as mistakes that should have been avoided.

"What pained me more was that we had worked so hard for two years to build this, but we had no way or leg to defend ourselves. Anyone could see our potential flaws, but they were overlooked," Chari remarked.

Chari also criticized Chamisa's leadership after the election, noting the failure to manage the party's MPs effectively. "When NC failed to reign in the few MPs we had, I could see we were sitting ducks," he said, reflecting on the internal weakness that became apparent after the elections.

He concluded with a warning about the future of the CCC, expressing fear that without self-reflection and a willingness to address past mistakes, the party would continue to repeat the same cycles of disappointment and failure.

"I fear without the willingness to retrospect and introspect, we will go round and round in circles with multiple heartbreaks. I am not willing to go through that again!" Chari asserted.

Chari's comments have added fuel to the ongoing debate about leadership within opposition circles in Zimbabwe, particularly regarding the leadership style of Nelson Chamisa and the effectiveness of the CCC in presenting a united front to challenge the ruling party. His concerns reflect a deeper internal struggle within opposition politics in the country, as activists and supporters continue to seek a way forward.

Let me say, I for one am impressed by Freeman Chari’s courage and willingness to talk openly about what went wrong in CCC. In a country where the norm is to sweep everything under the carpet and join the rat race for position being candid is a very rare quality indeed. 

I was disappoint that Team Pachedu failed to produce their own report on the 2023 elections some after the results were declared last year. Chari and company only declared their findings this year, a years after the election was done and dusted. I home some day soon they will explain why they did not release their report earlier.

Many people have failed to understand why SADC and AU had not denied Zanu PF political legitimacy as they did in 2008 although they had both condemned the 2023 election process as flawed and illegal. The willingness by the winning CCC candidates to take up their gravy train seats in parliament, senate and local authority even in the light of the damning SADC and AU election reports pulled the rug from under the regional and continental bodies to deny Zanu PF legitimacy. 

"When NC failed to reign in the few MPs we had, I could see we were sitting ducks,” remarked Chari. He was not the only to pick this, Margaret Dongo did the same in an interview with Blessing Mhlanga on HStv FreeTalk. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t4rJ08hYJHk&list=LL

Some people loath looking at themselves in the mirror and so have repeated the same mistakes over and over again. 

Indeed, real quality leaders welcome the opportunity to retrospect and introspect, buffoon hate it because they have nothing of substance to offer.