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O, my ducats! O, my daughter!
CHIPAWO
April 28, 2010

When Shylock, the Jew of Venice, was robbed of his money and his daughter, he lost the two things he cared out about most. For Shylock his blood and his money were what gave meaning to his life.

Last night, CHIPAWO was robbed of its best camera, a Sony PD170, and the computer that contains its life, its history, its records and its current documents, a heavy and double blow!

It happened like this.

Although CHIPAWO has been forced to close down its Media Unit and give up its Media Centre, the ongoing popular children's television programme, 'Nde'pi Gen'a', continues under the directorship of Farai Kuzvidza.

This week the Harare International Festival of the Arts began and yesterday the 'Nde'pi Gen'a' team was filming the event, bringing it to the children of Zimbabwe. I was asked to come and pick up the camera and other equipment, including the tripod, tapes and microphones. I did so at about 4.30pm from in front of the National Arts Gallery. I then proceeded to my home.

As usual in my part of Harare, there was the daily power cut, either all day or from about 5pm. I worked for an hour or two, using the inverter, locked up and went out. All was pitch dark of course. By that time the alarm battery was flat.

I came back a few hours later and was surprised to find that my key no longer fitted the kitchen door lock. I was even more surprised to find that the door was open - had I carelessly left it open in the dark when I went out?

Then I noticed that the outside lights were not on yet everywhere else the lights were on. Electricity had returned but my house was in darkness. I tried the kitchen light. No go. I tried the fuse box, all OK. So I went out again and saw that the ZESA electricity control box on the wall outside was open. The mains power supply had been switched off. ZESA does not send people to cut you off in the night time, I thought.

I switched on the mains and immediately there was light. I saw that my study door was gaping too - yet I knew I had locked it as the film gear was in there. Then it dawned! "The house has been broken into - again! The camera!" I rushed into my study and naturally the camera had gone. The tripod bag was open but the tripod was still there. If only they had known that the tripod is a professional Manfrotto!

So those were the ducats. What about the daughter?

My desk was bare, only the bulky printer remained. The CHIPAWO CPU and Flatron monitor had gone, and worst of all, so had the external hard drive with all CHIPAWO files and folders backed up on it!!!

CHIPAWO could well cry: "O, my camera! O, my soft copy library!"

And me? Well, not much this time. Most had already been cleared out last year. My lovely amplifier had survived the last robbery. This time its luck ran out.

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