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Peace remains a dream for Harare residents
Harare Residents Trust (HRT)
September 27, 2010

The Harare Residents' Trust (HRT) joined the rest of the world to commemorate international Peace Day on 21 September 2010 with several issues outstanding for the realisation of real peace for the poor residents. Huge bills remain a threat to peace as this has induced a sense of uncertainty among the majority poor residents, causing avoidable stress related diseases like high blood pressure. Violence that broke out across Harare during the weekend of 18-19 September when the Constitutional Parliamentary Committee (COPAC) outreach meetings were conducted has left most people heartbroken and with several unanswered questions lingering on their minds about their security.

The HRT is solidly behind the Anglicans in the Church of the Province of Central Africa (CPCA) who have for the last three weeks faced renewed threats and harassment by the police, carrying out illegal instructions from Dr Nolbert Kunonga, a former Anglican Bishop in the Diocese of Harare, who was ex-communicated from the Anglican Church after he formed his own Province of Zimbabwe Church. The police have reportedly used sections of the Public Order and Security Act to bar followers of the CPCA Anglican Church under Bishop Chad Gandiya in Harare from gathering in the City of Harare open spaces citing security concerns.

There is no peace at all to talk about if thousands of Christians in the Anglican Church, who are also ratepayers in the City of Harare, are deprived of their right to worship by a power-hungry man, masquerading as a bishop of his own church, commanding less than 100 people across Harare, Mashonaland West and Mashonaland East provinces. If there is no peace in the church, the most secure place in Zimbabwe to feel safe, then the Inclusive Government has a long way to go before it convinces Anglicans that they have the protection of the law.

The above issues demonstrate the levels of instability that residents in their respective lives are experiencing. It has become clear that without a clear policymaking strategy at Town House, the majority of ratepayers, who are largely law-abiding citizens, have experienced sleepless nights over water shortages, exorbitant bills, poor service delivery, and lately the upsurge of violence in their neighbourhoods.

The HRT has in the last three weeks attended to over 30 cases of defenceless residents in Mbare and Highfield who have been illegally evicted from their houses by jobless youths claiming to be working under instructions from identified political leaders in Harare. However, City of Harare officials, responsible for housing have professed ignorance for this latest trend, saying they have not authorised the displacement of residents.

Commuters have recently been left stranded in the Central Business District (CBD) after police enforced city by-laws aiming to decongest the city centre of public transporters. While this was applauded by many people lack of a coherent strategy to decongest the CBD remains the biggest threat. During this exercise, several cases of harassment at the hands of rank marshals, municipal police and the Zimbabwe Republic Police were reported, creating an impression that the City of Harare is far from securing the best interests of the travelling public.

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