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The Saga Continueth
Shane Kidd, Chimanimani, Zimbabwe
June 25, 2004

Friday 28th May, 2004

Birgit's trying times, the return of the horde

The weak winter sun raises on yet another day in paradise. Word has gone round that there is to be yet another demonstration at MDC office by Mrs Knight and her Party of Thugs; whites were advised to stay at home. At about 10am Birgit hears loud noises, the banging of metal and breaking glass etc from the village. Birgit thinks the show has obviously begun and trying times are at hand. At about 11.45am Birgit hears the shouting and toy toying of demonstrators as they march up the street in their 100's toward the house.

The rent a mob that has been collected by Dombera's 3 farm vehicles, so thoughtfully organised by Doderia Mataruse (spelling?) Mike Bialy's farm manager, he must be proud of her. The Dombera trucks had collected people from Rathmore Dombera and Zimpala. So nice of these neighbourly institutions to supply their labour to this noble cause and let's be honest it's not like they lost a day's pay or any thing. The rent a mob are bolstered by a hard core of war vets from Roy's farm, Mrs Knight's hired thugs from the village and soldiers dressed in civilian clothes. The rent a mob arrived outside the gate singing and chanting, they proceeded to throw rocks at the house breaking roofing tiles widows etc. Birgit was alone upstairs and managed to make a few calls to the outside world asking for help. She eventually got it down to the fine art of SMS'ing the words HELP to embassies, Roy and anyone else in a position to be of assistance and believe me with our experience over the last 4 years there's not many embassies and international human rights organisations that she doesn't know. By this time rent mob had broken down the gate and swarmed into the yard surrounding the house. The police station is only 300 meters across the valley and we can hear everything that happens there so they sure as hell knew what was happening at the house They were now singing and dancing on the verandah, throwing furniture around. They then forced open the verandah doors and invaded the house. Birgit figures its time to confront them and slowly and calmly walks down the stairs and addresses the crowd.

"What is the reason, why you break into my house like this" she asks. One of the head fools by the name of Jiri from Rtahmore says
"we want you and your husband to come down to 'our new office' and explain why you gave it to the MDC."
"My husband is not here he's away on business and I'm here to give you all the answers you want - lets start." Birgit did not want them to know that I was up the mountains in case they left a reception committee at base camp when I came down.
"Why did you give the offices to the MDC?"
Birgit replied "one day you will know it and understand."

The mob wanted to know where I was so Birgit took them around the house and upstairs to show them that I wasn't there. Those less interested in politics were simply breaking things and raiding the pantry and refrigerator for food. Undoubtedly some wise heads in the crowd had taken note of ZANU (PF)'s track record of promising food and money for taking part in rent a mob activities and then not paying up later.

Fool 1 decides its time to show off his bravery. He gets into Birgit's face and starts shouting "I can kill you, I will kill you. Your ancestors have stolen our land. Look what they have done to me. You must go back to Britain where you belong." At this stage Fool 2 who obviously has some local knowledge tells him that "Mrs Kidd, she is from Finland"

"I am the 1st Finn to come to Zimbabwe I have no ancestors here." Birgit interjects helpfully.
Fool 1. "Where is this country called Finland, is it next to Austria?"
Birgit "Try a little further north between Sweden and Russia"
Fool 1. "Ah so you have been to Russia. What did you see there?"
Birgit "Plenty of Russians"
Fool 1 "Oh!"
Fool 2 "This is your house where are your guns"
Birgit "I have lived my life without guns and still I am without them."

Once they were satisfied that I wasn't there, they then abducted Brigit and forced her out of the house. Birgit asked if all the people could go and she would come down to the office by car with one of their representatives and explain what they wanted to know. They rejected this and forced her to march in front of the sing chanting and jeering crowd all they way down to the MDC office. As she was leaving the gate she was forced to carry a ZANU (PF) flag. When Birgit arrived at the office there was the remaining half of rent a mob to greet her.

As the rent a mob was coming through the gate, Moses one of our employees was making good his escape over the back fence. He went straight up to Mary Jo's house and asked her to get the police because Birgit's life was in danger. Mary Jo drove straight to the police station to report the incident the situation to the 2 duty officers, one man one woman. She explained that Birgit's life was in danger and that she would take the police there now in her car. The 2 officers retreated into the back room of the charge office where a heated debate ensues about who is going to draw the short straw and make a decision.

After about 15 minutes Mary Jo gets upset and shouts at them that this is a life threatening situation and she wants action NOW! The officer's again retreat to the back room, the subject of discussion is now, who is going to draw the short straw and actually go with Mary Jo. The loser, the policeman comes out with a petulant look on his face. Why in this unjust world should he be the one to perform the job he is paid to do because of the uniform he wears. He is very reluctant to get in to a car with a white woman perhaps "fear of tainting by association" is his major concern. But the handy "ah we have no transport" excuse is nullified by Mary Jo sitting at the wheel of her car. The policeman in his own limited way is rather cunning. He asks Mary Jo to drop him off at the corner before our house. Now the person who guesses correctly if he managed to navigate from the corner to Birgit's house without getting lost will win $5 or a cigar. Competition entries must be in before the 6th of June.

By this time the police station is getting snowed under with phone calls from Amnesty International, the Finnish Embassy, and the US embassy all wanting to know what the situation with Birgit Kidd is. The blithe response is "I know nothing"

The office had somewhat changed in appearance since the day before. The words NEW ZANU (PF) OFFICE was painted on the walls, along with a not very flattering simian type picture of Mugabe, obviously executed by a stalwart of the finger school of painting and art. What can I say he's not a particularly flattering subject to start off with? The windows and doors were smashed, the surrounding wooden fencing and wooden buildings at the back had been torn down and were burning merrily. The counters and display cabinets were smashed and a couple of display fridges where smashed into a 1000 pieces. The ashes from the smoking fire inside stained the walls where that, which could be burnt, was.

When they stopped in front of the office Birgit was handed a broom by Fool 2 and told to start cleaning the new ZANU (PF) office.

Birgit said there was no problem, this was her property and she used to clean it every day when she ran the bottle store. Meanwhile, the crowd stood around chanting and jeering passing insults and threats and Birgit was forced to clean it again and again. Once the office was cleaned to their satisfaction, Brigit was marched outside and forced to sit on the ground and wait for the organisers to arrive, whilst the mob continued singing and chanting. "Down with Bennett, down with Kidd down with David Mudengwe, down with MDC". Whilst waiting various people in the crowd were threatening her telling her that they were going to kill her and she should go back to Britain in a coffin.

One of our neighbours was reliably informed by Doderia Mataruse the manger of Dombera that the demonstrations would not take too long. Because, we (Mrs Knight and Doderai) have organised a camera crew from ZTV and they have to be back in Mutare before dark. Why are they afraid of the bogeyman?

Whilst sitting there 3 Dombera trucks accompanied by Mrs Knight (my, haven't Dombera management been busy little bees in pursuit of the noble cause) and another one arrived with more people from Ngangu and Mashongwe and David Mudengwe who had also been abducted from his home. David was forced out of the truck and told to stand next to Birgit. With the arrival of Mrs Knight and her pet thugs Lazarus, Brighton and Sylvester the crowd turned vicious and violent as she pumped them up. Her pet thugs are all ex side kicks of Mwale. Lazarus, Brighton and Sylvester then started attacking David for no reason hitting him and head butting him in the face. Actually that's a stupid thing to say. ZANU (PF) have never needed a reason for violence, it's always been their 1st choice of strategy. Birgit tried to intervene and help David but was pulled back and held. They then stripped him of his shirt and there was an MDC tee shirt under that so they attacked him again giving him another beating and stripped the tee shirt off his body.

One of the soldiers dressed in civilian clothes (Birgit has seen him around the village before in uniform) approached her and said "let's see if you have an MDC tee shirt on under your blouse"

Birgit pointed her finger at his face and said. "Don't you dare," that was enough to send him scurrying for cover. God aren't they brave. This all continued with David in agony, his face and body swollen from the repeated beating.

The ZTV crew and 2 reporters eventually arrived at 3.30pm and they started the cameras rolling. At this stage someone told David to leave and he escaped. Is it possible that this was done to protect our delicate viewers from the abhorrent sight of blood? Or is ZANU (PF) afraid to show the world what violent little animals they really are.

Birgit thought her turn was next but they stopped her leaving and told her that she was going to be interviewed. A group of people then started to escort her toward the hotel. As they reached the corner she was stopped again and the 2 ZTV reporters approached her. They wanted to know her name and then they asked her.

Q: What did she think of Bennett's display in parliament?
A: Birgit said that is was an unfortunate incident but she could understand how Roy felt. He and his family had been harassed for 4 years his employees killed, beaten, raped everything that he owned had been stolen by the state and through all this Chinamasa the minister of Law and Order had sat and done nothing. Obviously there's a point when anyone will burn their fuses.
Q: What did she think of the violent attack on the white farmer in Odzi? He eventually shot and killed one of his attackers in self defence after asking the police for 3 consecutive days for assistance and getting none.
A: Birgit said she didn't know what the situation was, so no comment.
Q: What did she think of the situation in Chimanimani?
A: The only way that things would get better in Chimanimani was when people who really care about the people, the MDC, where in power.

So ended Birgit's ordeal and as she wrote in the police report the saddest thing was watching the community, ham strung by fear of ZANU (PF), turn and beat one of their own. And throughout the day there was no police presence, they were all hiding away in their little police station on the hill, so much for law and order. God willing what goes around comes around. When Birgit returned home she found Celia the ridgeback dying. One of the rent a mob had given her poison meat. Birgit forced milk down her throat and managed to induce vomiting. Celia now faces her own long hard battle.

So ends another day in the land of peace and plenty where according to Mugabe we have so much food that we are choking on it. Well we are choking on something but I doubt it will be food.

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