Mugabe and the White African

Freeth MBE Ben

Description

Ben Freeth has an extraordinary story to tell. Like that of many white farmers, his family's land was 'reclaimed' by Mugabe's government for redistribution. But Ben's family fought back. Appealing to international law, they instigated a suit against Mugabe's government in the SADC (The Southern African Development Community). The case was deferred time and again while Mugabe's men pulled strings. But after Freeth and his parents-in-law were abducted and beaten within inches of death in 2008, the SADC deemed any further delay to be an obstruction of justice. The case was heard, and successful on all counts. But the story doesn't end there. In 2009 the family farm was burnt to the ground. The fight for justice in Zimbabwe is far from over - this book is for anyone who wants to see into the heart of one of today's hardest places, and how human dignity flourishes even in the most adverse circumstances.

Sujets

• Zimbabue
• Political corruption
• Zimbabwe

Informations

• Publié par: Lion Hudson
• Date de parution: 10 juin 2011
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9780745959856
• Langue: English

Extrait

This book is dedicated to a brave African - who happened to be white. Mike Campbell died for what we believe in - leaving his legacy for us all.
This book is also dedicated to all who have done so much to help the victims of Mugabe s land programme, whose stories are very similar to this one. Our prayer is that we will one day rebuild our country on the right foundations.

Copyright 2011 Ben Freeth
This edition copyright 2011 Lion Hudson
The author asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work
A Lion Book an imprint of Lion Hudson plc Wilkinson House, Jordan Hill Road, Oxford OX2 8DR, England www.lionhudson.com
ISBN 978 0 7459 5546 9 (print)
ISBN 978 0 7459 5985 6 (epub)
ISBN 978 0 7459 5984 9 (Kindle)
ISBN 978 0 7459 5986 3 (pdf)
Distributed by: UK: Marston Book Services, PO Box 269, Abingdon, Oxon, OX14 4YN USA: Trafalgar Square Publishing, 814 N. Franklin Street, Chicago, IL 60610 USA Christian Market: Kregel Publications, PO Box 2607, Grand Rapids, MI 49501
First electronic format 2011
All rights reserved
Acknowledgments
Scripture quotations taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version, copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Hodder & Stoughton, a member of the Hodder Headline Group. All rights reserved. NIV is a trademark of International Bible Society. UK trademark number 1448790.
p. 71: Scripture quotation taken from the Holy Bible, Today s New International Version. Copyright 2004 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Hodder & Stoughton Publishers. A member of the Hachette Livre UK Group. All rights reserved. TNIV is a registered trademark of International Bible Society. pp. 78-79: Extract from The Authorized (King James) Version. Rights in the Authorized Version are vested in the Crown. Reproduced by permission of the Crown s patentee, Cambridge University Press. Cover image 2011 Jude May, Lion Hudson plc Inside images Ben Freeth unless specified otherwise
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
CONTENTS

Cover

Dedication

Title Page

Copyright

Foreword by Desmond Tutu

Foreword by John Sentamu

Mugabe and the White African

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Appendix 1: Glossary

Appendix 2: Timeline

Appendix 3: Ben Freeth s Open Letter to Mugabe

Appendix 4: Updates

Maps

Photo Section

Notes
A story that has had a profound influence on my life is that of David and Goliath. It seemed so extraordinary that this small chap could defeat such an enormous giant, just by using his brain. For many of us in South Africa, it served as an inspiration in our efforts to bring down the colossus of apartheid. At times it was a seemingly impossible task as the apartheid government was very powerful, but today it no longer exists. Injustice and oppression will not have the last word.
Mugabe and the White African is in essence a David and Goliath story. Appalled by the state-orchestrated crimes against humanity on a massive scale countrywide, with horrific violence perpetrated against white commercial farmers, their farm workers, and the rural population, a farming family takes on President Mugabe s government in a landmark court case heard by the SADC Tribunal in Windhoek, Namibia. They know the risks, but they believe it is what God requires of them.
Set on Mount Carmel farm in the Chegutu district of Zimbabwe, this deeply moving book is the chronicle of a Christian family s struggle to survive, to protect the land it purchased legally from the government, and to protect the lives and livelihoods of all those working on the farm. The support of their farm workers is crucial and the loyalty of these vulnerable men and women in the face of grave danger is remarkable. Mike Campbell was the owner of the farm and Ben Freeth, his son-in-law, worked alongside him. Ben s wife Laura ran a small linen project to empower the wives of their farm workers. All were viewed as model employers.
Mugabe and the White African explains how the shocking acts of violence and wanton destruction committed in the name of land reform have demolished property rights and all but ruined commercial agriculture in this once highly successful African country. In benefiting the chosen few in high office, the land invasions have forced Zimbabweans into poverty and dependence, discarding the ideals for which the independence struggle was fought.
Numerous books on this turbulent period catalogue the horrors, injustice, and oppression that have defined the last decade. A fascinating feature of Ben Freeth s book is that he also explores the conflict between good and evil under the Mugabe regime. At the heart of Christianity is a struggle and Freeth grapples with the root of the evil in his country and the malevolent spirits that have allowed the leaders to cause people such suffering.
The incomprehensible greed, appalling lack of compassion, and unspeakable cruelty demonstrated by the Zimbabwean elite contradicts the classical African concept of ubuntu - the essence of being human. Ubuntu speaks particularly to the fact that you can t exist as a human in isolation since we are all interconnected. The spirit of ubuntu is diminished when others are humiliated or diminished - and when others are tortured or oppressed. It is encouraging that throughout the book there are examples of extraordinary courage, humanity, and neighbourliness that embody the philosophy of ubuntu .
There have been too many abuses since the launch of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights over sixty years ago. I would like African leaders to be the kind of leaders that many of us hoped they would be. The suffering of our brothers and sisters in Zimbabwe is a blight on our region and beloved continent. All of us Africans must hang our heads in shame for having allowed such a desperate situation to continue and for doing so little to try to stop it.
Citizens need to be galvanized to shame governments and create an ethos in which it would be more difficult to act with impunity. If everyone who wants to see an end to poverty, hunger, and suffering speaks out, then the noise will be deafening. Politicians will have to listen. We are one family, the human family, God s family. Zimbabwe s plight is all of our plight. To ignore its suffering is to condone it.
Reconciliation, when change comes, will be a long haul, and will depend on all of us making a contribution. Reconciliation must be a national project, as we learned through South Africa s peaceful transition to democracy. Our Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) presided over the process of healing a traumatized and wounded people and is regarded as the most ambitious of its kind - a benchmark against which truth commissions in other countries are measured. We acknowledge that there were shortcomings in the process - as there are in any process, especially in one so challenging.
As the TRC evolved, the inadequacy of the criminal justice system in exposing the full truth of, and establishing clear accountability for, what happened in our country became apparent. Unsuccessful prosecutions of perpetrators of gruesome crimes led to bitterness and frustration in the community. Furthermore, we realized that all communities must be involved in the reconciliation process, otherwise the burden of guilt could not be assuaged. From a practical point of view, the healing of those who came to the TRC also hinged on their receiving more substantial reparations and the stalling of this process caused further pain.
When we look around us at some of the conflict areas of the world, it becomes increasingly clear that there is not much of a future for them without forgiveness and reconciliation. God has blessed us richly so that we might be a blessing to others. If South Africans could reconcile, despite the terrible legacy of apartheid, then this can certainly happen anywhere, including Zimbabwe.
I commend the many learnings contained in this book and the courage of all those who lived on Mount Carmel farm or who continue to live there because they have nowhere else to go. They have all suffered mentally, physically, and emotionally, and many will never recover fully. A number have lost their lives because they stood up for what they believed to be right. May their supreme sacrifice lead to a better country and to a better world.

Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu
April 2011
Mugabe and the White African is a courageous endeavour by Ben Freeth to present the true nature of President Mugabe s controversial land reform programme, the breakdown of the rule of law and the need for justice for the people of Zimbabwe. He explains that control of the rural areas is strategically vital for the retention of power by ZANU-PF since this is where an estimated 70 per cent of the Zimbabwean population lives, and they have borne the brunt of the onslaught.
The book begins with Ben s first encounter with President Mugabe in the late 1990s and provides brief historical context prior to the farm invasions that were unleashed in 2000. He describes appalling acts of violence perpetrated against farmers and farm workers and the wanton destruction of highly successful commercial farming enterprises, which were the backbone of Zimbabwe s agri-based economy. I have had the privilege to visit this previously thriving country on nine occasions and am shocked by the ruinous policies of President Mugabe and the fact that so many people have been displaced, brutalized, and killed.
Racism has returned to haunt Zimbabwe in a different form and, by his actions, Mugabe demonstrates that he is the worst kind of racist dictator. He has enacted an awful Orwe