Prayer for Zimbabwe

[Frances]

that the Lord will take control. . . .

[Roelof]

Harare - Zimbabwe opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai quit the country's bitterly fought run-off election on Sunday, saying the vote cannot be free and fair.
"We in the MDC cannot ask them to cast their vote on the 27th when that vote would cost them their lives," Tsvangirai told reporters.
"We will no longer participate in the violent illegitimate sham of an election process."
The opposition chief said President Robert Mugabe had "declared war by saying that the bullet has replaced the ballot".
"We believe an election that reflects the will of the people is impossible," he said. He appealed to the United Nations, African Union and regional body SADC to "intervene and stop the genocide".

http://www.news24.com/News24/Africa/...344922,00.html

[Roelof]

I pray that the violence, murders and intimidation will stop now.



London - Britain's newspapers said on Monday that Morgan Tsvangirai could not be blamed for pulling out of Zimbabwe's presidential election but urged South Africa to turn on President Robert Mugabe.
National dailies branded Mugabe "tyrannical" in their editorials and raised comparisons with Nazi Germany dictator Adolf Hitler as they urged Zimbabwe's neighbour South Africa to wield its influence and lead world outrage at Mugabe's regime. Tsvangirai, leader of the main opposition Movement for Democratic Change party, withdrew from the two-man second round run-off on Sunday, saying violence had made a fair vote impossible.

http://www.news24.com/News24/South_A...345294,00.html

[Roelof]

How worse can it become in Zim?

Zimbabwe opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai has taken refuge at the Netherlands embassy in Harare, a spokesperson for Dutch Foreign Minister Maxime Verhagen said Monday.

"He is temporarily at the embassy of the Netherlands in Harare," spokesperson Bart Rijs told AFP.
"A request was made yesterday (on Sunday) by his party, the MDC, and Minister Verhagen decided that if he sought safety it would be granted."
Rijs could not say how long the opposition leader would remain at the Dutch mission.
"He (Tsvangirai) is currently reflecting on what the next step should be." Tsvangirai, leader of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), announced on Sunday he was quitting the run-off race for the presidency against Robert Mugabe, saying increasing violence made a free and fair poll impossible.

http://www.news24.com/News24/Africa/...345576,00.html

[Roelof]

The SA president now must act against Zim !!!!

Johannesburg - The rand weakened to a one-week low against the dollar on Monday as negative sentiment weighed on emerging markets, analysts said.

Market watchers said emerging markets were trading with a weaker bias but South African assets could be particularly vulnerable due to developments in Zimbabwe.

http://www.fin24.com/articles/defaul...8-1791_2345579

[Roelof]

If this happen, millions of Zim people will flee to SA, increasing the unemployment rate here upwards from +- 25%. Please pray.


Harare - With President Robert Mugabe assured of "victory" in the now one-man presidential runoff election on Friday, Zimbabwe will have to face an economic disaster worse than it has ever experienced, economists warned Monday.
Following the announcement on Sunday by Morgan Tsvangirai, leader of the Movement for Democratic Change, that he was withdrawing "from this violent, illegitimate sham of an electoral process," Mugabe's Zanu(PF) declared it would nevertheless proceed with the election and "romp home to victory."

http://www.news24.com/News24/Africa/...345525,00.html

[Roelof]

It is now in the hands of God.

For a man who has battled for nearly a decade to become President of Zimbabwe, Morgan Tsvangirai's decision to pull out of the race against Robert Mugabe only days before polling must have been the toughest of his career.

The former union boss has suffered arrest and beatings at the hands of his rival. His supporters have been murdered, arrested and tortured. Many wanted him to continue the fight until election day on Friday, but he reached the conclusion that staying in the presidential race would only lead to more bloodshed.

As Mr Mugabe has made clear in both words and deeds over the past week, the outcome of the vote was never in doubt. A clear majority of Zimbabweans may want him out, but there is not much that the civilian population can do against the combined might of the Zanu (PF) militia and the security forces, not to mention the electoral authorities, which have still not given a full account of the last vote.

In Mr Mugabe's own words, “only God” could remove him from office.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/new...cle4193365.ece

[aaalynn]

Let us place this situation at our Lords feet. We cannot change this alone, only ... GOD.

[FollowTheBanner]

Praying again for the people of Zimbabwe, especially our brothers and sisters there who call upon the Lord.

[Roelof]

Praying again for the people of Zimbabwe, especially our brothers and sisters there who call upon the Lord.

FollowTheBanner

Thanks for your prayers.

A election with only one presidential candidate, after Mugabe murdered and intimidated the opposition.. It is ridiculous !!!



Harare - Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe told a rally on Tuesday "we will proceed with our election" and accused the opposition leader of seeking to withdraw because he was scared of losing. "We will proceed with our election ... Other people can say what they want, but the elections are ours and we are a sovereign state," Mugabe told a rally in Banket, north of Harare.
http://www.news24.com/News24/Africa/...346331,00.html

[Roelof]

President Mugabe began murdering his opponents less than three years after he came to power in 1980, declaring that his rule would mark “the age of love” and reconciliation with the Rhodesian whites against whom he had fought.
A low-level insurgency that began in 1982 with disaffected former guerrillas of the Ndebele-based Zimbabwe People's Revolutionary Army (Zipra), who had fought alongside Mr Mugabe in the civil war, received a savage response.
Led by soldiers of the 5 Brigade of the Zimbabwe National Army, who were trained in North Korea, a campaign of systematic massacre was carried out against the rural people of Matabeleland, whom Mr Mugabe regarded as providing shelter, food and intelligence for the ex-Zipra “dissidents”.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/new...cle4207831.ece

[Roelof]

Harare - Opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai on Wednesday ruled out talks on solving Zimbabwe's political crisis until the release of his number two and 2 000 "political prisoners".

"Let me say clearly that there is no discussion about moving forward without our secretary general Tendai Biti," Tsvangirai said of his party's number two, who is in jail on subversion and vote-rigging charges and faces the death penalty. "All political prisoners must be freed immediately, including our secretary general Tendai Biti and 2 000 others."

http://www.news24.com/News24/Africa/...346873,00.html

[Roelof]

Anglo American, the London-listed mining giant, said today that it was "reviewing all options surrounding the development" of its $400 million (£202 million) platinum mine in Zimbabwe.
The company's decision to press ahead with the Unki mine in central Zimbabwe has prompted outrage from politicians who claim it will provide support to the regime of President Mugabe.
Under pressure from politicians and from its own shareholders, Anglo said that it would review the project but did not want to abandon the 650 people working at Unki.

http://business.timesonline.co.uk/to...cle4211191.ece

[moonglow]

This has been making the headline news here lately...they had more on it today...I checked CNN and this is the leading story on their website:

Amputations, beatings scare voters in Zimbabwe

Zimbabweans are accustomed to violence, but the beatings and bloodshed have been epidemic since early April, days after opposition candidate Morgan Tsvangirai pushed longtime President Robert Mugabe into a runoff election for the nation's top post.

Tsvangirai dropped out of the race this week, citing intimidation and vote-rigging. He is now in hiding at the Dutch Embassy, uncertain like most Zimbabweans whether the violence would continue.

Zimbabweans and outside observers say militias loyal to Mugabe's Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) have engaged in intimidation tactics designed to deter Tsvangirai's supporters from casting ballots. Video Watch people run in fear »

"Violence has been taking place mainly in the countryside, people having their hands chopped off, fingers broken, etc. -- the reason for that being to prevent them from voting in the runoff," said a journalist Tuesday in an e-mail from Harare.

Both the woman and journalist requested anonymity out of fear they could be targeted for talking.

"If you talk too much, they come looking for you, they hunt you down, they beat you," the woman told CNN.
Don't Miss

* Tsvangirai returns to Dutch embassy
* Tutu: Mugabe is a monster
* Official: Mugabe wins after opposition pulls out
* TIME.com: Robert Mugabe: A despot's cruel resolve

Rapes and maimings are being reported across the country. On Monday, the United Nations Security Council condemned "the campaign of violence," which it said was responsible for scores of dead opposition activists and the beatings of thousands. Video Watch why the U.N. says a fair election is impossible »

"There are so many people who are dying right now. We're not even sure how many people have died," said the woman in Harare, Zimbabwe's capital.

In his letter announcing he was dropping out of the presidential race, Tsvangirai said at least 86 people have been killed, 10,000 wounded and 200,000 people displaced.

This morning they said the state would not allow Tsvangirai to drop out of the race..the run off's....he wanted too to stop the violence and so the people wanting to vote for him wouldn't be hurt, but they won't allow him to drop out...the voting is set for Friday. Now if Mugabe wins everyone will know he won by scaring off voters...will they allow him to stay seated? If he loses...I think a full scale war will happen if anyone tries to remove him....it seems to be a no win situation. I am praying hard for God to remove Mugabe and stop this terror!

God bless

[Roelof]

moonglow

Thanks for the info.

Joining you in prayers.