THE Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS) monitor, Abbey Chikane last week made sensational revelations about how state security agents managed to open his bag without his consent and photocopy some correspondencies, which were later publicised through the state media.

Halfway through his visit which ended on Friday, Chikane came under fire from government officials through the state media where he was accused of working under instructions from the United States government.
The unnamed sources said on the basis of the emails, it would be difficult for Chikane to present findings that would favour Zimbabwe
Chikane told journalists in Harare on Wednesday that when he came into the country, “some naughty intelligent person” opened his bag and photocopied some printouts of his emails.

Details of the emails went on to be published and broadcast in The Herald and ZTV, respectively.

Senior government officials, including President Robert Mugabe, have since spoken strongly against the KPCS, on the basis of those emails.

“In this particular case, what happened is that I had copies of emails in my bag,” said Chikane, shortly after meeting members of the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Mines and Energy.

“The emails were photocopied by someone. They (the people who photocopied the emails) basically copied and pasted the content from different email messages.

“These are messages from different countries — Canada, the European Union, and even some African countries. . .

“But I think some naughty intelligent person decided to photocopy and make use of the emails,” said Chikane.

It could not be established who could have opened Chikane’s bag, or whether he had found the bag’s contents still intact afterwards.

Chikane said there was no way he could be influenced by one country when the KPCS comprises 75 different countries.

“The Kimberley Process comprises of 75 different countries and these countries do not necessarily agree on how things are done
. . . there are contending views on how things should be done,” said Chikane.

The KP monitor said there was nothing unusual about the emails, saying he always gets different communications from people in different parts of the world.

He dismissed claims that his itinerary was drafted by US government officials.

“My programme was drafted by myself, and approved by both the government of Zimbabwe and the Kimberley Process,” added Chikane.

In one of the photocopied emails, US State Department special advisor on conflict diamonds Brad Brooks-Rubin reportedly advised Chikane to “endeavour to meet with the representatives of the Parliamentary Committee”, as well as civil society organisations.

Chikane’s meeting with the committee on Wednesday, according to sources, followed a conditional request by the monitor put to the Zimbabwe government through the Minister of Mines, Obert Mpofu.

Chikane however said all the business he carried out in Zimbabwe was according to the programme, which he developed himself and was approved by the government of Zimbabwe.

The KPCS monitor’s visit reportedly attracted a lot of interest from state security agents. On Thursday, the police in Mutare reportedly raided the offices of the Centre for Research and Development (CRD), an organisation that has exposed rights abuses at the Chiadzwa diamond fields in Marange.

After failing to locate the organisation’s director Farai Maguwu, the police allegedly proceeded to his home, where they arrested his young brother, who could not be immediately identified.
Two days earlier, Maguwu reportedly met with Chikane “and raised the organisation’s concerns over the human rights violations”.

In a statement, rights group Zimbabwe Peace Project (ZPP) said it “was also established that the police officers took away some documents from the centre’s offices”.

“It was not yet clear on which charges were the police holding on to Maguwu’s young brother,” said the ZPP in a statement.

Attempts to get a comment from police spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Wayne Bvudzijena were fruitless as his mobile phone was not reachable.

But the ZPP said as of Friday, Maguwu’s whereabouts were still unknown.

BY VUSUMUZI SIFILE

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