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SENATE HANSARD 19_October_2016_26-06_1
PARLIAMENT OF ZIMBABWE
Wednesday, 19th October, 2016
The Senate met at Half-past Two O’clock p.m.
PRAYERS
(THE HON. PRESIDENT OF SENATE in the Chair)
MOTION
RATIFICATION OF THE AMENDMENTS TO THE UNWTO
STATUTES AND FINANCING RULES
THE MINISTER OF TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY
INDUSTRY (HON. ENG. MZEMBI): I move the motion standing in my name;
THAT WHEREAS, section 327(2) (a) of the Constitution of Zimbabwe provides that any international treaty which has been concluded or executed by or under the authority of the President does not bind Zimbabwe until it has been approved by Parliament; WHEREAS the Republic of Zimbabwe is a member of the United
Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) and party to the 1947
United Nations Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of
Specialised Agencies;
WHEREAS the Republic of Zimbabwe joined the UNWTO in
1981;
WHEREAS the Republic of Zimbabwe is desirous of ratifying the pending Amendments to the UNWTO Statutes and Financing Rules;
WHEREAS the Republic of Zimbabwe is desirous of acceding to Annex XVIII of the 1947 Convention on Privileges and Immunities relating to UNWTO;
NOW THEREFORE, in terms of Section 327(2)(a) of the
Constitution of Zimbabwe, this House resolves that the aforesaid Statutes and Financing Rules and Annex XVIII of the 1947 Convention be and is hereby approved for ratification and accession respectively.
Madam President, the United Nations World Tourism Organisation is a specialised agency of the United Nations joining 16 other UN
Specialised agencies that include the International Monetary Fund, The World Bank, World Health Organisation, UNICEF, UNIDO, amongst others. It is responsible for the promotion of responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism.
Madam President, the agency was established in 1974 as the leading International Organisation in the field of tourism, promoting tourism as the driver of economic growth, inclusive development, environmentally and sustainably friendly products and offers leadership and support to the sector in advancing knowledge and tourism policies worldwide.
Zimbabwe has been a member of the UNWTO since 1981. Madam President, the UNWTO is committed to promoting tourism as an instrument of achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals and in fact we are relevant in three to four of them, Sustainable Development
Goal Number 8, on decent jobs and growth; Sustainable Development
Goal Number 12 on sustainable production and consumption;
Sustainable Development Goal Number 14 on life under water and Sustainable Development Goal Number 15 on life over land. They are geared towards promoting decent work and sustained, inclusive and sustainable development, responsible consumption and production, and conservation and sustainable use of natural resources.
The organs of the UNWTO are the General Assembly, Executive
Council, Regional Commissions, Committees and the secretariat. The General Assembly is the principal gathering and decisions making organ of the UNWTO which approves the budget and programme of work and debates topics of vital importance to the tourism sector globally.
In 2013, the 20th General Assembly for the UNWTO, which was jointly hosted by Zimbabwe and Zambia, through Resolution 628(xx), called upon Member states to accede to Annex XVIII of the Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the Specialised Agencies, 1947
(hereinafter, referred to as the “1947 Convention”) relating to the UNWTO in order for the organisation, its officials and experts to be able to enjoy the privileges and immunities provided to it as a specialised agency of the United Nations. The General Assembly also called on its Members to ratify all the amendments to the statutes and the financing rules that had not yet entered into force.
2.0 CURRENT SITUATION OF AMENDMENTS TO THE
STATUTES AND FINANCING RULES AND THE CONVENTION
ON PRIVILEDGES AND IMMUNITIES
2.1 Ratification of the Amendments to the Statutes and
Financing Rules
The financing rules govern issues such as payment of subscriptions by members, handling of arrears in the payment of member subscriptions and entail, inter alia, that a member which has one or more years in arrear payment may not be elected to the Executive Council or hold offices within the organs of the General Assembly and shall be deprived of the privileges enjoyed by other members in the form of services and the right to vote.
The amendments to the UNWTO Statutes include the following;
- No immediate renewal of membership of the Executive Council, thus, the amendment provides for non-automatic renewal of membership of the Council upon expiration, unless an immediate renewal of membership is essential to safeguard fair and equitable geographical distribution. The request for immediate renewal shall be subject to obtaining of a majority of the votes of the full members present and voting;
- Appointment of the Secretary General and term of office, which seeks to limit the term of office of the Secretary General to four years, renewable only once;
- Adoption of Chinese as an official language of the UNWTO to include Chinese language as an official language of the UNWTO together with English, Arabic, French, Russian and Spanish languages;
- Change of depository from the Government of Switzerland, which was the depositary prior to the General Assembly resolution of September, 1981, to the Government of Spain, which is the current host of the UNWTO Headquaters;
- Awarding of a permanent seat to Spain in the Executive Council, which provides for the host State of the UNWTO Headquarters to have a permanent additional seat on the Executive Council, which shall not be affected by the geographical distribution of the
Council seats;
- Membership matters concerning status of membership, for example, full member (sovereign state), Associate Member (territorial/regional, intergovernmental or non-governmental organisations, tourism bodies), Affiliate Members (Youth in Tourism, Youth to Youth in Tourism).
2.2 Accession to the 1947 UN Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the Specialised Agencies relating to the
UNWTO
The 1947 UN Convention on the Privileges and Immunities provides that the organisation, its officials and representatives shall enjoy in the territory of each of its members such privileges and immunities as a necessary fulfilment of its purposes such as being immune from legal process, exemption from taxation on salaries, immune from national service obligations.
Article 63 of the UN Charter provides for a special relationship between the UN and its various specialised agencies with wide international responsibilities, as defined in their various mandates and to coordinate activities of the special agencies, the UNWTO being one such.
Since Annex XVIII to the 1947 Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the UN Specialised Agencies relating to UNWTO came into force on 30 July, 2008, nine countries have acceded to the convention namely, Angola, Bulgaria, Germany, Morrocco, Portugal, San Marino, Serbia, Switzerland and Seychelles.
Zimbabwe became party to the 1947 UN Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of Specialised Agencies on 5 March, 1991 and has already acceded and given effect in the domestic legal system in respect of UN specialised agencies such as the ILO, FAO, ICAO, WHO,
UNESCO and IMF. Thus, acceding to Annex XVIII relating to the UNWTO should not present any practical problem.
3.0 BENEFITS OF UNWTO MEMBERSHIP
- Zimbabwe co-hosted the 20th Session of the UNWTO General
Assembly in August, 2013 with Zambia in Victoria Falls and Livingstone Towns, which helped restore confidence in Zimbabwe as a prime tourism destination.
- Zimbabwe hosted a UNWTO regional e-marketing course for the tourism industry in March, 2015 and benefited from technical expertise and information sharing on e-marketing of tourism regionally and globally.
- Project Funding:-
i)UNWTO General Assembly Legacy Project for the Victoria Falls community where the UNWTO, in partnership with the Ministry of Tourism and Culture of the Republic of Korea are rehabilitating the Chinotimba Community swimming pool to the tune of US$47 500ii)Training and capacitating of women, youth and SMEs in tourism in Victoria Falls amounting to US$80 000, project agreement in final stages.
4.0 CONCLUSION
The request to Parliament for approval for Zimbabwe to accede to Annex XVIII relating to the UNWTO on the 1947 Convention on
Privileges and Immunities and to ratify Amendments to the UNWTO
Statutes and Financing Rules, is premised on;
- The importance of Zimbabwe as a member of the UNWTO through its Chairmanship of the UNWTO Regional Commission for Africa and the benefits of capacity building, project and technical assistance derived from the Membership, and
- The need to raise the profile of Zimbabwe’s candidature for the position of UNWTO Secretary General which falls vacant in
September, 2017.
Timely ratification of the amendments to the Statutes and accession to Annex XVIII will enable the Hon. Minister, Dr. Eng. Walter Mzembi, to submit his credentials as Africa’s candidate for the Secretary General position in October, 2016 in Egypt during the UNWTO Executive
Council meeting with full confidence of this country having ratified and acceded to the Statutes of the very same organisation that he aspires to lead.
*HON. SEN. MAKORE: Thank you Madam President of the
Senate for giving me this opportunity to say a few words as regards the Motion that has been put forward by Hon. Minister Eng. Mzembi. It is quite clearly acceptable in terms of the particular performance that was noticeable in the Ministry of Tourism and Hospitality Industry that has been headed by Hon. Eng. Mzembi. It has been witnessed that the performance of this Ministry was sometime above 5% with a contribution of gross domestic product that was namely the Tourism Ministry and also Mining.
I have also observed the initiatives that have been rolled over and over in this particular ministry. It is true that it did generate some very noticeable contribution that now it moves from millions to a dollar economy, to me it is quite a milestone. Secondly, there is no doubt that this candidate is most suitable for Africa itself to be one of Zimbabwe’s pride in terms of submitting to such a higher post of Secretary General.
You have full support because your performance has been great in Zimbabwe. It shows really that if you go up higher Africa will be proud in terms of initial generation that is initiated from your abilities that we have seen. You are a hard worker, you have been very resourceful. We wish you the best if you go or even higher to represent African because we are confident of your performance which is on the record.
Madam President of the Senate, there is no doubt that this august Senate supports this motion. I do not want to go much further than this but we really are proud of your performance Hon. Eng. Mzembi. May God bless you when you go. Thank you very much.
+HON. SEN. NCUBE: Thank you Madam President of the
Senate for giving me this opportunity to support this Motion that has been moved by The Minister of Tourism and Hospitality Industry. I would like to thank the Hon. Sen. who has just contributed. Minister, I believe you are one of the Ministers who is acquitting himself well and you are raising the flag of Zimbabwe high. Personally, I will debate what I see as problematic. You are one of those Ministers who is doing well in his work in raising the flag of Zimbabwe high. What I am not happy with is the arrears being mentioned – they are too high. I think you mentioned US$93m in arrears. You have come to request this
House to help you lobby the Minister of Finance and Economic
Development to pay so that we remain a member of this organisation.
What pains me is that yesterday, Hon. Sen. Mohadi brought something here, there are a lot organisations which we are members of and we are in arrears in those organisations. Today I listened to the news and I heard that there are people who are in pain in Mpilo Hospital there are no drugs and people are in pain. Yes, this is a situation but I have just said let me bring this to your attention. Since we are having all these arrears, let us also think of those who are sick. We are talking of representing the country but let us also consider our people who are ill. Let us consider that there are no drugs in our hospitals, let us consider that there are people who are poor, people without money who go into the hospital and they are returned. This has nothing to do with you
Minister but I have raised it because it is a money issue. This is why I have involved this issue even though I support you to be there because I know you work hard as a Minister.
When you are in the Cabinet please help and remember that there are people who are suffering out here so that the Minister of Health and Child Care is allocated enough resources. We seem to forget that there are people who are ill out there. This is the electorate, may we also value these people who are suffering. Let us mobilise resources so that we buy the drugs. I thank you.
*HON. SEN. CHIEF CHISUNGA: Thank you Madam President
for affording me this opportunity. I would want to thank our Hon. Minister Eng. Mzembi for coming before Parliament with this motion so that it could allow our Government to come up with these amendments.
We are privileged to have heard his explanation. This enables us as Zimbabweans to be able to work hand in glove with Africa and the world in that we should derive benefits from such organisations.
First and foremost, it is his right to be the Secretary General as benefits attached to this can be enjoyed by Zimbabweans if we are a fully subscribed member of UNWTO. The other benefit was our hosting the meeting in Victoria Falls. We benefited from the tourists that came here. This was enabled by the able leadership of Hon. Mzembi to disseminate the message that Zimbabwe is a beautiful country and a good destination for tourism. These are some of the benefits that we can have. Our request is that from now onwards, we are running short of time. These amendments have come late. We should have made a lot of noise to Hon. Minister Chinamasa so that he could quickly pay the arrears to our subscriptions so that we will not lose this opportunity.
This is a once in a life time opportunity. We are not uplifting Hon. Mzembi per se, but we are uplifting brand Zimbabwe so that we can raise our flag high through his able leadership in this particular organisation. We will ensure that our tourism will improve.
From his explanation, tourism is a sector that can improve our economy. According to his explanation, tourism is acting as a pain killer because the proceeds from tourism are being used in developing our country. We want Hon. Mzembi to be fully clothed and fully equipped as a member. As he represents the African continent, some continents, including Africa are supporting his candidature.
As Africa, this is the first time that we are getting this opportunity - as Zimbabwe in particular and we should stand by him. Some Hon. Senators have already explained the good work that he has done – deeds and not words. You will have observed that in the past two to three years, we were having foreigners that were coming here through Bulawayo to Harare conducting their own carnivals.
We urge you Minister to stand up and you will be guaranteed that we are behind you 100%. We hope that your candidature will succeed. With these few words I want to thank you and commend these amendments.
*HON. SEN. SHIRI: Thank you Madam President. I want to say to Hon. Eng. Mzembi we are very happy that you have come with such a request before this august House.
Secondly, I would like to congratulate you Minister for commemorating the World Tourism Day in Zimbabwe which had the theme to do with accessible tourism through universal designs including the disabled like myself.
I believe Hon. Minister you are capable and you are gifted. You are a valuable asset to Zimbabwe in the tourism sector. We wish you the best of luck when you conduct your campaigns and that you will emerge successful and be in a position to raise tourism as well as the Zimbabwean flag high.
*HON. SEN. CHIEF MUSARURWA: Thank you Madam
President. I have decided to add a few words on the motion raised by the Hon. Minister of Tourism and Hospitality, Eng. Mzembi where he is seeking support to represent Zimbabwe as a country in this world wide body in that he wants this august House to approve this treaty. We fully support you Hon. Minister – I would want to assure you that because you are working for the country.
We have heard you say that at the moment, our tourism is now wracking in an excess of US$1 billion to the economy. This is when you had worked hand in glove with your leaders and you have been listening to your leaders. Therefore Minister, we support you fully.
You are aware that the tourism sector that you are talking about, the Chiefs are the custodians of that tourism. These areas that your visitors visit fall under the domain of Chiefs. Minister, I urge you to strongly support through the authority and Ministry so that you work hand in glove with the Chiefs, so that your tourism will grow in leaps and bounds. I say so because I am aware of certain areas where you are losing out or are ignorant. That would also contribute towards the US$1 billion so that you would be talking of US$1.5 billion.
I will give an example of Nyanga, there are tourist attraction areas but a lot of tourists no longer want to go there. If you work hand in glove with the Chiefs and obey the culture of those Chiefs, you will be able to ensure that sacred areas are not desecrated so that our visitors can enjoy their stay in that area.
I thank you Minister that you working very hard. We will work with you. I thank you.
*HON. SEN. MAKONE: I would like to join my colleagues to ensure that we facilitate the Minister’s desires. We worked with the Minister for a long time in the Government of National Unity when he strongly launched a Tourism Policy. All that which he has done is well chronicled and we have been supporting him throughout and we have not changed our stance. You are a hard worker and everyone knows that but what we would like to congratulate you about Minister, is your behaviour. You give us a good image outside. You are a good ambassador for our country. If all our Ministers were good ambassadors, our country would be in a better place. Anyone who comes with their requests, and if they were to come in the manner that you have come, Zimbabwe would be flowing with milk and honey. We will be with you in our prayers and wish you well, and the best of luck with your candidature. I thank you.
*HON. SEN. CHIMHINI: Thank you Madam President. When
the Minister came here, I addressed him as ambassador and he smiled. I am saying so because as the majority of Members have said, he is indeed a knowledgeable Minister who knows what he is doing. Your wish is our command. As the august House, we will accept it. My plea to the Minister of Finance is that, let us settle our debts. We should not be known for the wrong reasons that we are bad debtors.
Before going any further, we urge you to support and grow tourism, and that it should not be a domain of just the rich but also the poor so that the people in the communal lands also enjoy domestic tourism. The domestic tourism should be affordable to the locals. Our hotels have exorbitant charges. I believe these are issues that you could look at with a view to lowering the rates for the locals.
Furthermore, we urge you to take into cognisance that there are certain places in Zimbabwe that are very beautiful but people do not know how to conduct themselves in those areas. There should be this tourism that is guided by the culture and knowledge of the chiefs in that area. Nyanga specifically has had some specific cases which are well chronicled. There are ways and means in which such debacles can be avoided by working hand in glove with the chiefs. Minister, I hope that as this august House, we accept and accede to your request, and in the same vein urge the Minister of Finance to pay for our outstanding debts.
I thank you.
THE MINISTER OF TOURSIM AND HOSPITALITY
INDUSTRY (HON. ENG. MZEMBI): I want to appreciate all the complimentary remarks that have been tabled by Hon. Senators. It is exactly that which I need much more than money. Goodwill from your own people is the beginning of a successful journey to an election. So I really appreciate that. Now, to take advantage of this item that I have tabled which has also been taken advantage of by the Senators to raise issues that they certainly need answers to, I have taken some of them as suggestions and yet others are also questions which I think I should favour them with answers before I take leave of the House.
Just to preamble some of the responses with a statement that says,
‘No nation is an island’; Zimbabwe can never do well unless it is fully integrated in the international family of countries. This is why you would recall upon the consummation of the Inclusive Government, one of the very first acts of that Government, which I was part to, was an exercise in reaching out on re-engagement so that we begin to enjoy the goodwill of other nations. We can only do better on the back of the goodwill from other nations. This is why we all should fight and unite around the purpose of making sure that we remove sanctions or that sanctions are removed from Zimbabwe to the extent that their continued application on the country become an expression of lack of goodwill for the country. This is why a sector like tourism is positioned in the manner that I have positioned it; as a forerunner and predecessor to all foreign affairs engagements. So when I go out there, I really treat myself as a worker waMumbengegwi ari kuenda kubasa reForeign Affairs so that we keep Zimbabwe connected.
I want to say that there has been a lot of talk about the reform of United Nations. That debate is led by none other than our own President and he remains the voice of conscience. Some of the statements actually may astound others that whilst we are in this election, why do we make statements like that. He remains the voice of conscience within Africa to the extent that we should be present in the UN system in a very bold way and that is how I take it.
Also, to add on to his clarion call on the reform of the UN to say that one of the best ways of reforming the UN system, is actually to take charge and control of some of its agencies and begin to set the agenda. For instance, if we succeed with this election in the UNWTO, what it basically does is that it places me on the table of the global cabinet with seventeen other people including the Chair of the Chief Executive Board, who is the UN Secretary General himself and that Zimbabwe on the table basically setting the agenda. This is the significance of this position that we are aspiring to lead at the UN. So, one of the best ways and not only the ‘be end and end all’, it is just one of them, is to make sure that we reform and take charge of some of its agencies and set the agenda. Africa in pushing me forward, is actually seeking that reform and complementing the President’s clarion call on reform of the UN agency.
I also want to share something that yes, I can get money and we can pay the $93 000 outstanding fees at the UNWTO but there are other threats to this campaign which you as the elderly council of the country must be seized with. I can be out there pushing an agenda on Zimbabwe, but if your actions back here contradict that agenda, it is an exercise in futility. The only people that I can only appeal to who can seize themselves with this matter, is this very House the Senate, because it is a legitimate framework for dialogue, not just amongst yourselves but with the people on the streets, the police and your children.
There is no substitute to diplomacy and this is the word that I want to leave with you. I am seeking to run a UN agency. It is a manifestation of Zimbabwe wanting to walk the diplomatic route. Our highest expression that we are turning a diplomatic corner and we want to engage is exactly this election. Now, I cannot be doing that when you are contradicting me on the streets. So, we have to go back to the drawing board and agree on the philosophy of dialogue to say, at the slightest indication of disagreement within the nation, we must lock each other within a room and resolve our differences. They cannot spill to the United Nations as was the case in the last month, or spill into global mainstream media because all we succeed in doing and becoming, is being a laughing stock of the world. Each time we witness all those stories that we read on CNN and BBC, that are self-sponsored because we sponsor them ourselves as Zimbabweans. All we are doing is decimating our brand equity as Zimbabweans. By the time I go out there, instead of fielding questions on tourism, I am being asked questions about political conditions, economy and I am detracted from actually proffering myself as a tourism boss candidate, to now dealing with brand Zimbabwe issues and my enemies love that. Those that are fighting me in this election, the opponents love to hang on to that narrative.
What we have succeeded really in getting this far and coming to table these statutes is to define what even Nathaniel in one Bible verse where he asks Phillip to say, “Nazareth! Nazareth! Can anything good come out of Nazareth”. These are the questions that I am confronted with. Zimbabwe! Zimbabwe! Can anything good come out of
Zimbabwe? Africa! Africa! Can anything good come out of Africa? The answer by Phillip to Nathaniel was - come and see. If you come and see, you will see it for yourself that there is something good that can come from Zimbabwe. That is really the essence of this Ministry. It is a come and see Ministry. My job is to say to people, come and see it for yourself. Come and experience the destination. The highest manifestation of that was the 20th Session of the UNWTO General Assembly because I was able to bring the whole world leadership in tourism to say, come and experience the destination; after this, if you have an opposite narrative then it means you have not seen anything. This is the office I am seeking to run. Come and see office. Come and see for yourself. Come and experience it.
Assist me even as I do that to make sure that we domesticate our differences. They are resolved within the borders, within Zimbabwe like what I see in Zambia each time they go for elections, they lock each other in Mulungushi Hall. They talk and talk, people have tea and biscuits because they want to take that from the streets into a room like this, ndomumatare ka. People chat to each other and come up with solutions to their own country. If you do not manage it and people who are on the streets – imi ndimi munokwanisa kuunza vanhu vese kuti huyayi titaurirane tiri muroom and you will not see anybody on the streets and you will not see a negative media clip on Zimbabwe which does not assist what I am seeking to achieve here together with yourselves.
I also wish to share with you that one of the chief products; in fact arguably the main one that I sell together with my team as we go out there, is peace. The peace that obtains in Zimbabwe is our first product because it does not matter how attractive your tourist attractions are. Victoria Falls, Eastern Highlands, Domboshava and everything, if they are situated in a conflict zone nobody will visit. I grew up in a township in Mucheke in Masvingo and there were no durawalls. You could virtually see what is happening in the next household. The next household could peep into what is happening in the next one and it was a generally established rule that households in conflict are not visited. You do not go where father and mother in the next house are fighting. Do you go there? It is the same simple analogy and principle that applies to countries visiting each other. The moment you signal conflict, the visiting world starts actually noting that ah-h! Maybe it is not safe to go there even when it is okay when you have resolved your issues here. They will still take time to recover from that message that was planted to them in the past.
I just appeal that we maintain our safety record in tourism which is 33 years. The last time that we lost a tourist to insecurity in this country was 33 years ago. So, that is what I position when I go out there to say come to Zimbabwe, peaceful, secure, stable, 33 years safety record. When they compare it to destinations up north and elsewhere they say ah-h! No, no, I think Zimbabwe is a value proposition that can secure us, so let us go there - chief product.
The second one is - you the people, your hospitality. If you are seen throwing stones and burning this and what have you on CNN and BBC, you are defying the narrative that I sell about you. I sell you as a highly intellectual country because that is what you are. You are 94% literate. So, I sell that aspect. I sell your hospitality, the fact that you are able to resolve conflicts quietly away from the streets or elsewhere. Those are the features that I sell about Zimbabwe. That is how you are remembered out there. This new narrative of street protests or trying to resolve things on the streets is not you. It is not Zimbabwean because that is not how you are remembered in the last 36 years. You are defying something that you have built around yourself – the people pillar nation branding as a very peaceful people that resolve their conflicts quietly. So, please help us. Help this election but help yourselves so that we bring that money into the country.
I want to thank you so much for listening. I have heard issues around domestic tourism, that you want to enjoy these products but again those solutions are in this room and the next one there. We can only enjoy these products on the back of our ability to raise a middle class. If you raise a middle class – the more you raise it the more people enjoy the product but if you have a fast diminishing middle class in a country as is currently the case, then that product is only enjoyed by the apex, the few rich. Let us work hard, both Houses together with others that are outside here, the Executive, Judiciary and Zimbabwe at large to make sure that we lift people out of poverty into a middle class. You will see them starting to enjoy these tourist products.
We must make that decision to set it as a goal to say, how many people do we have at the base of the pyramid. If they are 12 million today, we must make the decision that by year 2020 we want only 6 million at the base of the pyramid. The rest must be middle class and you will see people starting to visit Nyanga, Kariba and elsewhere because these products are not sold for free. They are sold at a cost because they are business products. For us to induce business, there must be a market and that market is the middle class that I am sharing with you. I take the issue around extortionate and inordinate pricing which is a mischief of the US dollar. I have my own prescriptions that I was discussing last night with the Governor of the Reserve Bank around this area and I hope that I can come back to this House one day soon to just come and talk tourism and how I see it helping in the recovery of this economy together with the other three pillars - agriculture, mining and manufacturing.
It is very simple; tourism cannot market conflict. We cannot package conflict. We package peace and on the back of it people come.
Tinotenda zvikuru, siyabonga.
Motion that:
WHEREAS, Section 327(2) (a) of the Constitution of Zimbabwe provides that any international treaty which has been concluded or executed by or under the authority of the President does not bind
Zimbabwe until it has been approved by Parliament;
WHEREAS the Republic of Zimbabwe is a member of the United
Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) and party to the 1947
United Nations Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of
Specialised Agencies;
WHEREAS the Republic of Zimbabwe joined the UNWTO in
1981;
WHEREAS the Republic of Zimbabwe is desirous of ratifying the pending Amendments to the UNWTO Statutes and Financing Rules;
WHEREAS the Republic of Zimbabwe is desirous of acceding to Annex XVIII of the 1947 Convention on Privileges and Immunities relating to UNWTO;
NOW THEREFORE, in terms of section 327 (2) (a) of the
Constitution of Zimbabwe, this House resolves that the aforesaid Statutes and Financing Rules and Annex XVIII of the 1947 Convention be and is hereby approved for ratification and accession respectively.
Motion put and adopted.
MOTION
RESTORATION OF THE MOTION ON THE FIRST REPORT OF
THE THEMATIC COMMITTEE ON GENDER AND
DEVELOPMENT ON THE STATUS OF CHILDREN’S HOMES ON
THE ORDER PAPER
HON. SEN. MAKORE: Mr. President, I move the motion standing in my name that the debate on the First Report of the Thematic
Committee on Gender and Development on the Status of Children’s Homes which was superseded by the end of the Third Session of the Eighth Parliament, be restored on the Order Paper.
HON. SEN. BUKA: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
RESTORATION OF THE MOTION ON THE SECOND
REPORT OF THE THEMATIC COMMITTEE ON GENDER AND
DEVELOPMENT ON EARLY CHILD MARRIAGES ON THE
ORDER PAPER
HON. SEN. MAKORE: Mr. President, I move the motion standing in my name that the debate on the First Report of the Thematic Committee on Gender and Development on Early Child Marriages which was superseded by the end of the Third Session of the Eighth Parliament, be restored on the Order Paper.
HON. SEN. BUKA: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
PRESIDENTIAL SPEECH: DEBATE ON ADDRESS
Fourth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion in reply to the
Presidential Speech.
Question again proposed.
*HON. SEN. MURWIRA: Thank you Mr. President for the opportunity. I want to thank the mover of the motion Hon. Sen. Nyambuya who was seconded by Hon. Sen. Mavhunga. I want to thank the President of this country for opening the Fourth Session of the
Eighth Parliament, who is also the Commander-in-Chief of the Defence Forces. Our President mentioned a number of Bills that we will look at, the Constitutional Bill, Rural Councils Bill and Marriages Bill. Mr.
President, I want to talk about the Traditional Bill which I think is very important. It has a lot to do with our culture as well as the conservation of our natural resources.
Mr. President, I want to talk about the traditional leaders in our nation. They should be respected, honoured and given more powers than those that they currently have. I want to bring to this House that our chiefs need to get better accommodation in the areas that they stay, as well as getting transport in order for them to be mobile in their areas. I am not talking about the traditional leaders in this House but even those who are in various areas, they should be given better accommodation because they have the duty of ensuring the conservation of our natural resources.
The issue of child marriages should be under the jurisdiction of the traditional leaders. If we look at the past week, the electronic media had a story that a five year old was raped which is very sad. If the traditional chiefs have the powers to deal with such matters, it can be dealt with urgently.
Mr. President, the dressing that is now in Zimbabwe for both men and women; you find the men putting sagged trousers and you also see women in tight trousers. When you look at them you feel ashamed and wonder what is happening. I think certain things that we are copying from other countries are not good and we need to safeguard our culture and traditional values. I think this should be under the jurisdiction of the traditional leaders. We know there are no chiefs in the metropolitan provinces but in those areas where they are, they should be given the jurisdiction to deal with such individuals.
I also want to thank Mr. President for this opportunity that you have given me to add my voice to this debate.
*HON. SEN. MALULEKE: Thank you Mr. President for
affording me the opportunity to add a few words on this good motion that was moved by Hon. Sen. Retired General Nyambuya and seconded by Hon. Sen. Mavhunga. I am very grateful for the speech that the
President had delivered. It was straight forward and well laid out.
However, I would want to confine myself on the proposed Prison Bill.
A few months ago, there was a Presidential Pardon, where 2000 prisoners were released. I observed that 131 of them have since been reincarcerated including women that have children. What I fail to understand is that do they now enjoy life in prison or we are failing as society to look after them.
As an august House, we ask permission to visit prisons as well as police stations so that we can come face to face with their challenges and see the lives of people who would have been arrested; inmates and suspects when they are in police and prison custody. So that as society, we can prepare on how best we can then live with them. I visited an Officer in-Charge at a particular police station; there were no keys or locks. Law enforcement agents are easy targets for offenders once they are released from prison but the President was lenient when he gave them clemency. During the visit with our committee, we saw that prisoners are taught life skills which they can use upon being released from prison. We then fail to understand whether they have now become hardened criminals. I was unhappy that eight women have since been re-incarcerated and above all they have children. It is painful. As parents in this august House it tends to hurt us.
There will also be a Marriage Bill which is forth coming. We have spoken on end denouncing early marriages and that they are problematic. When we go to our constituencies, let us put our heads together with our chiefs and traditional leadership as well as church leaders.
Nowadays, we now have too many churches and we do not know some of the laws that they have. There are churches were seven year olds are referred to as madzimai. In Tshanghani language, tsikombi means an elderly lady. So those girls succumb to wearing very long dresses but we should not use such names on these innocent children. There are those churches which put on white regalia but we do not appreciate their rules as regards the safeguarding of the girl child. We urge the leaders, even if it is not your church to have time to visit such churches, even when not invited, we should attend. I once went to a certain church where they put on the longish type of dressing, they restrict people to one man, one woman and I praise them for such a policy.
Lastly, on the issue of chiefs, the Traditional Leaders Bill is welcome. We should put our heads together and ensure that they are looked after properly. They now have dilapidated vehicles. Some of them now use public transport. They should have their vehicles repaired or given new ones so that they can go and attend provincial meetings at the provincial administrator as respectable chiefs. They are the representatives of Government hence the Government should help them.
The chiefs are the eyes of the Government in the communal lands. We urge Government to look after the welfare of the chiefs as regards decent homes and decent cars. All these Bills are going to pass through this august House as they are transmitted from the Lower House. I thank you.
HON. SEN. MASUKU: I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. MAKORE: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Thursday, 20th October, 2016.
MOTION
REPORT OF THE DELEGATION TO THE 39th PLENARY
ASSEMBLY OF THE SADC PARLIAMENTARY FORUM
Fifth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the Report of the
Delegation to the 39th Plenary Assembly of the SADC Parliamentary Forum.
Question again proposed.
HON. SENATOR MASUKU: I move that the debate do now
adjourn.
HON. SEN. CHIMHINI: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Thursday, 20th October, 2016.
On the motion of HON. SEN. MASUKU seconded by HON. SEN. BHEBE, the Senate adjourned at Nine Minutes to Four O’clock p.m.