[Good luck to Trevor Ncube. He’s up against a megalomaniac bastard who is now out to kick the powerful and super-rich black businessmen into line as well.

Look at how Mugabe is nailing Tsvangirai on the one hand, and even reaching out to “touch” people as influential and wealthy as Ncube. Mugabe is the Alpha-male of Zimbabwe! I kid you not. He is out to make sure that EVERYONE bows to his will. He is good at it.

However, my view is the bugger must be fought tooth and nail. He must not be allowed to kick everyone into line. Jan]

Johannesburg “ Newspaper publisher Trevor Ncube is bringing an urgent court application tomorrow against Zimbabwean authorities to justify why his passport was confiscated. The owner and publisher of the Mail & Guardian and Zimbabwe’s Standard and Independent had his passport impounded as he landed in Bulawayo on Thursday. Ncube, who was attending his brother’s wedding, told the Sunday Times from Bulawayo that he suspected that there was a renewed crackdown on influential and vocal Zimbabweans who live outside the country. He said he was still not entirely sure why his passport had been confiscated. “I’ve still not been given a reason… but I was informed that the instruction to confiscate my passport came from the Central Intelligence Organisation,” he said. Ncube said this move by the Zimbabwean authorities would “not intimidate” him. Ncube’s name is reportedly on a government list of more than 17 prominent Zimbabweans whose passports would be similarly confiscated if they travelled back to their homeland. Those on the list include trade unionist Raymond Majongwe, political activist Paul Temba Nyati, and former Zimbabwean journalist Caroline Gombakomba. The document which contains their names states that their passports are “deemed invalid and should be withdrawn on sight”. On Friday Ncube said: “I’ve been to the immigration office where they have my passport and they are waiting for an instruction to ship it to Harare.” Describing the action as unlawful and ridiculous, Ncube said he was a patriotic Zimbabwean with business interests both in his own country and South Africa. He said he was not deterred and would continue to speak out against injustices where they existed. Ncube’s newspaper has in recent years published articles critical of President Robert Mugabe’s government.

From The Sunday Times (SA), 11 December
By: Simpiwe Piliso
Source: WWW.ZwNews.Com