Majestic … The Victoria Falls as seen from the Zimbabwe side
“Come to South Africa and see the Victoria Falls.”
This rather incredulous statement is contained in a brochure that I assume was approved by the South African tourism agency. It was the subject of a conversation I had with a fellow countryman the other day.
I had mentioned this to him as we discussed how Zimbabwe could benefit from the 2010 World Cup. ‘How could they?’ he howled, beside himself with anger.
I pointed out to him that the South Africans have been marketing the Falls as their own for ages while we were busy invading farms and beating each other up and starving each other half to death.
We are all aware where the Falls are but with the global soccer spectacle just around the corner, the South Africans are going to make the most of anything that can channel money in their direction. They even have direct daily flights from Jo’burg and Cape Town that make sure that their tourists stay long enough to view the Falls and are quickly whisked out before you can shout “Zanu PF Youths!”
My friend mentioned that it seemed obvious that the South Africans were giving our country a wide berth when it came to benefits. Granted that the bulk of SA’s tourism industry is controlled by whites, this is not surprising, he fumed. We might be the quintessential skunks of the world but allow us to get the benefit of our God given natural resources. A tourist dropping by for the day just to spend on curios and ice cream is not enough.
But then who can blame them? Thina the owners are not marketing our tourist attractions enough. So, what can stop others who see potential in them do it for their own benefit? Aren’t we the ones who frustrated Michael Jackson from building a resort along the Zambezi?
We were so full of ourselves that all potential development fled across the border to Zambia. As I speak, no less than four luxury hotels have been constructed in Livingstone while their airport has been upgraded to take large aircraft. They have even built an international standard stadium that will host any of a number of World Cup-bound teams for acclimatisation.
The way things are going on the political front, in addition to having the likes of Karikoga Kaseke at the helm of tourism in Zimbabwe, we might as well forget getting any of those teams even taking a peak from our side of the Falls.
I will accept the Zambians making the most of the falls because we share this natural wonder, but the South Africans?
Yet we must also look at ourselves and accept that no amount of sweet-talking will gloss over the sorry state of our country particularly when war talk remains part of the discourse. As it is said in the bible, we will reap what we sow, which in our case is absolutely nothing.
By the way, my friend, being of the war talk type, had the last word: “Let the South Africans keep their World Cup, and we will keep our Victoria Falls!”
‘Hate’ is such a harmful feeling
Did I say some time back that Ian Khama and the Batswana ‘hate Robert Mugabe with a passion?’ Well, allow me to re-phrase that statement without it losing much of its currency.
Let us say that Batswana hold a less that flattering view of our Uncle Bob. I regret using the word ‘hate’ because as a prowled the website New Zimbabwe.com before it crashed, I encountered several instances of people who said they ‘hated’ Ian Khama, even if they did not present a plausible reason why.
Hate begets hate. There has been so much of it going around in Zimbabwe I don’t want to be the one encouraging its circulation. I tried to search for reasons and the only thing I came up with is the fact that Khama does to like the GPA experiment one bit.
I recall an outright attack on Ian by Jonathan Moyo which went something along the lines of “what else can people expect from a country that has more goats than people”. I felt that was below the belt stuff … until Moyo scampered back cap-in-hand to Zanu PF. Just typical isn’t it?
As if to rub salt into the wound, the Botswana president repeated his displeasure at Zanu PF’s failure to fully honour the spirit of the power sharing agreement with the MDC factions.
Addressing his nation recently, he said that in the absence of genuine partnership, it would be better for all the parties to go back to the people and conduct genuinely free and fair elections.
Talking about free and fair elections, true democracy is a tangible ideal in Botswana. Batswana exercise one of the basic fundamental rights, that of the freedom of speech. We all know that the same cannot be said about the homeland where there is freedom of speech but not after the speech.
Before anyone officially declares yours truly a cheerleader of the Lt General Seretse Khama Ian Khama, may I be allowed to mention the fact that not everyone in Bots is quite enamoured with their president.
Spencer Mogapi, the vocal deputy editor of the local Sunday Standard newspaper has a beef with the fact his president is not directly elected. In Botswana, the leader of the party winning the elections automatically becomes president. He writes that it is important that the president should earn those powers directly from the people.
“Zimbabwe, a country we would like to portray as run by a red-eyed dictator has a better system. Robert Mugabe may be rigging the elections every five years, but Zimbabweans are, as of law, allowed, from time to time, to go to the polls to choose who they want to be president,” Mogapi writes.
So there you are. Zimbabwe does get the occasional credit even if it is in a hackneyed sort of way. Pamberi!
The xenophobes have it!
We are in the news again for the wrong reasons, this time in South Africa. Zimbabweans have been attacked in South Africa’s Western Cape Province by the locals.
Their gripe is that, wait for it, Zimbos are allowing themselves to be exploited by the local farmers by agreeing to work for peanuts. Yah, you heard me right. The locals claim they don’t want to work because the farmers are offering wages that are well below the government stipulated ones.
But then here come these desperate foreigners to give the farmers a life line. So their cockeyed solution is to drive them out.
We all know how overenthusiastic the South Africans can be when it comes to moering (Afrikaans for hitting) people. The story here isn’t so much the violence but the fact that Zimbabweans have been driven from their own country and resorted to travelling the best of 4,000 kilometres (as the crow flies) to the Cape vineyards for refuge and sustenance! Now who is the criminal here?
Lenox Mhlanga can be contacted at lenoxmhlanga@hotmail.com and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/lenoxmhlanga
Good article! Our problem is that we spend too much time talking about these ‘grand plans’ to capitalise on the football extravaganza but do little or nothing to market our country! If you can’t market your own products then who do you expect to do it for you? Till we learn to be more pro-active we will always watch whilst SA and Zambia prosper
Thats too mean to stop the SA marketing tourism the Falls through their agencies. its like air zimbabwe marketing to Zimbos saying we will fly you to UK or Mauritius and discover the scenic beauty of these countries. tourists coming to Zim still benefit Zim. Dont be Zanu jealousy. Zvakauraya nyika izvozvo. Because of crude politics, let the tourists view the falls in south african glasses, nothing bad. Charwadza ndechekuti ma tourist companies varungu. In England there are black british and as well south african or zimbabwean whites. color does not belong to a country. black or white a zimbo is a zimbo. Musauraya nyika muchidero. Ndataura samanyika hangu
Iwe nyaya yeminda hanei ne falls-Minda ngaitorwe, there is nowhere in the world (educate me if you have evidence) where a resource like land, oil, water,air space, can be distrubuted bloodlessly-read the Zimbabwe history from 1891-Albeit biased it has some truth as to how Zimbabwean agriculture was disrupted by the pionneer collumn.
the disposed commercial farmers had developed their farms over a century with free labour and intensive support from the colonial government, with markets set up before they even sow a seed. You can not compare them with Zim new farmers, to date Zimbos, scavenging in diaspora will have to do-but teh future Zimbos will see the Black farmers providing the much needed employment. This is revolution, revolution begins not because people positively want them, but because people want other things that they may implicate them in revolution or in war- It is a temporary situation, Zimbabwe will rise, the world will respect Zimbabwe.
The point being they market the Falls as a South African place which is deception, thats all.Its not right.They dont mention that its in Zim.Kodwa uEditor wakho is living in adream world, ufundile engafundanga, whether the president is elected directly or indirectly kuyafana nje, can he imagine a situation where, kungela rigging, an African party can win kuma MPs and not win for President, kuyafana nje.
i made the same observation as well. South Africa is advertising the falls. Zambia may have gained superiority over these years in which we have been passive.
batshele kamhlanga.talking of our dear vic.falls being exploited did you know that these so called sa tour operators are actually run by our own cabinet ministers in zim,hence the silence.it will take the next generation to turn things around.here this kamhlanga,indaba ye zesa power cuts.this young zim lad came to join his family in the uk.i took him out for ice cream and on our way back home uthi kimi kanti amagetsi azacitsha nini.was stunned,imisebenzi ka bob liyayibona.
Good observation. All talk and no action. Absolutely nothing has been done to capture the potential benefits from the world cup. As for Nyari Zimbabwe is for blacks as Britain is for whites. You can call yourself black British but the fact remains you are not welcome, i.e. YOU DONT BELONG!!
Trash. This article is way below standard. What is Lenox failing to say? Bootlicking his host, Khama, as usual.
The whole saga goes to Botswana, they advertise (agents in U.K Guardian) as in Botswana. Poaching by the virtual means.
The solution is simple. The tourists boards of concerned Boards need to make sure if the advert goes Zimbabwe gets a chunk or you don’t by-pass my neighbor is the resolution. The economics is a check for manipulability of SADC. Not Zimbabwean people only! Virtual land ownership is just like Land grab of 1896!
Very good balanced writing on all three headings Lenox. Not interesting to me. What is interesting to me are the responses. Can any one tell me how old and how educated these responders are? They always interest me in the way they write very creative nonsense. Come on then,insult me . Which I expect or let us debate your nonsense.Which would be a surprise.
vamwe vanhu vakafa brain fanika mugabe chaiye,Mhlanga you are too old for your sentiments yet you live as if you are another Mgabe’s watch dog under his mentality.What’s wrong with Vic Falls being publicised by South africans or Britons?,if you as a Zimbabwean cannot do it or you have no ideas of doing it.Man woke up we need progress not jelousy as you sound.Food for thought my friend.Usangodya raibva,bvunza kana usingagone kubika kwacho!
Just to remind Lennox that the system that the Tswanas have on electing their leader is the same as the British have. No wonder why Tony Blair was replaced in the middle of the Labour government term. Are the British undemocratic?…Food for thought.
where are the falls anyway? is it not that the best part is in zambian land but can be viewed from the zim side? food for thot!
It should have rea, “Come to South Africa and see working Zimbabweans” lol
Lennox,I disagree with you on the Victoria Falls development.The Zambian side is not attractive for tourists because development has destroyed the natural habitats and the rain forests.Actually development will kill the beauty of the Falls.The Zimbabwean side has rain forests which have been preserved.Remember that Tourists come to the Falls to see nature.I support the Ministry Of Environment for preventing development on the Falls.If any development is to be done then it must be off-limits.
in any country, bad politics kills all sectors of life including tourism and the eonomy at large.With mugabe at the helm Zimbabwe will remain the skunk of the world and a recluse among nations.
Ndoda you still got a long way to go abelungu are tryin hard to find life in another planet ,Wena uzo,bangu -umsindo Ngamaphophoma ngala -mabhodha ka-RHODES ungiphuli nhliziyo kwedini,AFRIKA HLANGANANI,, KANT yiyo lemfundo esilibele siyizwela ko- Mazimba?
The Kenyans advertised Mt Kilimanjaro for decades as if it was theirs. As most people were growing up they actually thought that Kilimanjaro
was in Kenya because all the development in terms of chalets and hotels were on the Kenyan side of the border. Tourists would cross into Tanzania for a day visit and come back to sleep on the Kenyan side. Tanzanians have since wised up and are now successfully marketing Africa’s highest mountain as their own. This has been made possible because there has been a constant renewal of leadership in Tanzania since the days of Mwalimu Julius Nyerere and new leaders have emerged who continue to inject fresh ideas on how the tourism sector should be run. We should not blame the South Africans for taking advantage of an apparent lethargy in how the Zimbabwe government runs its tourism sector. We all know that money is made from hotel occupancies and not the cokes and coffee that South African tourists buy when they get to the Vic Falls. That is if they are even given time to buy refreshments as they will probably have the same on their flight back. The South Africans have done a great job by marketing the Falls and our situation is not helped because when you arrive at Vic Falls Airport you are greeted by a welcome sign which says WELCOME TO VICTORIA FALLS. Our cause can only be helped if that signage can also state ZIMBABWE boldy so that whoever is arriving will know immediately that they are in a different country. I will stand corrected if our country’s name has since been added but the whole idea is to ensure that as a country we will be able to benefit from South Africa’s marketing and hope that any repeat visitors will book to come directly to Zimbabwe on any future visits with other friends and family.
I liked your article of witchdraft and development. One observation though is that the whole african science witchcraft-whatever you call it-is the basis of our civilization. The fact that science cannot prove it is another thing. Secondly, you seem to potray this african science in a rather negative way. There is the positive side to it. Think about the traditional medicines, fortune tellers, bad luck cleansers etc etc. It must be revived, I want to insist that that is the craddle of our civilization, history and literature on which the Whiteman has misled us to believe that it is bad. Just like injections can be used to kill peopl -on a mass scale even (think of biological warfare) doesnt mean that the whole western medical science is a bad thing. There is need to legally recognize that science for governments to be able to regulate it better and ensure that people do not abuse it like the guys you mention i.e the wizard guy and the sex guy. It is part and parcel of our who we are , we should not shun it but use it in positive outcomes-aside the sarcastic technological uses which you suggested. Think about kupira/ukuthethela. That is an undeniable pgenomenon whic we have to grapple with for the foreseeable future. In conclusion, I really like you article and the sense of humour therein but I wish to stress the need to take these issues seriosly and see how we can utilize these traditional means towards positive goals.
I rest my case