Posted on 02/25/2006 3:12:05 PM PST by Clive
Dear Family and Friends,
Something amazing happened in Zimbabwe this week. On Wednesday night at 20 minutes past midnight the earth shook for a few minutes. The earthquake which measured 7.5 on the Richter scale was centred in Espungabera, a small farming town in a remote area of Mozambique near the Zimbabwe border. The earthquake was felt as far as 1000 kilometres away from the epicentre. In north east Zimbabwe beds shook, furniture trembled and glasses and plates tinkled on shelves in cupboards. Many of us heard a rushing noise like a high wind just as the shaking started and had no idea about what to do or where to go to be safe. It was a confusing and frightening experience, exacerbated by our ignorance as earthquakes are virtually unknown in Zimbabwe.
At 6am the following morning, the obvious place to get news and information about the strange shaking in the night, was the state owned radio and television. I listened in confusion and disbelief as the headline morning news wasn't about an earthquake, tremors or shaking but about the "unbundling" of Air Zimbabwe into six individual companies.
This "unbundling" is the latest phenomenon of loss making government companies here. Instead of being closed down or privatized, these huge debt ridden establishments are split up into lots of different little companies. 'Unbundling' is the 'Zim-glish' word that had sprung up to describe this strange activity which I suppose is undertaken to share the debts and make the losses look smaller than they actually are.
The second story on the first news bulletin of the day was about some scandal with a stripper on Valentines Day and still not about an earthquake and so I gave up and went looking for news elsewhere.
For one day, we had something else to talk about in Zimbabwe, something other than massive price rises and inflation that is going up faster than anyone can cope with. In queues everywhere, whether for passport forms, cash machines or petrol, a strange shaking in the middle of the night was the only topic of conversation and it brought Zimbabweans together. Everyone, everywhere was talking about the earthquake but by lunch time it was still not making headline news on state owned television which was now talking about bumper harvests and the Presidents 82nd birthday party.
On Thursday evening, 18 hours after the earthquake, I was forced to give up trying to find out about the tremors as the electricity had gone off - again. A lot of people were worried about aftershocks but we were mostly in the dark - literally and figuratively. For six hours the next night, sitting in the dark with only the sound of hordes of screeching mosquitoes it was hard not to think scary and superstitious thoughts as we waited for more shaking.
When the power did finally come back on the television was again talking about the the nationwide celebrations planned to commemorate President Mugabe's 82nd birthday party. It seems that even the earth moving does match the importance of birthdays.
Until next week, love cathy
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Dear God! What is wrong with this woman.
If she were real, I believe Mugabe would have "silenced" her by now. He hasn't had much compunction about doing that to everybody else who criticizes him or his government.
And if she were real, she would in fact be stark, staring mad. I know in several letters she has said she has a son. If she wants to commit suicide I suppose that's her own lookout, but to leave her son in that situation is evil and insane.
I know people who left Hitler's Germany and Vietnam with absolutely nothing but the clothes on their backs and whatever they could carry. She could make good somewhere -- anywhere else, more importantly her son could.
I just can't believe she's real.
I enjoy reading her letters.
I have no sympathy for such people. None at all.
L
As I said, it's all too neat and tidy. We've never seen a picture, and nobody has ever vouched for her. These letters just appear out of the ether.
And she should have been dead half a dozen times over. The farmers were a whole lot more important to the country, and Mugabe had zero compunction about slaughtering THEM . . .
You slept soundly in your bed because me and my bros were shedding blood in foreign lands.
L
I don't understand her motivation either. Her husband left her. Her young son has gone through some very tough times. She is working to make things better in Zimbabwe, including soliciting help for women in Zimbabwe. Amazing woman.
I think you are right, she can't be real.
You ENJOY reading her letters????? My mother had a name for people like you. LOLOLOL!
You enjoy reading her letters? I always think, 'WHAT is wrong with this dim-witted woman?' She could find out about the earthquake on Caltech's seismology page, for heaven's sake. I use the internet in the US for REAL news; surely she can get REAL news another way rather than waiting for the government to tell her stuff. THAT government. Then -- what? It's like she doesn't read what she is writing. Get OUT!!! But no, each week she's newly surprised at the chaos and evil she sees.
What is it about socialist dictators, they never seem to die. Castro, Mao, Mugabe? Even when they leave power, they just go to some other country and enjoy the good life on the money they stole. Time for Mugabe to die, old age or coup.
Her electricity was out. I presume that means that she couldn't get on the Internet either. At least, that's how it works around here.
It's not that I don't think SOMEbody is writing under the name of Cathy Buckle, even that that is really her name. I just can't imagine that she is really on the ground in Zimbabwe and has remained untouched by Mugabe's goons while writing all these critical letters. That's what really doesn't compute.
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