Posted on 11/30/2002 5:31:44 AM PST by Clive
Bid to boycott Bredenkamp's Sanyati Lodge Vincent Kahiya
BUSINESSMAN and international financier John Bredenkamp, never far from controversy, is faced with protest from activists campaigning for a boycott of his flagship tourism investment in Zimbabwe, Sanyati Lodge in the Zambezi Valley.
A group calling itself Zimactivism has been sending e-mails to tour operators asking them not to sell Sanyati Lodge as a tourist destination.
"Whilst Sanyati Lodge is beautiful, one can't say the same for John Bredenkamp's activities," Zimactivism says. "Encourage a Bredenkamp boycott - become actively involved in a 'Shame Sanyati Lodge Campaign'.
In Zimbabwe you can make a difference…get involved. There are a variety of alternative holiday resorts.
"Make sure your friends in South Africa know the situation," the group says.
Based in Britain and Zimbabwe, Bredenkamp is the 33rd richest man in the United Kingdom with a fortune of £720 million. He has over the years attracted negative publicity here and abroad, mainly concerning the source of his wealth.
Zimactivism is encouraging people to send protests to tour operators in South Africa and the UK who market Zimbabwe.
However, Bredenkamp's office in Harare recently scoffed at the campaign saying it had no bearing on tourist arrivals at the lodge.
"It is the quality that endures at the end of the day," said Bredenkamp's spokesman, Costa Pafitis.
"Sanyati Lodge is the best lodge in the country and is recognised as such by travellers who do not want to bring politics into their holiday. Our bookings are full and continue to swell because we are the best. These people (leading the campaign) should reveal themselves if they want us to take them seriously," he said.
Sanyati Lodge has attracted a number of celebrities including the South African cricket team and Spice Girl Geri Halliwell.
Bredenkamp has been at the centre of controversy because of his alleged links to the ruling order and mining deals in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the subject of a recent UN report.
He is also accused of brokering arms deals and sanctions- busting involving aircraft spares for the Airforce of Zimbabwe. He has denied any wrong-doing.
Pafitis said no-one had come up with substantive evidence incriminating Bredenkamp.
"He is the flavour of the month and people can say whatever they want. But if the allegations are true, why has he never been prosecuted?" Pafitis asked.
My childhood dream, a vacation in a land where 6.5 million people are facing starvation, due to "politics". Too bad Bredenkamp didn't have a lodge in Ukraine, 1935.
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