Help Feed Hungry Children in Zimbabwe

Dear Supporters,

We were very worried when we came back home, after a month overseas visiting our family. We’d been following the news about the riots – the burning, looting, and once again, the shooting of unarmed civilians by the army. To everyone’s concern, Government had shut down all social media and cut off the internet.  

No money, no jobs, no hope - Zimbabweans are the most peaceful of people, loathe to resort to violence and insurrection. But they had had enough.

In the past four months prices have gone up by 200% but wages and income have not. The people had tried peaceful protests and been shot for daring to raise their voices. They had endured the 2% tax on electronic transactions to fund government expenses; they had become used to queuing for hours at the bank to try and get cash (now barely available and then mostly in $2 bond notes), and they had tolerated the near-disappearances of basic supplies like cooking oil and bread, and resigned to sitting in the three or more kilometre long lines waiting for the arrival of fuel at the petrol stations.  

But then Government increased the price of fuel – overnight – by 150%, making it the most expensive in the world, and the lid came off. But not for long.   People were shot, beaten, imprisoned and abducted, and the brutal crackdown hasn’t stopped.

Austerity for Prosperity! Goes the government’s dazzlingly hypocritical mantra.

The day after the fuel price increase, the President hired a luxurious Boeing 787 Dreamliner from a Vietnamese company to fly to Eastern Europe.

He’s been in power for 16 months, and in that time, his travel expenses have cost the taxpayer around US seven million dollars.

So, when we arrived at the airport, we expected worried faces and a very gloomy atmosphere. And what did we find? Smiles, laughter and that irrepressible good humour that is the trademark of this wonderful country.    

The teachers were on strike for a month for higher salaries (to no avail), so the children at Marula School missed out on four weeks of their first term – and their daily lunches. And despite all the plans that were in place – the lack of fuel has prevented the builders from starting on the outside kitchen, and the teachers’ cottage at the secondary school. But… the children are back, having their nutritious lunch every day, and as you can see, still smiling as they always do.

The whole world is hurting, and most of us feel helpless to do anything about it. Right now, there is no positive news from Zimbabwe, but I believe that all we can do is to concentrate on one area, however small, that makes the difference. What you give those children every day is truly invaluable, both to them and their parents, and they appreciate it enormously.

Thank you so very much.