By Cynthia Chinzwina
Two Zimbabweans have been successfully nominated for the prestigious Giraffe Heroes (GH Zimbabwe) award for the month of August in recognition of their outstanding work in defending socio and economic rights in the country.
The first GHZ recipient Tasara Wamambo of the Tokwe Mukosi People’s Rehabilitation and Resettlement Trust (TMPRRT) was honored for standing up for the people of Tokwe and Mukosi who had been forcibly displaced by “man made flooding” caused by the over spilling of the incomplete Tokwe Mukosi dam.
The displacement resulted in 3 500 families being moved off to the Chingwizi Transit camp where they endured some 5 months of hardships characterized by lack of food, proper education, adequate shelter and health facilities.
Mr. Wamambo who has been challenging government to provide the villagers compensation as well as money for their lost properties said he was overwhelmed by being honored and said
“I feel great for being awarded such an honor and this actually motivates myself to keep on standing up for my people. I will tirelessly press on for compensation until justice is done,” he said.
Currently the affected families are settled at 1-hectare plots that they were forcibly settled on by the government.
The second recipient Melanie Chiponda who is the Programs Officer of the Chiadzwa Community Development Trust (CCDT) has been instrumental in standing up for Chiadzwa villagers who were displaced by diamond mining operations in the Manicaland province.
Ms Chiponda has been instrumental in advocating for proper resettlement that includes building of new houses, schools and clinics by the diamond companies. Her job has not been easy especially given her being arrested by state security agents.
“I thank the GH Zimbabwe for recognizing my work. I encourage others to follow suit and stand up for the rights of fellow citizens,” she said.
GH Zimbabwe Chairperson Terry Mutsvanga said that although the concept is still new in the country, it has prospects of growth as a result of social media platforms that assist towards speedy identification and publicizing the heroes.
“GH Zimbabwe will grow since we are in the information age were society has transformed as a result of social media platforms. These platforms assist towards the speedy identification of identified heroes,” said Mutsvanga.
The GH has its origins in the United States of America (USA) with John Graham a former Diplomat being the Director.
GH Zimbabwe was set up in Zimbabwe last year with Human Rights Defender Farai Maguwu being the first recipient of the prestigious award.
The idea of GH Zimbabwe is to encourage and recognize individuals who stand up for something positive in communities be it social, political and economic rights.
