Zimbabwe freezes Nestle’s accounts, cries foul after it stops buying Mugabe farm milk

October 11th, 2009 Mugabe cronies dumped by state in torture caseHARARE, Zimbabwe — A Zimbabwean official says several top officials and cronies of President Robert Mugabe being sued for torture have been renounced by the state and will not receive legal assistance. Deputy Attorney General Prince Machaya told The Associated Press on Sunday that the state will not represent officials being sued by prominent human rights activist Jestina Mukoko and eight others.

October 5th, 2009 Zimbabwe prime minister awaits official housingHARARE, Zimbabwe — An aide to Zimbabwe's prime minister says President Robert Mugabe is refusing to provide state housing seven months after the appointment. Longtime opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai entered into a unity government with Mugabe in February.

October 2nd, 2009 Nestle stops buying Mugabe farm milkJOHANNESBURG — Nestle says it will stop buying milk from Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe's wife's farm after facing worldwide boycott threats. The international food company said in a statement Thursday that it had been buying from Grace Mugabe's farm because the cash-strapped national Dairy Board could not.

September 27th, 2009 HARARE - Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe's wife has established a giant dairy on the country's nationalized farm-land, supplying a million litres of milk a year to Nestlé food giant. Grace Mugabe set up Gushungo Dairy Estate in Mazowe following the ouster of the previous white owner of the farm, who was forced to sell the land to the state's Agricultural Rural Development Authority, after facing a violent campaign under the land seizure drive.

September 24th, 2009 Zimbabwe court stops top company from firing bossHARARE, Zimbabwe — Riot police have prevented shareholders of one of Zimbabwe's largest companies from gathering after a judge issued an order postponing the meeting for two weeks. Dozens of executives in business suits had to disperse Thursday from the planned Kingdom Meikles meeting.

September 16th, 2009 President Mugabe calls for investment in ZimbabweHARARE, Zimbabwe — President Robert Mugabe told businessmen Wednesday that their potential investments in Zimbabwe would be safe, while the finance minister announced the country is $5.7 billion in debt. Mugabe, opening a two-day meeting on investment in the once vibrant mining industry, said that Zimbabwe's unity government has made "satisfactory progress" in creating a conducive environment for investment.

August 19th, 2009 Zimbabwe arrests lawmakers in Tsvangirai's partyHARARE, Zimbabwe — A lawyer says 10 Zimbabwean lawmakers from Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's party have been arrested and charged with disturbing the peace as they headed into the Finance Ministry for a meeting. Police did not immediately comment.

August 10th, 2009 Zimbabwe's Mugabe: West should 'leave us alone'HARARE, Zimbabwe —President Robert Mugabe said Monday that if the West can't support Zimbabwe's struggling coalition government, it should "leave us alone." Mugabe spoke at the funeral of 85-year-old Vice President Joseph Msika, who served alongside Mugabe for two decades and died last week after suffering from heart disease for many years. Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and other top officials in the five-month-old coalition government joined Mugabe and some 20,000 other mourners at Harare's Heroes Acre cemetery.

June 12th, 2009 Zimbabwe PM seeks US support in meeting with ObamaWASHINGTON — President Barack Obama is scheduled to meet Friday with Zimbabwe's prime minister. Morgan Tsvangirai (SVAHNG'-ur-eye) is in Washington to ask the U.S.

June 10th, 2009 Zimbabwe PM urges US support despite abusesWASHINGTON — Zimbabwe Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai is urging the United States to support his government despite abuses by his coalition partner, President Robert Mugabe. Tsvangirai plans to make his case Friday in a meeting with U.S.

April 9th, 2009 HARARE - The US ambassador to Zimbabwe Wednesday warned of new sanctions against Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe and senior members of his party unless they show willingness to reform. In an interview with journalists in Harare, ambassador James McGee said current US sanctions against Mugabe and senior members of his party would remain in place 'until we see some positive movement'.

March 6th, 2009 WASHINGTON - The US plans to keep sanctions in place on Zimbabwe until President Robert Mugabe ends political repression in the troubled African country, the State Department said Thursday. Mugabe must release political prisoners, end violence and intimidation against dissidents, and earnestly commit to share power under the agreement with opposition leaders reached earlier this year, the State Department's acting deputy spokesman, Gordon Duguid, said.

January 25th, 2009 PRETORIA - Police in South Africa fired rubber bullets at hundreds of people protesting outside government buildings over the crisis in neighbouring Zimbabwe, injuring at least one. The protest took place around a kilometre from where Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe was meeting with his southern African counterparts and his arch-rival Morgan Tsvangirai over the political impasse in his country.

January 14th, 2009 JOHANNESBURG - Zimbabwe's opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai Thursday said he planned to return home for a meeting with regional leaders and President Robert Mugabe on the implementation of a unity government. Addressing journalists in South Africa, Tsvangirai said he would leave for Zimbabwe Saturday.

December 28th, 2008 JOHANNESBURG - South Africa has lifted a blockade on aid to Zimbabwe because of the worsening humanitarian crisis in the neighbouring country, a South African presidential spokesman said Monday. South Africa halted aid to Zimbabwe earlier in a bid to build pressure on Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe and the opposition to hasten the formation of a national unity government.