Jack Zimba

  Mutinta Mazoka - I always knew I wanted to be in politics. Mutinta says she likes to help people. Mutinta as a little girl. Anderson Mazoka with wife, Mutinta. She shares the same name with her daughter. THEY say blood is thicker than water, but Mutinta Mazoka insists she did not use the blood measure when she chose her father’s political party over her husband’s. WHEN it comes to choosing which political party ticket to stand on in the August elections, Mutinta Mazoka could write a book. Why not? Mutinta, who is aspiring to stand as member of Parliament for Munali Constituency under the United Party for National Development (UPND), found herself torn between two big names in her life, two political parties and two ideologies. The 43-year-old political scientist is Anderson Mazoka’s daughter, who founded the UPND over two decades ago, and she is also Socialist Party leader Fred M’membe’s wife. Now Dr M’membe is a socialist who idolised the former Venezuelan president Hugo C...

  FET commander Sharon Namuchimba with Tukusi. Pictures by Jack Zimba Belinda Zimba attends to Tukusi's uncle. Clementine Zulu. Mama Fatima Adam. Dr Twaambo Sachose shows a local woman how to spray vegetables. Members of the FET prepare to go out in the field.   CAR diaries: Boy named Tukusi ·       Zambian female troops make impact in Birao JACK ZIMBA Birao   “WARI, wari!” the children shout as they run along our vehicle. I would learn later that “wari” referred to woman in the local language, sangho. In a Muslim-dominated society, women in combat with guns slung across their breasts is not a common sight, but in Birao, on the northern tip of Central African Republic (CAR), the female troops serving under the United Nations peace mission, MINUSCA, have made their presence felt. The women are deployed as part of Zambian troops in the northern region of this war-torn country. The Zambian troops were first deployed to CAR in 201...

  A Zambian peacekeeper and a rebel fighter stand their ground in Am Dafok. PICTURES JACK ZIMBA Mocko Abel Ouya (left) with ZAMBATT commander Lt. Col. Paul Sapezo after the meeting CHILDREN in Am Dafok welcome our convoy. OUR convoy heading to Am Dafok on the border with Sudan. Zambian troops arrive in Am Dafok .   CAR diaries: Meeting the rebels JACK ZIMBA   IT WAS New Year’s Eve, and I was riding in an armoured vehicle headed to a place called Am Dafok from Birao, the capital of Vakaga Prefecture in Central African Republic (CAR). Our convoy was made up of two Ratel Armoured Personnel Carrier mounted with a 14.5mm machine gun, two gun trucks (Toyota Land Cruisers) mounted with 12.7mm machine guns and a Zetros truck. Of course being cocooned in the armoured vehicle, with its thick skin, provided a sense of protection. But in a conflict zone, there are a thousand ways to die, and I imagined many possible ways with a sense of fear. However, the words of Lie...