I am going to close comments on this thread and ask if you would mind leaving them on the latest post instead. It’s very difficult to browse through all these comments on slower connections.

May I ask you to summarise, in one comment on the new thread, the main points of any ongoing conversations here so everything is consolidated again.

Many thanks!

http://www.sokwanele.com/thisiszimbabwe/archives/910

http://www.fingaz.co.zw/story.aspx?stid=2660

“An airlift would require at least two flights on the Russian-made cargo plane, an Illyushin II-76, which has a payload of 44 tonnes.
The Air Force of Zimbabwe has an Illyushin, but the cost could be prohibitive.
Military officials have also discussed the possibility of hiring a private operator, Avient Aviation, a British cargo charter airline that has previously flown into Zimbabwe. However, this is unlikely, a source said.”

and the New York Times story that the above text points to is at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/27/world/africa/27zimbabwe.html
BUT that is two days old now.

Have made a few postings now on plane spotters networks in hopes they might be able to respond.

Does this mean that we know for a fact the ship has docked at Luanda, not Lobito??

Hopefully the local dockers have wisened up and the S.A. folks have gotten the dangerous goods documentation to them by now!

It was an opportunity to THANK DOCKWORKERS for standing up for what’s right. They immediately picked up the call and gave me 10 minutes.

The ILWU gave all the credit to the South African dockworkers. I made them aware of Malawi’s devious efforts, and let them know that the longshoremen will be remembered as those who put the WAY OUT in Robert Mugabe Way. It did not have a direct effect on today’s situation, yet making calls is one way to keep the issue alive while in time finding the right people.

Do we have any eyes on the ground — e.g. at the port where supposedly only non-Zim goods are being unloaded? At the airport, on the lookout for large cargo plane.

With plane spotters, who are really good at providing info on what registration the purported cargo plane will be…

I introduced myself as a blogger. I gave my real name and number too. I just asked if they could confirm what was in the news - and told them what was in the news.

In this case, you would be thanking the IFTW and the local union for everything they have done. It means so much to us and the world is admiring their courage and integrity. You are phoning to so say thank you and to ask - are they able confirm the weapons have left and if there is some way of confirming to the world. A picture. Something? Do they have any ideas?

Sometimes they can’t do anything but it starts the conversation and ideas.

For full report see: http://www.nisat.org/publications/armsfixers/Preface.html

“This study seeks to cast light on some recent cases of arms brokering and trafficking via third countries to regions of violent conflict and serious human rights abuse. We want to describe the activities of arms brokers and trafficking or transport agents (also known as shipping agents or brokers) and their associated sub-contractors, in order to examine what measures governments can take to prevent such activities from contributing to serious violations of international law. We also propose an agenda for change which includes a package of interdependent recommendations for priority action by governments.”

If Cosco is acting as an arms trafficking agent in this case, the press may be happy to help out.

Sound about right?
*Feedback and advice on action appreciated right away as I’m preparing to do this now.*

Alright, am on the case.

[Oh yes, also, any Angolan or European Portuguesers your help is always appreciated]

I fear that the shipment is now on its way… I also fear that we’re a long way behind now as we may not have many portugese speakers/writers here to help us. I know my portugese is non-existent

It looks like the international transport workers federeation has dropped the story (last posting: 24 Apr). Does anyone have any connections with airport workers in Angola?

Does anyone have capacity to confirm the netherlands-based air cargo company so we can try to get response from them?

The link is here.

i’ve heard that the arms were unloaded over the weekend & that a netherlands-based air cargo company was contracted to fly the shipment all in one go to zim using one of its larger cargo planes.

This doesn’t sound right to me. Don’t they have to declare the contents before offloading? No information at all regarding the contents of the cargo sounds too suspicious.