Zimbabwe dispatches: crossing borders
Updated on 21 April 2009
Travelling on the same road on which Mrs Susan Tsvangirai was killed in a car crash is an unnerving experience, writes Helen from Zimbabwe.
It's hard to tell exactly where the crash occurred as nothing marks the site: no flowers or wreaths or even a simple wooden cross such as those often left at other car accident sites on the highways.
The edges of the road are badly eroded and cut away and the shoulder to the tarmac no longer exists in most places.
Numerous bridges no longer have guard rails, reflective road paint has long since worn away and cats' eyes to mark the centre, edges and dangerous sections of road have long since gone.
Because of the deteriorating state of the roads most vehicles tend to ride very near to the middle of the single carriageway highways. Most of the traffic on that stretch of road consists of heavy duty haulage trucks, transport vehicles, buses and lorries.
As all of Zimbabwe's fuel and food is imported thanks to a decade of political turmoil and economic collapse, the stream of big trucks on the road to the border is incessant.
All along the roadside the wrecks of other accidents lie in warning of the treachery of this road.
At night these huge vehicles do not dip their lights and in the day they sit solidly on the road, their wheels riding almost right on the centre white line.
All along the roadside the wrecks of other accidents lie in warning of the treachery of this road. There are numerous burnt out trucks and cars, rusting vehicle shells, and everywhere a carpet of broken glass lies along the verges.
All of a sudden and without any warning a helicopter approaches from the opposite direction, flying very low and following the tarmac road.
It is hard not to cringe away and duck down from the pulsing rotors and even harder not to look at the horror unfolding on the road ahead where a bus has plunged into a river.
Police road blocks are everywhere: on the approach and outskirts of every town as well as in the middle of nowhere. From out of the long grass a policeman will emerge and wave you down and it is hard to tell what they are looking for.
A cursory glance at your vehicle sometimes happens but mostly it's a question: "Where are you going to, where have you come from."
Sometimes the more brazen ones ask "what have you got for me", which may entail a bribe or food or drink. If you are lucky they are just trying their luck and wave you onwards towards the border.
The queue at the Beitbridge border post to get into South Africa from Zimbabwe is a massive four hour undertaking. I've done it twice in the last three weeks, once early in the evening and once at three in the morning. It seems that the time of day, or night, is of no consequence.
As fast as people reach the front of the queue so more join the back of a line which I calculated held between 750 and 800 people all the time.
The South African officials, both police and immigration personnel, make no attempt to disguise their contempt for the flood tide of Zimbabweans.
The South African officials, both police and immigration personnel, make no attempt to disguise their contempt for the flood tide of Zimbabweans.
Surly, sullen and rude, they show no compassion whatever for Zimbabweans who, despite a decade of hell, are still polite, courteous and humble.
No concession is made for women or children and aggressive South African policewomen patrol the queue shouting at people who are not standing one behind the other in a straight line or who have weakened and resorted to sitting on the ground.
"No sitting allowed here," they bark. "Straight lines and standing only."
Touts locally called guma-guma weave in and out of the queue looking for easy touches.
"You want to go fast?" they ask. "Two hundred rand (US$20) per person and I'll take you to the front of the line. Another 200 rand and I'll take you all the way to the passport control counter."
Police personnel in uniform watch the touts and the bribery taking place right in front of them, but they do nothing at all. Everyone grumbles that the officials are undoubtedly getting a cut of the deals, which is why they don't intervene.
Bribery and corruption is institutionalized in Zimbabwe and now sadly it seems to be becoming increasingly evident in South Africa.
