Grace Mugabe
Encyclopedia
Grace Mugabe (born 23 July 1965), is the second wife of Zimbabwe
President Robert Mugabe
and the First Lady of Zimbabwe from her marriage to the leader in 1996.
Grace was previously married to Stanley Goreraza
, an air force pilot, and now working in the Zimbabwe embassy in China
. As secretary to the president, she became his mistress while still married to Goreraza and together they had two children, Bona, named for Mugabe's mother, and Robert Peter, Jr. The couple were married in an extravagant Catholic Mass, titled the "Wedding of the Century" by the Zimbabwe press, after the death of Mr. Mugabe's first wife, Sally Hayfron
.
In 1997, Grace Mugabe gave birth to the couple's third child, Chatunga. Grace is popularly known in Zimbabwe as "Dis Grace", a reference to her extravagant life-style while maintaining political responsibilities as first lady.
were barred from examining Zimbabwe's 2002 elections, the EU imposed sanctions
on 20 members of the Zimbabwe leadership and then, in July, extended them to include Mrs Mugabe and 51 others, banning them from travelling to participating countries and freezing any assets held there. The United States instituted similar restrictions.
of Libya
. The second, completed in 2007, was reported to have cost $26 million to construct and to have been funded by the ZANU-PF party as thanks for Robert Mugabe's political service.
In 2002, Grace Mugabe toured farm properties in Zimbabwe, looking for a new location for herself and her family. She chose the Iron Mask Estate, which had been previously owned by farmers John and Eva Matthews.
The first family owns property in Malaysia, and in early 2008, it was reported that Grace Mugabe hoped to move there with her children. The intention behind the move was to escape the stress of leadership and to address fears that the first family faces assassination.
Recent reports indicate that Grace acquired property holdings in Hong Kong, including a diamond cutting business and a bolt-hole at at House Number Three, JC Castle, 18 Shan Tong Road, Tai Po, Hong Kong. The media speculates that this property acquisition is intended as both a weekend getaway pad for their daughter Bona who is studying at the University of Hong Kong under an assumed name and that she and her husband expect to escape to China
should they be ousted from power in Zimbabwe.
released by WikiLeaks
brought up again earlier allegations that high-ranking Zimbabwean government officials and well-connected elites, including Mugabe's wife Grace, are generating millions of dollars in personal income by hiring teams of diggers to hand-extract diamonds from the Chiadzwa
mine in eastern Zimbabwe. Grace Mugabe is currently suing a Zimbabwean newspaper over its reporting of claims released by Wikileaks she had made "tremendous profits" from the country's diamond mines. The president's wife is demanding $15m (£9.6m) from the Standard newspaper.
, during which she was reported as spending £75,000 (approx US$120,000) in a short shopping spree; and over the past years leading to 2004 has withdrawn over £5 million from the Central Bank of Zimbabwe
. In Zimbabwe she is known sarcastically as "Gucci
Grace" or "The First Shopper" in reference to her numerous, lavish European shopping sprees. When Grace Mugabe was included in the 2002 sanctions, one EU parliamentarian said that the ban would "stop Grace Mugabe going on her shopping trips in the face of catastrophic poverty blighting the people of Zimbabwe." Mrs Mugabe faces similar sanctions in the United States.
reported on 18 January 2009 that, while on a shopping trip in Hong Kong
, where her daughter Bona Mugabe is a university student, Mrs Mugabe ordered her bodyguard to assault a Times photographer Richard Jones
outside her luxury hotel. She then joined in the attack, punching Jones repeatedly in the face while wearing diamond encrusted rings, causing him cuts and abrasions. She was subsequently granted immunity
from prosecution 'under Chinese diplomatic rules' because of her status as Mugabe's wife.
campus on February 3 resulting in about 30 students needing medical treatment including police forces being used against defenseless citizens and harassments of students. Zimbabwe students were protesting to the P. R. Chinese embassy
that Bona Mugabe should return home to Zimbabwe and study in the same conditions as her peers. Colleges and universities in Zimbabwe have failed to open since 2008 due to dollarization
of fees and other economic problems.
On 17 February the University of Hong Kong distanced itself from the controversy, denying a report that she was a student there. The school statement said "We do not have a student by the name of Bona Mugabe on our student register, and we do not have any lady student from Zimbabwe who is reading for an undergraduate programme or is at the age of around 20." Subsequent reports clarified that Bona is in fact enrolled in a second school, the City University of Hong Kong
, which said she met normal admission requirements and her enrollment was not influenced by her parentage. Due to the attention surrounding Robert Mugabe's daughters her family enlisted the help of a female ex-government official to provide safety and supervision during her time in Hong Kong.
According to Vice chairperson of the HK democratic party
Emily Lau
said the government should study whether to follow international practice in barring certain foreign politicians as many people might be looking at buying properties, investments or education in Hong Kong. Lee Wing-tat said Beijing
should be making the decision since this was a foreign affair. Spokesperson Jiang Yu
from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China
said she was not aware of the Mugabes' alleged house purchase in Hong Kong and would not comment further. A professor at the University of HK said Beijing was trying to stay out of the controversy. The Beijing central government
dismissed the concerns, adding that Falun Gong
members were allowed to buy properties in Hong Kong.
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
President Robert Mugabe
Robert Mugabe
Robert Gabriel Mugabe is the President of Zimbabwe. As one of the leaders of the liberation movement against white-minority rule, he was elected into power in 1980...
and the First Lady of Zimbabwe from her marriage to the leader in 1996.
Grace was previously married to Stanley Goreraza
Stanley Goreraza
Wing Commander Stanley Goreraza is a senior officer in the Air Force of Zimbabwe and the current defence attaché at the Zimbabwean embassy in China. Goreraza was formerly married to Grace Marufu, then secretary to and now the wife of Robert Mugabe...
, an air force pilot, and now working in the Zimbabwe embassy in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. As secretary to the president, she became his mistress while still married to Goreraza and together they had two children, Bona, named for Mugabe's mother, and Robert Peter, Jr. The couple were married in an extravagant Catholic Mass, titled the "Wedding of the Century" by the Zimbabwe press, after the death of Mr. Mugabe's first wife, Sally Hayfron
Sally Hayfron
Sarah Francesca Mugabe , a.k.a Sally Mugabe, was the first wife of Robert Mugabe, the President of Zimbabwe and the First Lady of Zimbabwe from 1987 until her death in 1992. She was popularly known as Amai in Zimbabwe...
.
In 1997, Grace Mugabe gave birth to the couple's third child, Chatunga. Grace is popularly known in Zimbabwe as "Dis Grace", a reference to her extravagant life-style while maintaining political responsibilities as first lady.
Sanctions
After observers from the European UnionEuropean Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
were barred from examining Zimbabwe's 2002 elections, the EU imposed sanctions
International sanctions
International sanctions are actions taken by countries against others for political reasons, either unilaterally or multilaterally.There are several types of sanctions....
on 20 members of the Zimbabwe leadership and then, in July, extended them to include Mrs Mugabe and 51 others, banning them from travelling to participating countries and freezing any assets held there. The United States instituted similar restrictions.
Real estate
During her tenure as first lady, Grace Mugabe has overseen the construction of two palaces. The first, referred to commonly as "Gracelands", became controversial for its extravagance, and Grace Mugabe later explained that she had paid for its construction with her own personal savings It has since been sold to Muammar GaddafiMuammar Gaddafi
Muammar Muhammad Abu Minyar Gaddafi or "September 1942" 20 October 2011), commonly known as Muammar Gaddafi or Colonel Gaddafi, was the official ruler of the Libyan Arab Republic from 1969 to 1977 and then the "Brother Leader" of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya from 1977 to 2011.He seized power in a...
of Libya
Libya
Libya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
. The second, completed in 2007, was reported to have cost $26 million to construct and to have been funded by the ZANU-PF party as thanks for Robert Mugabe's political service.
In 2002, Grace Mugabe toured farm properties in Zimbabwe, looking for a new location for herself and her family. She chose the Iron Mask Estate, which had been previously owned by farmers John and Eva Matthews.
The first family owns property in Malaysia, and in early 2008, it was reported that Grace Mugabe hoped to move there with her children. The intention behind the move was to escape the stress of leadership and to address fears that the first family faces assassination.
Recent reports indicate that Grace acquired property holdings in Hong Kong, including a diamond cutting business and a bolt-hole at at House Number Three, JC Castle, 18 Shan Tong Road, Tai Po, Hong Kong. The media speculates that this property acquisition is intended as both a weekend getaway pad for their daughter Bona who is studying at the University of Hong Kong under an assumed name and that she and her husband expect to escape to China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
should they be ousted from power in Zimbabwe.
Diamond trade allegations and lawsuit
In December 2010 US diplomatic cablesContents of the United States diplomatic cables leak (Region — Africa)
Content from the United States diplomatic cables leak has depicted Sub-Saharan Africa and related subjects extensively. The leak, which began on 28 November 2010, occurred when the website of WikiLeaks — an international new-media non-profit organisation that publishes submissions of...
released by WikiLeaks
Wikileaks
WikiLeaks is an international self-described not-for-profit organisation that publishes submissions of private, secret, and classified media from anonymous news sources, news leaks, and whistleblowers. Its website, launched in 2006 under The Sunshine Press organisation, claimed a database of more...
brought up again earlier allegations that high-ranking Zimbabwean government officials and well-connected elites, including Mugabe's wife Grace, are generating millions of dollars in personal income by hiring teams of diggers to hand-extract diamonds from the Chiadzwa
Chiadzwa
Chiadzwa is a ward in Mutare District and Mutare West constituency in Zimbabwe and home to the Marange diamond fields....
mine in eastern Zimbabwe. Grace Mugabe is currently suing a Zimbabwean newspaper over its reporting of claims released by Wikileaks she had made "tremendous profits" from the country's diamond mines. The president's wife is demanding $15m (£9.6m) from the Standard newspaper.
Shopping
Grace Mugabe is known for her lavish lifestyle. The Daily Telegraph called her "notorious at home for her profligacy" in a 2003 coverage of a trip to ParisParis
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, during which she was reported as spending £75,000 (approx US$120,000) in a short shopping spree; and over the past years leading to 2004 has withdrawn over £5 million from the Central Bank of Zimbabwe
Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe
The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe is the central bank of Zimbabwe.-History:The bank traces its history to the Bank of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, founded in March 1956, which in turn was the successor to the Central Currency Board....
. In Zimbabwe she is known sarcastically as "Gucci
Gucci
The House of Gucci, better known simply as Gucci , is an Italian fashion and leather goods label, part of the Gucci Group, which is owned by French company PPR...
Grace" or "The First Shopper" in reference to her numerous, lavish European shopping sprees. When Grace Mugabe was included in the 2002 sanctions, one EU parliamentarian said that the ban would "stop Grace Mugabe going on her shopping trips in the face of catastrophic poverty blighting the people of Zimbabwe." Mrs Mugabe faces similar sanctions in the United States.
Assault on photographer
The TimesThe Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
reported on 18 January 2009 that, while on a shopping trip in Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
, where her daughter Bona Mugabe is a university student, Mrs Mugabe ordered her bodyguard to assault a Times photographer Richard Jones
Richard Jones (photojournalist)
Richard Jones is an award winning British photojournalist based in Hong Kong. He was brought up near Cardiff, South Wales, UK and now lives in Hong Kong and Tokyo...
outside her luxury hotel. She then joined in the attack, punching Jones repeatedly in the face while wearing diamond encrusted rings, causing him cuts and abrasions. She was subsequently granted immunity
Diplomatic immunity
Diplomatic immunity is a form of legal immunity and a policy held between governments that ensures that diplomats are given safe passage and are considered not susceptible to lawsuit or prosecution under the host country's laws...
from prosecution 'under Chinese diplomatic rules' because of her status as Mugabe's wife.
Daughter's controversies in Hong Kong
Early reports indicated Bona Mugabe was a student at the University of Hong Kong. A protest started on the University of ZimbabweUniversity of Zimbabwe
The University of Zimbabwe in Harare, is the oldest and largest university in Zimbabwe. It was founded through a special relationship with the University of London and it opened its doors to its first students in 1952. The university has ten faculties offering a wide variety of degree programmes...
campus on February 3 resulting in about 30 students needing medical treatment including police forces being used against defenseless citizens and harassments of students. Zimbabwe students were protesting to the P. R. Chinese embassy
Diplomatic missions of the People's Republic of China
This is a list of diplomatic missions of the People's Republic of China. The People's Republic of China has a large diplomatic network, representing the country's significant economic, commercial, political, cultural and military links around the world....
that Bona Mugabe should return home to Zimbabwe and study in the same conditions as her peers. Colleges and universities in Zimbabwe have failed to open since 2008 due to dollarization
Dollarization
Dollarization occurs when the inhabitants of a country use foreign currency in parallel to or instead of the domestic currency. The term is not only applied to usage of the United States dollar, but generally to the use of any foreign currency as the national currency.The biggest economies to have...
of fees and other economic problems.
On 17 February the University of Hong Kong distanced itself from the controversy, denying a report that she was a student there. The school statement said "We do not have a student by the name of Bona Mugabe on our student register, and we do not have any lady student from Zimbabwe who is reading for an undergraduate programme or is at the age of around 20." Subsequent reports clarified that Bona is in fact enrolled in a second school, the City University of Hong Kong
City University of Hong Kong
City University of Hong Kong is a comprehensive research university in Hong Kong. It was founded in 1984 as City Polytechnic of Hong Kong and became a fully accredited university in 1994. It has achieved fast growth in recent years and received international recognition for its academic achievements...
, which said she met normal admission requirements and her enrollment was not influenced by her parentage. Due to the attention surrounding Robert Mugabe's daughters her family enlisted the help of a female ex-government official to provide safety and supervision during her time in Hong Kong.
According to Vice chairperson of the HK democratic party
Democratic Party (Hong Kong)
The Democratic Party is a pro-democracy political party in Hong Kong. It was established on 2 October 1994. The party is currently the second largest party in the Legislative Council, headed by Chairman Albert Ho Chun-yan and, following the November 2008 merger with the Frontier, had around 745...
Emily Lau
Emily Lau
Emily Lau Wai-hing JP is one of two vice-chairmen of Democratic Party.She was the convenor of The Frontier...
said the government should study whether to follow international practice in barring certain foreign politicians as many people might be looking at buying properties, investments or education in Hong Kong. Lee Wing-tat said Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
should be making the decision since this was a foreign affair. Spokesperson Jiang Yu
Jiang Yu
Jiang Yu is the current Foreign Ministry Spokesperson for the People's Republic of China.- Biography :A native of Beijing, she has been working for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for over twenty years and she had been posted around the world, including the United Nations Headquarters in New York...
from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China is an executive agency responsible for foreign relations between the People's Republic of China and other countries in the world. The agency is led by the Foreign Minister. The current minister is Yang Jiechi...
said she was not aware of the Mugabes' alleged house purchase in Hong Kong and would not comment further. A professor at the University of HK said Beijing was trying to stay out of the controversy. The Beijing central government
Government of the People's Republic of China
All power within the government of the People's Republic of China is divided among three bodies: the People's Republic of China, State Council, and the People's Liberation Army . This article is concerned with the formal structure of the state, its departments and their responsibilities...
dismissed the concerns, adding that Falun Gong
Falun Gong
Falun Gong is a spiritual discipline first introduced in China in 1992 by its founder, Li Hongzhi, through public lectures. It combines the practice of meditation and slow-moving qigong exercises with the moral philosophy...
members were allowed to buy properties in Hong Kong.