2008 Warden Message, Number 5

March 25, 2008

Zimbabwe has entered the final stage of preparations for their national elections this coming Saturday, March 29. While the campaign season so far has been mostly calm and free from violence, Election Day and the days following should be a time of heightened security awareness as there is an increased potential for violence and instability as the election process unfolds.

American Citizens resident in or traveling to Zimbabwe are advised to exercise caution during these days, particularly near polling places, and avoid high-density suburbs, industrial areas, political rallies or demonstrations, and any large gatherings. Americans should be particularly aware of using still, video or telephone cameras in any urban setting, or in the vicinity of any political activity, as this could be construed by Zimbabwean authorities as practicing journalism without a license, a crime punishable by arrest, incarceration and/or deportation.

Americans in Zimbabwe over the election period may also want to consider ensuring they have sufficient provisions of food, water, medicine, fuel and foreign currency to last for a period of at least a few days, should violence or instability warrant sheltering in place. Guidelines for sufficient levels of these goods can be found on our website at  http://harare.usembassy.gov/evacuation_preparedness2.html, particularly in the Sheltering in Place document located on the far right of the webpage. Hard copies of this document are available at the Consular Section of the US Embassy in Harare, or by email from consularharare@state.gov. Additional information on disaster preparedness can be found at www.ready.gov or http://travel.state.gov/travel/tips/emergencies/emergencies_1212.html.

Also, if phones, faxes and e-mails are unavailable, please tune in to Voice of America radio station 909 on the AM dial or on Shortwave at 4930, 13755 or 15775 Khz to get the latest information on a developing situation and/or plans for evacuation during a crisis. You may want to insure you have sufficient spare batteries for your radio, in the event of power outages.

Finally, thanks to more than 100 of you who submitted your mobile numbers to be part of our new SMS/Text Messaging Warden System. We will be conducting a test of this system on Friday, March 28 at 10:00 a.m. Previous tests have indicated that some recipients will receive messages almost instantly, while some take nearly an hour, depending on the network. This message will appear with a +44 country code, as the software we are using is based in Great Britain. If it takes more than one hour to receive your text message, please send us an email and let us know what time it came in. Your responses will help us to revise the system and make it more user-friendly. Please do not reply by text message. If you haven’t yet submitted your mobile number, please do so as soon as possible.

If you have any other questions or concerns, please feel free to reach out to us by phone, email or fax at the numbers below.

As the Department of State develops information on any potential security threats to U.S. citizens overseas, it shares credible threat information through its consular information program documents, available on the Internet at http://travel.state.gov. In addition to information on the Internet, travelers may obtain up-to-date information on security conditions by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll-free in the U.S. or outside the U.S. and Canada on a regular toll line at 1-202-501-4444.

American citizens can register their presence in Zimbabwe via the Internet at https://travelregistration.state.gov  or in person at the U.S. Embassy in Harare, located at 172 Herbert Chitepo Avenue (Tel. 263-4-250-593/4/5, email consularharare@state.gov).  In the event of an after-hours emergency, please call the above number and ask to be transferred to the duty officer.

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