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The US and EU embassies in Zimbabwe said the anti-sanctions day held in the country on Sunday was a distraction from real problems.
As such, it will not help the government deliver on the robust reform agenda set by President Emmerson Mnangagwa when he came to power shortly after the November 2017 coup.
The UK Ambassador to Harare, Melanie Robinson, argued that sanctions cannot be blamed for the situation Zimbabwe finds itself in.
“It is not sanctions, it is corruption that drives investors away and leaves teachers, doctors, nurses and services in distress. Zimbabweans should have the freedom to expose corruption, rights abuses and see the perpetrators face justice, ”he said.
This week, Sadc member states backed Zimbabwe in calling for the removal of the sanctions imposed at the turn of the century when Harare embarked on serious human rights violations.
Sadc President Dr. Stergomena Tax, in a statement ahead of Sunday’s commemorations, said: “The sanctions have caused suffering among Zimbabweans and continue to have a far-reaching effect in Zimbabwe and the entire Sadc region.” .
The Chinese Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Guo Shaochun, added his voice to Zimbabwe’s call.
In a tweet he said: “Injustices in international relations forced developing countries into subjugation and poverty, and still prevent them from independently choosing a development path. #ZimSanctionsMustGo ”.
But the US ambassador to Zimbabwe, Brian A. Nichols, said Zimbabwe uses a lot of energy to mobilize other Sadc member states. All of this to call for an end to travel and trade restrictions imposed on the Mnangagwa government, businesses and individuals aligned with it. But if that energy were channeled into reform, the country would improve enormously.
“I think that if the government of Zimbabwe put the energy it put into organizing these kinds of events and generating statements from other Sadc members to pursue the reform agenda, the better.
“The government of Zimbabwe campaigned and spoke about reform three years ago in November 2017 and 2018 at the inauguration of President Mnangagwa. If they have events on the reform agenda and conditions, the restrictive measures imposed by the United States, the EU, Canada, Australia and others would be met.
“I think this is an empty exercise as it does not meet the interests of the people of Zimbabwe,” he told reporters.
It is the second year that the solidarity day against sanctions has been held.
TimesLIVE
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