News / International
'Britain refuses to pay ex-Rhodesian pensioners'
13 Jul 2014 at 12:05hrs | Views
Britain is pursuing the Zimbabwean government to pay former Rhodesian pensioners and has told the pensioners that it cannot fund any ex-gratia payments because it has no legal responsibility or obligation to pay the pensions which are solely the responsibility of the Zimbabwean government, the Insider reported.
Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs Minister Mark Simmonds told the House of Commons that he had personally written to Zimbabwe's Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa and Labour Minister Nicholas Goche but was still waiting for their response.
"We continue to pursue a resolution to this issue. I have personally written to both Finance Minister Chinamasa and the responsible Minister for Pensions, Minister Goche. I also raised the issue during a meeting with the Zimbabwean ambassador in London on 30 June. We are in regular contact with the Director of Pensions, with whom officials last met on 12 June. Our ambassador regularly raises the issue with interlocutors, including most recently on 4 June with the Finance Minister Chinamasa. She also wrote to the Zimbabwe Civil Service Commission in December 2013; we await a response. We remain in regular contact with the interested parties, including the Overseas Service Pensioners Association (OSPA) and the Federal Pensioners Association in Harare," said Simmonds.
The Overseas Service Pensioners Association which represents the former civil servants says pensioners resident in South Africa who have accounts with Standard Bank are receiving their pensions.
Payment of the pensions, it says, stopped in February 2003.
Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs Minister Mark Simmonds told the House of Commons that he had personally written to Zimbabwe's Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa and Labour Minister Nicholas Goche but was still waiting for their response.
"We continue to pursue a resolution to this issue. I have personally written to both Finance Minister Chinamasa and the responsible Minister for Pensions, Minister Goche. I also raised the issue during a meeting with the Zimbabwean ambassador in London on 30 June. We are in regular contact with the Director of Pensions, with whom officials last met on 12 June. Our ambassador regularly raises the issue with interlocutors, including most recently on 4 June with the Finance Minister Chinamasa. She also wrote to the Zimbabwe Civil Service Commission in December 2013; we await a response. We remain in regular contact with the interested parties, including the Overseas Service Pensioners Association (OSPA) and the Federal Pensioners Association in Harare," said Simmonds.
The Overseas Service Pensioners Association which represents the former civil servants says pensioners resident in South Africa who have accounts with Standard Bank are receiving their pensions.
Payment of the pensions, it says, stopped in February 2003.
Source - The Insider
