EU criticised for pledge to lift sanctions

The European Union (EU) has been criticised for already vowing to lift targeted sanctions against the Zanu-PF regime, if the coming elections are deemed 'fair' by the regional leadership bloc.

The EU's Ambassador to South Africa, Roeland van de Geer, said last Friday that if the elections are "internationally recognised, we will simply do what we have to do and lift our restrictive measures."

"Who are we as the EU to say, 'No, we know better than SADC'?" he said

The EU, and other Western nations such as Australia, has previously said it would lift all the measures it placed on the Robert Mugabe regime, as part of a highly criticised attempt to re-engage. Already, the restrictive sanctions have been removed from most of the individuals and entities on the list, as a reward for the conclusion of the constitution making process.

However, no mention is being made about the current conditions under which the election will be held in two weeks time. This includes worsening intimidation being reported by MDC-T supporters across the country, the disenfranchisement of millions of voters in the Diaspora, and Zanu-PF's continued refusal to make key reforms.

Mugabe's party has also flatly refused to accredit western observer missions, blaming the 'sanctions' for this decision.

Zimbabwean activist Ephraim Tapa, who fled to the UK after being tortured in Zimbabwe in 2008, told SW Radio Africa that the EU position is "disappointing but not surprising."

"We have seen this coming particularly in the last year or so, where we have seen tentative moves from western nations to try and normalise relations with Zanu-PF," Tapa said.

Calling it a "tragedy", Tapa said the motivation behind this changing position is purely about the West trying to gain some financial advantage in Zimbabwe.

"This has all to do with the recent wealth discovered in Zimbabwe (in the country's diamonds), and they are shifting their policy from a human rights perspective to a profit driven perspective," Tapa explained.

He also expressed doubt about what SADC might conclude about Zimbabwe's elections, because the leadership bloc has not achieved anything significant as the guarantors of Zimbabwe's failed unity government. He said the electoral process so far has been a "sham" and "calculated chaos", and no one should believe SADC if they say the vote is 'fair'.