News / National
US demands arrest of Aug 1 and January killer soldiers
07 May 2019 at 15:38hrs | Views
PRESIDENT Donald Trump's administration has demanded that President Emmerson Mnangagwa punishes security forces who stand accused of killing civilians during last year's post-election demonstrations, as well as this year's riots.
The demand is part of the onerous conditions by Washington that would see the United States of America removing its punitive sanctions against Zimbabwe if they are met.
This comes after Mnangagwa's under pressure government recently hired a top American reputation management firm - to spruce up Zimbabwe's battered international image, and to lobby Trump's government in a bid to improve Harare's frosty relations with Washington.
The public relations company which has been contracted by Zimbabwe, Ballard Partners, is headed by prominent Washington lobbyist Brian Ballard - who is said to be a top fundraiser for Trump's political campaigns.
According to the details of the contract between Harare and Ballard Partners, which was signed in February this year by Foreign Affairs minister Sibusiso Moyo, Zimbabwe will pay the American firm a whopping US$500 000 a year for its services.
Trump renewed America's targeted sanctions against Zimbabwe for another year earlier in March - accusing Mnangagwa and his government of not doing much to improve Harare's democratic credentials since former president Robert Mugabe fell from power in November 2017.
Now, the US government says as part of the roadmap towards the removal of its sanctions against Zimbabwe, Mnangagwa's government must "hold accountable" all the soldiers who stand accused of killing civilians during last year's post-poll violence and this year's deadly riots.
Addressing the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington on Monday, US deputy assistant secretary of State for Africa Matthew Harrington said while Mnangagwa's government had been saying all the right things regarding human rights and the pursuit of genuine democracy in the country, its real efforts towards achieving that were negligible.
"The government is saying some of the right things but it is falling short when it comes to concrete actions. It could repeal Posa (Public Order and Security Act) and Aippa (Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act), two laws long emblematic of a repressive regime.
"It could stop using the army to harass and intimidate citizens who exercise their fundamental right to free speech, and it could hold accountable those members of the security services who have abused their fellow citizens.
"In addition, in January and February (2019) the army launched a sustained crackdown on citizens in response to their protests over fuel price increases. We welcome a better relationship with Zimbabwe, but the ball is very much in the … government's court.
"If there's real, concrete progress in the areas laid out in the Zidera legislation, Zimbabwe will find a committed partner in the United States," Harrington said.
He said such action by Mnangagwa's administration would send a strong signal to both Zimbabweans and the international community that the country was now on a different path and genuinely committed to embracing democratic institutions and values, and to becoming a more responsible member of the international community.
"And not one of those steps, I would point out, requires outside assistance. The government could take any one of them today.
"The fact that it has chosen not to do so raises questions about the genuineness of its commitment to put the country on a much different trajectory," Harrington added.
He said the challenge being faced by Mnangagwa was that the goodwill that the overthrow of Mugabe had brought, and the subsequent inauguration of a new administration after an improved electoral process last year, "dissipated as a result of several problematic developments".
Relations between Zimbabwe and the US have been frosty for nearly two decades - ever since the country embarked on chaotic and widely-criticised land reforms which saw many commercial farmers losing their land at the height of Mugabe's ruinous rule.
The move proved disastrous for the country as this resulted in Zimbabwe's isolation from the rest of the international community, at huge cost to long-suffering citizens.
It saw Zimbabwe's critical credit lines and trade facilities being blocked, following the imposition of sanctions on the country, amid widespread criticism of the country's human rights record.
This subsequently resulted in Zimbabwe hitting rock bottom a decade ago, which left most citizens poor and living on less than a dollar a day - and with companies closing down and many investors pulling out.
Such was the economic horror at the time that the country was forced to abandon its currency because of hyper-inflation - which required balefuls of useless Zimbabwe dollars to buy a few basics when they were available.
However, there was initially much hope that Zimbabwe would end its international isolation when Mnangagwa replaced Mugabe in a military putsch in November 2017.
Indeed, the 76-year-old Zanu-PF leader appeared to have done enough to win the hearts of the Western countries by ensuring that the country held arguably the most peaceful elections in its history in July last year.
Political analysts have, however, said the ugly demonstrations on August 1 - in which at least six civilians were shot dead by the military in Harare's central's business district (CBD) - had shattered hopes of Zimbabwe attracting international support to re-build the country's battered economy.
They have also said the January riots, which left 20 people dead and more than 100 nursing gunshot wounds, have also made it difficult for Mnangagwa's government to be accepted as being different from Mugabe's regime which was notorious for violating human rights.
In January, heavily armed security forces were deployed in Harare and several cities and towns across the country to quell violent disturbances which had been triggered by a sharp fuel price hike that was announced by Mnangagwa ahead of his trip to Eastern Europe.
But security forces denied that they were responsible for the killings and have curiously blamed "imposters" for shooting and killing the civilians.
The demand is part of the onerous conditions by Washington that would see the United States of America removing its punitive sanctions against Zimbabwe if they are met.
This comes after Mnangagwa's under pressure government recently hired a top American reputation management firm - to spruce up Zimbabwe's battered international image, and to lobby Trump's government in a bid to improve Harare's frosty relations with Washington.
The public relations company which has been contracted by Zimbabwe, Ballard Partners, is headed by prominent Washington lobbyist Brian Ballard - who is said to be a top fundraiser for Trump's political campaigns.
According to the details of the contract between Harare and Ballard Partners, which was signed in February this year by Foreign Affairs minister Sibusiso Moyo, Zimbabwe will pay the American firm a whopping US$500 000 a year for its services.
Trump renewed America's targeted sanctions against Zimbabwe for another year earlier in March - accusing Mnangagwa and his government of not doing much to improve Harare's democratic credentials since former president Robert Mugabe fell from power in November 2017.
Now, the US government says as part of the roadmap towards the removal of its sanctions against Zimbabwe, Mnangagwa's government must "hold accountable" all the soldiers who stand accused of killing civilians during last year's post-poll violence and this year's deadly riots.
Addressing the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington on Monday, US deputy assistant secretary of State for Africa Matthew Harrington said while Mnangagwa's government had been saying all the right things regarding human rights and the pursuit of genuine democracy in the country, its real efforts towards achieving that were negligible.
"The government is saying some of the right things but it is falling short when it comes to concrete actions. It could repeal Posa (Public Order and Security Act) and Aippa (Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act), two laws long emblematic of a repressive regime.
"It could stop using the army to harass and intimidate citizens who exercise their fundamental right to free speech, and it could hold accountable those members of the security services who have abused their fellow citizens.
"In addition, in January and February (2019) the army launched a sustained crackdown on citizens in response to their protests over fuel price increases. We welcome a better relationship with Zimbabwe, but the ball is very much in the … government's court.
"If there's real, concrete progress in the areas laid out in the Zidera legislation, Zimbabwe will find a committed partner in the United States," Harrington said.
He said such action by Mnangagwa's administration would send a strong signal to both Zimbabweans and the international community that the country was now on a different path and genuinely committed to embracing democratic institutions and values, and to becoming a more responsible member of the international community.
"And not one of those steps, I would point out, requires outside assistance. The government could take any one of them today.
"The fact that it has chosen not to do so raises questions about the genuineness of its commitment to put the country on a much different trajectory," Harrington added.
He said the challenge being faced by Mnangagwa was that the goodwill that the overthrow of Mugabe had brought, and the subsequent inauguration of a new administration after an improved electoral process last year, "dissipated as a result of several problematic developments".
Relations between Zimbabwe and the US have been frosty for nearly two decades - ever since the country embarked on chaotic and widely-criticised land reforms which saw many commercial farmers losing their land at the height of Mugabe's ruinous rule.
The move proved disastrous for the country as this resulted in Zimbabwe's isolation from the rest of the international community, at huge cost to long-suffering citizens.
It saw Zimbabwe's critical credit lines and trade facilities being blocked, following the imposition of sanctions on the country, amid widespread criticism of the country's human rights record.
This subsequently resulted in Zimbabwe hitting rock bottom a decade ago, which left most citizens poor and living on less than a dollar a day - and with companies closing down and many investors pulling out.
Such was the economic horror at the time that the country was forced to abandon its currency because of hyper-inflation - which required balefuls of useless Zimbabwe dollars to buy a few basics when they were available.
However, there was initially much hope that Zimbabwe would end its international isolation when Mnangagwa replaced Mugabe in a military putsch in November 2017.
Indeed, the 76-year-old Zanu-PF leader appeared to have done enough to win the hearts of the Western countries by ensuring that the country held arguably the most peaceful elections in its history in July last year.
Political analysts have, however, said the ugly demonstrations on August 1 - in which at least six civilians were shot dead by the military in Harare's central's business district (CBD) - had shattered hopes of Zimbabwe attracting international support to re-build the country's battered economy.
They have also said the January riots, which left 20 people dead and more than 100 nursing gunshot wounds, have also made it difficult for Mnangagwa's government to be accepted as being different from Mugabe's regime which was notorious for violating human rights.
In January, heavily armed security forces were deployed in Harare and several cities and towns across the country to quell violent disturbances which had been triggered by a sharp fuel price hike that was announced by Mnangagwa ahead of his trip to Eastern Europe.
But security forces denied that they were responsible for the killings and have curiously blamed "imposters" for shooting and killing the civilians.
Source - dailynews
