Tuesday 24 August 2010

COMMUNITIES POINT PRESS STATEMENT 24 08 2010

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SADC BEHAVIOUR IN ZIMBABWE IRRESPONSIBLE: COMMUNITIES POINT
PRESS STATEMENT: 24 AUGUST 2010

Once again the Southern African Development Community seems to be losing its footing on Zimbabwe. Its continued obsession with “sanctions” and clear negation of issues affecting the lives of Zimbabweans questions the sincerity of SADC as a bloc to solve the situation in Zimbabwe once and for all.
The issues in Zimbabwe do not start with “targeted sanctions” or “sanctions” however one would want to name them. Those measures are in themselves a reaction, they followed an event and it is that event that still remains unsolved. They followed the stolen Presidential Elections of 2002 which thanks to SADC’s inertia were repeated in 2008 this time with fatal consequences. The nation state in Zimbabwe paralysed itself first by allowing a culture of the commission of atrocities in post-independence Zimbabwe and second by allowing impunity over those crimes which have been viewed as a reward for the continued perpetration.

For SADC to turn a blind eye and a deaf ear on this behaviour of ZANU PF in particular and fail to insist on an inquiry into those atrocities and then try to blame it all on sanctions does not read the mood in Zimbabwe correctly. SADC does not seem to see the movement towards the radicalisation of some opposition forces in Zimbabwe with others even calling for a separate homeland in Matabeleland and a slowly building consensus particularly in the Diaspora for a more engaging effort against ZANU PF. SADC’s failure to understand the fact that ZANU PF is continuing to act as a bully especially after they lost the 2008 General Elections and went into a bloody campaign again which SADC has failed to question alienates Zimbabweans with the fatal consequence of allowing a new breed of radical politics to emerge in Zimbabwe.

Our fear is that ZANU PF may feel encouraged to continue on the same path should they lose any future elections and Zimbabweans, unconvinced that SADC is there for them may end up resorting to an armed campaign with disastrous consequences for the region. It must be stated that SADC may have the capacity to sit down and defend ZANU PF whenever and whatever but they may not be able to contain the anger of Zimbabweans determined to put an end to ZANU PF by whatever means. There is a good dividend for them to be seen to be credible and we urge SADC to push the Government of Zimbabwe in the following:
1. An inquiry into the post 2008 Elections violence and the bringing of perpetrators to justice.
2. A fresh inquiry into Gukurahundi atrocities and the bringing of the perpetrators to justice so as to bring the issue to its final closure.
3. An inquiry into the liberation war atrocities especially Nyadzonia, Mkushi, Mulungushi, Tembwe and Chimoyo and the bringing of the perpetrators to justice and obtain a final closure.
4. Urge an audit on the land reform and since the whole programme was not restitution as in essence it replaced white commercial farmers with black commercial farmers SADC must insist on a formula for the compensation of the previous farmers and the payment of redundant costs for former farm labourers by the new owners of the land.

Zimbabwe yearns for justice and SADC’s seemingly conspiring inertia is not helping but fanning fires in a country seating on the edge of recovery or boiling up. COMMUNITIES POINT believes in “Justice before Reconciliation” and as we are indebted to no-one but Zimbabwe, we believe the starting point is the atrocities committed by UDI defenders against Zimbabweans during the liberation struggle. We continue to urge the above not as a witch hunt but as a way to bring all injustices a final closure and promote a fresh start.