"Re-Engagement Agenda Suffers Huge Loss" - Reporter
Nyasha Chingono, a journalist and writer with the Independent has said that Zimbabwe’s re-engagement agenda has immensely suffered from the recent remarks by the international community.
Chingono’s remarks come when Western Diplomatic Missions in Zimbabwe have recently issued a joint statement on human rights and freedoms in the country.
The statement noted with concern the shrinking of the democratic space in the country. The statement came at a time when the country was supposed to be implementing reforms intended to transform the country into a democratic society.
Since ascending to power in 2017, president Emmerson Mnangagwa had announced that the rule of law will prevail in the country. However, the international community views a departure from that agenda after the country blocked MDC demonstrations and is also accused of harassing and tormenting citizens, MDC members, human rights defenders and government critics in particular.
Chingono notes that the government’s efforts to cleanse its image soiled by a number of humas rights abuses have been affected by an uncalculated move of summoning the US Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Brian Nichols after the US imposed sanctions on ambassador-designate to Tanzania Anselem Sanyatwe and his wife Chido Machona.
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The journalist also thinks that a public clash between Mnangagwa and the EU head of delegation in Zimbabwe, Timo Olkkonen has also adversely affected the agenda. When Olkkonen castigated human rights violations, Mnangagwa responded urging “civil society to restrict themselves to their mandate”.
Chingono cites analysts who all argue that human rights violations and slowness in implementing much needed has been the major reason the re-engagement strategy was falling apart.
More: The Independent
