Mines Minister Mpofu threatens NGOs over blood diamond reports

By Alex Bell
03 November 2009

Mines Minister Obert Mpofu has shocked international government delegations and rights groups by threatening NGOs and an international diamond review mission, who have reported on widespread human rights abuses at the Chiadzwa diamond fields.

Mpofu was speaking in Namibia where the Kimberley Process, the international body tasked with ending the global trade in conflict diamonds, is holding its annual meeting. The meeting is set to decide Zimbabwe’s future participation in the global diamond trade market, after a recent Kimberley Process review mission to Zimbabwe recommended the country be banned over gross human rights violations at the Chiadzwa diamond fields. Numerous NGOs and human rights groups have also voiced their support for Zimbabwe to be banned because of rampant and ongoing rights violations at the diamond fields.

As a result, the NGOs as well as the Kimberley Process review mission, came under attack by Mpofu on Tuesday, where he called them ‘deranged and requiring psychological examination’. A source in Namibia explained Mpofu has angered many government delegations gathered for the Kimberley Process meeting, including the Canadian delegation, which has apparently publicly condemned Mpofu’s conduct. It is understood that Mpofu was also snubbed by a noted Greenpeace activist who the minister co chaired a panel discussion with. Our source explained that the Greenpeace official refused to shake Mpofu’s hand, saying he “would not shake hands with dishonest people.”

Annie Dunnebacke from Global Witness, a British group that monitors the exploitation of the world’s natural resources, confirmed that there has been intimidation of NGOs by Zimbabwe government officials this week. Speaking from Namibia, Dunnebacke said that threats and intimidation of rights groups is ‘unacceptable’. Dunnebacke continued that there is widespread concern about what course of action the Kimberley Process will now take on Zimbabwe, given that all decisions are based on consensus by member states. She explained there is a general fear of a stalemate, as some member countries remain supportive of Zimbabwe’s place in the diamond market.
“We are very concerned that there will be no consensus and then there will be a stalemate on what to do,” Dunnebacke said. “A stalemate at this point could be detrimental to Zimbabwe given the ongoing rights abuses there.”

The Kimberley Process review mission, which submitted its final report on Zimbabwe at the annual meeting on Monday, has accused the government of deliberately lying to the Kimberley Process, because it is directly involved in illegal mining and illicit smuggling of diamonds from Chiadzwa. The delegation completed its mission to Zimbabwe more than four months ago and had recommended the immediate demilitarisation of the diamond fields. The recommendation has been openly ignored, and ongoing abuses are still being reported.

Human Rights Watch has also echoed calls for urgent action on Zimbabwe by the Kimberley Process, detailing in a new report that the military grip of Chiadzwa has intensified. Following an investigation to Chiadzwa last month, the group explained that “elements of the Zimbabwean Defence Forces have consolidated their presence in the diamond fields and that they are abusing members of the local community and engaging in widespread diamond smuggling.”

Tiseke Kasambala, Africa researcher with the rights group, told SW Radio Africa on Tuesday that urgent action is critical to prevent the ongoing abuses at the diamond fields.

“Zimbabwe has had more than enough time to put a halt to the human rights abuses and smuggling at Chiadzwa,” Kasambala said. “The situation there cannot be allowed to continue any longer.”