Mugabe EU-Africa summit invite ‘unacceptable’ says Kinnock

By Violet Gonda
3 July 2007

Glenys Kinnock, the Labour Euro-MP and Co-President of the ACP–EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly has described as ‘unacceptable’ Robert Mugabe’ s invitation to the EU-Africa summit in Portugal.

She said the Portuguese have finally succumbed to pressure from the African Union, who threatened to boycott the event if Mugabe was not invited. The 83-year-old leader is among scores of ZANU PF officials who are banned from traveling to EU countries.

It’s reported the Portuguese, who have the Presidency of the EU, have been planning hard for this summit to cement the partnership between the two continents, and it wasn’t prepared to jettison it by not permitting Mugabe.

The EU-Africa summit is set to promote policies on good governance, human rights, democracy and strategies to tackle African poverty. But Kinnock said; “It is unacceptable that President Mugabe and his ZANU PF entourage will attend the EU Africa Summit planned for December. Mugabe knows little and cares even less about these priorities, as the suffering of the Zimbabwean people amply demonstrates.

She said: “This is a critical time as President Mbeki attempts to mediate on the Zimbabwe crises. This task entrusted to him by the Southern African states would surely have been helped if Europe had made cooperation on this a condition for his attendance at the Summit. Instead he has been given an opportunity to come to Europe to gloat and strut - leaving behind a country devastated by his callous misrule.”


The summit will be held in Lisbon, Portugal between the 8-9 December.