ACP-EU MPs resolve to send mission to investigate Zimbabwe rights abuses

By Violet Gonda
22 March 2007

A political committee of the Africa, Caribbean and Pacific – European Union joint parliamentary assembly, resolved Wednesday to send a mission to Zimbabwe to investigate the recent attacks on members of the opposition and civic groups.

Thokozani Khupe, the Vice President of the Tsvangirai-MDC attended the meeting in place of Nelson Chamisa. Chamisa is the opposition MP who was viciously attacked by suspected state security agents last Sunday at the Harare International Airport en route to Brussels. Chamisa regularly attends the meetings of the ACP-EU as do ZANU PF MPs.

Khupe said the ACP-EU parliamentarians also issued a resolution condemning the brutal attacks on the political activists in Zimbabwe.

There was an outcry from EU MPs when it was reported that two banned Zanu PF MPs, Walter Mzembi and former Minister Edward Chindori Chininga, had been granted visas to attend the meeting. The Belgium government is reported to have cancelled the visas. This resulted in the Mugabe regime sending little known two Senators from Harare, Forbes Magadu and Clarissah Muchengeti including Albert Chimbindi from the Zimbabwe embassy in Brussels.

The ACP-EU committee asked both the MDC and ZANU PF representatives to give their side of the story and Senator Forbes Magadu is reported to have merely said the attack on Chamisa was unfortunate as he is a ‘good guy.’

Khupe told the committee: “I am here because our Secretary for Information and Publicity and Kuwadzana Member of Parliament Hon Nelson Chamisa, who was supposed to be here, is agonisingly lying in a hospital … having been brutally assaulted by members of Robert Mugabes Central Intelligence Organisation at the Harare International Airport. This was in the close proximity of his fellow Members of Parliament from ZANU PF who are in this meeting and should be hanging their heads in shame.”

She appealed to the African delegates in particular saying the crisis in Zimbabwe is an African problem, which in the main must be resolved by Africans. “We need the solidarity of our fellow Africans when going through such violence and oppression, and we welcome those few who have spoken in condemnation against these abuses and rights violations. It is only when we stand in solidarity around democratic principles and the rule of law that any nation can succeed.”

The MDC Vice President told us the delegates agreed to call upon SADC leaders to condemn what is happening in Zimbabwe and to intervene to find a solution to the crisis.

But observers are sceptical about the full commitment of the ACP countries. Sources said the body’s Bureau committee, which sets the agenda for the parliamentarians, had issued a weak joint declaration on Nelson Chamisa the previous day. Some of the African and Caribbean MPs were just not willing to issue a strong statement condemning the rights abuses in Zimbabwe.

Meanwhile, the UK House of Commons urged Britain to take out tougher sanctions against the Mugabe regime after it emerged that Chindori-Chininga had tried to dodge the sanctions. This former minister of mines and mining development is a regular visitor to France despite the EU travel sanctions, and had duped Belgium immigration officials by applying for the visa using only one of his two family names.

The EU targeted sanctions were renewed for another year in February and more names of Mugabe’s cronies and MPs, like Walter Mzembe, were added to the list early this week. The restrictions include an arms embargo, travel bans and asset freezes on Mugabe and other top officials.