Zimbabwe President Emmerson Mnangagwa has called for “immediate and unconditional removal of the illegal sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe.”
In a speech to the mark the Day of Solidarity Against Sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe, the president thanked the Southern African Development Community (SADC), the African Union (AU) and other progressive forces for “the support and unwavering solidarity” Zimbabweans continue to receive as they “struggle against the illegal sanctions” imposed on them by some Western countries.
October 25th is the day SADC designates yearly to express its opposition to and outrage against illegal Western sanctions against Zimbabwe until there removal.
Some of the sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe date back 20 years in response to alleged election rigging and rights abuses under former President Robert Mugabe who died in 2019. Others were imposed in response to Zimbabwe’s land reform programme to correct a crooked land ownership system that favoured the white minority at the expense of the black majority.
“We, the people of Zimbabwe, feel humbled by the solidarity demonstrated by both SADC and the AU, as well as by many progressive forces and organisations, who at the recent 77th Session of the United Nations General Assembly, in unison called for the immediate and unconditional removal of the illegal sanctions,” President Mnangagwa said.
He particularly expressed Zimbabwe’s gratitude to “President Macky Sall; President Felix Tshisekedi; President Mokgweetsi Eric Masisi; President Cyril Ramaphosa; President Hage Geingob and President William Ruto for leading Africa’s charge against the illegal sanctions,” adding that “They gave the campaign an early and emphatic start.”
President Mnangagwa stressed the need to urgently lift the illegal sanctions against his country. “We call, press and reiterate that these illegal sanctions must go. The people and Government of Zimbabwe deserve a chance. We are not and will never yield to the sanctions conditioning and strangulating effect. We will never give up on the sacred ideals and goals of our protracted armed liberation struggle. We will not abandon the path we have chosen for ourselves as a sovereign people to develop, modernise and industrialize our great motherland Zimbabwe using our own capabilities, resources and international goodwill,” President Mnangagwa said.
He thanked all Zimbabweans “for showing tremendous resilience and perseverance in the face of the illegal sanctions.”
President Mnangagwa commended investors including Zimbabweans both at home and in the diaspora for “taking advantage of the vast investment opportunities the country offers. “I want to assure those nursing doubts planted by false narratives against our country that Zimbabwe is open for business and a safe destination for capital.”
He promised that his Admiration would continue to strengthen the reform agenda by addressing all impediments which constrain economic growth, business confidence and investment.
SADC chairperson and President of the Democratic Republic of Congo Felix Tshisekedi joined President Mnangagwa in calling for the removal of illegal sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe by some Western countries. “Once again, the SADC reaffirms its solidarity with the Government and people of the Republic of Zimbabwe, and reiterates the calls for the unconditional and immediate lifting of sanctions that were imposed on Zimbabwean individuals and institutions,” President Tshisekedi said.
The sanctions, President Tshisekedi said, pushed a negative perception about the country and cut it off from global financial markets. “SADC is deeply concerned at the claim that the sanctions are of a “targeted nature” and are aimed at unilaterally punishing a few individuals. The reality is that there is a spill-over and contagion effect on the rest of the country, in particular by imposing a blanket negative perception about Zimbabwe across the world, in particular in the sensitive global financial markets.”