MDC Statement - 2 September 2002
Mugabe's Speech An Attempt To Conceal The Violent Reality and Hypocrisy of His Land Agenda
Commenting immediately after Mugabe's speech at the Johannesburg Summit, MDC Shadow Foreign Minister, Tendai Biti condemned the hypocrisy of Mugabe's speech and his blatant attempt to distort people's understanding of the reality of the situation in Zimbabwe.
"Mugabe's speech at the Johannesburg Summit was devoid of virtually all references to sustainable development, underlining once again that he simply uses international summits for propaganda purposes in order to canvass support for his violent and irresponsible polices. Given that the conference is supposed to focus global attention on the urgent need for sustainable development, Mugabe's attendance is an affront to the thousands who gave travelled to Johannesburg in an attempt to forge a global consensus on the best way forward to achieving a more sustainable and equitable global environment.
"The world should not be fooled by Mugabe's speech at the summit. His violent land reform programme is about entrenching his political power and rewarding his cronies and not about addressing historical injustices.
"In the context of sustainable development, Mugabe's land reform programme is anything but sustainable. His violent pursuit of land reform has resulted in massive environmental degradation, condemned hundreds of thousands to poverty and put six million people at risk of starvation
"Blaming Britain and the West for Zimbabwe's crisis is a desperate attempt to distort global understanding of what is happening in Zimbabwe and portray himself, and his cohorts, as victims of a neo-colonial agenda. If Mugabe is a victim, he is a victim of his own shortcomings as a leader and his violent and undemocratic pursuit of power, regardless of the cost to his country, its environment and its people. The crisis in Zimbabwe is a direct product of bad governance, endemic corruption and blatant disregard for the rule of law. Mugabe has betrayed his people and betrayed the democratic values that were so bravely fought for during Zimbabwe's liberation war.
"Mugabe has clearly hijacked the Johannesburg Summit to try and hoodwink the world about the benevolent nature of his land reform programme. What Mugabe failed to tell the Summit, and what those who sycophantically applauded him conveniently ignore, is that both his land reform programme and his regime, is characterised by state sponsored violence and gross human rights abuses that continue to proliferate under the culture of impunity that exists to protect Mugabe's henchmen from being held accountable for their actions.
"Mugabe, and those who applauded him in Johannesburg, should be widely condemned by the rest of the delegates who are committed to democracy and the rule of law. Progressive minded heads of state who are in Johannesburg should take every opportunity to publicly censure Mugabe and increase the diplomatic pressure on his odious regime. A failure to do so would be an insult to the hundreds of thousands of Zimbabweans suffering as a direct result of Mugabe's indifference to their plight."
For Further Information, Please Contact:
Nkanyiso Maqueda - 00 27 72561 6363
James Littleton - 0044 7771 501 401
|
|
You can make a difference
|
|
 |
Make a donation |
|
Support Zimbabwe at an event |
|
Lobby your local Government member |
|
Become a member of the ZIC |
|
