ZIMBABWE recently won support from Sadc that resolved to help her with resources to finance the forthcoming harmonised elections that must be held by 31 July in accordance with the 31 May Constitutional Court ruling. Sadc leaders met on the sidelines of the 21st Ordinary Session of the African Union in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia to commit themselves to providing the assistance to Zimbabwe.
The pledge is a welcome development and a victory for Zimbabweans since Sadc is one of the guarantors of the Global Political Agreement, which gave birth to the inclusive Government.

This was not the first time the regional grouping had roundly confirmed its solidarity towards Zimbabwe. It has consistently called for the West to lift its illegal sanctions imposed against Zimbabwe and stood firm against western machinations to overthrow the Government.

This has been going on since Zimbabwe was singled out for daring to launch the revolutionary land reform programme in 2000.
Sadc leaders such as Sam Nujoma (Namibia), Bingu Wa Mutharika (the late Malawian President), Jakaya Kikwete (Tanzania) and former South African President, Thabo Mbeki have earned the vindictive wrath of the West for their support for Zimbabwe. For example, on 29 March 2007 former President Mbeki said Sadc cannot abandon Zimbabwe.

Addressing a Sadc Summit in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, he said: “The fight against Zimbabwe is a fight against us all. Today it is Zimbabwe, tomorrow it will be South Africa, it will be Mozambique, it will be Angola, and it will be any other African country. And any government that is perceived to be strong and to be resistant to imperialists would be made a target and would be undermined. So let us not allow any point of weakness in the solidarity of Sadc, because that weakness will also be transferred to the rest of Africa”.

Sadc’s spirited solidarity with the Government and people of Zimbabwe was expressed again after President Mugabe signed the Constitution of Zimbabwe Amendment (No. 20) Bill into law.

The making of the Constitution proved to the international community that Zimbabweans can do their own things without foreign interference. The new supreme law is indeed a landmark success. Although the constitution–making process was characterised by inter-party bickering it regardless, saw opposing political gladiators coming together to craft the founding national law.

It also serves as a wake up call to the international community, especially Europe, US, Canada and Australia that Zimbabwe is a sovereign state which should be respected by all and that within its sovereignty, its people should decide who their leader is not to have self-styled and fallen angels from the West preaching what they see as the tenets of democracy, human rights and rule of law to us.

The singleness of mind which was displayed by the country’s political parties when crafting the new constitution is an indication that Zimbabwe is ready to hold free, fair and democratic elections and do its own things without being hand-held.

Whereas well-meaning assistance is welcome, Zimbabwe is a strong country which is able to tell those who put strings attached to their help to simply keep it. We have every reason to stand our ground and reject the assistance with conditions as the UNDP attempted to do when the Government appealed for funds from the UN body to conduct the elections recently. It is evident that even the UNDP, a multi-lateral organisation which theoretically, must be impartial and fair is in practice, unquestionably controlled by Britain and America. It was clear, the usual culprits sought to interfere in our internal affairs under the cover of UNDP and election aid funnelled through it.

That was rejected.
“We are one,” President Mugabe said of the homegrown Constitution.
“We must defend ourselves. The sovereignty that we have must be defended. Our sovereignty rejects interference. No more colonialism, direct or indirect. Some people in Sadc wanted to impose themselves. We can do it. In fact we can do it better than others.”

His message indeed resonates with every self-respecting Zimbabwean out there that we detest and resist neo-colonialism to the death. It is our existential obligation to do that, and we are doing it.

This is time for Zimbabwe to make it clear to some in the bloc and in Africa that our cause is theirs as well and that the success of Zimbabwe is theirs too. We are not an extension of Europe, we are part of Africa, and our stand and fight should be seen as an African one. Foreigners should not interfere in Africa’s political affairs, unless they are specifically asked to do so.

Crucially also, it is time that African countries came together and collectively declare that meddling by Western powers in our national affairs should immediately end as every country is entitled to the right to decide its own policies, leaders and way of life.

History has shown us that when Western countries interfere in our internal affairs, they cause more problems than they solve. There often arises conflict, armed conflict sometimes.

In any case, Africans have successfully solved their problems – in Zimbabwe, Namibia, Angola, Sudan, South Sudan and Mozambique. These are some of the African countries that have benefited from African solutions with minimal or no Western interference.

The imperative that European countries stop unwarranted involvement in African politics was recently stressed by Zanu-PF’s Bulawayo provincial secretary for indigenisation and economic empowerment, Cde Charles Chiponda while addressing journalists at a Bulawayo Press Club.

He said foreign countries especially Britain and its Anglo-Saxon allies should not be allowed to meddle in Africa’s political affairs adding that when they did so their aim was not to deliberate on problems affecting Africa but to create civil conflicts which they would use as a scapegoat to loot natural resources in the name of peace-keeping.

He repeated what has almost become a song on the continent that African problems are best be solved by Africans.
“Foreign countries should not just intervene when there is any type of conflict going on in other countries. Britain and its Anglo-Saxon allies should not just pry into Africa’s political affairs because when they do so by offering their moral, political and economic support their intention is not help the affected country but to cause anarchy and despondency which, would use an excuse to just their interference.

“They will be exploiting that country‘s natural resources by falsely sympathising with it in the name of maintaining peace and order. For example, Nato with UN authority attacked Libya in the name of bringing democracy by eventually dethroning Muammar Gaddafi and right now they are awarding construction tenders to European companies who will be looting oil to their countries under the guise of rehabilitating Libya,” he observed.

There is no doubt that armed intervention in Africa is a clear signal of the West’s willingness to exploit the otherwise universal principles of democracy, human rights and good governance to further their material interests.

Britain is fighting Zimbabwe using political, diplomatic and economic instruments to effect a regime change. She has successfully mobilised the European Union and America to impose illegal sanctions on Zimbabwe after it had embarked on the revolutionary land reform programme to economically and socially empower the black majority by giving them land which was owned by a few minority whites.

Britain has tried to mobilise some in Sadc, particularly South Africa and Botswana to put similar pressure on Zimbabwe for the same goal but they have stoutly refused to be cowed.

That is the way to go. Zimbabweans, and indeed Africans have the ability and willingness to conduct their affairs on their own with no interference from the West. The West is inherently dishonest and selfish, so we cannot entrust our wellbeing in them. To do that would be to commit a grievous mistake that would haunt us for ever.

You Might Also Like

Comments