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President Mugabe

THE end of the Cold War in 1989 spawned the emergence of a unipolar world in which the United States dominated world affairs after the collapse of the Soviet Union. The breakup of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics meant that the US was now the sole superpower and could ride roughshod over smaller, weaker states.
Since then, successive US administrations have adopted scorched earth foreign policies as they sought to tighten their country’s hold on the world and further its interests — mainly economic. In its foreign sojourns, the US has relied on the support of its allies — the United Kingdom, France, Canada, Australia and Germany. Zimbabwe has been a victim of US and UK aggression for the past two decades and to this day, the country is suffering under the yoke of sanctions which were imposed by the European Union and US at the behest of Britain.

Even though Zimbabwe enjoys unparalleled peace and tranquility, Western powers continue to push for its discussion at various international platforms and lately the campaign is to have the country put on the agenda of the United Nations. Having failed to dislodge the ruling Zanu-PF party and President Mugabe from power using their local surrogates in the opposition ranks (who continue to be trounced in every election), the West has now resorted to sponsoring an uprising fronted by shadowy groups such as #This Flag and Tajamuka who have been staging rolling protests over the past few weeks.

Opposition parties have also come together under the banner of the National Electoral Reform Agenda (NERA) and have been organising demonstrations most of which have turned violent with property looted and burnt while peace-loving people have been caught up in the crossfire. Western embassies have been actively involved in funding and providing logistical support to anti-Government elements.

Yesterday, our sister paper, The Sunday Mail reported that the British and US governments have escalated their campaign to destabilise Zimbabwe as they seek to bring the country under UN scrutiny based on false claims that Zimbabwean authorities are quelling political demonstrations by shooting protesters.

As a build-up to this, two British operatives known for engineering violent street “protests” in North and West Africa were dispatched to Harare in early September, with the Western media, led by CNN, following up with sustained coverage of purported “police brutality” and “human rights violations”.

Shadowy groups are also reportedly caucusing regularly in some Harare suburbs under the cover of darkness. The co-ordinated onslaught is allegedly aimed at pummeling Zimbabwe’s economy with fresh EU sanctions based on the same frivolous claims. Further, it is understood the US embassy in Harare funded career protester Partson Dzamara’s trip to New York to organise demonstrations against President Mugabe when the UN General Assembly opens.

Dzamara and his protest partner Evan Mawarire  staged a monumental flop of a demonstration after being eclipsed by the December 12 Movement which countered with pro-Zimbabwe and President Mugabe marches.

On Saturday, NERA planned mass protests in Harare’s central business district despite a standing police ban. Though the demonstrations ultimately did not take place, NERA representatives Mr Morgan Komichi (MDC-T) and Mr Jacob Ngaribvume (Transform Zimbabwe) later called a Press conference, claiming police had fired shots at protesters in Harare’s Dzivarasekwa and Kuwadzana suburbs.

This appeared to take a lead from a stage-managed interview that the US news channel CNN had with a bogus police officer who claimed Zimbabwe’s law enforcement agents were under instructions to shoot protesters. Police have since dismissed claims of shooting involving protesters but the sustained falsehoods and onslaught against Zimbabwe suggests a sinister motive.

The country is clearly under attack and the forces of evil will stop at nothing to ensure that the country is ungovernable. Zimbabwe desperately needs the support of its sister nations in the Non-Aligned Movement to counter the machinations of rich and powerful countries which are out to destabilise it and effect regime change. President Mugabe is at the NAM summit in Venezuela and on Saturday, he urged the body to continue its long-standing push for multilateralism in world affairs, saying unilateralism pursued by big powers had led to instability and chaos around the globe.

The President said unilateralism was self-serving for the big powers, and had caused untold suffering in targeted countries, citing Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya and Syria as countries that had borne the brunt of this in recent years.

Cde Mugabe said it was important for small nations to steer clear of the rivalries of the big powers, and instead band together among themselves and push for multilateral global governance.

“We should continue to be the torchbearers in the quest for peace and socio-economic development as guided by the principles of sovereign equality of states, non-interference in the internal affairs of states, respect for the right to self-determination, non-aggression, peaceful co-existence and respect of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of states, and the resolution of conflicts by peaceful means,” he said.

“These principles are valid today as they were half a century ago. The propensity by some powerful member states to resort to unilateralism in pursuit of their selfish interests poses the greatest danger to international peace and security and the rule of law in our world today.

“Interventions, interference in the internal affairs of small and weak states, and the use of force at the slightest excuse, have spawned the humanitarian crisis of unprecedented proportions in Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya and Syria,” he added.

“We, therefore, call for the absolute supremacy of multilateralism in the peaceful settlement of disputes, a nuclear weapon-free world, and the right of nations to peaceful use of nuclear energy.”

We completely agree with the President.