By Alois Vinga, Harare ZIMBABWE
President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s
administration has come out guns blazing criticising the US government for its
Wednesday decision to new targeted sanctions on Zimbabwean politicians by
another year.
In its
decision to extend sanctions, the US said it had observed “the Zimbabwean
government has arguably accelerated its persecution of critics and economic
mismanagement in the past year, during which security forces have conducted
extrajudicial killings, rapes, and alleged abductions of numerous dissidents”.
Responding
to the US decision, President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s government said it was
dismayed by the continued diplomatic siege on Harare by the superpower.
“Once
again, the government of the United States has chosen to strangely characterise
Zimbabwe as a country that poses an extraordinary threat to the foreign policy
of the United States. We find this a baffling position,” Information permanent
secretary, Nick Mangwana said in a statement Thursday.
Mangwana
said the country’s continued blacklisting by the superpower was going to hinder
its hopes of freely operating and transacting on the global stage like any
other country.
He added,
“We don’t seek to interfere with the foreign policy or interest of any nation
and we have no history of doing that. Our commitment is to the development of
our country and the delivery of socio-economic outcomes to our people.”
The top
government official denied claims of atrocities perpetrated by the country’s
security forces during the ill-fated January 2019 anti-government protests in
which 17 were killed, according to independent reports by local NGOs.
Information permanent secretary, Nick Mangwana |
“Any acts
of criminality by anyone are subjected to the criminal justice processes of the
country.”
Mangwana
said President Mnangagwa’s government continued to embark on a pathway to
reform in the best interest of the nation.
He called
on friendly nations to be patient with Zimbabwe following accusations by the US
the Harare administration was doing little in terms of reforms.
“We
therefore call upon those nations who wish our country and people well to
partner us and be patient with us as we continue to undertake these reforms towards
meeting the aspirations of our people,” Mangwana said.
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