(TALKZIMBABWE) A spade becomes a hoe: Politics of US sanctions in Zim

A spade becomes a hoe: Politics of US sanctions in Zim
Dambudzo Mapuranga:
Tue, 21 Apr 2009 13:56:00 +0000

WHEN Ken Mafuka in his weekly column wrote that the Zimbabwe Democracy Recovery Act (ZIDERA) would one day come back and haunt the very persons who advocated for it, many scorned his words of prophesy, but now he stands vindicated.

In a twist of events the very legal minds who crafted ZIDERA are now the Ministers who are traipsing across the region canvassing for funds to rebuild what they gleefully destroyed.

Our very own Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai went to Washington DC to drum up support for ZIDERA, not only did he address members of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, in one of the subcommittee meeting on African Affairs, Senator Russell Feingold and Senator Bill Frist who introduced the bill that finally became ZIDERA to the Senate discuss how the Prime Minister was an intricate part in ensuring that ZIDERA gets the full support of congressional members in late June 2001

While the country has been led to believe sanctions on Zimbabwe are targeted on a few members of the Zanu PF elite, the truth remains as Chester Crocker put it; the people of Zimbabwe have to suffer in order for regime change to take place in Zimbabwe. So can someone explain to me how travel restrictions translate to denial of balance of payment support, denial of loans from global financial institutions?

Forget all the nonsense that is paraded that Zimbabwe has failed to pay its interest on loans and thus cannot get anymore loans, how many countries in Africa and Latin America have had their debts cancelled or rearranged under the guise of increased North-South cooperation. In most cases this has been done after concessions are made that include privatizations of major industries and mines, capitalistic democracy at its best.

The main thrust of ZIDERA is not to punish President Mugabe and his party but it intends to push the people of Zimbabwe to their lowest so that they revolt and do away with Zanu PF. This is why the US has failed to contribute anything meaningful towards the debate on Zimbabwe. As most of Europe moves to a more pragmatic working relationship with Zimbabwe, America continues to press its regime change agenda. Their cousins the British having become swarmed with the global economic crisis are only too happy to turn over the running of their pet project to America.

Ambassador McGee sounds like a broken record every time he voices his opinions. He is like a magician who repeats the same tired old trick failing to realize his audience caught on several years back how he does the trick. Mr. McGee needs to stop focusing on minor issues that are neither here nor there but start acting in the manner that befits his station. His continued utterances that the US is a key ally of the people of Zimbabwe and how much the US has given in terms of humanitarian aid at every press interview now leave a sour taste in the mouth.

It is unfortunate that journalism in our country has been so polarized such that our journalists have become hacks who hear no evil, see no evil, and speak no evil and fail to gives us news but sell us attitudes and opinions as hard facts. No international financial institution and multilateral development bank will loan Zimbabwe funds because the United States has directed all its executive directors at these institutions to vote against any extension of any loan, credit, or guarantee to the Government of Zimbabwe and to oppose any cancellation or reduction of debt owed by the Government of Zimbabwe.

Anyone with half a brain would ask then how exactly is economic development expected to transpire in a country that is cut off from all facets of funds. It has been proven the one successful method to destabilize a country is through poverty and economic strangulation, and this is what sanctions have done.

ZIDERA has absolutely nothing to do with “the policy of the United States to support the people of Zimbabwe in their struggle to effect peaceful democratic change, achieve broad-based and equitable growth and restore rule of law”. ZIDERA is punishment to the people of Zimbabwe for allowing their government to do the unthinkable, going against traditional capitalist norms that favor the few and sentence the majority to impoverishment under the veil of democracy.

The Obama Administration cannot be expected to be any different from the Bush Administration; this is why Ambassador McGee has continued on his anti-Mugabe crusade. The current Vice President Joseph Biden and Secretary of State Hilary Clinton and right-winger Jesse Helms were sponsors of ZIDERA in the US Senate.

The role of Prime Minister Tsvangirai in all this cannot be ignored it was his testimony before the Senate in support of ZIDERA under the umbrella of “ leader of democratic forces” in Zimbabwe that condemned a nation. Unity Government or not he still has to answer the question “What were you thinking?” because it will take decades to reverse ZIDERA.

On 1 July 2008 US President George Bush signed a bill that effectively removed Nelson Mandela and members of the ANC party from the US terrorist watch list. Nelson Mandela spent 27 years in prison on convictions for crimes committed in the struggle against apartheid. While apartheid South African and nations sympathetic to it regarded Mandela and the ANC as communists and terrorists; he became a symbol of freedom and equality not only in South Africa but also all over the world. So how long will it take to have ZIDERA repealed? By the way Mr. Mandela is a Nobel Peace Prize winner.

Minister Biti has to play financial gymnastics in the coming months. The people who gave us Gonotronics must be waiting eagerly I am sure to come up with some term to call his strategy in turning around the country’s financial state. I for one am just waiting to see how he is going to manage to pay civil servants the salary his MDC President Morgan Tsvangirai promised during his inaugural speech as Zimbabwe Prime Minister.

Such is the problem with politicking and reality, while the new PM was busy trying to win cheap shots by telling his audience that he was doing away with the $100 that the Zanu PF government had promised civil servants and would in fact as of March pay them “real salaries” he forgot that as a public official he was accountable to the people.

A few weeks back Minister Biti was at wits end begging donors to fulfill pledges they had promised to bring forth once the MDC was part of government. As one analyst pointed out at the SADC Finance Minister meeting, Biti faces a revolt back home if he fails to deliver what he promised. Surprising now Minister Biti is calling for patience and understanding from the very people whom less than a year ago his party was telling to go on strike unless “vapiwa mari dzavanoda”.

There were those in certain quarters who clapped with glee a few months back when a group of soldiers went beserk in Harare demanding their monies not only this but was the opposition not on the fore front of cheering such destructive behaviour of disgruntled civil servants. Imagine what will happen now that the shoe is on the other foot, will Biti take it stoically if soldiers and other civil servants took it upon themselves to come calling demanding the salaries Prime Minister Tsvangirai promised on 11 February 2009.

What happened to the keys that many a politician where claiming to have that would unlock the economic floodgates and bring the good times back to Zimbabwe? Reality has sank in and what Deputy Prime Minister Aurthur Mutambara has been saying all along begins to make sense, there is nothing smart about these so called smart sanctions and all they are doing is making life difficult for the ordinary Zimbabwean. Why would Zimbabwe be failing to attract investment given its vast resources and potential?

What Minister Biti should be doing right now is reversing the harm he and Minister Ncube did by crafting ZIDERA. As the chief legal minds of MDC they should have known better, now as Minister of Finance and the other as Minister international Trade and Commerce they have a mammoth task in managing the few dollars in the state’s coffers, attracting investors, getting aid and loans and all those other factors they tried very hard to ensure the Zanu PF would never be able to acquire through ZIDERA. Can they reconcile what they did as opposition leaders with their new positions as public servants?

Reports indicate that there is a section of the west that is pushing for the lifting of sanctions against Zimbabwe, but seems reluctant to press forward without the rest of their counterparts. The main reason being among the major power players there is an understanding that the MDC would lose any advantage it has on a level playing field. The continued application of sanctions guarantees that Zanu PF has no source of funding and with Biti as Minister of Finance the MDC has an added advantage.

Concerns have been raised over the lack of protocol our Finance Minister has, more often than not he travels on state business in the company of MDC officials and with no Ministry officials. Are technocrats not meant to be the ones who give him direction and if he is leaving them behind who is to say he is not involved in some backroom deals on these official state business trips. A line will have to be drawn as to were Minister Biti wears his party hat and his government hat.

The Finance Minister went on a visit to Botswana, which was explained as part of the inclusive government’s efforts to seek loans and aid from the region. However information from a very top source within the MDC indicates that Minister Biti came back with one million US Dollars but this was for MDC coffers. Minister Biti was not in the company of ministry officials but took Martin Rupiya and Ian Makone who presented fake credentials to Botswana authorities.

Rupiya introduced himself as the Chief Security Advisor in the Officer of the Prime Minister and Ian Makone introduced himself as Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister. These two men hold not positions in the unity government but are party functionaries any appointments to the positions they claim to hold would be made through the Public Service Commission and transparent.

Rupiya and Makone are in fact irresponsible men who could be said to be partially responsible for the death of the Prime Minister’s wife in a car accident last month. Rupiya advised the Prime Minister that he should refuse any protection offer by the government and instead use MDC security details. Makone is the one who wrote the letter to CMED rejecting the use of CMED trained drivers and vehicles for the prime misters use opting instead to use party vehicles and drivers.

The main question that needs to be answered by all parties involved is “Is ZIDERA truly meant to bring about democratic reform to Zimbabwe or is it a regime change tool?” The new government of Zimbabwe needs lines of credit and balance of payments support in order to make sizeable progress when it comes to economic recovery. As things stand such facilities are not forth coming because those who really hold the keys are not pleased with the turn of events.

As ambassador McGee puts it there is need for democratic reform in Zimbabwe. Even if this means releasing people who have committed serious crimes that include treason so be it, if it means opening up our airwaves and mass media to groups that are receiving funds from CIA fronts disguised as NGOs so be it, if it means that people are indirectly killed through accidents on roads not maintained because the government cannot get funds to repair roads so be it, if hospitals are closed because the government cannot pay health care providers and buy medicines so be it.

For how long can Zimbabweans be sustained by humanitarian aid? Many people fail to comprehend that humanitarian benefits the donor more than the recipients. Where does the entire food surplus produced in the North go? Humanitarian aid is mostly surplus bought from farmers in the west by their respective government and packaged and distributed through government sponsored NGOs.

Not only is a market found for the surplus, but also the government is able to ensure its farmers remain in business and all that feel good money set aside in the national budget to help the less fortunate of the world remains within the country. Its more like the host country gives itself money, it pays the farmer who produces and in turn does not have to collect unemployment benefits, and creates employment for all those functionaries who will work in the relief groups, it’s a clear win win situation.

Humanitarian aid might be vital in some cases but after a while it becomes a major cause of unproductivity. How much of the so-called humanitarian aid Zimbabwe has received up to date can be channeled towards resuscitating the economy? Instead of buying bottled water or distributing water purification tablets would it not be more prudent to address the problem that is the water reticulation systems. Why not fix the root of the problem because as things stand unless the source is fixed people in urban areas will always need to drink bottled water and use these purification tablets. None of which are locally produced.

Recently Red Cross received 10 million dollars from the Swedish Government for operations in Zimbabwe, while I have no problem with this I have a problem with Ambassador Rylander saying the money will go a long way to benefit Zimbabwe sitting on the front lawn at Prime Minister Tsvangirai’s house in Stratehaven. Research has shown that about a third of the monies given to groups like Red Cross, Doctors without Borders, World Vision goes to what are called administration services.

These services have to do with the groups’ expenses and could be better channeled through government structures. While donors want accountability from governments they more often than not fail to use that same approach with relief groups. This goes a long way in explaining the extravagant way in which many of these donor coordinators lead.

The combination of sanctions and humanitarian aid leaves a lot to be desired. Until Zimbabweans come out with one voice and say no to such blatant manipulations Zimbabwe will continue to be in the economic doldrums. There will be no real democracy in Zimbabwe until both Zanu PF and MDC realize that they need to reconcile their respective party philosophies to the new breed of voters.

As the world moves forward we need to move with it, our values as a nation are not unified, the sooner we lay out nationalistic values that are recognized by all major political players the better equipped we are to fight imperialistic forces that preach democracy at the alter of capitalism that sacrifices the developing world for the profit of the developed world.