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(NEWZIMBABWE) Mugabe slams 'disgraceful' scramble for Libyan oil

Mugabe slams 'disgraceful' scramble for Libyan oil
22/09/2011 00:00:00
by Staff Reporter

PRESIDENT Robert Mugabe told the United Nations on Thursday night that mediation was “never given full play” in Libya as he condemned the “unbelievable and disgraceful scramble” for the country’s oil by some NATO countries.

Mugabe accused western countries of a “gross deliberate misinterpretation of the scope of the [UN] mandate originally given NATO to protect civilians” from the regime of Muammar Gaddafi.

“Whatever political disturbances might have first occurred in Bengazi, the process of mediation and peaceful negotiations was never given full play,” Mugabe said in a speech lasting just over 17 minutes.
“It was deliberately and blatantly excluded from shedding positive influence over developments.”

Mugabe, a key ally of the ousted Gaddafi regime, said NATO’s intervention was influenced by “bilateral hatreds and quarrels or ulterior motives”.

He stormed: “After over twenty thousand NATO bombing sorties that targeted Libyan towns, including Tripoli, there is now unbelievable and most disgraceful scramble by some NATO countries for Libyan oil, indicating thereby that the real motive for their aggression against Libya was to control and own its abundant fuel resources. What a shame!

“Yesterday, it was Iraq and [George] Bush and [Tony] Blair were the liars and aggressors as they made unfounded allegations of possessions of weapons of mass destruction. This time it is the NATO countries the liars and aggressors as they make similarly unfounded allegations of destruction of civilian lives by Gaddafi.”

Mugabe said his government’s land reforms and push to nationalise the country’s mineral resources had made Zimbabwe the target of “unparalleled vilification”, by western super powers. Two million Zimbabweans had signed a petition showing their “antipathy” towards the embargo, he said.

“When we in Zimbabwe sought to redress the ills of colonialism and racism, by fully acquiring our natural resources, mainly our land and minerals, we were and still are subjected to unparalleled vilification and pernicious economic sanctions, the false reasons alleged being violations of the rule of law, human rights, and democracy,” he railed.

Pressing all the populist buttons, Mugabe also used the platform to back Palestine’s bid for statehood; demand two permanent seats for Africa on the UN Security Council and criticise the International Criminal Court’s focus on Africa while “turning a blind eye to the leaders of the powerful western states guilty of international crime, like [George] Bush and [Tony] Blair”.

“Africa's call for at least two permanent seats for its members on the Security Council has been constant for decades. Africa cannot remain as the only region without permanent membership in the Security Council,” Mugabe said.

Zimbabwe “fully supports the right of the gallant people of Palestine to statehood and membership of this UN organisation,” he added. “The UN must become credible by welcoming into its bosom all those whose right to attain sovereign independence and freedom from occupation and colonialism is legitimate.”

Labels: LIBYA, MUAMMAR AL-GADDAFI, NEOCOLONIALISM, OIL, ROBERT MUGABE

posted by MrK @ 4:45 AM