(TALKZIMBABWE) EU sanctions lawsuit ready for filing: AG

EU sanctions lawsuit ready for filing: AG
Posted by By Our reporter at 11 October, at 23 : 53 PM

ATTORNEY-General Johannes Tomana and a team of legal experts have finished drafting court papers to mount a lawsuit against the European Union that imposed illegal sanctions on Zimbabwe.

The sanctions were imposed unilaterally by the 27 member EU bloc and the United Nations Security Council has refused to ratify them, effectively making them illegal under international law. Tomana confirmed the development saying the court papers were likely to be filed in European courts before the end of this month.

“We are finalising drafting of the court papers and we hope to complete that exercise in two weeks time. We hope to file the papers during the course of this month,” he told Zimbabwe’s state-run Herald newspaper on Tuesday.

AG Tomana said the EU, as a bloc would stand as a respondent in long legal battle, which is likely to draw world attention.

The lawsuit is the first legal step by the Zimbabwean Government to compel the EU to lift the illegal embargo.

The lawsuit comes hot on the heels of a visit to Zimbabwe by the EU managing director for Africa, Nick Westcott.

Westcott met President Mugabe and other senior Government officials over the sanctions issue but failed to find a common ground.

His visit was as a result of a 14-day ultimatum by the AG seeking an explanation from the EU on the maintenance of the embargo.

The ultimatum exposed the EU’s blunders on imposition of sanctions, for instance the bloc did not communicate its decision to people and companies placed on the sanctions list as required by Article 6 (2) of the Council Decision.

Some of the companies on EU sanctions list include big employers like the Zimbabwe Mining Development Corporation, Jongwe Printers and Agribank among others.

Harare resorted to take legal action against the EU after efforts to engage the EU diplomatically failed.