Many African countries, though technically free, continue to be pawns in the big-power chess game played Western powers. At present, Zimbabwe, where presidential elections are to take place shortly, is under focus.
The election battle is between the ruling party headed by President Robert Mugabe, supported by the majority of the people, and the opposition headed by Morgan Tsvangirai, who has the backing of the UK and Zimbabwe’s white farmers. Zimbabwe has been through rough times since the Mugabe government began confiscating the agricultural lands that had been taken by force by the whites during the colonial times, and started redistributing them to native Zimbabweans.
The UK reacted violently to this step, leading to an open confrontation between the two countries. The situation got worse when London tried to get the Commonwealth to impose sanctions on Zimbabwe or to freeze its membership. Both the endeavors failed. The UK also persuaded the EU to discuss the issue. Following a number of conferences, the EU decided in January 2002 to impose political and economic sanctions on Zimbabwe. They were to come into force unless Mugabe granted permission to a European delegation to monitor the March presidential elections. Naturally, Zimbabwe considered it an interference in Zimbabwe’s internal affairs.
The United States, working toward the same goal, has followed a carrot-and-stick policy. In December 2001, the US Congress passed a law empowering the US president to grant Zimbabwe assistance, loans and facilitates up to one $1 billion. However, to qualify for the assistance, Zimbabwe had to conduct elections under international observation, had to halt land distribution and the execution of the Abuja agreement. Under the law, the US president was empowered to impose sanctions on Zimbabwe if necessary.
Mugabe, under this pressure, agreed to the presence of international observers to monitor elections. However, he refused observers from six nations, including the UK and Sweden, that he considered enemies of Zimbabwe. The situation got worse and the European Union decided to withdraw all international observers and to impose sanctions on the president and a number of his aides. In addition, they were banned from travelling abroad. The US supported such actions. Furthermore, a team was nominated to monitor the secret bank accounts of the president and his aides as well as the shares they held in international firms. The government of Zimbabwe, naturally, rejected such gross and unfair measures and challenged tthe European-US intervention.
The current pressures and the political and economic sanctions on Zimbabwe are against the international law that prohibits intervention in the domestic affairs of other nations. The reality is that the Europeans are not interested in democracy. All that they want is to remove Mugabe from power and install the pro-West opposition. Mugabe’s real crime is that he retook agricultural lands from the whites. The democracy slogans are only an excuse to maintain white colonialism through land ownership. They are also keen on exploiting mineral resources including Amanita, gold, Nickel and zinc.
Therefore, it is imperative that African countries stand by Zimbabwe. The struggle by the Zimbabweans is not merely a struggle to get rid of the remnants of British military colonialism; it is a struggle for freedom and sovereignty.
