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As the United States prepares for Joe Biden’s swearing-in on Wednesday, Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa called for the lifting of US sanctions against his country. He felt that the United States had no right to punish other nations in the name of democracy after the insurgency on the United States Capitol. However, Zimbabwe’s human rights record looms on the second anniversary of a brutal crackdown on protests.
Supporters of outgoing President Donald Trump, prompted by his comments on social media to resume the presidency, took it upon themselves to storm the Capitol in Washington DC on January 6. Five people were killed in the violence.
As the world watched in horror, the U.S. House of Representatives quickly voted to impeach Trump, a request that was due to be considered by the Senate after his recess ended on Tuesday.
“Donald Trump embodies the kind of third world mentality that elections are about winning at all costs, even if it means discrediting institutions that promoted fairness,” says Rejoice Ngwenya, director of Coalition for Market and Liberal Solutions, or COMALISO, a Harare-based policy think tank.
Ngwenya says that while it would be naïve to condemn democracy on the basis of this event, it has tarnished the image of the United States as “the last frontier of democratic mental health.”
Zimbabwe’s President Emmerson Mnangagwa believes the United States has lost a lot of credibility in those few hours, as he expressed on Twitter.
“Last year, President Trump extended the harsh economic sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe, citing concerns about democracy in Zimbabwe. Yesterday’s events [6 January] has shown that the United States has no moral right to punish another nation under the pretext of defending democracy. These sanctions must end. “
Brutal repression
“However, this does not de-legitimize the United States’ right to promote democracy in Zimbabwe,” Ngwenya said, adding that the United States systematically and attentively listened to Zimbabwean human rights groups, who strongly condemned the suppression of rights and speeches.
Tuesday marks the second anniversary of excessive force used by Zimbabwean security forces to crush a nationwide protest against rising fuel prices. Human Rights Watch, an international human rights monitoring group based in the United States, reported that at least 17 people were shot dead and 17 women were raped.
As summed up in a tweet from the US Embassy in Harare, he called for the investigation and conviction of those who committed these acts of violence two years ago under the Mnangagwa administration.
“We still have political prisoners, the opposition is harassed and journalists are jailed,” Ngwenya said.
He refers to the recent number of arrests carried out by the Zimbabwean security forces: Allan Moyo, a pro-democracy activist, who has been in pre-trial detention for more than 40 days.
Fadzayi Mahere, a Zimbabwean human rights lawyer arrested and charged with publishing or communicating lies, was released on bail after spending a week in prison.
Job Sikhala, opposition party, Movement for the Alliance for Democratic Change (MDC-A), was denied bail on January 15 and will remain in prison until his return to court on February 18 , according to Zimbabwean human rights lawyers.
This includes journalist Hopewell Chin’ono, who has been arrested for the third time after discovering a transplant in the Covid-19 tender dossier.
Punishments
The United States has imposed economic sanctions against Zimbabwe for human rights violations and corruption since 2002, which includes targeting 141 people, including Mnangagwa. His predecessor, Robert Mugabe, has repeatedly claimed that the sanctions are what ruined the country for Zimbabweans.
“Ordinary people don’t have accounts in Switzerland; ordinary people don’t import Ferraris from Italy. Ordinary people don’t shop at Harrods, ”says manager Ngwenya.
“What affects ordinary people are bad economic policies and oppression – only those who benefit from chaos and corruption are affected” by the sanctions, he adds.
He says Zimbabweans just want good, democratic and sensible government.
“Those who talk about sanctions are the ones who are guilty,” he adds.
With all eyes on the United States when Biden takes power on Wednesday, Ngwenya says the United States will remain committed to Zimbabwe, but will not lift sanctions.
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