Posted on 05/16/2002 2:57:52 AM PDT by Cincinatus' Wife
LONDON - Prime Minister Tony Blair's government said Tuesday it was unclear whether Zimbabwe's suspension from the councils of the Commonwealth and sanctions against President Robert Mugabe's regime had had any impact.
Foreign Office minister Baroness Amos said there was no evidence that Mugabe had improved his record on human rights, democracy and respect for the rule of law following the suspension in March and in the face of European Union sanctions.
"Where we have a government that appears to care very little for what is happening to its own citizens and is not really prepared to take on board the concerns of the international community ... there is a limit to what the international community, not just the British government, can achieve," Amos told a committee of lawmakers in the House of Commons.
"Will suspension make a difference? It's too soon to tell. It's certainly not clear now what impact suspension has had," Amos added.
She said Zimbabwe would be on the agenda of the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group when it meets in Botswana on May 16 and 17 and would also be discussed by EU foreign ministers at a June 17 summit in Luxembourg.
In March, Zimbabwe was suspended from the councils of the Commonwealth for a year for the "high level of politically motivated violence" that marred the March 9-11 presidential elections.
Mugabe's ruling ZANU-PF party has been widely accused of rigging votes, orchestrating state-backed political violence and abusing the nation's laws and constitution.
Mugabe, 78, was sworn in for another six-year term after defeating Morgan Tsvangirai, leader of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change, who posed the most significant threat to his 22 years of autocratic rule.
The EU imposed economic and diplomatic sanctions against Mugabe's government after he refused to let its observers freely monitor the elections.
The EU cut off 128 million euros (dlrs 110 million) in development aid, banned all travel to the EU for Mugabe and 20 of his Cabinet ministers and froze their assets in Europe.
Amos said Tuesday the government accepted that there was little it could do unilaterally against Zimbabwe, as any action risked playing into Mugabe's hands. She said Mugabe's propanda had portrayed Britain as meddling in the affairs of its former colony.
"We are supporting our partners in Africa because we feel very clearly that it is Robert Mugabe's peers in Africa to whom he might listen. I think if there is a solution, it has to come from within the leadership within Africa," she said.
Amos said Britain was disappointed by the breakdown of the talks between the ruling ZANU-PF and the Movement for Democratic Change, which were sponsored by South Africa and Nigeria, and was awaiting the judgment of presidents Thabo Mbeki and Olusegun Obasanjo on what steps should be taken next.
ZANU-PF canceled talks last week, saying there was nothing to discuss as long as the opposition was challenging the March election results.
The MDC is demanding a new presidential poll under international supervision, claiming the election were rigged to ensure Mugabe's victory.
(ej-acw)
A small scale Zimbabwean farmer inspects flue cured tobacco on the Tobacco Sales Floors in Harare, May 15, 2002. The auction was stopped for the second day running by the growers, who are demanding that President Robert Mugabe's government either devalue the local dollar or pays them in U.S. dollars. REUTERS/Howard Burditt
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