South Africa Blocks UN From Sending Envoy
SW Radio Africa (London)
ANALYSIS
30 April 2008
Posted to the web 30 April 2008
Tichaona Sibanda
South Africa once again showed on Tuesday that it was in bed with the
regime
in Harare, when it blocked attempts by the United Nations Security Council
to send an envoy to investigate atrocities against MDC supporters.
President Thabo Mbeki has come under attack at home and abroad for his
softly softly approach to Zimbabwe, when the regime is butchering unarmed
civilians as punishment for voting for the MDC in last month's elections.
Other nations who spoke up against any Security Council discussion and
action on Zimbabwe were China, Russia, Libya and Vietnam. Burkina Faso
said
that Africa should take the lead and the Southern African Development
Community should be given the opportunity to mediate in the crisis.
MDC secretary general Tendai Biti was in New York at the UN where he
briefed
the council on the post-poll crisis. He had called for a 'strong and
decisive' resolution from the 15-member Security Council against the
Mugabe
regime, as well as for the dispatch of a UN envoy or fact-finding
mission to
Zimbabwe. 'The meeting was frustrating,' Biti said, in reference to South
Africa's position to block the Security Council from taking any action
against the regime.
The MDC MP for Harare East has openly accused Mbeki of sympathising with
Mugabe. MDC spokesman Nelson Chamisa called the Security Council's failure
to take action against the regime a 'tragedy'. Last week the MDC called on
Mbeki to step down as the SADC mediator.
At the UN meeting Tuesday, Western countries pressed for a UN mission or
envoy to visit Zimbabwe, where the results of the disputed presidential
election four weeks ago have still not been released.
The MDC won the parliamentary majority in the elections and says its
leader
Morgan Tsvangirai won the March 29 vote outright. The party accuses Mugabe
of delaying results to rig victory and says a prolonged crisis will lead
to
further and widespread bloodshed.
Reports from New York indicated that European countries, Latin America and
the United States supported sending a verification team, but South Africa,
which currently holds the council presidency, said such a move was not a
matter for the council.
France's UN Ambassador Jean-Maurice Ripert, told reporters the fact the
Security Council had met to discuss the crisis sent a signal to the regime
that 'we are looking very carefully at what they are doing'.
The UN under-secretary general for Political Affairs, Lynn Pascoe, had
told
the closed meeting that Zimbabwe was in the midst of its worst
humanitarian
crisis since independence from Britain in 1980.
Countries including the United States and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon
have said it was clear Tsvangirai won the election.
Political analyst Bekithemba Mhlanga described the stance taken by the
South
Africans at the UN as demoralising and depressing to all Zimbabweans. He
said what would be helpful is for South Africa to make their position
clear
as to why they are taking that position.
'All along they were saying it's a problem that needs to be sorted out by
Zimbabweans and yet people in Zimbabwe did just that on the 29th March
when
they voted the MDC into power to change the country's fortunes,' Mhlanga
said. People are now beginning to seriously question the moral compass of
the South Africans.
'At his inaugural speech when he took over the South African presidency
Mbeki said he was proud to be an African walking the streets of Mbare
(Zimbabwe) and Guinea Conakry. What people should ask him now is does he
still feel proud to be an African seeing all the atrocities in Zimbabwe?
asked Mhlanga.
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