By Abayomi Azikiwe
For nearly a quarter-century, the people of Zimbabwe have been subjected to draconian sanctions enacted by the leading imperialist states.
These punitive policies began as a response to the passage of legislation in 2000 which reallocated large swaths of agricultural land to the indigenous Africans who were colonized by Britain starting in the late 19th century.
Formerly known as Southern Rhodesia, the people gained their national independence in April 1980 under the leadership of the Zimbabwe African National Union, Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) and the Zimbabwe African People’s Union (ZAPU, PF) after the years-long armed struggle against the settler-colonial regime of Ian Smith. The two liberation movements turned into political parties and merged during the late 1980s.
At the time of independence, the former British colonial power and the United States made pledges to fund a land reform program to meet the basic demands of the liberation struggle. However, two decades later, the redistribution of the land stolen by the colonialists in the 1890s still had not been realized by the people.
When the land reform bill was passed in 2000, millions of Africans moved onto white-controlled farms reclaiming what was rightfully owned by the people. These actions by the ZANU-PF government under former President Robert Mugabe prompted outrage among the displaced white settler farmers and their allies in the United Kingdom, the EU and the U.S.
The Struggle Against Sanctions Continue
October 25 has been designated as “Anti-Sanctions Day” throughout the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region and the entire African Union (AU) bloc. Every year there are renewed calls for the halting of what is in essence economic warfare against Zimbabwe.
The economic problems which have existed for years in Zimbabwe stem from the western sanctions. Various opposition groups to the ruling ZANU-PF party over the years have been financed and given diplomatic cover by the imperialist states and their domestic allies.
Nonetheless, the 16 nations member-states of SADC have remained firm in their calls for the lifting of these sanctions. Moreover, the 55 member-states of the AU also support the position of SADC noting that the ongoing economic injustices leveled against Zimbabwe has proven to be a detriment to the entire subcontinent and beyond.
The sanctions against Zimbabwe have been maintained throughout successive U.S., British and EU administrations. In the U.S., both the Democratic and Republican parties have refused to lift these economic measures despite the willingness of the Zimbabwe government to negotiate with these politicians.
A statement issued by the AU on October 25 emphasized that:
“The Chairperson of the African Union Commission Moussa Faki Mahamat renews the African Union call for the immediate and unconditional lifting of all remaining sanctions imposed against the Republic of Zimbabwe, and in support of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) commemoration of SADC Anti-Sanctions Day. The Chairperson acknowledges the engagement with the European Union through political dialogue. In this regard, he encourages all parties to continue constructive dialogue with a view to remove the remaining sanctions against institutions and individuals of the Republic of Zimbabwe. The Chairperson remains concerned by the negative impact of continued sanctions against the Republic of Zimbabwe to the country’s socio-economic development and recovery efforts. The Chairperson reaffirms the full support of the African Union to the Southern African Development Community’s (SADC) efforts in this regard and aligns fully with the position of SADC on the issue.”
At present President Mnangagwa is chairing the SADC regional grouping. On the recent October 25 Anti-Sanctions Day, the president brought further attention to the role of the imperialists in crippling the economic development of the people of Zimbabwe.
Just earlier this year, in March, the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden extended the existing sanctions citing numerous individuals. The expanded sanctions program impacts the ability of officials to hold assets and travel on an unofficial capacity to the U.S.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken made numerous unsubstantiated claims related to the domestic policies of the Zimbabwe government. The administration in Washington accused the ZANU-PF of human rights violations against those operating within the western-backed opposition organizations.
In addition to President Mnangagwa, the Biden administration has introduced new sanctions against 10 other people along with three businesses. The expanded list of those being targeted include First Lady Auxillia Mnangagwa, Vice President Constantino Chiwenga and Defense Minister Oppah Muchinguri. There are others added to the list which encompasses senior security officials, personnel from the Zimbabwe’s national police and the Central Intelligence Organization (CIO). The businesspeople cited were accused by the State Department of being involved in corruption in the service of the government in Harare.
A report on this year’s Anti-Sanctions Day published by Positive Eye News says:
“Addressing the impact of these measures, President Mnangagwa appealed for the message of solidarity to transcend borders and resonate with those enforcing the sanctions. ‘They must realize the extent of harm their actions impose on Zimbabwe’s people, the SADC region, and Africa at large,’ he stated. The call for the lifting of sanctions traces back to the 39th SADC Summit of Heads of State and Government in 2019, where October 25 was designated as SADC Anti-Sanctions Day. This decision added renewed strength to the region’s collective resolve against these sanctions, which are widely viewed as violations of Zimbabweans’ basic human rights. Since then, the African Union (AU) and the United Nations (UN) have echoed this call, joined by international allies like China and Russia.”
Although the imperialists have continued to sanction Zimbabwe for many years, other governments which have a well-documented record of human rights violations such as the settler-colonial state of israel, have not faced any punishment for its decades of the denial of the right to self-determination and independence for the people of Palestine. Neighboring Republic of South Africa has taken Tel Aviv to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and won rulings which confirm the legitimacy of the legal arguments charging the settler-colonial regime with genocide.
While the zionist state has not been held to account by the imperialists for its actions, billions of dollars are being poured into the apartheid regime to continue its genocidal program directed at the Palestinian people. Tel Aviv has now extended its war once again into Lebanon where leaders of the resistance movement and civilians are being killed on a daily basis. Targeted assassinations of government officials from Iran, Iraq along with the bombing of Yemen and Syria are justified by Washington, London and Brussels under the guise of fighting terrorism.
Communist Party of Cuba Reiterates Solidarity with Zimbabwe
Another state which has been victimized for more than six decades by a U.S. embargo, the Republic of Cuba, has continued its support for Zimbabwe and other states within the SADC region. Every year at the United Nations General Assembly the overwhelming majority of governments pass resolutions demanding the lifting of the embargo against Cuba.
However, these resolutions are routinely ignored as Washington maintains its attempts to strangle the people of Cuba. The recent problems in Cuba with the electrical grid are a direct result of the measures carried out by the U.S. government.
Cuba has expressed its solidarity with Africa for many years. From 1975 to 1989, the socialist government deployed hundreds of thousands of international volunteers who fought against the racist apartheid regime’s military forces in Angola resulting in the unity of this state as well as the liberation of the Republic of Namibia and the overthrow of apartheid in South Africa.
An article published by Prensa Latina on October 25 emphasized in regard to the sanctions against Zimbabwe that:
“The head of the International Relations Department of the Communist Party of Cuba, Emilio Lozada, reaffirmed today the condemnation of the unilateral sanctions imposed against Zimbabwe. Through social media, the party official expressed his support to the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Day against Sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe by the United States and the European Union. ‘We reiterate our support to the Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) and to that brotherly people in the face of these unilateral coercive measures that hinder their legitimate right to development,’ Lozada stressed in his message.”
The imperialist policies towards Zimbabwe and Cuba illustrate clearly that any state which seeks to pursue an independent existence based upon its own social and economic interests will be singled out for isolation and attempted destruction by Washington and its European allies. Sanctions leveled by the West against developing, independent and socialist states are indeed acts of war.
Therefore, those within the Global North who are fighting for peace and stability throughout the world must oppose arbitrary embargoes and sanctions by imperialism. Every state has an equal right to self-determination, genuine independence and sovereignty.
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