ACP backs Zim’s call for lifting of EU sanctions

Dr Mohamed Ibn Chambas, said he was hopeful an ami­cable solution would be sought soon to clear the issues and restore normal relations.
A joint delegation of the ACP and EU will visit Zimbabwe within the next few months as part of efforts to foster an amicable solution.
This comes as the EU and Zimbabwe have embarked on a re-engagement process for the removal of the illegal sanctions.
The impending visit would be the first major joint ACP-EU delegation to Zimbabwe in recent years.
“Remember the moment when the ACP boycotted a joint Parliamentary assembly between the ACP and the EU in Brussels because the Zimbab­wean delegation had been denied access into the meeting . . . but we are excited now about the progress wit­nessed in the last few months where some of the targeted sanctions were removed,” said Dr Chambas respond­ing to questions during a press confer­ence here yesterday.
The  visit follows hard on the heels of that by the EU officials recently . . . who held meet­ings with President Mugabe. , viewed largely as a reflec­tion of the EU softening stance on this coun­try.
Zimbabwe has been battling the illegal sanctions that have not only hurt targeted individuals but the ordi­nary people at large.
Key developmen­tal projects in health, education and other sectors have been aborted as a result.
Land redistribution and efforts to put the country’s resources in the hands of the majority have caught the ire of the West, leading to the imposi­tion of sanctions, condemned by the Africa Union, Sadc  and other bi-lat­eral and multilateral institutions.
In an interview on the sidelines of the ACP Council of Ministers meet­ing that began here on Monday, Zim­babwe’s ambassador to Belgium Ms Mary Margaret Muchada said the EU had acted unilaterally in imposing sanctions on Zimbabwe without con­sulting the ACP framework but she was confident progress would be achieved within the next few months.
“Zimbabwe is taking the EU to court so we will see what happens there . . . ,” she said.
Dr Chamba said efforts under the Joint Parliamentary Assembly, that included a meeting in Zambia last year had seen  improvements in rela­tions between Zimbabwe and the EU. He paid tribute to Zambia’s president Michael Sata for hosting the discus­sions.
“Since the establishment of the coalition government we have seen incremental improvements.
“We want to see the EU support Zimbabwe, par­ticularly in the consti­tution making process and the upcoming elections,” he said.
Other contentious issues affecting ACP relations with the West were that of Cuba and Fiji in which the lat­ter imposed sanctions in protest to politi­cal developments in the respec­tive countries.
“It is normal for the ACP to have such disagreements with the EU but these always happen against the back­ground of large and substantial pro­grammes taking place.
“All the time we negotiate with patience and persist­ence and we will continue to engage the EU.
“Cuba and the US are having a cold war between them and we have said that maybe global warming will cut the cold war,” said ACP President of the Council of Ministers Mr Alva Baptiste.
These issues are expected to be dis­cussed further during the 37th ses­sion of the ACP-EU Council of Min­isters meeting which begins here today. (please note that first there was the 95th session of the ACP council of Ministers meeting that has now ended and now the joint meeting.)
The two partners are expected to find common ground on trade mat­ters, political issues, the Joint ACP-EU Parliamentary activities in 2011 and reports on migration and devel­opment. The intra-ACP funding envelop and the Economic Develop­ment Fund will also be under review.