Lies and half-truths: From Iraq to Zim

Nicole Hondo Correspondent

Zimbabwe can never be another Iraq, Tunisia or Egypt. Those willing to sacrifice the country’s peace and the well-being of its citizens for a few pieces of silver should be condemned in the strongest terms.

At about the same time that misguided Zimbabweans were heeding falsehoods communicated via WhatsApp and other social media platforms on Wednesday, July 6 2016, inciting them to stay away from work and engage in acts of sabotage against a legitimately elected Government, Britons were apprised of the findings of the Chilcot Report, also referred to as the Iraq Inquiry, on the invasion of Iraq by Britain between 2001 and 2009.

According to the CNN, the Chilcot Report delivered a devastating indictment of Britain’s decision to invade Iraq, finding that the war was based on flawed intelligence and had been launched before diplomatic options were exhausted. The inquiry was commissioned in June 2009 by former British prime minister Blair’s successor, Gordon Brown, following pressure from the public and Parliament.

The inquiry into the invasion noted that the late deposed Iraq leader, Saddam Hussein, posed “no imminent threat” when the US-led invasion was launched in March 2003, and that while military action against him “might have been necessary at some point”, the “strategy of containment” could have continued for some time. Tony Blair was reportedly warned of the risks of regional instability and the rise of terrorism before the invasion of Iraq, but he pressed on regardless.

Saddam Hussein was toppled and later executed. But the weapons of mass destruction threat was found to have been overblown and the promise to turn a dictatorship into a democracy was never delivered on. Instead, the country descended into years of vicious sectarian conflict, with large areas seized by the terror group ISIS.

While some might see these events in Iraq and Zimbabwe as unrelated, the situations are eerily similar. The invasion of Iraq and subsequent plunder of its resources was not orchestrated in one day, but over a long period of time. There was a well calculated build-up intended to first whip up emotions against the vilified Saddam Hussein. Under Hussein, Kurds in Iraq were reportedly subjected to violence and torture, and in 2006, Hussein was charged with genocide relating to the Anfal campaign of the late 1980s.

In Zimbabwe, gradually, almost unnoticeably, over the past year or so, President Mugabe has steadily and persistently been vilified in that section of the media aptly referred to as the lunatic fringe. He has been blamed and accused of all sorts of evil, including Gukurahundi, without plausible evidence being put forward to support the accusations. Conveniently for the regime change proponents, Itai Dzamara “disappeared” within this period. The tempo was increased with deliberate provocation of law enforcement agents so as to get basis for allegations of brutality and human rights abuse.

As was done in Iraq, Zimbabwe is being presented in the regional and international media as being under siege and engulfed in civil unrest that should warrant regional and international intervention. Only this week, blatantly false messages were being circulated on WhatsApp claiming that a Choppies supermarket had been burnt down during protests in Chitungwiza and that a train had also been razed in Bulawayo. These reports have since been exposed as shameless lies intended to incite citizens to engage in unruly and unlawful behaviour.

And true to script, no sooner had rogue elements taken to the streets against Government and attempted to cause mayhem than was the MDC-T calling for SADC’s intervention, claiming that the situation was now untenable in the country. This is despite the fact that the few genuine concerns raised by citizens are, and have since, been addressed by Government.

Those hoping to unseat President Mugabe and ZANU-PF using unconstitutional means are hoping to achieve what was achieved in Iraq and during the Arab Spring, which would undermine peace and national stability.

Zimbabweans should remember that precedence has been set, and in all the countries where uprisings were instigated, encouraged and supported by hostile local and foreign elements, chaos and misery have followed in the wake. The Chilcot Report noted that more than 250 000 people have died violent deaths since the 2003 invasion, according to the Iraq Body Count project, while millions of Iraqis have been made homeless in the conflict with ISIS.

Zimbabwe can never be another Iraq, Tunisia or Egypt. Those willing to sacrifice the country’s peace and the well-being of its citizens for a few pieces of silver should be condemned in the strongest terms.

What use would a Zimbabwe with destroyed infrastructure, civil war and instability be to future generations? The long arm of the law will and has already started to catch up with the rogue elements that sought to hijack genuine grievances by sections of society and attempted to use them for their own selfish ends.

What Zimbabwe needs right now is for its citizens to unite, remain peaceful and come up with sober and peaceful ways to put across their concerns. President Mugabe has demonstrated time and again that he is concerned about, listens and addresses people’s concerns. Why should the situation be any different now?