‘Sanctions must be removed unconditionally’

Joseph Madzimure, Zimpapers Politics Hub

Children of Veterans of the Liberation Struggle Apex Council have called for the total removal of illegal economic sanctions which were imposed on Zimbabwe by Western countries and continue to impede the country’s growth potential.

The Anti-Sanction Day will be commemorated on October 25, amid widespread calls for the unconditional removal of the unilateral sanctions that were imposed on Zimbabwe by the United States and her allies as punishment for the land reform programme which redressed colonial land inequities over two decades ago.

Addressing the media at the launch of the Apex Council in Harare yesterday, the association’s vice chairman Cde Garikai Msika said they stand solidly behind the SADC Anti-Sanction Day.

“We stand solidly behind the Zimbabwe anti-sanctions campaign. The sanctions are illegal and anyone with common sense should call for the unconditional removal of these sanctions,” he said.

Cde Msika, who is the son to the late Vice President Joseph Msika, said the struggle for total emancipation is not yet over.

“We are the defenders of the struggle and it is now our duty and our turn to defend the present day struggle. We are here to announce to the nation and the world at large that as children of the liberation struggle, we stand firmly behind the ruling party Zanu PF and our Government,” said Cde Msika.

In 2019, SADC adopted the Anti-Sanctions Day, adding their voice to that of Zimbabweans who are united in their calls for the unconditional removal of sanctions.

Some of the children of Veterans of the Liberation Struggle Apex Council interim executive members include the late nationalist Cde Kumbirai Kangai’s son, Tinaye, former Army Commander General Vitalis Zvinavashe’s son, Tapera, Lotshe Yuri Rodgers Mangena, son to one of the pioneers of the armed struggle the late, Rodgers Alfred Nikita Mangena, Nikita Mangena, Edwin Katsande, Pardon Mangwende, Aspire Mutingwende, among others.

Since the imposition of the illegal sanctions over 20 years ago, Zimbabwe’s economy has lost over US$40 billion in potential revenue and development assistance from multilateral lending institutions.

The actual cost of the socio-economic devastation and infrastructural decomposition that was directly and indirectly caused by the illegal sanctions imposed against Zimbabwe by some Western countries at the turn of the millennium is yet to be quantified.

For over two decades, Zimbabwe has suffered under crippling sanctions, primarily imposed by the United States through the Zimbabwe Democracy and Economic Recovery Act (ZIDERA) and supported by the European Union.

These sanctions, initially implemented under the guise of promoting democratic reforms and punishing alleged human rights abuses have, instead, stalled Zimbabwe’s economic and social development.

While the sanctions are often portrayed as “targeted” measures aimed at select individuals and entities, the reality is that their effects have rippled across Zimbabwe’s entire economy, punishing ordinary citizens more than those in power.