Online Reporter
Richard Muponde
Zimpapers Politics Hub
ZIMBABWE is preparing to commemorate the Southern African Development Community Anti-Sanctions Day on October 25, a day that has grown into a continental and global symbol of solidarity against unilateral coercive measures.
Declared by SADC and later endorsed by the African Union, the day serves as a rallying cry for the United States and its allies to lift the sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe.
This year’s commemorations acquire greater urgency because, despite the repealing of earlier executive orders by former US President Joe Biden and hints by Donald Trump of revisiting the notorious Zimbabwe Democracy and Economic Recovery Act (ZIDERA), the country’s leadership remains under the harsher framework of the Global Magnitsky Act of 2016.
The US has targeted President Mnangagwa, First Lady Dr Auxillia Mnangagwa, senior Government officials, and business leaders under this Act, citing allegations of corruption, election rigging and human rights abuses.
However, this narrative conceals the real motive: the ire of Western powers after their preferred candidate, former Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) Mr Nelson Chamisa, was decisively defeated by President Mnangagwa and Zanu PF in the 2023 harmonised elections.
The Global Magnitsky Act, which authorises Washington to freeze assets and restrict travel, is thus more than punitive—it is political punishment for the Zimbabwean people’s democratic choice.
As the President himself recently stated, “Sanctions are a blunt and illegal instrument of coercion imposed to make us abandon our independence, our sovereignty, and our right to chart our own destiny. They have failed, and they will always fail.”
His words underscore the deep frustration that a nation of 16 million continues to suffer collateral damage from measures supposedly “targeted” at individuals.
In reality, studies and international reports confirm what ordinary Zimbabweans know: sanctions affect everyone.
A 2021 report by the UN Special Rapporteur, Ms Alena Douhan, noted that the restrictions had “exacerbated pre-existing social and economic challenges with devastating consequences for the people of Zimbabwe, especially those living in poverty, women, children, elderly, people with disabilities as well as marginalised and other vulnerable groups.”
Similarly, a 2022 report by the Institute for Security Studies in Africa concluded that foreign investors avoid Zimbabwe due to the “high-risk premium” created by sanctions, while international banks, fearing US penalties, cut ties with Zimbabwean financial institutions.
The contradiction in the US position is glaring. Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo claimed that the move to the Magnitsky framework was meant to show that sanctions “are not intended to target the people of Zimbabwe.”
Yet when the head of state and his closest associates are barred from global economic engagement, the entire country is penalised.
A President, as the Chief Executive Officer of a nation, is expected to woo foreign direct investment (FDI), negotiate trade deals, and represent his people on the world stage.
When President Mnangagwa cannot freely travel to the US, the UK, or the EU, Zimbabwe is deprived of opportunities that other countries take for granted. Sanctioning the President is not simply sanctioning an individual; it is sanctioning the entire country.
Historical parallels demonstrate the devastating effects when national leaders are sanctioned. The US embargo on Cuba’s Fidel Castro isolated the island from Western capital for decades, while the blacklisting of Venezuelan leaders, including President Nicolás Maduro, triggered economic freefall. These examples show that Zimbabwe’s situation is part of a broader pattern where sanctions are used as tools of regime change, regardless of the human suffering they cause.
This year’s Anti-Sanctions Day should therefore be more than just a day of remembrance. It must be a moment for Zimbabweans to unequivocally demand the unconditional lifting of sanctions on President Mnangagwa, the First Lady, government leaders, businesses and entrepreneurs.
Every Zimbabwean should see the direct link between these sanctions and the daily challenges they face, from constrained job creation and limited social services to inflationary pressures caused by reduced investment and financial isolation.
SADC and the AU must also intensify their role beyond symbolic solidarity. They must use diplomatic platforms to pressure the US and its allies to reconsider these measures.
The late Tanzanian President John Pombe Magufuli was clear at the 2019 Dar es Salaam Summit when he said, “Sanctions against Zimbabwe are sanctions against all of us in SADC. An attack on Zimbabwe is an attack on our sovereignty as Africans. We must speak with one voice until they are removed.”
His words should inspire regional leaders to escalate advocacy. South Africa, in particular, holds a strategic lever as the current president of the G20.
Tshwane has the moral and political responsibility to raise Zimbabwe’s plight in this global forum, insisting that sanctions are incompatible with the G20’s commitment to inclusive growth.
At the same time, Zimbabwe cannot afford to be paralysed by sanctions. The “Look East” policy becomes critical not just as a slogan but as a comprehensive economic strategy. South-South cooperation with China, Russia, India, and other members of BRICS and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) offers viable alternatives.
Chinese investment in infrastructure and Russian interest in mining demonstrate the potential of aligning with partners who do not condition cooperation on internal political arrangements. This diversification of alliances could soften the blows of sanctions while sending a strong signal that Zimbabwe is not without options.
As Zimbabweans prepare to mark October 25, they must remember that the fight against sanctions is about refusing to accept that foreign powers can punish a people for exercising their democratic choice at the ballot box.
President Mnangagwa has been consistent: “Sanctions are a crime against humanity, and those who impose them must know that Zimbabwe will never surrender its sovereignty. We will continue to stand firm, and we call upon all peace-loving nations to join us in demanding their immediate and unconditional removal.”
Zimbabweans must echo this call loudly and clearly, demanding that their leaders and businesses be freed from the choke-hold of the Global Magnitsky Act.
