Welcome to the House of Stone, Madame Tremont!

Growing up in the oppressively hot climes of the semi-arid Buhera, Manicaland province, we learnt to be at peace with nature.

But more than that, we learnt to respect nature and the creatures that live in it, both big and small.

Essentially, the golden rule of life in the village was to live and let live.

So, the village was a heavenly arena, where all creatures — from the creepy-crawlies to the fearsome beasts — all lived in peace.

There were, and still are, occasions where the different worlds collided in unpleasant episodes that sometimes resulted in fatalities.

In Bishop Lazi’s village, the most dreaded creatures from the other world were snakes, which naturally thrived in the area. It was nearly impossible to go for a day or two without encountering these slithering reptiles.

Nevertheless, we lived in uneasy peace, as a bite from venomous species such as the puff adder was almost always fatal.

But the most valuable lesson you learnt was that, although dreaded, snakes were not aggressors; they would only strike in instances they felt rattled or cornered, but only after having warned the target by hissing and spitting venom.

Were it not the case, Bishop Lazi would have died a long time ago.

Likewise, we, too, would not kill snakes whenever we encountered them, like urban folks do, but only when they strayed into homes or chicken coops, in which case they became legitimate targets as they posed danger to lives and livelihoods.

You see, people, like animals, or any other specie for that matter, are territorial and would naturally ferociously defend their turf when threatened.

So, respecting territories and boundaries is integral in achieving the delicate balance and equilibrium needed to guarantee and maintain order in life and the world.

This is why the territory of big, venomous snakes is usually characterised by thickets, of the kind that make the hair stand on end or gives the heebie-jeebies, simply because no one or no animal dares to forage in these areas.

As a people, we have respected and lived in harmony with nature for millennia because we acknowledge that it gives us sustenance and shapes who we are.

It is nature that shaped our people’s humility, civility, hospitality, as well as normative values, culture and character.

This is who we are!

The Bible, in Numbers 35:33-34, says: “‘Do not pollute the land where you are. Bloodshed pollutes the land, and atonement cannot be made for the land on which blood has been shed, except by the blood of the one who shed it. Do not defile the land where you live and where I dwell, for I, the Lord, dwell among the Israelites.’”

Suing for peace

Bishop Lazi always tells all those who care to listen that we are people of consequence. Our forebears — both men and women — ferociously fought colonial forces that encroached on our territory but were put under temporary subjugation by the sheer egregious force of the greedy occupiers.

However, the irrepressible spirit of our people culminated in a 14-year war that, against all the odds, ushered in the independence and freedom that we enjoy today.

But even after independence, at the turn of the millennium, we also took the bold decision to repossess our land from colonial occupiers, an exercise that resulted in the frosty relationship between Zimbabwe and the West.

This, in essence, indicates that successive generations in this land of Mutapa, the House of Stone, have the fire in their bellies to ferociously defend their turf.

The year 2017 was the beginning of a new epoch for Zimbabwe.

The seismic political transition that took place, which marked the advent of the Second Republic, resulted in a concomitant strategic shift in Zimbabwe’s foreign policy.

After close to 17 years of frosty relations with London (Britain), Washington (America) and Brussels (European Union) after the consequential Land Reform Programme, Harare perspicaciously decided it was time to beat its swords into ploughshares and spears into pruning hooks.

It sued for peace by coming up with a proposition to restore relations with countries that had disengaged from Zimbabwe and opening new frontiers in a fast-evolving world.

This was an effort to restore the balance and equilibrium in relations and world order for mutual benefit. And the British, with whom we had the principal bilateral dispute that escalated into an international brawl that drew in the mighty United States, have since seen the efficacy of such a proposition.

Trade between the UK and Zimbabwe is now unsurprisingly growing.

Last year, trade volumes between the two countries rose by an impressive 76 percent from a year earlier to £539 million.

Of the £539 million, Zimbabwe’s exports to the UK were £275 million, while imports amounted to £264 million.

There are also signs of good things to come.

On Monday last week, the British International Investment (BII) — a development finance institution — instructively announced a US$10 million loan to NMB Bank Zimbabwe to support agricultural exporters and sustainable farming practices in the country.

Critically, this represented the first financial services debt financing from BII in Zimbabwe.

Perhaps President ED’s major success on this front has been opening new frontiers in the Middle East, particularly in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Last year alone, trade between the two countries jumped to a staggering US$3 billion, up from US$2 billion in 2022, with Zimbabwe accounting for US$2,7 billion.

This represents a huge leap, considering that we were exporting goods worth US$537 million in 2017. The country’s overall exports in 2023 thus stood at US$7,6 billion, against a set target of US$7,2 billion.

Success in the UAE is also encouragingly opening up new possibilities for lucrative markets in cash-rich countries such as Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman and Saudi Arabia, where Zimbabwe is already spreading its tentacles.

Cooperation or belligerence

So, the new US envoy, Madame Pamela Tremont, finds herself in Zimbabwe at a material time when the country, buoyed by renewed self-determination and an indomitable spirit to succeed, has outstretched its arms to embrace the world, realising that there is more to be derived from cooperation than belligerence.

The world is big enough for all of us.

There will be obvious difficulties for Madame Tremont as she tries to align the US and Zimbabwe’s foreign policies, not least because the primary motivation of Washington’s strategy towards Sub-Saharan Africa is to “counter harmful activities by the People’s Republic of China, Russia, and other actors”.

The Joe Biden administration said as much in its 2022 strategy for the region.

“The United States has an abiding interest in ensuring the region remains open and accessible to all and that governments and publics are able to make their own political choices, consistent with international obligations,” reads the strategy document.

“Open societies are generally more inclined to work in common cause with the United States, attract greater US trade and investment, pursue policies to improve conditions for their citizens, and counter harmful activities by the People’s Republic of China, Russia, and other actors.”

And, as a nominee for the US Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Madame Tremont told the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee as much on March 1, 2023.

“If confirmed, I will actively work to support the democratic aspirations of those advocating for Zimbabwean’s constitutional rights, and I will seek partnership with all those in Zimbabwe who are doing the same,” she said.

“If confirmed, I will work with this committee to promote economic reform, rule of law, transparency and women’s empowerment to unleash Zimbabwe’s economic recovery and offer opportunities for US.”

Unlike the US envoy in Kenya Meg Whitman, who has worked in the private sector as CEO of organisations such as eBay, Hewlett-Packard and, therefore, likely prioritises commercial diplomacy, Tremont’s instincts are obviously different, especially for someone who has been a career foreign service officer for more than three decades.

It was also interesting watching her first press conference last week.

History has now tasked her to substantially deepen relations between Harare and Washington, a task that should now be ordinarily easy considering the former’s disposition.

Existing extraterritorial and illegal US sanctions on Zimbabwe, however, present an obstacle. But it is important for the world to know this: As a people, we sue for peace not because we are weak (rather, our history shows otherwise), but because it is the right thing to do. Living together in harmony is mutually beneficial and guarantees the natural balance and equilibrium in the world.

So, Madame Tremont, enjoy your stay in this sacred land.

You will find it spiritually nourishing and enriching, and its people soft and hospitable, but principled and firm.

Bishop out!