admin
Daniel Chigunwe
Herald Correspondent
A Zimbabwean delegation from the Ministry of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs has engaged UN Special Rapporteur, Professor Alena Douhan, over the need to deepen engagements for the unconditional removal of the illegal sanctions imposed on the country by the West.
The delegation, led by Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Deputy Minister Advocate Nobert Mazungunye, is attending the 57th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, Switzerland.
The ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Mrs Vimbai Nyemba and other Government officials are also part of the delegation.
The 57th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council is discussing human rights issues affecting different countries are under discussion.
Advocate Mazungunye said they had a fruitful engagement with Prof Douhan, who visited Zimbabwe in 2021 to assess the impact of the sanctions.
“We are here in Geneva for the 57th session of the UN Human Rights Council where the discussion is centred around issues negatively affecting the full enjoyment of human rights,” he said.
“For Zimbabwe, the issue of sanctions remains the biggest impediment. Therefore, we had a chance to engage with Prof Douhan and discussed the negative impact sanctions are having on the enjoyment of human rights in Zimbabwe as envisaged by the sustainable development goals.”
During the discussion, Prof Douhan noted that the sanctions are not targeting some Government officials, but are affecting ordinary people.
Prof Douhan said the unilateral sanctions have exacerbated social and economic challenges, with devastating consequences for Zimbabweans, mainly the poor, women, children, the elderly, people with disabilities and other vulnerable groups.
“This situation undermines the right to development of the Zimbabwean people and impedes the achievement of sustainable development goals,” she said.
Since August 2019 when SADC countries declared October 25 as Anti-Sanctions Day, calls for the unconditional removal of the sanctions are growing louder.
Online Reporter