In a statement today, Osikenyi highlighted that AASU students were calling for the lifting of sanctions and other retaliatory measures that were unilaterally imposed on Zimbabwe by the West.
“The All Africa Students` Union wishes to express solidarity with Zimbabwe and call for the lifting of the 2-decade sanctions and other punitive measures imposed against Zimbabwe as we prepare to observe Anti-Sanctions Day against Zimbabwe on October 25, 2023, in Harare.
“The above call has become imperative given the protracted sanctions that have adversely impacted ‘Our Generation of Zimbabweans’, the country`s thriving economy, and indeed the entire Southern African nation in the past 20 years, as sanctions are slowing down progress, inhibiting economic recovery, and punishing the most vulnerable people in Zimbabwe,” he said.
Osikenyi stated that the sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe were impeding Zimbabwe`s economic growth.
“An attempt to perpetuate the already devastating sanctions may be tantamount to ‘an attempt to kill a snake in a precious earthen pot and inadvertently breaking the precious pot to pieces.’ Having paid keen attention to the four key reform pillars for Zimbabwe`s implementation programme, which include governance reforms, land tenure reforms, compensation of former farm owners, and the resolution of bilateral investment protection agreements, we believe that President Emmerson Mnangagwa`s administration is sufficiently committed to a sanction-free Zimbabwe,” said Osikenyi.
Osikenyi further emphasised that the AASU was calling for the United States of America (US) and its international systems to remove the sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe that had worsened the deterioration of Zimbabwe`s economy.
“We therefore wish to appeal to the United States, the European Union (EU), and other international systems to review these protracted sanctions, cognizant of the quagmire Zimbabwe`s economy has faced over the past years with periods of hyperinflation as well as severe shortages of fuel, power, and water.
“Our union shall, in concert with students and youth leadership structures in Zimbabwe and across Africa, announce activities in observance of the Anti-Sanctions Day against Zimbabwe on October 25, 2023,” he reiterated.
AASU is the largest student movement in Africa and a very dominant force on the continent and beyond. The AASU organises all students in Africa from the basic level to institutions of higher learning; in essence, the Union is the umbrella organisation for all students in Africa. Since its inception in 1972, AASU has had a presence in 54 countries in Africa.
