Staff Reporter
The United Nations special envoy, Dr Alena Douhan, who is currently in Zimbabwe to assess the impact of targeted sanctions imposed on the country, held her first meeting in Harare yesterday with President Emmerson Mnangagwa, amid an appeal by the Government for the scrapping of the restrictive measures.
In a tweet, President Emmerson Mnangagwa said, “It was a pleasure to welcome Alena Douhan, Special Rapporteur for Human Rights, to Zimbabwe. Her 10-day trip aims to assess the impact of punitive economic sanctions on ordinary Zimbabweans. These sanctions are illegal and hurt the most vulnerable in our society.”
Dr Douhan, later held a meeting with the Minister of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs, Honourable Ziyambi Ziyambi.
After the meeting, Minister Ziyambi addressed the media stating that Douhan will meet everyone who matters on the issue of sanctions, through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“She is going to meet everyone who matters so she is not meeting the government alone. Even our (government position) paper is not about the effects (of sanctions) on government, but everyone. So, if she requests to meet anyone, I think that can be facilitated through (the) Foreign Affairs (Ministry).”
“We met the special rapporteur as Ministry of Justice to give an overview of the effects of sanctions, but I am afraid that now we are unable to give details, or deliberations as you are aware they are on a fact-finding mission to establish the extent of the effects of sanctions on the ordinary people,” added Minister Ziyambi.
“So, we deliberated, and I am sure you are all aware that as a country we are on a drive to make sure the sanctions are removed, and we have presented to them what we have done be it in terms of our legislation and other measures to ensure that the effects of sanctions on ordinary citizens are lessened,” he said.
Dr Douhan, a U.N. Special Rapporteur on Negative Impact of Unilateral Coercive Measures on Human Rights and Professor of International Law, is also expected to hold a series of meetings with leaders of opposition parties, churches and non-governmental organizations and other stakeholders.
Her visit ends on October 28 and she will present a public report on her visit to Zimbabwe to the UN Human Rights Council during the 51st session in September 2022.
Next Monday, Zimbabwe will commemorate the third SADC Anti-Sanctions Day, where the region holds activities in solidarity with the country for the unconditional removal of the illegal sanctions. The United States, Britain and other nations imposed sanctions against Zimbabwe following the land reform programme, and ordinary Zimbabweans have largely been affected by these restrictions.
The Zimbabwe sanctions program implemented by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) began on March 7, 2003, when the then President George Bush issued an Executive Order imposing sanctions against Zimbabwe. Former presidents Barack Obama and Donald Trump also maintained the sanctions regime.
