LILONGWE, Oct. 30 — Heads of mission from the Southern African Development Community (SADC) accredited to Malawi on Wednesday made a joint statement calling for “unconditional and immediate removal of the illegal sanctions and other punitive measures” imposed on Zimbabwe. The SADC heads of mission, comprising ambassadors and high commissioners from Mozambique, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe, made the joint call at the Zimbabwean Embassy offices in Lilongwe, the capital of Malawi, saying the suspension of the sanctions would pave the way for the socioeconomic transformation and economic development of Zimbabwe without any hindrance. The joint statement, which was read by Tanzanian High Commissioner to Malawi Agnes Kayola, recalled Decision 24 of the 39th SADC Summit of Heads of State and Government held in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania, in August 2019 that set Oct. 25 as Anti-Zimbabwe Sanctions Day. The statement noted that the 23 years of sanctions against Zimbabwe have “immense effect,” negatively impacting all sectors of the Zimbabwean economy and its people and undermining the country’s progress towards attainment of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. “We are desirous to see the total and unconditional removal of the illegal economic sanctions imposed on the Government and People of the Republic of Zimbabwe,” read the statement. “The removal of sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe should give the country the opportunity to freely chart its national development path, participate in world trade and foster unhindered cooperation with the international community.” The joint statement further said that the removal of sanctions will restore Zimbabwe as the bread basket of the SADC region, as well as revive the country’s mining, energy, tourism, health, and industry sectors, including the participation of youth in the development of the country, adding that 67.7 percent of the country’s youth have borne the brunt of sanctions. Zimbabwean Deputy High Commissioner to Malawi Lovemore Matemera told journalists in an interview that the sanctions, which were triggered by a land reform program that Zimbabwe embarked on in 2000, have crippled the country’s banking and financial systems as Zimbabwe can no longer access international capital from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank. “We are calling on the UK, the USA and all the western and some quarters, to lift the sanctions on Zimbabwe because they are causing untold suffering among the people of Zimbabwe; it is affecting industries, the development and the economy of the country,” said Matemera.
Xinhua
