Human Rights Watch (Washington, DC)
22 April 2008
press release
Johannesburg — The Chinese government should immediately recall the shipment of weapons aboard the An Yue Jiang intended for Zimbabwe and currently off the coast of southern Africa, Human Rights Watch said today.
In a letter to Chinese President Hu Jintao released today, Human Rights Watch urged the Chinese government to cease all arms deliveries to Zimbabwe while the very high risk exists of such weapons being used against the civilian population.
"China prides itself on being a 'responsible power,'" said Sophie Richardson, Asia advocacy director at Human Rights Watch. "This means it has no business shipping arms to an abusive government in the middle of a brutal and violent crackdown."
The An Yue Jiang, a property of the state-owned China Ocean Shipping Company, is reportedly carrying 1,500 rocket-propelled grenades, 3,000 mortar rounds and mortar tubes, as well as 3 million rounds of AK-47 assault rifle ammunition. This shipment is believed to correspond to an order placed by the ruling Zimbabwe African National Union - Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) leadership in Zimbabwe around the time of the country's disputed elections on March 29, 2008.
The ship was docked last week in the South African port of Durban, but dockworkers refused to unload the cargo. Last Friday, South Africa's High Court barred transport of these weapons across South Africa from Durban to landlocked Zimbabwe after an Anglican archbishop argued that the government of President Robert Mugabe might use them against political opponents.
Human Rights Watch has extensively documented the deteriorating human rights situation in Zimbabwe. Recent abuses include the establishment, by members of Zimbabwe's armed forces and ZANU-PF, of torture camps that are aimed specifically at members of Zimbabwe's opposition Movement for Democratic Change and civilians who did not vote for Mugabe in the March elections. Over the past year, police and military forces in Zimbabwe have also repeatedly opened fire on unarmed demonstrators in violation of international law.
In its letter to President Hu, Human Rights Watch said that any state sending new arms and ammunition into this highly repressive environment could be complicit in Zimbabwe's human rights abuses. The planned arms shipment to Zimbabwe violates the principles of China's own regulations for the export of arms to other countries: enabling the buyer to meet legitimate self-defense needs, strengthening peace, security and stability in the region concerned, and not using military sales to interfere in the internal affairs of other states.
"China is trying to put its best face forward as it prepares to host the Beijing Olympics," Richardson said. "But arming Mugabe's Zimbabwe government has disaster plastered all over it."
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What god are you talking about and what century are you living in ayew...If you talk about the Almighty God whose Son is Jesus Christ, then your tongue ayew has slipped.
My question to you is, where have you been when reports of the Chinese ship have been carried in all news reports from Asia to Australia, even the Chinese government acknowledges the existence of the ship. What lies have the British said that you have not said yourself. Cursing is a very powerful tool that only the devil can propegate and it has no power over those who really… [Read Full Text]
My friend, it is people like you WITHOUT DISCERNMENT who make mockery of spiritual truth and the events that take place in the natural world. You read, yet you DO NOT analyse because you are without discernment. Please read my post again and you may see your error in hastily speaking. And since you believe in the living God whose son is Yeshua, you may want to revisit the scriptures to note the He has the power to bless and curse. Sometimes, he even commissioned PROPHETS to declare his judgments (curses) on unjust nations. Not that the prophet "cursed" the… [Read Full Text]
Allew, so why is God white? You seem to be the guru of the bible - why is God,Jesus and the angles all portraid as white in the good book?
Allen, spare us the western hypocricy and cheer nonsense. God is neither white or black or Asian that's why he is God. That kind of attitude is the reason many of us have never trusted white westerners. You love to be the spokesperson of the world. Africa should not lose it's own agenda and priorities. Right now the priority is Sudan, Somalia, DRC, Stability of Kenya and the resolution of Zimbabwean elections. The African Agenda always falls prey to western interests. Africans must fight back to make sure that African agenda is not being hijacked by the USA or UK… [Read Full Text]
It would seem that your ignorance is getting the better of you. Anyone who has read the Bible KNOWS that nowhere is Yeshua portrayed as white. Yeshua's portrayal as white is something we see in Europe's films and paintings.
God white, God black…hmmm. What I am sure of is there are no European angels and no European Universal God. Only Lucifer has his reign in Europe that is why they have been blood suckers for hundreds of years. European culture is all pagan culture, from dressing, marriages, clubbing, tabloids, armies, colonialism, capitalism, including their churches activities. You want to associate the bible with Europe yet it’s not from Europe. Europe is a land of those pigs that received the evil spirit in the bible. The Moslem world believes they go to heaven when they die killing infidels from the… [Read Full Text]
In Zimbabwe it is not Europe telling Mugabe to go,but it is the Zimbabwean majority and their voices have been heard loud and clear. It is the same Zimbabwean cry for MAJORITY RULE that rang in the days of Ian Smith.
Oh Britian, may the living God expose the lies that you tell via the media and these NGOs whose prerogative it is to tow the line in your culture of talking heads riddled with lies, unfounded rumours and gossip. In this generation, if you think for a second that Africa's spiritual leaders will allow the people to be fooled by your antics, your government has another thing coming. We will pray for and protect our young people from becoming pawns and slaves in your economic system.
How can you report about an alleged ZANU-PF order placed for an arms shipment… [Read Full Text]