SW Radio Africa (London)
24 April 2008
Archbishop Desmond Tutu, the Archbishops of Canterbury and York and the Anglican Primate of Southern Africa have all added their voices to the call for an arms embargo on Zimbabwe.
On Thursday Archbishop Tutu said: 'Zimbabwe is staring into the abyss. Violence is growing and the people are suffering greatly as a result. It is now vital that we all do what we can to calm the situation. In particular I join the worldwide calls to stop the supply of weapons to the country--by land, sea or air--until the political crisis is resolved. If violence flares further in Zimbabwe, those supplying the weapons will be left with blood on their hands. It is up to every country in the region and beyond to take a stand.'
Also on Thursday the Archbishops of Canterbury and York issued a joint statement which called for greater efforts on behalf of the people of Zimbabwe. They also committed themselves to an international day of pray for Zimbabwe this Sunday.
In their statement, Dr. Rowan Williams and Dr. John Sentamu warned that without action "continuing political violence and drift could unleash spiralling communal violence, as has been seen elsewhere in the Continent where early warning systems or the international community failed to act in time."
Commenting on the continued delays of the announcement of results for the parliamentary and presidential elections the Archbishops said: "The current climate of political intimidation, violence, vote rigging and delay has left the presidential election process without credibility. Now the people of Zimbabwe are left even more vulnerable to conflict heaped upon poverty and the threat of national disintegration."
The Archbishops also called for renewed efforts by the Government of South Africa, the United Nations and SADC to intervene in the crisis in Zimbabwe and also called for a world wide embargo on weapons sales to Zimbabwe.
On Wednesday the Anglican Primate of Southern Africa had called for a UN arms embargo. Archbishop Thabo Makgoba said a heavily armed Zimbabwe would threaten peace, security and stability in the region.
He said that the plight of the people of Zimbabwe is heart-breaking, adding that they are; 'Already bruised, broken and crushed by oppression and economic hardship before the elections, they are now even more divided, despondent and, in many cases, hopeless than they were before.'
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