Maputo — Britain "wants to give Zimbabwe's inclusive government a chance of success", the British Minister for Africa, Mark Malloch-Brown, told a Maputo press conference on Tuesday - but he made clear that British development aid is dependent on improvements in the human rights situation and the restoration of the rule of law in Zimbabwe.
"We are engaged, but it is a cautious engagement", he said. "We're not yet convinced that (President Robert) Mugabe and those around him are committed to a democratic transition".
He pointed out that Britain remains the second largest bilateral aid donor to Zimbabwe - this is mainly humanitarian aid, to cope with the disastrous food security and health situation.
Malloch-Brown stressed that Britain wanted to see an end to political violence and to farm seizures, and advances in constitutional reforms and in preparation of fresh elections. "We want to continue providing aid - but on condition that the government implement its own agreement, the GPA (Global Political Agreement - the document signed in September 2008 between Mugabe's ZANU-PF and the two factions of the Movement for Democratic Change, which is the basis for the current coalition government)".
But Malloch-Brown warned that British aid would halt "if there is a reversal, if there are attacks on opposition supporters or other violence".
Asked about the attendance of an indicted war criminal, Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir, at the COMESA (Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa) summit held in Harare at the weekend, Malloch-Brown doubted whether Bashir would be able to make such an appearance in a couple of years time. He noted that the Sudanese dictator had been unable to attend the inauguration of South African President Jacob Zuma.
Since Zimbabwe is not a signatory to the treaty setting up the International Criminal Court (ICC), Malloch-Brown though it was difficult to argue that Zimbabwe had broken international law in this instance.
Nonetheless, international law was beginning to thrive in Africa. The ICC statute has been ratified by 30 African countries, and it has received cases referred to it by Uganda, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and the Central African Republic. Furthermore, the ICC successfully ruled on the disputed Bakassi peninsula, and the settlement reached has subsequently been accepted by both parties to the dispute, Nigeria and Cameroon.
Malloch-Brown believed the ICC "has a pivotal role in justice in Africa".
Asked about the refusal of Mugabe's regime to respect the ruling from the SADC (Southern African Development Community) tribunal that struck down as unlawful much of the Zimbabwean land reform, and demanded that the government cease its harassment of white commercial farmers, Malloch-Brown though it was Mugabe's violation of Zimbabwe's commitments under the SADC treaty that had spurred SADC into its marathon diplomatic endeavour that had led to the current "inclusive" government.
He did not echo the criticisms that have frequently been made of SADC's "quiet diplomacy". Indeed Malloch-Brown thought "there are not many other ways of bringing a government to comply with regional and court rulings".
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Which British gov't are you talking about? Brown was never elected Prime Minister and his rule if he were in Africa would be considered dictatorship. Let him run for elections than we will know what he means.
Please, do not use words loosely about the UK Go'vt, what gov't are you referring too!! Brown who has been dodging elections? Isn't that a form of dictatorship? Please, we don't want that form of a gov't!
"Brown was never elected Prime Minister and his rule if he were in Africa would be considered dictatorship."
And Mugabe's rule, in which every election he loses is forced to be run again with the winner's name removed from the ballot, is clearly considered democracy.
How nice of you to display the root of the problems in Africa like that.
Ragtimer, aside from Mugabe or other dictators in Africa, Prime Minister Brown s rule would be considered illegal and illegitimate. Obsession with Mugabe should never at any time blind us to other facets of democracy. That form of govt of UK is generally not accepted in Africa. PM Brown has been dodging every time the elections are discussed. Does Prime minister Brown who has been PM by default really represents the will of British citizens? I strongly doubt it!! The UK type of democracy is way too over-rated has the best form of govt. Not all of us are fooled!
Because "democracy" is synonymous with "voting," and has nothing to do with "guaranteed transition of power" or "service to the people."
Thus, Saddam Hussein, Josef Stalin, and Adolf Hitler were all democratic, because they were all elected. While Gerald Ford, Harry Truman, and Winston Churchill were all dictators, because they came to power without being elected.
One thing is for certain... as long as people like you wield any influence in Africa, there will never be anything but "cargo cult democracy" there.
ragtimer, Zimbabwe or myself for that matter do not constitute one billion people of Africa in 54 countries. This is clearly a European view that everybody in Africa is the same, even though all scientific evaluatin show that, the African continent has the most diverse genes. Deal with one country, one person at a time. You do not sound Dutch to me. You are probably a bastard child who is claiming Dutch citizenship
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