Recent developments in the global world of civil society organisations (CSOs) have exposed the hypocrisy of some Western countries and their local stooges in the local opposition.
When the Zimbabwean Government takes steps such as the impending enhancement of the legislation on the operations of Private Voluntary Organisations (PVOs) through the proposed PVO Amendment Bill, they are quick to invoke the usual issues such as human rights and unsubstantiated claims of repression.
When other countries in both the West and elsewhere, including Africa, do the same, they are conspicuous by their silence.
One is, however, not surprised by this attitude and behaviour.
Since the turn of the century, Zimbabwe has witnessed the proliferation of non-governmental organisations (NGOS) and CSOs at an alarming rate.
The unfair scrutiny on Zimbabwe by the West is as a result of the land reform programme, which the country carried out in the year 2000.
The land reform angered and sparked an undeclared dispute between the country and some of the Western countries who felt that their interests in the country and elsewhere were under threat because of Zimbabwe's actions.
Zimbabwe had crossed the Rubicon.
Fearing that Zimbabwe's precedent would be replicated by other countries such as South Africa and Kenya, the United States and its allies such like the United Kingdom imposed sanctions against the country.
This created the socio-economic challenges which Zimbabwe has endured for over two decades.
The scenario created a fertile ground for West-funded NGOs and CSOs to mushroom throughout the country in the name of humanitarian work. These entities carry out humanitarian work by day and carry out ulterior activities by night.
They act as funding conduits for opposition parties in contravention of the Political Parties (Funding) Act and spy for Western governments.
Over time, some of them such as the Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition (CiZC) openly acted as extensions of the opposition's commissariat departments in blatant disregard for their declared mandates.
Some have been used to launder ill-gotten wealth such as proceeds from drug dealing or human trafficking.
The Zimbabwean Government could not sit idly and watch while NGOs and CSOs deviated from their declared mandates.
It came up with the Private and Voluntary Organisation Amendment Bill, which at the time of writing was in the hands of the Attorney-General's Office pending Presidential assent as it has gone through all the necessary processes.
In simple terms, the Act requires that all NGOs and CSOs that intend to operate in the country should make sure they are registered by the Registrar of PVOs and state clearly their mandates in the county.
Under the new law, NGOs and CSOs are expected to operate transparently and within their declared mandates.
However, the PVO Amendment Bill was received with discontent by some Western countries, especially the US and the European Union bloc.
They contend that the proposed law would stifle democracy in the country as there would be no freedom of operations and movement from members working within those NGOs and CSOs.
They wanted the NGOs and CSOs to work operate in the country without checks and balances.
Western countries which happen to be the main funders of such organisations fear that the proposed legislation will expose or hinder their regime change shenanigans in the country. They argue that the proposed law would provide the Government with unfettered discretionary power to regulate the PVOs' activities.
They are also of the opinion that the new law facilitates interference and over-regulation in the PVOs' governance issues and operations.
They further argue that law's provisions provide the Government with unchecked power to designate any PVO as high risk or vulnerable to terrorism abuse, thereby allowing it to revoke such PVOs' registration and remove or replace its leadership.
In addition, to avoid civil penalties, PVOs would be required to receive approval from the Government for any material change including changes to its management and internal constitution.
They are also not happy with the provision that PVOs would be prohibited should not support opposition politics.
On the other hand, the Zimbabwean Government said that NGOs and CSOs should be registered and make sure they adhere to what they would have registered to do in the country.
The Government further said that those deviating from their core businesses in which they were registered to do risk getting de-registered and shown the exit door out of the country. While some people were beginning to buy into what the West's position on Zimbabwe's PVO Amendment Bill, the EU was sitting down to come up with similar law, exposing the West's hypocrisy.
Currently, the EU, which was on the forefront of blasting Zimbabwe over PVO Amendment Bill, is working to come up with a law which will force NGO groups, consultancies and academic institutions to disclose any funding obtained from sources outside the bloc.
The law is expected to be similar to such laws which are also operational in Australia and the US.
The laws are policing operations of NGOs in those countries. In the US, the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) requires lobbyists working on behalf of foreign governments to register with federal government to operate.
Surprisingly, all those countries which are calling on Zimbabwe to dump the PVO Amendment Bill have or are working on coming up with similar Acts in their countries.
With the EU joining them in coming up with legislation similar to Zimbabwe's PVO Amendment Bill, the West's double standards from the so-called champions of democracy have been exposed for the world to see.
It is clear that they preach what they do not follow.
Mozambique is currently working on tightening its CSOs law to counter money laundering and terrorist financing as its security forces battle an Islamic State (ISIS) linked armed group, locally known as Al-Shabab or Mashababos in the North,
No one, except the Western-funded Human Rights Watch, has said anything because some Western countries such as the US and France want a terrorism-free Mozambique to enable them to exploit that country's vast oil and gas resources without security threats.
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What is good for Mozambique should be good for Zimbabwe given that the two are neighbours. Talk of shameless double standards.
Western countries know that the world knows of their double standards on issues such as human rights, democracy and rule of law among others.
The question that arises is: Why do they carry on practising double standards and pitching themselves as champion and paragons of human rights, democracy and the rule of law at the risk of embarrassing themselves?
These values only work when the West wishes to meddle in the politics of targeted countries where they intend to meddle in order to effect regime change so that they get unfettered access to those country's resources.
When it comes to these values, the West is the worst offender when compared to developing countries, but it makes inroads in pushing for regime change in the targeted countries because of local opposition parties and PVOs which cannot resist the lure of a dirty Western dollar and offer themselves as willing and ready hatchet men against their own people and countries.
Now that the West's double standard and hypocrisy on PVOs laws in Zimbabwe, Mozambique and the EU have been exposed, President Mnangagwa should sign the bill into law for the good of Zimbabweans and future generations.
