Zimbabwe should be allowed to compete in the global village on an equal footing without the baggage of illegal sanctions imposed by the United States and other Western countries, Politburo member Cde Ziyambi Ziyambi said yesterday after signing an anti-sanctions petition.
The signing ceremony was held at the Zanu PF headquarters in Harare ahead of ruling party's Politburo meeting, which marked the start of 21st Annual National People's Conference.
Removing the illegal sanctions unconditionally, is in line with the recommendations made by Professor Alena Douhan, a United Nations Special Rapporteur on Zimbabwe, who researched on the impact of the embargo when she visited the country in 2021.
The signing of the anti-sanctions petition by Zanu PF Politburo members also came ahead of the Sadc Anti-Sanctions Day, commemorated annually on October 25, since 2019.
In an interview, Cde Ziyambi, who is also Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Minister, said the lifting of sanctions by the US, Britain and the European Union, would help Zimbabwe chart its own economic destiny.
"You have noticed that I have just signed the anti-sanctions petition. I subscribe to it. We had the UN Rapporteur; she did research and submitted to the United Nations Human Rights Council that sanctions are a human rights violation," he said.
"We then wonder why the United States, being a member of the UN, still persists with the sanctions when it has already been established by the UN that they are illegal, they violate several rights of our people.
"We, therefore, call for the US to remove the sanctions so that we can be part of the global village on an equal footing with everyone else," said Cde Ziyambi.
Prof Douhan undertook an official visit to Zimbabwe from October 18 to 28, 2021, to examine the impact of unilateral sanctions on the enjoyment of human rights in Zimbabwe and on people's right to development.
She concluded that sanctions, including secondary sanctions and different forms of over-compliance by foreign banks and companies, had a significant impact on the population and Government.
Prof Douhan recommended lifting unilateral sanctions in line with the principles of international law. Another Politburo member, Cde Supa Mandiwanzira, said the imposition of illegal sanctions had seen Zimbabwe failing to access lines of credit.
"This country is on an aggressive programme to rebuild its infrastructure, airports, roads.
"This investment requires for there to be more money circulating in this economy, more investment coming into this economy and more lines of credit.
"This has not been happening at the pace we would have wanted as Zimbabweans because of these sanctions.
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"It has been difficult for financial institutions in this country to have corresponding banks in Europe and America," said Cde Mandiwanzira.
Citizens Against Economic Sanctions was coordinating mobilisation of the anti-sanctions signatures.
Executive director for the organisation Mr Martin Zharare, said they wished to mobilise more than one million signatures and take them to the US Embassy in Harare and demand the unconditional removal of sanctions.
"We are going to make sure that we deliver to the American embassy in Harare to show that the people of Zimbabwe are behind President Mnangagwa when he calls for the removal of sanctions and we are very happy that the people of Zimbabwe have signed their signatures without coercion," he said.
Director in the Ministry of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services, Mr Richard Mahomva, said Politburo members signed the anti-sanctions petition as part of the build-up to the major anti-sanctions day commemorations on Friday.
President Mnangagwa, who is the Sadc Chairperson, is expected to deliver an address in Bulawayo on the day as part of the commemorations.
