MDC leader Nelson Chamisa says western sanctions on
Zimbabwe will only go with the collapse of the Zanu-PF government.
Chamisa, speaking to supporters in Chiredzi at a 'thank
you' rally in Chiredzi on Sunday, said Zanu-PF "invited" sanctions on
Zimbabwe through human rights abuses, and the United States and the European
Union had not seen sufficient improvements to lift travel restrictions on
certain government officials and a weapons ban.
"Zanu-PF blame sanctions for their failure to fix the
economy," Chamisa said, speaking at a football stadium packed with
thousands of his supporters wearing red.
"Yes, sanctions and Zanu-PF must go because they are
twins, they move together. When you see Zanu-PF, you have seen sanctions. We
have said we don't want sanctions on our country, but sanctions will only go
after we remove Zanu-PF. Zanu-PF is the inviter of sanctions on this country."
Chamisa said in
conversations with United States officials, he told them that the MDC was keen
to see a normalisation of relations, "but they must judge us on our reform
agenda."
Zanu-PF attempts at reforming repressive legislation like
the Public Order and Security Act as well as the Access to Information and
Protection of Privacy Act has seen only "cosmetic changes", the MDC
leader said.
Repeal of the two pieces of law is one of the key hurdles
President Emmerson Mnangagwa's government must cross before United States
sanctions are lifted, according to the updated sanctions law, the Zimbabwe
Democracy and Economic Recovery Act (ZIDERA).
Chamisa, who called for a transitional government to cure
what his party says was electoral theft by Mnangagwa last July, maintains that
the failure of Zimbabwe's economy is not down to sanctions by Mnangagwa's
illegitimacy and lack of confidence.
"We raised this economy with (Morgan) Tsvangirai
(former Prime Minister) and (Tendai) Biti (former finance minister), and the same
sanctions were there. What's different? When you have good economic policies,
things move," Chamisa said, referring to a unity government between
Zanu-PF and the MDC which stabilised the country's economy between 2009 and
2013 following disputed elections. zimlive
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