Details of how the United States of America Ambassador to
Zimbabwe Brian Nichols actively encouraged senior MDC officials to press on
with Friday’s demonstrations by assuring them that Washington “would impose
punitive measures should Government arrest or assault the protestors”, have
emerged.
Diplomatic sources privy to be behind-the-scenes engagement
between US embassy officials and the MDC top leadership told The Sunday Mail
that the grand scheme is part of a broader coordinated project that also
includes civil society organisations, some of which have been planning protests
against President Emmerson Mnangagwa during the ongoing Sadc Summit that ends
today.
However, alert Tanzanian authorities, who were aware of the
planned protects, which were supposed to coincide with the protests in Harare,
reportedly “strongly warned” the organisers of the grave implications of the
plans.
Government and security officials have been consistently
warning that the there is a “third hand” behind the disturbances that have been
plaguing Zimbabwe since the July 30 2018 elections.
Sources said Ambassador Nichols, his deputy Thomas Hastings
and regional security officer Patrick Bellinger, including Mrs Nichols and Mrs
Hastings, met MDC deputy chairperson Job Sikhala on Thursday — the eve of the
planned demonstrations – at the latter’s home in St Mary’s, Chitungwiza.
Mr Nichols left after 30 minutes.
“In their engagement with Sikhala, the American diplomats
urged the MDC to ago ahead with the demonstrations until their demands were
met. They assured him that the US was watching the developments and would
impose punitive measures should Government arrest or assault the protestors,”
said the sources.
Sikhala reportedly apprised the Americans about the rift
within the opposition and claimed Chamisa “was unsuitable to lead the party”.
Added the sources: “On his part, Sikhala highlighted developments
in the MDC. “He accused MDC leader Nelson Chamisa of cowardice, adding that he
was unsuitable to lead the party.
“He claimed that himself and deputy president Tendai Biti
were better placed to lead the MDC, citing that they were brave and had been
previously arrested.
“Sikhala telephoned MDC national deputy secretary for
international affairs, Douglas Mwonzora, to come and meet the diplomats, but
the latter failed to arrive on time.
“Sikhala took the four diplomats on a tour of Chitungwiza.
They visited Chigovanyika, Chikwanha, Huruyadzo, Makoni and Zengeza 2 shopping
centres, taking photographs.”
The latest development, they claimed, proved beyond
reasonable doubt that the Americans were behind the destabilisation activities
in the country.
But the involvement of the Americans is understood to be
causing a rift in top ranks of the opposition party.
It is believed that there is a group of disillusioned
supporters who are “alive to the futility of the demonstrations”, which the MDC
hopes would begin to snowball from this week to the upcoming annual United
Nations General Assembly in New York scheduled for September.
“The group is made up of innocent MDC members who are not
privy to the factional squabbles within the party and are not eager to
demonstrate for fear of a repeat of the August 1 2018, and 14 and 16 January
2019 violent protests.
“The group has also questioned what the demonstration would
achieve in light of the fact that it would only be staged for four hours and
people go back home to face the same economic challenges,” added the sources.
Separately, briefed diplomatic sources said the planned
disturbances in Harare were timed to coincide with the demonstrations by the
Southern African People’s Solidarity Network (SAPSN) in Tanzania, which were
calculated to pooh-pooh the decision by Sadc to elect President Mnangagwa as
the chair of the Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation.
Participants to non-governmental organisation (NGO)’s
five-day “programme” jetted here on Thursday and had tentatively planned to
march to hand over their communiqué – ostensibly drafted to besmirch the
President – to the Sadc secretariat yesterday.
But the Tanzanian authorities reportedly strongly warned
that “the stunt” would not be tolerated.
The programme was running under the theme “Rebuilding
People’s Movements within Southern Africa’s Climate, Political and
Socioeconomic Emergencies, Towards Radical Democratic Alternatives and Just
Transition.”
The group is comprised of Nqobizitha Mlambo from Zimbabwe
Coalition on Debt and Development, Clayton Manjova (Heal Zimbabwe Trust), Lloyd
Sesemani (artisanal miner), Michael Ndiweni (BVTA and Youth NAD), Foster Thole
(Ministry of Foreign Affairs), Blessing Vava (Crisis in Zimbabwe) Joy Mabenge
(Action Aid), Tinashe Madondo (Family Aids Caring Trust) and Cloud Fusire, a
university student.
It also includes Thulani Mswelanto (Crisis in Zimbabwe
Coalition), Charles Kataure (ZNNP+), Phakamani Moyo (PATA), Ropafadzo Sandra
Shoko (a law student), Lydia Dhliwayo (Zimcodd), Confidence Bobo (Zimcodd) and
Margarety Nyakuhwa (FACT).
Mr Mlambo is widely viewed as the brains behind
MDC-Alliance youth wing — the Vanguard — which has been accused of hounding
political rivals within the party, including former deputy president Dr
Thokozani Khupe.
It is believed that the MDC’s trail of suspicious meetings
and exchanges with hostile forces has exposed it in the region.
Police last week issued a prohibition order against MDC
planned protests, but some elements defied the ban notwithstanding the decision
by the High Court to uphold the order.
Law enforcement agents had to disperse the demonstrators. However,
the MDC is determined to continue with its protests purportedly to catapult the
opposition party into power.
The absence of MDC leaders who abandoned the demonstrators
despite publicly throwing their weight behind the protests has also been
roundly condemned by some party members that are unaware of the liaisons
between senior officials and hostile foreign officials.
Security officials continue to claim that there are forces
that are behind disturbances the country has been experiencing since last year.
Sunday Mail
0 comments:
Post a Comment