GOVERNMENT has expressed concern over the United States’
continued attempts to suffocate Zimbabwe’s economy after it barred local
diamonds from entering Washington claiming they were produced through forced
labour.
The diamonds were denied entry on Monday. The US Embassy
Harare sent a seemingly celebratory tweet yesterday saying: “US Customs &
Border Protection issued a Withhold Release Order for artisanal rough cut
diamonds from Zimbabwe’s Marange diamond fields on Oct. 1, 2019 due to evidence
of forced labour. US law prohibits importation of goods made with forced
labour.”
But Secretary for Information, Publicity and Broadcasting
Services Mr Nick Mangwana told The Herald last night that Government was
dismayed by the US action which amounted to new sanctions on Zimbabwe’s diamond
industry.
He pointed out that Zimbabwe had not officially had a
report on the alleged systematic forced labour, which is illegal under the
country’s laws .
The Minister of Labour and Social Welfare said Zimbabwe had
a policy of promoting decent labour.
An industry expert last night described the decision by the
US as grossly “misguided and misinformed”.
Said Mr Mangwana: “The Government of Zimbabwe is baffled by
the decision of the United States of America to issue a so-called Withhold
Release Order for roug labour.”
“This is a regrettable development because the reason the
US authorities are citing, namely that Zimbabwean diamonds are being produced
under forced labour, is a blatant and shameless lie that will surprise even
cynics amongst us.
“Zimbabwe’s Constitution prohibits forced or compulsory
labour. We also amended the Labour Act in 2015 to ensure that it is aligned
with the Constitution. As a Government we have a very strong revulsion towards
any form of slavery or servitude,” said Mr Mangwana.
He added they have not received reports of forced labour
and “definitely (not) of a systematic nature” that might arouse international
sanction.
“Apparently, invoking the repulsive prospect of alleged
forced labour is a new nomenclature for seeking to bar Zimbabwe’s diamonds from
the international market after previous attempts to label Zimbabwean diamonds
as blood diamonds failed,” said Mr Mangwana.
The US, together with some Western countries, urged on by
their local stooges, waged a spirited campaign against Zimbabwe’s diamonds with
deliberate efforts invested towards manipulating the Kimberly Process and
Certification Scheme (KPCS) to exclude and exclude Harare.
The US, which has slapped sanctions on 56 local companies
and 65 individuals, remains determined to ensure the country’s economy
continues to bleed.
Mr Mangwana said there was no doubt that the latest move by
the US constitutes “a grave and serious attack on Zimbabwe’s interests and is
no less a manifestation of undeclared sanctions that have hurt the economy”.
“We will engage the US authorities on this while we
continue with our re-engagement efforts as part of President Mnangagwa’s
continuous foreign policy thrust of locating Zimbabwe within the global family
of nations,” he said.
Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare Minister Dr Sekai
Nzenza told The Herald last night that they have just completed the “Decent
Work Programme strategy and one of our objectives is to promote the dignity and
rights of workers in the work place”.
“My ministry is concerned by any reports on the alleged
forced Labour and we will work on investigating any such companies or any
reported cases,” she said.
Diamond expert and former Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond
Company (ZCDC) chief executive Mr Mark Mabhudhu said the claims by the US were
“not only unfortunate but grossly misguided and misinformed”.
“There is virtually nothing like this in our diamond
industry. Zimbabwe is replete with a highly qualified labour force which is
neither forced nor compelled at any point along the mining and processing value
chain,” he said. Herald
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