After his unjust imprisonment, Mr Turner, an American
citizen, relocated to Zimbabwe and remained a strident critic of the illegal
and amoral sanctions that have over the last two decades bled the country of
billions of dollars.
He passed away yesterday at St Anne’s Hospital in Harare
due to Covid-19-related complications. He was 81.
In her condolence message, Minister of Information,
Publicity and Broadcasting Services Monica Mutsvangwa said the death of Mr
Turner is a painful loss to the people of Zimbabwe.
“Greg Turner loved Zimbabwe most dearly. He was vehemently
opposed to the ZIDERA (Zimbabwe Democracy and Economic Recovery Act) sanctions
against Zimbabwe. He viewed them as a bloat and assault at the core of existence and well-being of Zimbabwe, Africa
and its Diaspora.
“He took his fight against ZIDERA right into the American
Black Congressional ranks. He actually organised a delegation of Chicago-based
Civil Rights luminaries to Zimbabwe in the early 1990s,” she said.
Because of his efforts in fighting for the removal of
sanctions, Mr Turner , who hailed from Chicago, was found guilty by a federal
jury of violating the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.
In addition his co-defendant, Prince Asiel Ben Israel, also
of Chicago, who was sentenced to seven months in prison after pleading guilty
to violating the Foreign Agents Registration Act.
“For his efforts he incurred the wrath of the American
Federal Bureau of Investigation. They shadowed him in cahoots with G40 cohorts.
“They snooped on him leading to his arrest, trial and sentencing
in an Illinois Federal Court for lobbying activities that broke the ZIDERA
statute. He was subsequently incarcerated for two years.
“On release he relocated to Zimbabwe, where the Zanu-PF
party and the Zimbabwe Government welcomed him with open arms.
Until his death Mr Turner tapped into his lifelong
Pan-African activism and extensive continental reach to build bridges between
Africa and its Diaspora.
Mr Turner, working with Information, Media and Broadcasting
Services Minister Monica Mutsvangwa and her deputy Kindness Paradza, recently
invited the Grammy Award winning musician, Robert “Kool” Bell to Zimbabwe to
help market Victoria Falls as a tourist resort.
The invitation was also meant to promote young Zimbabwean
music talent. He was also actively working with Ambassador Kwame Muzawazi of
the Institute of African Knowledge and Museum of African Liberation.
He secured a section in the museum for the story of
TransAtlantic slave trade and the 1960s civil rights movement. Herald
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