Visiting US deputy secretary in the Bureau of African
Affairs, Robert Scott yesterday told journalists after a meeting with Foreign
Affairs minister Frederick Shava that the issue of the PVOs Amendment Bill was
discussed during the meeting, as well as electoral issues.
The PVOs Amendment Bill is now before President Emmerson
Mnangagwa for his signature.
Critics view it as unconstitutional as it prohibits PVOs
from supporting or opposing political parties or candidates in an election, and
gives government powers to register or deregister civic society organisations
viewed anti-government.
“We spoke about the PVOs Amendment Bill,” Scott told
journalists after the meeting.
He also called for non-violent elections this year.
"It was important to have this dialogue, we
talked through important topics
including the African Development Bank-led reform programmes and the upcoming
elections. We agreed on the need for
non-violence and for leaders to continue to call for clear transparent
elections,” he said.
Last week, 1 400 Zimbabweans signed a petition calling on
Mnangagwa to stop signing the Bill into law.
Shava said government expects Scott's visit to improve
Zimbabwe's relationship with the US.
“I very much welcome the opportunity to discuss with you
matters of interest to both countries, and hopefully we start charting a path
for friendly relations between our two countries," Shava said.
Scott is also expected to meet opposition leaders and members
of civic society during his two-day visit.
Meanwhile, Minister of Foreign Economic Relations of the
Sverdlovsk Region of the Russian Federation, Yarin Vyacheslav met government
officials to discuss areas of economic cooperation with Zimbabwe.
Speaking during a meeting with Vyacheslav in Harare
yesterday, Industry and Commerce minister Sekai Nzenza said Zimbabwe and
Russia’s relationship dates back to the liberation struggle era.
“This relationship has cascaded into a good standing with
Russia’s neighbours such as the Republic of Belarus which visited Zimbabwe just
over a month ago.
“We are excited to experience an expansion of a window of
opportunity in the Euro-Asian region for our exporters. In this regard, I
exhort the private sector to take advantage of such a corridor to explore new
markets in this region,” Nzenza said. Newsday
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