APPENDIX 7
Memorandum from the Accountability Commission,
Zimbabwe
1. Targeted sanctions in the form of a travel
ban and assets freeze applied to members of the Zanu PF elite
and their supporters are one of the most effective ways the United
Kingdom, along with other countries, can engage in isolating and
destabilising the regime in Zimbabwe.
2. In order to be effective the sanctions need
to be rigorously imposed, vigorously pursued and kept constantly
under review. The scope of the current EU/United Kingdom sanctions
needs:
— To be widened to cover spouses and
dependent children.
— To be broadened to take in business
associates and those who aid and abet the regime.
3. It is manifestly unjust that the Zanu PF
elite are still able to send their children to the comfort and
safety of schools and colleges in the United Kingdom using illegally
acquired wealth while, because of Zanu PF's policy of selective
starvation, children in Zimbabwe are too weak from malnutrition
to acquire an education.
4. A further and relatively straightforward
step towards broadening the list of names would be to aim at congruence
with the more extensive lists of other countries. New Zealand,
for example, has a list that started with only 20 names but has
now been extended to cover 142 names. The EU/United Kingdom list
also started, in February last year, with 20 names but, although
extended in July and September, still only covers 79 individuals.
5. The EU/United Kingdom list is made up almost
entirely of members of the Zanu PF administration. The United
States—while it does not publish the names of individuals—has
a list that covers senior bankers and business leaders, army generals,
heads of parastatals, civil servants and church leaders.
6. The powerful businessmen who back Mugabe
and the Zanu PF regime by brokering foreign currency deals must
be targeted by the United Kingdom as matter of urgency. The United
States list is known to include the names of prominent bankers
Enoch Kamushinda, Taka Mutunhu, Gideon Gono and David Chapfika
as well as businessmen Philip Chiyangwa, Saviour Kasukuwere, Billy
Rautenbach and John Bredenkamp.
7. Alongside targeted sanctions Her Majesty's
Government should take a lead in pressing for the implementation
of the recommendations made in the United Nations Report of the
Panel of Experts on the Illegal Exploitation of Natural Resources
and Other Forms of Wealth of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
(October 2002). The report shows that Zanu PF is deeply involved
in the plunder of the Congo and recommends that a travel ban and
financial restrictions should be placed on John Bredenkamp, Emmerson
Mnangagwa and Vitalis Zvinavashe amongst others. While the latter
two names are on the EU list Her Majesty's Government have shown
little urgency in pursuing Mr Bredenkamp.
The Zimbabwe Independent 29 November 2002 reported:
— Based in Britain and Zimbabwe, Bredenkamp
is the 33rd richest man in the United Kingdom with a fortune of
£720 million. He has over the years attracted negative publicity
here and abroad, mainly concerning the source of his wealth.
— Bredenkamp has been at the centre
of controversy because of his alleged links to the ruling order
and mining deals in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the subject
of a recent UN report.
— He is also accused of brokering arms
deals and sanctions-busting involving aircraft spares for the
Air Force of Zimbabwe. He has denied any wrongdoing.
8. An encouraging development was disclosed
by Baroness Amos in a Written Answer on 8 January 2003:
— The High Commission and the FCO are
working on a comprehensive watch list of Zimbabwean nationals
whose presence here may not be conducive to the public good. The
list would be used, on a discretionary basis, to deny such people
a UK visa.
This means that there will be an extensive list
of individuals many of whom will clearly be candidates for graduation
to the EU/United Kingdom targeted sanctions list. There needs
to be a clear indication that the Foreign & Commonwealth Office
will use the watch list as a source for the sanctions list, has
the sanctions list constantly under review and is eager to add
new names to both lists. The feeling of security and impunity
enjoyed by Mugabe's supporters must be undermined in order to
help destabilise the regime.
9. In answer to a Question for Written Answer
in which Lord Astor of Hever asked what steps Her Majesty's Government
had taken "to consult non-governmental organisations and
civil society groups in Zimbabwe and bodies such as the Accountability
Commission in London to help determine whether there might be
a good case prima facie for refusing certain visa applications",
Baroness Amos replied (8 January 2003):
Our High Commission in Harare is in regular contact
with NGOs and civil society groups in Zimbabwe.
The Foreign & Commonwealth Office should
also draw on the knowledge and information available amongst NGOs
and civil society groups within the United Kingdom both when formulating
its discretionary list of undesirable Zimbabweans and when looking
for names to add to the EU sanctions list.
THE ACCOUNTABILITY COMMISSION ZIMBABWE is an
independent investigative and planning organisation working closely
with other civil society activists to prepare Zimbabwe for a stable
and democratic future and to undermine the culture of lawlessness
with impunity that flourishes when democratic processes are subverted
and judicial processes are suppressed.
The Accountability Commission Zimbabwe
January 2003
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