South Africa opposition urges Ramaphosa to get tough on ZImbabwe
Cape Town, South Africa (PANA) – South Africa's official opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) on Thursday called on President Cyril Ramaphosa, in his capacity as the African Union (AU) Chairman, to demand that the Zimbabwean government stops the harassment of members of the opposition and the immediate release of three female opposition leaders who were arrested earlier this month.
PANA reports that Joana Mamombe, Cecilia Chimbiri and Netsai Marova were allegedly abducted from a police station and sexually abused. They are currently under arrest accused of faking their own abduction.
The DA warned that the country’s opposition political leaders have been at the receiving end of a coordinated terror campaign by state security agencies who have used torture and abduction as a tool for intimidation.
“Even as the United Nations and the international community has condemned this gross abuse of human rights, the African Union under President Ramaphosa has remained quiet. Ramaphosa should desist from pursuing former President Thabo Mbeki’s failed quiet diplomacy policy on Zimbabwe and demand a return to the rule of law,” said DA MP Darren Bergman.
He said the political crisis has been made worse by a deteriorating economic climate that has left millions of Zimbabweans at the risk of starvation.
“Unless decisive action is taken to hold Emmerson Mnangagwa’s government accountable for its repression and poor management of the economy, the unfolding humanitarian crisis will have devastating consequences on the region and in South Africa,” he said.
Bergman noted that as along as Ramaphosa continues to watch from afar as Zimbabwe degenerates into a Zanu-PF government sponsored crisis, his legacy as the AU Chair now stands the real risk of being written off before it has even begun.
“Failure to take decisive action will make him complicit in the actions of a regime that has shown a willingness to abuse its power and harass defenceless citizens,” he added.
-0- PANA CU/AR 18June2020
