Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2003-06-05-Speech-4-234"
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"en.20030605.9.4-234"2
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"Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, in Zimbabwe too the situation seems to be developing into a never-ending story. I myself was able to experience the escalation in violence when I visited the country on the occasion of the parliamentary elections as an election observer, albeit under the wrong label, because I was not recognised as representing the European Union. Over thirty opposition politicians lost their lives in these disputes, and we are now seeing a renewed escalation in violence. We must now face the fact that not only is Mr Mugabe using live weapons against peaceful demonstrators, but he is also using hunger as a weapon against his people. It has already been mentioned here today that over half of the population is dependent on food aid. We too, therefore, find ourselves in a quandary: if we do not want to let the people starve, we have to help them, but in so doing we are also unintentionally helping to keep Mugabe in power.
Prices for essential goods are soaring in Zimbabwe. The rate of inflation is exploding, and is currently the highest in the world. The economy is in ruins; exports and tourism, once flourishing sources of income, have collapsed. The rule of law, once so dependable, has been set aside, and the most recent outrages have shown that the Council was right to agree to the sanctions against the Mugabe regime. However, those sanctions are not being consistently applied. This must be demanded as a matter of urgency! If we expect these measures to make any impression on the regime, then they must also be consistently applied. We had this problem with an ACP meeting, which broke up as a result. We shall continue to come up against this problem, and if the Commission grants a travel permit for ACP talks or other meetings, then the regime will be strengthened still further, and our position, namely that we are in favour of the restoration of the rule of law and democracy and in favour of the protection of human rights, will be weakened.
This in turn weakens our position within the ACP meetings too, where we are, after all, trying to get our African partner countries on our side, and that is certainly no easy task. We have experienced many disappointments. We have even experienced the situation in which we have not received support for our position in favour of the rule of law, for the protection of human rights and finally for a life fit for human beings in that country, complete with full democratic rights.
I would like to emphasise, however, that, in a secret ballot, a good quarter of those present at the ACP meeting agreed with us, and some delegates even dared to say so openly, and to condemn, very forcefully, what is happening in Zimbabwe. However, we must remind all those who sit around the table with Mugabe in Africa that to support such a regime cannot be to follow the path of legality. We need to make our position absolutely clear here, and so, too, must the Commission."@en1
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