US embassy cable - 01HARARE1082

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 HARARE 001082 
 
SIPDIS 
 
NSC FOR SENIOR AFRICA DIRECTOR JENDAYI FRAZER 
 
LONDON FOR CHARLES GURNEY 
 
PARIS FOR BISA WILLIAMS 
 
NAIROBI FOR PFLAUMER 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/21/11 
TAGS: PREL, PGOV, KDEM, ZI, ADCO 
SUBJECT: FOREIGN MINISTER CONVOKES COMMONWEALTH HEADS 
OF MISSION FOR A HARANGUE ON THE CMAG STATEMENT ON 
                       CONFIDENTIAL 
 
 
PAGE 02        HARARE  01082  01 OF 02  211531Z 
ZIMBABWE 
 
CLASSIFIED BY CHARGE D'AFFAIRES EARL M. IRVING FOR 
REASONS 1.5 (B) AND (D). 
 
1.  (C) ZIMBABWEAN MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS 
STANISLAUS MUDENGE SUMMONED COMMONWEALTH AND SADC HEADS 
OF MISSION IN HARARE ON MARCH 21 TO DELIVER A TWO-HOUR 
HARANGUE ON THE COMMONWEALTH MINISTERIAL ACTION GROUP 
(CMAG) STATEMENT ISSUED THE DAY BEFORE IN LONDON. 
"NOTHING WHICH HAS HAPPENED IN ZIMBABWE CONSTITUTES A 
VIOLATION OF THE HARARE DECLARATION," THE MINISTER SAID 
IN A STATEMENT RELEASED FOLLOWING THE MEETING.  CANADIAN 
HIGH COMMISSIONER JAMES WALL TOLD CHARGE THAT MUDENGE 
INSISTED THAT ONLY "PERSISTENT, CONSISTENT VIOLATIONS OF 
THE HARARE DECLARATION" WARRANTED CONSIDERATION BY THE 
CMAG, THUS ITS DISCUSSION OF ZIMBABWE UNDER "ANY OTHER 
BUSINESS" AND DECISION TO SEND A DELEGATION TO ZIMBABWE 
WAS NOT ONLY IRREGULAR BUT ALSO ILLEGAL.  HE RULED OUT 
ANY CMAG MISSION.  ACCORDING TO THE BRITISH DEPUTY HIGH 
COMMISSIONER IN HARARE, IAN HAY-CAMPBELL, THE CMAG'S 
DECISION TO ISSUE THE STATEMENT AND SEND THE TEAM WAS 
GALVANIZED BY MUDENGE TELEPHONING COMMONWEALTH SECRETARY 
GENERAL MCKINNON DURING THE DISCUSSION AND ISSUING 
THREATS IN INTEMPERATE LANGUAGE, THAT WERE SUBSEQUENTLY 
REPORTED TO THE CMAG MEMBERS.  ANY FENCE-SITTERS WERE 
IMMEDIATELY CONVINCED OF THE CORRECTNESS OF THE 
RECOMMENDATION FOR A MISSION AND STATEMENT. 
 
2.  (C) ACCORDINQ TO THE CANADIAN HIQH COMMISSIONER, 
MUDENGE GENERALIZED THAT ANY CONCERN IN ZIMBABWE BOILED 
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PAGE 03        HARARE  01082  01 OF 02  211531Z 
DOWN TO LAND.  THE FOREIQN MINISTER SAID HIS GOVERNMENT 
HAD NOT MOVED AS FAST AS IT SHOULD HAVE TO RESOLVE THE 
LAND QUESTION IN THE 1980S AND BY 1997 WAS DESPERATE. 
IT WAS GLAD FOR THE EUROPEAN UNION OFFER TO HOST A 
DONORS' CONFERENCE.  HE WAVED AWAY THE UTILITY OF THE 
CONFERENCE SINCE THE DONORS HAD DONE "NOTHING," AND IN 
ANY CASE, THE PROBLEM WAS ATTRIBUTABLE TO BRITAIN'S 
STRING OF BROKEN PROMISES.  HE TOLD THE GATHERED HEADS 
OF MISSION THAT "INTERNATIONAL CONCERN WAS MISPLACED," 
SINCE THE CURRENT DISPUTE WAS A BILATERAL ONE BETWEEN 
THE UNITED KINGDOM AND ZIMBABWE.  "DON'T GANG UP ON 
ZIMBABWE," HE PLEADED, "FOR GOD'S SAKE DON'T TAKE 
SIDES."  HE ALSO WARNED THEM NOT TO INTERFERE IN 
ZIMBABWEAN DOMESTIC POLITICS (COMMENT: PRESUMABLY A 
REFERENCE TO EXTERNAL SUPPORT OF THE OPPOSITION MOVEMENT 
FOR DEMOCRATIC CHANGE.  END COMMENT).  OTHERWISE, THE 
PEOPLE "WILL ACT VERY STRONQLY." 
 
3.  (C) DURINQ THE QUESTION AND ANSWER TIME THE MINISTER 
REDUCED THE PROBLEMS WITH THE JUDICIARY TO A MISHANDLING 
OF CHIEF JUSTICE GUBBAY'S RESIGNATION.  HE CALLED THE 
GOVERNMENT'S CRITICISM OF THE JUDICIARY "A HEALTHY 
DEMOCRATIC EXERCISE," CITING FREQUENT CRITICISM OF 
JUDICIAL RULINQS AND IMPEACHMENT OF JUDGES BY 
LEGISLATURES IN THE U.S.  HE ALSO CAST ASPERSIONS 
PERSONALLY ON GUBBAY, WHO COMPARED UNFAVORABLY WITH 
PREVIOUS CHIEF JUSTICES WHO WERE MUCH BETTER AT HANDLING 
CRITICISM.  HE ACKNOWLEDGED THAT THE SUPREME COURT'S 
RULINGS ON LAND WERE CORRECT LEGALLY, BUT NOT MORALLY. 
HE POOH-POOHED CRITICISMS OF THE GOVERNMENT'S APPROACH 
TOWARD THE MEDIA, SAYING ZIMBABWE HAS "EXTREME PRESS 
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PAGE 04        HARARE  01082  01 OF 02  211531Z 
FREEDOM," AND REMARKED (ERRONEOUSLY) THAT TWO FOREIGN 
JOURNALISTS HAD RECENTLY BEEN EXPELLED BECAUSE THEIR 
WORK PERMITS HAD EXPIRED.  REGARDING THE BOMBING OF THE 
"DAILY NEWS" THE MINISTER SAID, "SO WHAT?" AND NOTED 
THAT THE GOVERNMENT-CONTROLLED DAILY "THE HERALD" 
OFFERED TO PRINT THE PAPER THE FOLLOWING DAY.  HE 
CONTINUED THAT LAND REFORM WAS IRREVERSIBLE AND 
ACKNOWLEDGED THAT THE CURRENT PROCESS WAS COMPLETELY 
FLAWED.  HE WENT ON TO DRAW AN ANALOGY ABOUT PLANE CRASH 
VICTIMS EATINQ HUMAN FLESH TO SURVIVE IN AN UNFORTUNATE 
ATTEMPT TO EXPLAIN THAT HIS GOVERNMENT HAS BEEN DRIVEN 
TO EXTREME MEASURES TO SATISFY THE PEOPLE'S HUNGER FOR 
LAND.  HE ENDED THE MEETING BY STATING THAT "WE [IN THE 
ZANU-PF- LED GOVERNMENT] ARE REVOLUTIONARIES" WHO 
BELIEVE THAT "WHAT WE ARE DOINQ IS RIQHT" AND WOULD 
RATHER BE DEFEATED THAN BACK DOWN. 
 
4.  (C) COMMENT: FROM OUR COLLEAGUE'S ACCOUNT OF THE 
MEETING, CAPTURED BY ZIMBABWE BROADCASTING CORPORATION 
NEWS CAMERAS, WE GATHER THAT IT WAS ANOTHER VINTAGE 
MUDENGE PERFORMANCE.  HIS ARROGANCE, HISTRIONICS, 
BLUSTER AND DISINGENUOUS HALF-TRUTHS COUCHED IN FLOWERY 
 
                       CONFIDENTIAL 
 
                           CONFIDENTIAL     PTQ9405 
 
PAGE 01        HARARE  01082  02 OF 02  211531Z 
ACTION AF-00 
 
INFO  LOG-00   NP-00    ACQ-00   CIAE-00  DODE-00  WHA-00   DS-00 
      VC-00    TEDE-00  INR-00   VCE-00   NSAE-00  SSO-00   SS-00 
      DPM-01   ASDS-01  DSCC-00  DRL-02   NFAT-00  SAS-00     /004W 
                  ------------------D53613  211531Z /38 
O 211529Z MAR 01 
FM AMEMBASSY HARARE 
TO SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 8479 
INFO NSC WASHDC IMMEDIATE 
SOUTHERN AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY 
AMEMBASSY NAIROBI 
AMEMBASSY OTTAWA 
 
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 02 OF 02 HARARE 001082 
 
SIPDIS 
 
NSC FOR SENIOR AFRICA DIRECTOR JENDAYI FRAZER 
 
LONDON FOR CHARLES GURNEY 
 
PARIS FOR BISA WILLIAMS 
 
NAIROBI FOR PFLAUMER 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/21/11 
TAGS: PREL, PGOV, KDEM, ZI, ADCO 
SUBJECT: FOREIGN MINISTER CONVOKES COMMONWEALTH HEADS 
OF MISSION FOR A HARANGUE ON THE CMAG STATEMENT ON 
ZIMBABWE 
                       CONFIDENTIAL 
 
PAGE 02        HARARE  01082  02 OF 02  211531Z 
 
LANGUAGE ASIDE, THAT THE FOREIQN MINISTER FELT THE NEED 
TO SUMMON THE HEADS OF STATE TO EXPLAIN HIS POSITION 
FOLLOWINQ A COMMONWEALTH SLAP ON THE WRIST IS AN 
INDICATION OF THE DEEP NERVE IT TOUCHED.  EXTERNAL 
PRESSURE ON ZIMBABWE IS REACHING A CRESCENDO AND EVEN 
ITS TRADITIONAL FRIENDS NO LONQER LOUDLY DEFEND IT. 
MUDENGE'S RESPONSE: TO CALL FOR DIALOQUE WITH THE 
COMMONWEALTH AND IMMEDIATELY MAKE IT IMPOSSIBLE FOR IT 
TO TAKE PLACE.  ALTHOUGH IN NORMAL COUNTRIES SUCH INEPT 
HANDLING OF THE OUTSIDE WORLD WOULD COST A FOREIQN 
MINISTER HIS JOB, IN THIS CASE WE PREDICT THAT THE GOZ 
WILL CONTINUE TO USE DEFIANT LANGUAGE, PORTRAYING ITSELF 
AS A VICTIM OF A BRITISH-LED CONSPIRACY AIMED AT 
TOPPLING THE MUGABE REGIME.  IF THE GOZ CONTINUES TO 
REJECT ATTEMPTS BY THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY TO ENGAGE 
IT IN CONSTRUCTIVE DIALOGUE, WE ARE NOT SURE THAT IT HAS 
ANY OPTIONS LEFT FOR EXTRICATING ITSELF FROM ITS CURRENT 
PREDICAMENT.  END COMMENT. 
 
IRVING 
 
                       CONFIDENTIAL 
 
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