US embassy cable - 02HARARE1927

UNCLAS HARARE 001927 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR AF/PD, AF/S, AF/RA 
NSC FOR JENDAYI FRAZER 
LONDON FOR GURNEY 
PARIS FOR NEARY 
NAIROBI FOR PFLAUMER 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL, PHUM, KPAO, KMDR, ZI 
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION WSSD; HARARE 
 
 
  1.   Under headline "Zim must stand its ground at 
      summit" the independent weekly "The Business Tribune" 
      dedicated its August 22 editorial to encouraging 
      Zimbabwe to advance its controversial land 
      redistribution program at the forthcoming World Summit 
      on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, South 
      Africa.  Excerpts: 
 
  2.   ". . .The upcoming World Summit on Sustainable 
      Development (WSSD) in Johannesburg.  What does 
      it mean for Zimbabwe?  What should Zimbabwe, and 
      indeed Africa, expect from the summit?  That it 
      will be one of the largest and most important 
      international meetings Africa has hosted is not 
      in doubt. . .  For Zimbabwe, this summit, more 
      than any other, presents many challenges.  These 
      include the ongoing land reform program and the 
      environmental concerns that it implies.  Already 
      many observers and conference organizers are 
      concerned the Zimbabwe contagion may derail the 
      summit.  If Zimbabwe is not on the agenda it 
      surely will be put at the center stage not only 
      because the premise on which the land reform is 
      being conducted challenges the agenda of the 
      developing countries. . .  The summit thus 
      provides a platform for the condemnation of land 
      reform and the food problem that has now been 
      conveniently associated with it.  Any country 
      that attempts to identify with Zimbabwe will 
      also face the wrath of the international 
      community.  So any Zimbabwean delegates, 
      particularly those representing the government, 
      will have to endure being sidelined and 
      ridiculed. . .  Zimbabwe cannot be integrated 
      into the world economy when it is pursuing 
      policies that undermine the foundation of modern- 
      day capitalism. 
 
      ". . .U.S. President George W. Bush's millennium 
      challenge account that seeks to increase 
      conditional development assistance best 
      describes the attitudes of the developed world 
      to Africa.  AGOA and NEPAD are similar 
      initiatives that rely on partnerships and 
      unfettered markets as the sine qua non for 
      development.  The impact of corporate greed so 
      much evident in the U.S. on the lives of 
      ordinary citizens will surely be ignored.  The 
      thrust will certainly be driven by corporates, 
      particularly those from developed countries who 
      have seen these summits as a convenient platform 
      to advance their selfish and parochial 
      interests.  Already the composition of the 
      delegates is mostly non-African, with Africans, 
      in a demonstration of their world-renowned 
      inability to pay for their own costs without 
      donor support, missing at the summit.  The fact 
      that the summit is being held in Africa but the 
      majority of delegates will be advancing non- 
      African values is just another example of what 
      can be expected when Zimbabwe and Africa in 
      general have not put their house in order." 
 
SULLIVAN