US embassy cable - 02HARARE1990

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Identifier:	02HARARE1990
Wikileaks:	View 02HARARE1990 at Wikileaks.org
Origin:	Embassy Harare
Created:	2002-08-29 12:37:00
Classification:	UNCLASSIFIED
Tags:	PHUM
Redacted:	This cable was not redacted by Wikileaks.

UNCLAS HARARE 001990 
 
SIPDIS 
 
AF/PD FOR COX, ROBERTSON, AF/S FOR KRAFT, AF/RA FOR 
SWANN, INR/R/MR, NSC FOR JENDAYI FRAZER 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PHUM 
SUBJECT: MEDIA REPORT ZDERA; HARARE 
 
 
1.   The December 31 edition of the government- 
   controlled daily "Chronicle" characterized the signing 
   of the Zimbabwe Democracy and Economic Recovery Act 
   (ZDERA) of 2001 by President George Bush as "an open 
   declaration of war."  Under headline "A declaration of 
   war," the paper comments: 
 
2.   "The signing of the ZDERA by U.S. President, 
   George W. Bush is an open declaration of war.  The 
   protagonists are the Bush administration on the one 
   hand and the ZANU PF government on the other.  The 
   'grass' which usually suffers are Zimbabweans as 
   Americans are too far away from the 'front.'  War- 
   monger Bush has made many mistakes barely 100 days into 
   office, but affixing his signature to the Sanctions 
   Bill, crafted by racist pro-Rhodesians in the U.S. 
   Senate, is his worst and most unforgivable.  He has 
   shown Zimbabweans what to expect from the trigger-happy 
   White House in the days to come.  There is no doubt in 
   our minds that the Sanctions Bill is meant to cow the 
   government and ruling party into submission.  It is 
   meant to bring the government down so that a puppet, 
   who will dance to the Bush tune, will be installed. 
   The message to Bush and those misguided senators still 
   swimming in bigotry is - we will not be a banana 
   republic.  The Zimbabwe government. . .will not cringe. 
   Zimbabweans cannot be intimidate.  We now know the 
   enemy and we are more than prepared to hit them hard, 
   make no mistake about that." 
 
SULLIVAN