By Gift Mashoko
Netizens have castigated the move by United States of America (USA) President Donald Trump to extend sanctions against Zimbabwe by one year.
On Monday President Trump released an official statement to the effect that Zimbabwe’s new government policies continue to pose an ‘unusual and extraordinary’ threat to the US foreign policy.
On his Twitter handle, Political Analyst Jones Musara criticised the move by the US government.
Musara tweeted, “The reason given by the US government yesterday of maintaining the sanctions against Zimbabwe is that Zimbabwe is a threat to United States’ foreign policy.
“That means the sanctions against Zimbabwe by United States and the West at large are about advancing United States and West interests never about Zimbabwean interests.
“It has become increasingly clear that nothing short of ZANU PF removal from power and re-colonisation of Zimbabwe will ever please the West to remove their sanctions against Zimbabwe. Of which ZANU PF is there to stay and Zimbabwe will never be a colony again saka zvavharana,” he said.
Musara went on to say that, “If the real reason for Western sanctions against Zimbabwe was lack of democracy then they were supposed to sanction the MDC Alliance because that is the only pocket in Zimbabwe that has no democracy. But alas it is not about democracy. It is about advancing Western imperialism trying to install a puppet MDC Alliance Government that would collude in siphoning of resources from Zimbabwe.”
Musara said the sanctions are being placed upon Zimbabwe to teach other developing countries a lesson.
“Zimbabwe is being punished by the West through sanctions to discourage other developing countries from owning their natural resources. The land being the most precious natural resource where water, minerals, flora and fauna is,” he added.
American applied economist Professor Steve Hanke tweeted saying the sanctions on Zimbabwe are wrong, and they negatively affect Zimbabwe’s development.
“Zimbabwe is right to detest the West's sanctions. For nearly two decades, sanctions kept the Mugabe regime in power and hamstrung the Zimbabwean economy. Like all sanctions, sanctions on Zimbabwe are completely counterproductive,” Hanke said.
American physician, activist, and perennial candidate Dr. Jill Stein tweeted showing how bad sanctions are, sighting how they have negatively affected Venezuela.
“United States sanctions on Venezuela are blocking healthcare to desperately sick people, many of them children like Jesus Acosta. What's really sick: United States politicians screaming about aid to Venezuelans are actually holding them hostage with sanctions. Sanctions kill,” she said
These sanctions on Zimbabwe are negatively affecting the growth of the Zimbabwean economy, as the new dispensation is making frantic efforts to revive the economy following the introduction of economic stabilisation measures. The illegal sanctions have excluded Zimbabwe's economic efforts from all formal international markets.
The sanctions have directly led to industrial shutdown, blockade of credit lines and foreign direct investment and ushering untold suffering to the people of Zimbabwe. All this suffering because the MDC leadership went to the United States of America to ask for an extension and additional sanctions upon Zimbabwe.
