MEDIA REPORT WSSD; HARARE

UNCLAS HARARE 001998

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR AF/PD, AF/S, AF/RA
NSC FOR JENDAYI FRAZER
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E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL KPAO KMDR ZI
SUBJECT: MEDIA REPORT WSSD; HARARE


1. Under headline "West's concern on Zim baffling"
the government-controlled daily "The Herald" dedicated
its August 30 editorial to encouraging the West to
seek a face-to-face audience with the government of
Zimbabwe to discuss issues of concern. Excerpts:


2. "The so-called world leaders seem to have a lot
of concern for Zimbabwe to the extent that they want
to discuss the country at the on-going Earth Summit in
South Africa. While this concern seems commendable,
what is baffling most right thinking Zimbabweans is
that none of these international leaders want to
engage the country's leaders about what they perceive
to have gone wrong in Zimbabwe. . .? Ever since the
land issue became more pronounced, the Tony Blair
government has avoided Zimbabwe like the plague. The
American government has followed suit and made
pronouncements on Zimbabwe based on biased British
propaganda churned out by its paid local private
media. This is why a whole Assistant Secretary of
State of the U.S. can publicly lie that the food
shortages in Zimbabwe were by the ZANU PF government's
land reform exercise despite the fact that this was
caused by a severe drought that affected not only the
country, but the sub-region as a whole. . . The
Canadians have also fallen into the stupid trap. . .
The Australians will of course not be outdone and have
already fashioned charges of ethnic cleansing against
the Zimbabwean government.

"Even the Secretary-General of the UN, Mr. Kofi
Anan who we have always regarded as a reasonable
man, had to add his voice on Zimbabwe's
condemnation. . . He too was scared to be seen
in Zimbabwe lest the ZANU PF government would
open his eyes to the truth, which he would have
difficulty in dealing with to the satisfaction
of the super power nations. What is now evident
is that all these super power nations are so
afraid of little Zimbabwe that they would dare
not come and confront the ZANU PF government.
The government would certainly be too glad to
not only host them but discuss the alleged
abuses of human rights, the unfair dispossession
of whites of their land, the suppression of
Press freedom, the clampdown on the opposition,
among other allegations that take their fancy."

SULLIVAN