MEDIA REPORT KUDOS TO AFRICA; HARARE

UNCLAS HARARE 000974 SIPDIS AF/PD FOR COX AND ROBERTSON, AF/S FOR KRAFT AND SCHLACHTER, AF/RA FOR SWANN, INR/R/MR, NSC FOR JENDAYI FRAZER E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ZI PREL PHUM SUBJECT: MEDIA REPORT KUDOS TO AFRICA; HARARE ¶1. Under headline "Don't abuse UN" the government-controlled weekly "The Sunday News" dedicated its April 21 editorial to hailing African countries for blocking a call for an investigation into alleged human rights violations in Zimbabwe during a United Nations human rights forum in Geneva, Switzerland last week. The same editorial also characterized the U.S. human rights record as "deplorable." Excerpts: ¶2. "Human rights are not white man's preserve. This is the strong message that came across on Friday when the United Nations Human Rights Commission humiliated Britain and the European Union (EU). The EU concocted ridiculous allegations against Zimbabwe, claiming that the government has grossly violated human rights in the country and should be investigated by UN experts. But in an extraordinary feat of diplomacy, Nigeria led African, Asian and Middle Eastern countries in the 53- member Commission to successfully oppose the EU's mischievous campaign. "The West's own human rights record is deplorable. America has a deplorable record in Angola. . .Iraq, Afghanistan and Latin America. A few years ago, the U.S. military bombed a pharmaceutical factory in Sudan after making unfounded allegations that it was a chemical weapons plant. Although there is overwhelming evidence that Washington was wrong. . .no apologies have been forthcoming. Surely, this makes the U.S. a rogue state. Western countries are not qualified to lecture developing countries like Zimbabwe on so-called human rights. With this crucial diplomatic victory developing countries have reminded the West that political bullying of the colonial type is unacceptable." WHITEHEAD