MEDIA REACTION WAR WITH IRAQ; HARARE

UNCLAS HARARE 000683 SIPDIS DEPT FOR AF/PDPA FOR DALTON, MITCHELL AND SIMS IRAQ PD FOR SMITH, PINESS AND ROOKARD NSC FOR JENDAYI FRAZER LONDON FOR GURNEY PARIS FOR NEARY NAIROBI FOR PFLAUMER E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: IZ PREL KPAO KMDR ZI SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION WAR WITH IRAQ; HARARE ¶1. The war to disarm Iraq remains a popular topic for op- eds in the mainstream media. Excerpts follow: ¶2. Under headline "United States pursuing hidden commercial agenda in Iraq" the April 7 edition of the government-controlled daily "The Herald" carried the following op-ed by Munyaradzi Mugowo on page 8: "The unilateral decision by the U.S. to attack Iraq without the U.N. mandate has sparked worldwide anti- war protests and a continuing international debate on the possible implications of the bully, imperious nature of the U.S. . Kofi Annan seems to be concerned more with U.N. humanitarian interventions in Iraq [and] the rights of the prisoners of war as provided for by the Geneva Convention, than with ending U.S. aggression in the interest of world peace and security. Allegations of terrorism and human rights violations are always made in geo- settings where the U.S. and Britain have vested commercial interests, especially in circumstances where politico-military aggression appears to be the only conceivable compensation for foreign policy failure. As a result, a common thread ties the U.S. witch-hunting escapades tenaciously with regimes opposed to both unipolar international relations and U.S. militeralism. . ." ¶3. Under headline "DRC and Iraq wars linked: U.S., UK seek to re-colonize African and Gulf states, the April 6 edition of the government-controlled weekly "The Sunday Mail" carried the following opinion piece by Tafataona Mahoso. Excerpts: ". . .The U.S. and the UK supported the aggression against the DRC and the U.S. and the UK are re- colonizing Iraq. The re-colonizing of Iraq because it is rich in petroleum means that we have not yet seen the end of the imperialist struggle to re- colonize the DRC for its strategic minerals. The peace accord is only a short break; and the African countries supporting the U.S.-UK aggression against Iraq may be used both to divide the African Union and to endorse U.S.-UK efforts to re-colonize Africa. . . The first step Pan-Africanists would expect from African leaders is a clear condemnation of the barbarism we are witnessing in Iraq. The second step would be a wake-up call to the people of Africa, showing that African leaders understand that the Anglo-American unipolar world is not about democracy, human rights, transparency, good governance and rule of law. Rather it is a world of greed, lies and genocide." SULLIVAN