Posted on 07/03/2002 11:09:46 AM PDT by Clive
Tony Leon, South Africa’s opposition leader, says President Thabo Mbeki was failing to act against President Mugabe because he is overwhelmed by his reputation.
Leon, the leader of the Democratic Alliance (DA), said in Harare yesterday: “Mbeki fears his Zimbabwean counterpart and has not been able to take any meaningful steps in denouncing lawlessness and human rights abuses by him.
“Mugabe plays the role of being the senior man and Mbeki the junior. I think Mbeki fears Mugabe because he is the veteran leader in the region.
He fought a long struggle in the trenches and has credentials which make Mbeki feel very nervous about criticising him.”
Leon attacked Mbeki’s policy of criticising human rights violations in the Middle East where South Africa has no influence, while keeping quiet about abuses in neighbouringZimbabwe.
Accusing Jonathan Moyo, the Minister of State for Information and Publicity, of “spreadingfalsehoods”, Leon denied he was in Zimbabwe to “light fires”.
He blamed Zimbabwe’s economic meltdown on the unfavourable policies being pursued by Mugabe’s government.
Leon denied South Africa was imposing unofficial sanctions on Zimbabwe to put pressure on Mugabe’s government to restore the rule of law.
He said: “Mugabe is tightening the screws on himself. The only thing tightening screws on Mugabe is his policies.
“People want to trade with and invest in Zimbabwe, but because of the political situation, the devaluing dollar and what is happening on the parallel market, they cannot do so.” South Africa is Zimbabwe’s biggest trading partner.
Leon arrived on Sunday night to assess the situation in the country. He was accompanied by Dan Malakele, the party’s vice-chairman and an MP, and DA MPs Nick Clelland-Stokes and Andries Botha.
They met farmers, farm workers and human rights organisations before leaving yesterday.
Leon, commenting on the intended mass action by the MDC, warned Zimbabwe could slide into a civil war if tensions between Zanu PF and the opposition party were not eased.
He said: “If constitutional means to change bad governance do not work people look for unconstitutional means. The new South Africa came about as a result of mass action.”
But he refused to say whether the MDC’s intended mass action was worth pursuing. “I cannot comment on the MDC’s policies,” Leon said.
“It’s not even my business to comment on Mugabe’s policies, except that they are negatively affecting South Africa and the region as a whole.”
He said Zimbabwe’s criticism of the New Economic Partnership for African Development (Nepad), on the grounds that it was a vehicle for the re-colonisation of Africa showed a lack of trust in South Africa’s President Thabo Mbeki.
“That is a deeply unhelpful remark and shows a complete lack of faith in what Mbeki is trying to do. He has put both his regional and international reputation on the line over Nepad.”
He said for Nepad to work, there was need for sound economic policies and human rights to be observed throughout the continent. Zimbabwe’s negative policies were bound to affect Nepad’s success, he said.
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