United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said it was long past time for President Robert Mugabe to go.
She said this in her talking points in preparation for United Nations Security Council consultations on Zimbabwe that were to be held four days later.
“Across the continent, African voices are bravely speaking out to say it is time for him to step down. These leaders share the desire of ordinary Zimbabweans for a return to peace, democracy and prosperity.
“We urge others from the region to step up and join the growing chorus of voices calling for an end to Mugabe’s tyranny,” Rice said.
Rice said it was clear that the Mugabe regime had failed to act in good faith to implement the September 15 agreement and accept the will of the people as reflected in the March elections.
The regime -through both direct action and neglect- had decimated the country and set it back a generation or more.
Full cable:
Viewing cable 08STATE130459, GUIDANCE FOR DECEMBER 15 UNSC CONSULTATIONS ON
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Reference ID |
Created |
Classification |
Origin |
VZCZCXRO4203
OO RUEHBZ RUEHDU RUEHJO RUEHMR RUEHRN
DE RUEHC #0459/01 3462307
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O P 112259Z DEC 08
FM SECSTATE WASHDC
TO RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK IMMEDIATE 4126
INFO SOUTHERN AF DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHSB/AMEMBASSY HARARE PRIORITY 3234
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 STATE 130459
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: UNSC PREL PHUM ZI XA ZU KDEM
SUBJECT: GUIDANCE FOR DECEMBER 15 UNSC CONSULTATIONS ON
ZIMBABWE
¶1. (U) This is an action request. USUN should draw from
the talking points in para 2 during the UN Security Council
consultations on Zimbabwe December 15. USUN should also
address the press after the UNSC briefing to summarize the
key points from the U.S. statement.
¶2. (U) Begin points:
On behalf of the United States, I would like to thank
(Assistant Secretary General Political Affairs Haile
Menkerios) for his briefings. Today I would like to make
five points.
First, it is long past time for Robert Mugabe to go. Across
the continent, African voices are bravely speaking out to say
it is time for him to step down. These leaders share the
desire of ordinary Zimbabweans for a return to peace,
democracy and prosperity. We urge others from the region to
step up and join the growing chorus of voices calling for an
end to Mugabe,s tyranny.
Second, we urge the international community to re-double its
efforts to provide resources to address the humanitarian
crisis in Zimbabwe. The people of Zimbabwe are suffering
terribly. Cholera deaths are on the rise. People are dying
in their homes, as hospitals are closed and no medicine is
available. The situation in Zimbabwe has become a threat to
the health and security of other people in the region.
At least four million people in Zimbabwe are food insecure,
dependent on foreign assistance food to get by; that figure
could rise to five million by January. Life expectancy in
Zimbabwe has dropped to 34 years.
We look forward to the proposed visit by the UN Under
Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs to Zimbabwe to
focus attention on the crisis and develop plans for
additional assistance.
Third, we are deeply concerned with the increase of human
rights abuses committed by the Mugabe regime. At least 19
Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) activists have been
abducted. Some are believed dead and the whereabouts of the
others remain unknown. Police and military forces continue
to violently break up peaceful demonstrations in recent
months.
Fourth, Zimbabwe,s Central Bank has fueled hyperinflation by
uncontrollable printing of money and decimating the economy
in the process. Virtually all industry has been wiped out,
and little or no agricultural planting is taking place.
Millions of Zimbabweans have left the country in a desperate
attempt to survive and to support their families.
Additionally, we encourage participants in the Kimberly
Process Certification Scheme to redouble their efforts to
intercept illicit diamond shipments from Zimbabwe, the
proceeds of which may contribute to the heightening political
turmoil and humanitarian crisis.
Fifth, it is clear the Mugabe regime has failed to act in
good faith to implement the September 15 agreement and accept
the will of the people as reflected in the March elections.
The regime – through both direct action and neglect – has
decimated the country and set it back a generation or more.
It is deplorable the Mugabe regime failed to allow the visit
of the respected members of the Elders Group. Refusal of the
visit is indicative of the lengths to which the regime will
go to prevent the international community from documenting
abuses, corruption and mismanagement.
The international community, including African nations, has
expressed grave concern over the humanitarian situation, and
has criticized the Mugabe regime for failing to negotiate
with the opposition in good faith. We hope others will speak
up and work toward a resolution of the political impasse, and
humanitarian crisis, and the investigation of human rights
abuses in Zimbabwe.
We appreciate regional negotiations to resolve this crisis.
However, the U.S. believes this approach has failed not for
want of effort on the part of Southern African Development
Community (SADC), but lack of good faith and obfuscation by
Mugabe. We call on the SADC and the African Union to
increase their efforts to address the humanitarian and
STATE 00130459 002 OF 002
political crisis in Zimbabwe, and support an increased role
of the UNSC to help resolve the crisis.
The United States will continue to work with our partners
around the world to halt the violence and stem the
humanitarian disaster the Mugabe regime is inflicting on its
people. We stand ready to help rebuild Zimbabwe once a
legitimate government accountable to the will of its people
has been formed and is working to restore peace and stability
to Zimbabweans.
RICE
(14 VIEWS)
