Rice said it was long past time for Mugabe to go

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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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)