US sanctions coordinator says they are not hurting ordinary Zimbabweans but admits he has not read the UN special rapporteur report which says they are

So it’s really an opportunity or it’s really a tool to try to influence the behavior of sanctioned individuals and encourage them to cease their malign activity.

So I’ll stop there. Ambassador O’Brien already mentioned that this program has evolved over the many years that it’s been in existence, but we do continue to review our sanctions designations, and as he noted, we recently removed 11 individuals from the program because we believe that they are no longer engaging in the types of activities that caused them to be sanctioned in the first place. And we’ll continue to review the Zimbabwe sanctions-related designations to keep them current and to make sure that they’re reflecting the current reality.

So I’ll stop there and turn it back to – I guess to Andrea for any questions that you might have.

MODERATOR: Thank you very much. We’ll now begin the question and answer portion of today’s call. So our first question is a pre-submitted question by Julian Pecquet from the Africa Report. And he asks, “Could you update us on the status of re-engagement between the U.S. and Zimbabwe and how sanctions fit into that? What does Harare need to do to see all sanctions removed?”

AMBASSADOR O’BRIEN: Yeah, and I think at some point one of my colleagues who works on African issues might want to address this. So this is Jim O’Brien again. What we’re asking is that the Zimbabwean Government take meaningful, noticeable, material actions that strengthen the democratic processes, build the institutions, and respect its constitution. We’d also like to see condemnation and prosecution of corrupt – for corruption and human rights abuses. Those are the things that will lead to people coming off the sanctions list, but they’re also the actions that make it much easier for a broader engagement.

So, as I mentioned at the beginning, the point of sanctions is to be a part of a broader policy, and the behaviors we want to see change are the ones that lead to sanctions, but they’re also the behaviors that impede the ability of the governments to coordinate well.

And I just want to call attention to one particular incident that matters to us here in Washington. There was an incident involving some staff from our U.S. Senate. These are public servants who are deeply committed to a stronger U.S. relationship to Africa, and so the idea that a group of thugs in some cars would try to intimidate visiting U.S. officials resonates incredibly poorly across Washington. Those are the acts of a government that doesn’t want to be engaged. They’re not the acts of a government that’s looking to improve its relationship with the United States, but also with the wider international community.

So things like that need to stop, but mostly we want to see changes in the behavior related to human rights abuses, antidemocratic behavior, and corruption.

MODERATOR: Thank you very much. We’ll now go to Pearl Matibe from Power FM 98.7. Pearl, you can unmute yourself and ask your question.

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