Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) officers beat one of the protesting Movement For Democratic Change (MDC) supporters outside the party headquarters in Harare, Zimbabwe, 20 November 2019.
Credit: AARON UFUMELI/EPA-EFE/REX
Britain has today slapped sanctions on four Zimbabwean security chiefs said to be behind gross human rights violations, The Telegraph can reveal.
The Harare regime’s state security minister, intelligence director, police chief and leader of the Presidential Guard have been sanctioned for their alleged role in the deaths of 23 Zimbabwean protesters killed for expressing the right to free speech and demonstration.
A travel ban and asset freeze has been levied on the four men this morning, meaning they can no longer travel freely to the UK nor channel money through Britain’s banks or economy.
They are held responsible by the UK Government for the worst human rights violations against the people of Zimbabwe since President Emmerson Mnangagwa took power in November 2017.
His regime has overseen a state-sponsored crackdown against protests, including in January 2019 which resulted in the deaths of 17 Zimbabweans, as well as post-election violence in August 2018 in which six protesters lost their lives.
Dominic Raab, the Foreign Secretary, said: “These sanctions send a clear message that we will hold to account those responsible for the most egregious human rights violations, including the deaths of innocent Zimbabweans.”
Stressing that the sanctions are targeted at senior individuals in the Government, and not ordinary Zimbabweans, he added: “We will continue to press for the necessary political and economic reforms that will benefit all Zimbabweans.”
The four men sanctioned are Owen Ncube, Zimbabwe’s minister for state security; Isaac Moyo, director general of the Central Intelligence Organisation; Godwin Matanga, commissioner general of the Zimbabwe Republic Police; and Anselem Sanyatwe, commander of the Presidential Guard and Tactical Commander of the National Reaction Force.
They are the first individuals from the nation to be designated under the UK’s new autonomous Zimbabwe sanctions regime following Britain’s departure from the EU.
This came into effect on December 31 when the Brexit transition period came to an end, and comprises trade restrictions on military goods and items that could be used for internal repression, as well as travel bans and asset freezes.
The first raft of designations today is part of a UK push to hold the Harare regime to account and follow through on its pledge to deliver reforms.
Britain is demanding the Mnangagwa regime respect democratic principles and institutions, stop the repression of civil society, and comply with international human rights law, according to the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.
The FCDO said: “We will continue to support the Zimbabwean people through our aid programme, focusing on tackling poverty, humanitarian assistance, standing up for human rights and supporting Zimbabwe’s recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. None of this aid goes directly through Government or Zimbabwe systems.”
British diplomats dismiss claims that targeted sanctions will deter investment in the economically crumbling African state, arguing that UK investors repeatedly highlight that it is Zimbabwe’s poorly-managed currency and arbitrary property rights and legal system that discourage the inward flow of cash.
The Motlanthe Commission, which was led by former South African president Kgalema Motlanthe and included a British human rights barrister and a former Commonwealth secretary-general, found that the Zimbabwean security services were responsible for 6 deaths and 35 injuries during the 1 August 2018 protests.
The report also concluded that the use of live ammunition on civilians was “clearly unjustified and disproportionate”.
A report by the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission on the January 2019 fuel protests found that law enforcement agents seemed to “resort to use of brute, excessive and disproportionate force in most circumstances thereby causing avoidable loss of life and also worsening the situation”.
This resulted in the deaths of 17 people, the report found.
A report by Human Rights Watch, the international non-governmental organisation, meanwhile detailed allegations of rape and indiscriminate door-to-door raids by the Zimbabwean security services.
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