President Robert Mugabe
WORLD powers yesterday welcomed ousted former president Robert Mugabe’s abrupt departure late on Tuesday with overtures for assistance to the country, but urged the incoming administration to implement democratic reforms.
Mugabe relinquished power following a week of drama and suspense in which the army seized the national broadcaster, drove tankers to key institutions and sealed off his private mansion, as pressure mounted on the long time ruler to quit.
Statements by China, Britain and the United States of America came after Mugabe’s reign dramatically ended when he tendered his resignation to Parliament.
His resignation came as legislators gathered to impeach him in a rare bipartisan effort.
The military seized power after Mugabe sacked his deputy, Emmerson Mnangagwa, but maintained its loyalty to a man widely seen as a dictator in the west, but still considered a liberator by many in Africa.
Mngangagwa is due to be inaugurated as Mugabe’s successor on Friday.
China, one of only a few powers with strong diplomatic, economic and political ties with Zimbabwe, wished Mugabe well but emphasised the need to resolve problems internally.
“China respects Mr Mugabe’s decision to resign,” said Chinese foreign ministry spokesman, Lu Kang.
Kang acknowledged Mugabe’s “historic contribution to Zimbabwe’s independence and liberation”.
“He remains a good friend of the Chinese people,” Kang Lu told a daily press briefing in Beijing.
The US and Britain had called for free elections, but Kang said China would not interfere with Zimbabwe’s internal affairs. The Chinese had stood with Mugabe’s government during Western economic sanctions from 2000, with major Chinese firms investing in a range of industries including into diamond mines.
A Chinese firm said three months ago that it planned to invest $2 billion to revive operations of a major steel firm that collapsed in 2008.
In 2008, China vetoed a proposed UN resolution to impose an arms embargo on Zimbabwe.
In Harare, the United States embassy said Mugabe’s departure marked a “historical moment”.
It said the country’s new administration must push through reforms.
“We congratulate all Zimbabweans who raised their voices and stated peacefully and clearly that the time for change was overdue,” the embassy said.
“Zimbabwe has an historic opportunity to set itself on a new path. Through that process, the United States urges unwavering respect for the rule of law and for established democratic practices. Whatever short-term arrangements the government may establish, the path forward must lead to free, fair, and inclusive elections, in which the people of Zimbabwe are free to assemble peacefully without undue interference and to voice their opinions without fear, choose their own leaders,” it added.
The UK’s foreign affairs secretary Boris Johnson indicated that Zimbabwe could be invited back into the Commonwealth.
Zimbabwe was suspended from Commonwealth in 2002 after a presidential election which was widely viewed as being seriously flawed.
Johnson was responding to a question in the House of Commons.
“He (the Member of Parliament who posed the question) rightly sets out what I think would be a fine and noble aspiration, both for the Commonwealth and for Zimbabwe. But of course, I must caution him that several steps need to be gone through before that can happen. There must be free and fair elections next year, it then falls to Zimbabwe to apply to the Commonwealth Secretariat and then to make clear to the Commonwealth and to the world that Zimbabwe fulfils the criteria on human rights, on rule of law, on democracy..,” said Johnson.
“The immediate priority is to ensure that Zimbabwe has a legitimate government, appointed through free and fair elections in accordance with the constitution,” he added.
He spoke as Prime Minister Theresa May said Mugabe’s ouster gave Zimbabwe the chance “to forge a new path free of the oppression that characterised” Mugabe’s rule.
“In recent days, we have seen the desire of the Zimbabwean people for free and fair elections and the opportunity to rebuild the country’s economy under a legitimate government,” said May.
The African Union (AU) also welcomed Mugabe’s departure.
UK Prime Minister Theresa May
“The African Union welcomes the decision by President Mugabe to step down from his position as Head of State following a lifetime of service to the Zimbabwean nation,” said AU commission chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat.
“President Mugabe will be remembered as a fearless pan-Africanist liberation fighter, and the father of the independent Zimbabwean nation,” he said in a statement released late on Tuesday. “The African Union recognises that the Zimbabwean people have expressed their will that there should be a peaceful transfer of power in a manner that secures the democratic future of their country,” the statement said.
“President Mugabe’s decision to resign paves the way for a transition process, owned and led by the sovereign people of Zimbabwe.”
The European Union (EU) applauded Mugabe for “listening” to the people’s demands for him to retire but reiterated the importance of reviewing democratic deficiencies in the country, as it looked forward to a better future.
“The decision made by president Mugabe to stand down shows that he has listened to the people’s voices,” said the EU.
“An orderly and irreversible transition towards genuinely democratic elections is our shared objective. The consolidation of the constitutional order and respect for fundamental rights and freedoms are key. It is important now that an inclusive dialogue is established that respects the aspirations of the people of Zimbabwe for a more prosperous and democratic future, and which encourages the acceleration of key reforms. The EU stands ready to accompany this process in cooperation with the African Union and SADC, and to assist the Zimbabwean people with all instruments at its disposal in order to meet that objective,” added the statement.
SADC stands for the Southern African Development Community, a regional bloc in which Zimbabwe is a member.
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