South African government relocates SADC summit to stop ED from kidnapping Chamisa activists – ZimEye

Reporter | Cape Town, 2 August 2024 – The Democratic Alliance (DA) has called on South Africa’s Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Ronald Lamola, to urgently request that the 44th Southern African Development Community Summit of Heads of State and Government, scheduled for August 17, 2024, be moved to Harare, Zimbabwe. The DA’s call follows widespread reports of a crackdown on pro-democracy activists by the ZANU-PF regime, with the support of the government.

In a press statement, the Democratic Alliance stressed that the ruling Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) party, fearing pre-summit protests, launched another crackdown on opposition and democracy activists. The crackdown reportedly included the detention of opposition politician Jameson Timba and 77 other activists. They were allegedly held in harsh conditions and arrested for participating in what the regime called “unauthorized political meetings” and repeatedly denied bail.

The DA’s statement also referred to a recent incident at Robert Mugabe International Airport where four pro-democracy activists were forcibly removed from a plane and charged with disorderly conduct for protesting against the prolonged detention of 77 opposition members who have been in pre-trial detention for more than six weeks.

The Democratic Alliance stressed that the founding treaty of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) requires member states to adhere to the principles of human rights, democracy and the rule of law. The party believes that ZANU-PF’s actions are a blatant violation of these principles, and allowing the summit to be held in Harare is actually an endorsement of ZANU-PF’s abuses and undermines SADC’s core values.

The Democratic Alliance said: “By abusing the machinery of the state to violate the rights of the Zimbabwean people, the intransigent ZANU-PF regime has shown that it is prepared to break the law at all costs to consolidate its dictatorship.” The party called on South Africa, as a leading member of the Southern African Development Community, to take a firm stand and advocate for the summit to be moved to a venue that upholds democratic values.

The DA also criticised Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s upcoming chairmanship of the Southern African Development Community, saying it was proof that regional leaders had failed to hold “political thugs” to account.

The Democratic Alliance finally stated that rescheduling the summit venue would send a clear message that South Africa and the Southern African Development Community would not tolerate the suppression of democratic freedoms in the region.

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