Zimbabwe (Hansard, 7 April 2003)

§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Baroness Amos)
My Lords, Zimbabwe's neighbours, the European Union, the United States and others have voiced their concern about the violence and human rights abuses in Zimbabwe which followed a successful "stayaway" organised by the opposition on 18th and 19th March. We welcome the Southern African Development Community's decision to send a task force to Zimbabwe later this week to investigate the continuing human rights abuses and state repression. Its discussions will include a cross-section of civil society as well as the main political parties.

§ Lord Watson of Richmond
My Lords, I am grateful to the noble Baroness for that reply. Given the continuing and rapidly worsening situation of human rights abuses in Zimbabwe and the arrest of the leader of the opposition, does she agree that many people in this country will be deeply shocked and offended that Mr Mugabe bears an honorary knighthood from this country? Albeit that the honour is symbolic, will she 7 not consider therefore that it now be removed as a matter of some real urgency? It is an honour that has been dishonoured.

§ Baroness Amos
My Lords, the noble Lord has raised the issue with me before. As the House knows, the honour was conferred during a state visit in 1994. Withdrawing it now is not our immediate priority. We are concentrating instead on feeding Zimbabwe's hungry and, with our European Union, Commonwealth and US partners, doing all we can to encourage a return to good governance, including a respect for human rights and the rule of law. We may well revisit the question in the future, but I have to tell the noble Lord that there are other priorities at the moment.

§ Lord Howell of Guildford
My Lords, is the question at this stage not one of giving some hope to the brave people of Zimbabwe that their nightmare is going to end? Did several of us not raise the question of the knighthood for Mugabe and the need to remove it? Why is it not a priority now? It should be. Should there not also be a priority to get a resolution through the United Nations, toughen the EU sanctions, and urge SADC, in addition to its mission, to be far more firm in its total approach to Zimbabwe? By not making those a priority, are we not demonstrating that we are not giving enough effort and care to looking after and helping the people of Zimbabwe in every possible way?

§ Baroness Amos
My Lords, the noble Lord has confused a number of different issues. If the nightmare for the people of Zimbabwe is going to end, what we need to see is a return to the rule of law, and an ending of the political violence and harassment that we have seen. As said by the noble Lord, Lord Watson, the honour is symbolic. It cannot be a priority at the moment in terms of the day-to-day issues that confront the people of Zimbabwe and that have been raised in the House on a number of occasions.
The noble Lord, Lord Howell, asked me about taking resolutions before the United Nations. As he knows, a draft resolution from the European Union on human rights in Zimbabwe is coming before the Commission on Human Rights. There will be a discussion this afternoon of the humanitarian situation in southern Africa in the UN Security Council, and James Morris, the director of the World Food Programme, will address it on that matter.
With respect to the wider issue of international peace and security, which we would like to see considered by the UN Security Council, I have to say what I have said before, which is that there no consensus on the matter. We continue to discuss it with our partners and allies, but at the moment there is no consensus in the UN Security Council for such a resolution. I know that noble Lords do not want to hear that.

Lord Acton
My Lords, my noble friend is quite right in saying that feeding the hungry in Zimbabwe should 8 indeed be a priority. Is she aware that, as a result of the destruction of the commercial farming sector in Zimbabwe, and of the poor rains, especially in Matabeleland and Masvingo, the number of people at risk from lack of food—it is currently 7.2 million—is assessed by independent observers as likely to be 10 million by Christmas? Will the Government continue so generously to provide the funds necessary to support the needy in Zimbabwe as the numbers increase?

§ Baroness Amos
My Lords, we are currently feeding some 1.5 million vulnerable Zimbabweans per day, including children, pregnant women and the elderly. We continue to have a programme looking at HIV/AIDS in Zimbabwe, which has one of the highest infection rates on the continent. As my noble friend will be aware, we have contributed some £51 million to the humanitarian crisis since September 2001. Those are the priorities—dealing with the vulnerable, the hungry and those infected with HIV/AIDS, and restoring the rule of law.

§ The Lord Bishop of Southwark
My Lords, is the noble Baroness aware that Dr Sebastian Bakare, the bishop of the Anglican diocese of Manicaland and the chair of the Zimbabwe Council of Churches, recently said that he felt horrified to live in a community where people could not engage in development programmes for fear of being arrested under the draconian Public Order and Security Act? Are the Government seeking to use their influence to work towards the repeal of that Act?

§ Baroness Amos
My Lords, indeed we are seeking to do so. Members of the Southern African Development Community will be in Zimbabwe later this week and will look at the allegations of human rights abuses and the harassment of the opposition. I discussed those issues in South Africa last week with members of the South African Government.

§ Lord Avebury
My Lords, is the noble Baroness aware that the Inter-Parliamentary Union council meeting in Santiago in Chile, which is taking place at the moment, will be considering a new report on the arrest and torture of eight different MDC MPs, including, as my noble friend said, the leader of the opposition? As she has on previous occasions, will she write personally to her opposite numbers in all the Commonwealth states, drawing their attention to any resolution passed by the IPU council?

§ Baroness Amos
My Lords, I would happily do that.

§ Baroness Park of Monmouth
My Lords—

§ Lord Hughes of Woodside
My Lords—

Noble Lords
Park!

§ Baroness Park of Monmouth
My Lords, will the noble Baroness tell the House, if it is at all possible to do so—

§ Lord Hughes of Woodside
My Lords—

§ The Lord Privy Seal (Lord Williams of Mostyn)
My Lords, it is the turn of the noble Baroness, Lady Park.

§ Baroness Park of Monmouth
My Lords, perhaps I may say to the Minister how very glad I am to hear that James Morris will be active in the matter. He will make a very important contribution. Can she give us any further detail on the nature of what she described as the task force? Will it be heads of state or specialists in humanitarian aid? Above all, will it travel outside Harare?

§ Baroness Amos
My Lords, the task force is of Foreign Ministers. I do not know the extent to which there will be advisers to them. My understanding is that they will talk to a wide cross-section of society. I am unable to tell the noble Baroness whether that includes trips outside Harare, but I will do my best to find out and write to her.

§ Lord Hughes of Woodside
My Lords, are we really expected to believe that President Mugabe, who has described himself as being a Hitler and would be 10 times a Hitler to get his own way, will be moved by the threat from this country of removal of an honorary knighthood? Do we really think that the people starving and facing grave torture in Zimbabwe are likely to be moved by the plea to remove the honour? Are they not more likely to ask whether that is the best that we can do? Would it not be better to support the Government in what they are doing?

§ Baroness Amos
My Lords, I can only agree with my noble friend.

§ Lord Williams of Mostyn
My Lords, we are well past time now. We should move on to the next Question.