Zambian president: 'Block Chinese arms ship'

  1. Posted on Wednesday 23 April 2008 - 10:14
    AfricaNews editor
    Fidelis Zvomuya, AfricaNews reporter in Pretoria, South Africa
    Levy Mwanawasa, the President of Zambia who was the first to describe Zimbabwe as a sinking Titanic, has also become the first African head of state to call on all Southern Africa coastal countries not to dock the Chinese ship that is carrying arms destined for Zimbabwe.
    Levy Mwanawasa
    Zimbabwe's neighbours block the shipment of Chinese arms to prevent them from being used against Robert Mugabe's opponents. China said Tuesday the weapons might be returned home.

    Union, church and human rights leaders across southern Africa rallied against allowing the Chinese freighter An Yue Jiang to dock at ports in any of landlocked Zimbabwe's neighbours, and they were bolstered by behind-the-scenes pressure from the United States.

    Even though after declaring their confidence in the South African President, Thabo Mbeki’s mediation in the Zimbabwean crisis, Mwanawasa urged regional states to bar the An Yue Jiang ship carrying arms to Zimbabwe from entering their waters, saying the shipment could deepen the country's election crisis.

    Ship now heading for Angola

    The ship was turned away from South Africa and is heading for Angola in the hope of docking there, Mozambique's transport minister said on Saturday. Mozambique did not allow it to enter its waters. "I hope this will be the case with all the countries because we don't want a situation which will escalate the tension in Zimbabwe more than what it is," Mwanawasa said.

    The Chinese ship left South African waters on Friday after a court refused to allow the arms to be transported across South Africa. South Africa’s future president and ANC leader Jacob Zuma has also welcomed the developments not to allow the ship to dock on the regional harbours.

    The 300 000 strong South African Transport and Allied Workers Union (Satawu) refused to unload the weapons because of concerns Mugabe's government might use them against opponents in the post-election stalemate.

    Controversy

    For its part, China is trying to prevent the controversy from fuelling criticism over its human rights record and rule in Tibet ahead of hosting the Olympics in August. Violent protests have followed the Olympic torch across the globe.
    Zimbabwean church leaders said people were being tortured, abducted and murdered in a campaign of retribution against opposition supporters following the March 29 election, and urged international intervention.

    China insisted the shipment of mortar grenades, ammunition and other weapons was part of "normal military product trade between the two countries," according to Foreign Ministry spokesperson Jiang Yu said.

    The Southern Africa Litigation Centre, a South Africa-based human rights group, persuaded a judge to bar the weapons from transiting South Africa to reach Zimbabwe. The ship then sailed away from South Africa, and private groups and government officials in Mozambique, Angola and Namibia also objected to the weapons.

    The centre said they are still to establish the ship’s where about. Nicole Fritz, director of the centre, hoped that the regional countries were not changing policy but were responding to pressure from civic groups. But Zimbabwe’s justice minister, Patrick Chinamasa said Zmbabwe has the rights to import and buy weapons from legitimate sources.

    Keywords: zimbabwe_elections zambia south_africa angola

Reactions

  1. Posted on Thursday 24 April 2008 09:47
    Kalonji
    Image of Kalonji


    11 berichten
    Lid sinds March 2008

    Assisting Zimbabwes' turmoil by sending armaments yeah that's real positive China! The ship needs to return to China! Beware China plans to rule the world!