Zimbabwe sanctions: EU removes 35 people from ban list

BBC News, 15 February 2011

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The European Union has eased sanctions on Zimbabwe by removing 35 individuals from a list of people affected by visa bans and asset freezes.

The EU has had President Mugabe and dozens of
his close associates under sanctions since 2002

But sanctions on other people close to President Robert Mugabe were extended for another year as the EU expressed concern over political violence.

Officials in Mr Mugabe's party, Zanu-PF, said the move was neo-colonialist and did not go far enough.

Sanctions remain on 163 people and 31 firms linked to rights abuses.

EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said an EU review noted "significant progress" in addressing Zimbabwe's economic crisis and delivering basic services to citizens.

"However, economic and social developments have not been matched by equivalent progress on the political front," she said.

"In this context, I have to express my deep concerns at the upsurge in political violence seen in recent weeks," she added.

'Unacceptable'

The EU decision is significant, says the BBC's Southern Africa correspondent, Karen Allen. It indicates a strategy by European leaders to try to disarm Mr Mugabe of one of his most potent political weapons.

Mr Mugabe has blamed his country's economic woes on sanctions while his opponents claim these are the result of years of mismanagement.

Zanu-PF officials said the EU did not go far enough. Jonathan Moyo, a member of Zanu-PF's policy-making arm, described the move as an unacceptable neo-colonial gesture.

Since 2002, nearly 200 people who make up Mr Mugabe's inner circle - and the president himself - have faced visa bans and had their assets frozen by the EU. The 27-nation bloc claims these individuals have funded or supported violence and human rights violations within Zimbabwe.

The EU did not remove state-owned firms from its sanction list. Among those firms are defence and diamond companies, which the EU still believes are bankrolling Zanu-PF's campaigns to quash its opponents.