Letter to Condoleezza Rice, Re: Deepening Crisis in Zimbabwe

Letter

The Honorable Condoleezza Rice
Secretary of State
Department of State
2201 C Street NW
Washington, DC 20520
Dear Madam Secretary:

We are profoundly concerned about the deepening crisis in Zimbabwe. In light of escalating political repression and economic deterioration, we believe it is vital that all available influence be applied to encourage the government in Harare to change course.

While we appreciate that the United States and other western states have a limited ability to influence the government of Zimbabwe, the African Union (AU) is one regional authority that has not only the ability, but also the mandate, to engage with the Mugabe government. While we recognize the multiplicity of issues with which the AU Commission is dealing with at this time, including Sudan and Somalia, we urge you to encourage the Commission leadership to take a more active and insistent position with regards to Zimbabwe to help resolve the current crisis before it gets worse.

As you are undoubtedly aware, Zimbabwe has failed to live up to its international commitments. The country has pledged to uphold the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other instruments that promote and protect the rights and dignity of its citizens. Perhaps more significantly, Zimbabwe is also a signatory of the Constitutive Act of the African Union, whose Article 4 sets out the principles on which African unity and cooperation are founded, including: respect for democratic principles, human rights, the rule of lawand good governance;promotionof socialjustice;and condemnationof impunity and politically motivated violence.

On all these counts, Zimbabwe is in grave breach of its responsibilities to its citizens.

Official impunity has denied justice to tens of thousands of people publicly beaten, tortured in detention and incarcerated without due process under the Mugabe regime. The 'balanced economic development' described in Article 4 as the fruit of social justice is nowhere to be seen: the economy is in freefall, and an official inflation rate of more than 8,000 percent has led to massive unemployment and widespread hunger. Reportedly, up to one third of the population has fled the country, creating refugee crises in neighboring states.

Additionally, Articles 9, 10 and 11 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights guarantee African citizens the right to receive information and express their opinions openly, to join organizations and to assemble freely with others. Again, Zimbabwe has violated these provisions and the principles they represent by repeatedly shutting down independent sources of information and banning political organizations from organizing meetings and rallies.

In December 2006, nearly one year ago, the African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights decried the "continuing human rights violations and the deterioration of the human rights situation in Zimbabwe, the lack of respect for the rule of law and the growing culture of impunity" there and called for a number of laws, including the Broadcasting Services Act, to be repealed and freedom of expression respected. Unfortunately, while the situation has continued to deteriorate, there has been no follow-up and none of the report's recommendations have been implemented.

As you know, the AU Chairman John Kufuor spoke of Africa's embarrassment about what was happening in Zimbabwe not long after the current wave of repression began last March, echoing an earlier call by AU Commission Chairman Alpha Konare for "scrupulous respect for human rights and democratic principles in Zimbabwe." Such expressions of concern are very welcome and demonstrate that leading members of the African Union recognize the problem. We regret, however, that there has been no coordinated effort to hold Zimbabwe to account over its abuse of the AU's own principles and standards.

We urge you to repeatedly and urgently convey the need for the African Union to demonstrate consistent commitment to its own fundamental norms. In particular, the AU should dispatch the African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights in Banjul to conduct a mission to Zimbabwe, as provided for in Article 58 of the African Charter, to investigate and report on the current situation and allow members of the AU to decide what actions must be taken to restore peace, justice and security in Zimbabwe.

We appreciate that the United States has maintained a strong message to President Mugabe's government, calling for the immediate restoration of the rule of law and respect for human rights. As you know, former U.S. Ambassador to Zimbabwe Christopher Dell was active on behalf of human rights defenders and opposition members targeted for tQrtureand abuse, and his successor, Joseph McGee, has a strong record of advocating governance reforms in Swaziland and Madagascar. We also welcome the announcement of new U.S. financial and travel restrictions on key human rights abusers.

These efforts are important, but pressure from the African Union would be much more influential in affecting reform in Zimbabwe. We hope you will strengthen this strong U.S. stance by pressing the African Union - and its individual members-- to uphold its own standards and demand accountability from the Zimbabwean government.

Sincerely,

Senator Russell D. Feingold
United States Senator

Senator Joseph R. Biden, Jr.
United States Senator

Senator Christopher Dodd
United States Senator

Senator Richard J. Durbin
United States Senator

Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton
United States Senator

CC: Assistant Secretary Jendayi Frazer

Ambassador Cindy Courville

Senator Sam Brownback
United States Senator

Senator John Kerry
United States Senator

Senator Barack Obama
United States Senator

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