Dentons, the worldβs biggest law firm, writes: βon 4 March 2024, the U.S. President removed the entire Zimbabwe Sanctions Programβ. This means all sanctions on Zimbabwe β its government, parastatals, and citizens β were removed by the U.S. government on that date, opening up banking payments, loans, export channels, duty-free export access into the EU, the right to import technology & software, and restoring corresponding banking relationships.
This has allowed direct payments from the diaspora into Zimbabwean bank accounts, the importation of machinery & technology such as Starlink, and medical equipment, hence Parirenyatwa has repaired its radiotherapy machines through U.S. companies for cancer treatment. Companies like Edgars and David Whitehead have also retooled, contributing to Zimbabweβs growth of 6.5% this year and 8.9% next year.
To save face, the U.S. imposed NEW sanctions under the Global Magnitsky Act on eight people and three companies. These were NEW sanctions, not continuations of the former or removed ones. The problem with these sanctions is that they target individuals and not civilians; hence, they are difficult to fight through activism. These require legal cases by those affected.
If we are honest, the sanctions remaining on the President, the First Lady, Vice President, Minister of Defence, Kuda Tagwirei, Obey Chimuka, Zimbabweβs only billionairess Sandra Mupunga, Fossil Agro, Fossil Contracting, and Sakunda suggest that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and various political lobby groups created during Minister Shavaβs administration failed at re-engagement, despite receiving huge resources from government.
Meanwhile, civil society pressure and lobbying under organizations like ZASM succeeded in pushing for the removal of sanctions on civilians and the government through legal court challenges, getting the UN to denounce sanctions on Zimbabwe, and convincing the U.S. Congress to undertake an impact assessment of their sanctions β which yielded a report in which the same Congress that called for sanctions, asked for their removal, acknowledging that they were hurting civilians.
These are hard facts to swallow, but itβs cause and effect. The sanctions on civilians, government, and banks, which civil society fought through courts, lobbying, multilateralism, and civic activities, are gone. Meanwhile, new sanctions were imposed on politicians after political lobbying through re-engagement.
Why is this? Because when smaller countries fight politically with bigger powers, brinkmanship dictates that the superpower must win to save face. However, a legal fight between a small nation and a superpower creates parity and equality between the parties, and under those conditions, the weaker party can overcome the stronger one.
This is why since the formation of ZUAUWS (Zimbabweans Unite Against US War Sanctions) and ZASM (Zimbabwe Anti Sanctions Movement), we depoliticized sanctions and chose to make them a legal fight (based on human rights and international law) and one fought through multilateral institutions, to level the playing-field with the superpower west.
It is for this reason that the Americans are fighting to force South Africa to withdraw its case against Israel, because they know that the rulings against Israel diminish its political standing in the world and elevate South Africaβs as a moral authority. And I must say, the South Africans learned a lot from our own fight against the Americans in their courts.
Moral of the story: Magnitsky sanctions would be removed more easily if the individuals under those sanctions took legal action, because these sanctions amount to punishment without trial.
I must conclude by saying that the prevailing anti-sanctions campaign against Magnitsky sanctions sends a confusing message to investors and corresponding banks wanting to return to Zimbabwe. They hear that sanctions on Zimbabwe are gone, only to be confused when they see Zimbabweans still marching against sanctions.
Itβs like we are self-sabotaging. We need to be clearer that executive order sanctions were removed, but we are now fighting illegal Magnitsky sanctions that were levied on our President and his most important ministers and advisors.
Written by Rutendo Matinyarare, the Chairman of ZASM.
