A brief window to mend relations with the West which opened when President took over the State House has been closed; Former United States deputy assistant secretary of state for African affairs, Todd Moss has said.
The current Zimbabwean regime has been trying to create a new relationship with the West than under Former President Robert Mugabe according to the expert.
“There is a long list of promises that the government was making both to the outside world but more importantly to Zimbabwean citizens and I think that certainly, the US was very sceptical that he (President Emmerson Mnangagwa) will deliver and I think that scepticism has gone out in that the results are terrible,” Moss said.
“If anything, Zimbabwe seems to be getting worse and that cuts across the economy, democracy, human rights and reconciliation for past things…”
US’s former deputy assistant secretary went on to say that Zimbabwe’s reform process has to have some real progress for the African country to mend relations with the West.
“Billboards promising health care, jobs and freedom of speech are one thing, but when you are locking the journalists, harassing the opposition and corruption has gotten worse… None of that (reforms) seems to be real,” he said.
“The way for Zimbabwe to repair it’s relationships at least with the West is to make those reforms real.”
Moss also said the civil society has to have a lot more space.
Zimbabwean officials have debated to the Western countries that the government is reforming.
But, Moss argues that the current reforms are not even close enough.
“If Zimbabwe was really changing, we would really expect to see a sort of a flood of Zimbabweans living in Johannesburg, London, New York coming back to Zimbabwe. If things were really changing and we’re not seeing that at all. If anything the outflow continues.”
