HARARE
–
President
Emmerson
Mnangagwa’s
spokesman
George
Charamba
says
he
would
rather
Zimbabwe
quits
the
Commonwealth
forever,
even
as
the
ruling
Zanu
PF
party
has
been
lobbying
some
members
of
the
club
of
former
British
colonies
to
lift
the
country’s
suspension
in
place
since
2002.
Insisting
that
he
was
expressing
a
personal
opinion,
Charamba
said
the
Commonwealth
was
a
“needless
albatross,”
referring
to
demands
for
Zimbabwe
to
implement
democratic
reforms
in
order
to
qualify
for
membership.
“My
personal
view
has
always
warned
against
renewed
interest
in
the
Commonwealth.
It
offers
nothing
to
Zimbabwe
besides
needless
and
fastidious
strictures,”
Charamba
wrote
on
X.
Charamba
said
Zimbabwe
was
“fine
as
it
is”
without
the
Commonwealth
from
which
it
was
suspended
in
2002
over
rights
violations
and
violent
farm
seizures.
Then
President
Robert
Mugabe
withdrew
the
country
from
the
body
a
year
later
after
the
Commonwealth
refused
to
lift
the
suspension
unconditionally.
Mnangagwa,
who
replaced
Mugabe
in
a
military
coup
in
2017,
declared
rejoining
the
Commonwealth
one
of
his
priorities
while
projecting
himself
as
a
reformist,
but
he
has
steered
the
country
deeper
into
tyranny.
Representatives
of
56
countries,
most
with
roots
in
Britain’s
empire,
are
attending
the
Commonwealth
Heads
of
Government
Meeting
that
began
in
Samoa
on
Monday
and
ends
on
Saturday,
with
slavery
and
the
threat
of
climate
change
emerging
as
major
themes.
Zimbabwe’s
re-admission
is
not
on
the
agenda,
but
African
countries
are
expected
to
lobby
for
its
exile
to
be
lifted.
Zanu
PF
spokesman
Chris
Mutsvangwa
met
with
Canada’s
ambassador
Adler
Aristilde
this
week
and
declared
after
the
meeting:
“We
expressed
our
desire
to
rejoin
the
Commonwealth
and
our
expectation
is
an
influential Canada
in
the
Commonwealth
could
also
push
for
Zimbabwe’s
credentials
so
that
we
become
a
part
of
this
club
of
friends
which
historically means
a
lot
to
us.”
Manoah
Esipisu,
Kenya’s
High
Commissioner
to
London
for
six
years
until
May,
told
Politico:
“African
members
have
been
a
little
impatient
about
what
they
see
as
unnecessary
delays
in
this
process
(of
readmitting
Zimbabwe).”
Commonwealth
nations
are
still
awaiting
a
full
report
by
Commonwealth
observers
on
Zimbabwe’s 2023
general
election,
which
re-elected
president
Emmerson
Mnangagwa
amid
claims
of
vote
rigging
and
voter
intimidation.
Human
Rights
Watch
said
the
poll
was
“characterised
by
repression
of
civil
and
political
rights.”
The
report
will
be
crucial
in
deciding
Zimbabwe’s
fate.
Zimbabwe’s
readmission
must
be
backed
by
all
countries
for
it
to
sail
through.
A
Commonwealth
spokesman
said
“the
report
is
in
the
final
stages
of
publication
and
will
be
released
imminently,”
adding:
“We
confirm
that
all
necessary
procedures
have
been
followed.”
Stuart
Mole
of
the
Institute
of
Commonwealth
Studies
said
the
treatment
of
the
report
had
been
“scandalous
and
in
clear
violation”
of
guidelines,
as
the
requirement
to
publish
in
a
timely
way
had
been
“blatantly
ignored.”