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Grace Mugabe seen at the funeral of Sarah Mahoka in Karoi on February 21, 2022 . [Photo: Twitter /@gama_stanley]
The Zimbabwean government has welcomed the decision of the European Union (EU) to lift travel and financial sanctions imposed on Vice-President Constantino Chiwenga, former First Lady Grace Mugabe and military chief Valerio Sibanda.
The EU took the decision despite acknowledging that Zimbabwe’s human rights record had not improved and could worsen.
The sanctions were first imposed on the four 20 years ago, but were suspended two years ago. They have now been completely removed.
Sanctions against Zimbabwe’s defence industry remain in place.
Zimbabwean government spokesman Nick Mangwana told the BBC that the decision was a positive signal and reflected the incremental gains of re-engagement with the EU.
The government would continue pushing for all sanctions to be removed unconditionally, he added.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa has been trying to improve relations with Western nations since ousting long-serving ruler Robert Mugabe in 2017.
The Mugabe-led government had a massive fall-out with the EU after it seized white-owned farms, and launched a crackdown on the opposition.
Decl. of @JosepBorrellF on behalf of the EU on #Zimbabwe.
The situation in terms of respect for human rights hasn’t improved & the EU has decided to renew its restrictive measures.
Political dialogue is key to pave the way for progress in 🇪🇺🇿🇼 relations.https://t.co/Ml7rkObpjZ
— EU Council Press (@EUCouncilPress) February 21, 2022
The European Union has lifted the last individual sanctions on Zimbabwean officials imposed since 2002, but arms embargo to stay. ZDF commander PV Sibanda, VP Chiwenga and former first lady Grace Mugabe were the last on the sanctions. EU chides Zim on human rights and impunity pic.twitter.com/N4jkKUAp9B
— ZimLive (@zimlive) February 21, 2022
Loyalty to the end. Happening now:Former First Lady Grace Mugabe is attending the funeral of her close ally Sarah Mahoka. Grace has rarely been seen in public since her husband President Robert Mugabe died in 2019. Mahoka died in a car accident last week.@ProfJNMoyo @TembaMliswa pic.twitter.com/zk8WmvWPW0
— Stanley Gama (@gama_stanley) February 21, 2022
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