EU tightens noose on Mugabe's regime

EU tightens noose on Mugabe's regime

Mugabe

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By Agencies
18/02/04
THE European Union has twisted the knife on President Robert Mugabe's regime by renewing targetted sanctions imposed against Zimbabwe for a third year.

The widely expected roll-over of the sanctions is designed to crank-up the pressure on the increasingly isolated regime of President Mugabe.

Ambassadors from the 15 EU member states agreed at weekly talks to adopt an extended list of 95 Zimbabwean officials -- including Mugabe -- who are banned from entering EU countries, sources said.

New Zimbabwe.com has not seen the list, but sources say it includes the chairman of the Media and Information Commission Tafataona Mahoso and Registrar General Tobaiwa Mudede among others.

The EU ministers also agreed to renew an embargo on supplies of arms and military equipment to Harare, a diplomat from the EU's Irish presidency said.

The decision will be formally adopted without debate by EU interior ministers on Thursday, he said.

Britain -- Zimbabwe's former colonial ruler -- led the drive to impose the sanctions in 2002 to punish human-rights abuses and ballot fraud after Mugabe retained his grip on power in a controversial election victory.

The previous version of the EU visa blacklist comprised 89 names but was enlarged after Mugabe on February 9 conducted his first re-shuffle of a "war cabinet" he appointed in August 2002.

The EU visa ban imposes travel restrictions on top government and ruling party officials, as well as freezing their assets. The United States has imposed a similar ban - AFP
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