South African President Jacob Zuma pressed Britain on Thursday to
loosen European sanctions on Zimbabwe, which he claimed are restricting
the effectiveness of that country's power-sharing government.
Zuma, talking with Prime Minister Gordon Brown on the second day of a three-day state visit to Britain, pushed the U.K. to ease travel restrictions for members of Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe's Zanu-PF party.
Some Mugabe loyalists, including members of Zimbabwe's unity government, are unable to travel to Europe and the U.S. under the measures.
"Some ministers are able to travel all over the world, others are not. Clearly, there is no equality in that type of situation," Zuma told reporters after his talks with Brown.
Power sharing between longtime rivals Mugabe and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai has remained tense since their coalition was formed last year. Hundreds of thousands of Zimbabweans have fled the country's collapsed economy to seek work in South Africa - an influx that has caused tensions.
Brown said sanctions against members of the former Mugabe regime could be reviewed, but only after progress is made on addressing the West's concerns over human rights, governance and media freedom in Zimbabwe.
"The sanctions that the European Union has in place do not target Zimbabwe, or Zimbabweans - they target individuals who are responsible for violence and a number of businesses linked to them," Brown said.
British officials rejected Zuma's claim that the travel bans hurt Zimbabwe's unity government, pointing out that ministers can apply for waivers for visits connected to government business. Some Zanu-PF party ministers were granted permission to visit Britain last year with Tsvangirai when he conducted a three-week tour of Europe and the U.S.
Brown indicated Europe won't consider any loosening of sanctions without proof that Zimbabwe is addressing international concerns.
"We will respond to other progress as it is made," he said. "We must see movement from what is a unity, transitional government, to free and fair elections and there can be no excuses for delay."
Zimbabwe's voting rights at the International Monetary Fund were recently restored and the EU lifted sanctions against some businesses linked to Zanu-PF figures.
During the talks, Britain also pledged to support efforts to establish a permanent African representative on the U.N. Security Council - though Brown did not indicate whether the U.K. would support South Africa, Egypt, Nigeria or a regional bloc taking on the role.
Zuma and Brown later met with English football (soccer) player Steven Gerrard and South African national team captain Aaron Mokoena to discuss an education project to be launched during the summer's World Cup tournament, being held in South Africa.
Brown said Britain and others would attend a meeting during the tournament aimed at encouraging efforts to ensure that every African child has access to education.
Source: David Stringer, The Associated Press
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