Opinion & Analysis




Dare wasn't threatened

http://www.herald.co.zw/inside.aspx?sectid=17402&cat=10


*By David Samuriwo*

*THE American and British governments' penchant for fomenting diplomatic
rows knows no bounds. To this end, Ricketts thought it wise to dwell on the
alleged threat to Dare's life ignoring the revelations of covert financial
support his government is channelling to its embassy to back the
opposition's attempts at unconstitutional regime change. *

REPORTS that the British government last week summoned Zimbabwe's Ambassador
to the United Kingdom, Cde Gabriel Machinga, to protest against an article
that appeared on the opinion page in The Herald were hardly surprising.

For the benefit of readers who missed my article titled "Dare's
anti-Zimbabwe media campaign misguided" (The Herald, April 3, 2007), I
merely stated that should Gillian Dare, a political officer at the British
Embassy in Harare, continue with her undiplomatic activities, she is bound
to land herself in serious trouble.

I also warned that should she continue with her nefarious activities that
are taboo in diplomatic circles, such as hopping from one police station to
another trying to locate and identify arrested MDC hooligans, she might be
caught in the crossfire and end up in a body bag.

Personally, I will not shed any tears, and as I stated, it would be a sad
day to her family if ever she were to arrive at Heathrow Airport safely
stashed in the baggage compartment instead of her usual first-class
reservation.

There is absolutely no reason for Dare to get excited and start playing
night nurse to arrested suspects who are helping the police with
investigations.

Let the law take its course for goodness sake Gillian!

The American and British governments' penchant for fomenting diplomatic rows
knows no bounds. It is very possible they might want to pull this one on you
and point accusing fingers on the Government of Zimbabwe. So, be warned if I
may repeat the obvious.

If the above could be described as a threat to her life, then the Geneva
Conventions on diplomatic behaviour are, indeed, outdated and in need of
urgent redefinition, modification and adoption by the United Nations.

The complaint lodged to Zimbabwe, through its ambassador, Cde Machinga, by
the Under Secretary and Head of the Diplomatic Service at the Foreign and
Commonwealth Office, Sir Peter Ricketts, on Dare's life should not be taken
seriously.

What really should be taken seriously is the deafening silence by Sir
Ricketts on Dare's anti-Zimbabwe media campaign and her role in influencing
politically motivated violence by the MDC.

Obviously, British taxpayers are not aware that their hard-earned money is
being used to finance the manufacturing of improvised explosive devices,
such as petrol bombs, and for the purchase of weapons of destruction in the
form of hand grenades and small arms.

How different are these acts of terror perpetrated by MDC thugs from the
London bus and train bombings as well as the bombing of a train in Madrid?

When such acts of terrorism are directed at Western targets they receive
international condemnation, but when similar acts are directed at Zimbabwe
the Ricketts of this world look the other way, why?

To this end, Ricketts thought it wise to dwell on the alleged threat to
Dare's life, ignoring the revelations of covert financial support his
government is channelling to its embassy to back the opposition's attempts
at unconstitutional regime change.

It is a fact that in pursuit of her country's unbridled ambition for the
regime change agenda in Zimbabwe, Dare has become the focal point.

In his lukewarm protest, Ricketts foolishly avoided responding to real
issues of substance raised in my article.

He did not deny that a huge amount of money from the FCO has been disbursed
to a unit called the ADS for the setting-up of an anti-Zimbabwe media
campaign.

He also found it unpalatable to disclose to the British public that part of
this money is also being used to pay legal fees for those arrested and the
treatment of those injured in the opposition's campaign of violence.

No wonder the man also conveniently avoided mentioning the role being played
by the new head of ADS Zimbabwe, one Ben Llewlyn Johns, and his two
colleagues, Neil Hammond and Simon Atkinson.

This trio is acting as conveyor belts of blood money that plunged Zimbabwe
into unprecedented political violence last month.

Dare cannot dare challenge this impeccable evidence in any forum, she is
aware of this funding; neither can her boss Ricketts.

As stated in my article, the anti-Zimbabwe media campaign will only find
resonance in the British Houses of Commons and Lords and such other bodies
which have steadfastly refused to accept or understand Zimbabwe's political
chessboard.

True to shame, the obscure Liberal Democratic foreign affairs spokesman
Michael Moore seized the opportunity for some kind of publicity.

"The Mugabe regime is beyond the pale as this outrageous statement shows. It
is now about time he stepped down. Callous threats against diplomats will do
nothing to solve Zimbabwe's isolation," he charged.

Thank goodness! A mere opinion piece authored by an obscure journalist now
being manipulated and fabricated to be a Government statement or position!

This is totally absurd.

To sum it up, Ricketts' concerns have nothing to do with Dare's life. Even
the woman knows it herself.

"We expect Zimbabwe to offer protection to our diplomats," he waffled to
Zimbabwe's ambassador.

Plainly put, this is a botched-up attempt to water down revelations of gross
abuse of the British taxpayers' money in funding violent political activity
in Zimbabwe in the inane hope of achieving unconstitutional regime change.

Even their creation, the MDC, is on record telling its supporters to soldier
on as the financial coffers "will now never run dry". Where is the money
coming from, Ricketts, if I may ask?

The sensationalisation of an otherwise informative and revealing article on
the clandestine operations of a British diplomat has also galvanised the
rented journalists into action.

For the benefit of readers who do not have access to the Internet, here are
some of the interesting headlines that hit the cyberspace:

"You'll leave Harare in body bag, UK diplomat warned."

"UK diplomat receives death threat from Mugabe government."

This is sheer madness.

At least newzimbabwe.com was sceptical, putting the "death threats" in
quotation marks.

Ricketts' gaffe in summoning Zimbabwe's ambassador is part of a web of
intricacies aimed at arming Dare's anti-Zimbabwe media campaign team with
deception material.

The unprecedented reaction to the article on Dare's subversive activities
indicated how massively the media is being manipulated to propel the British
government agenda of regime change in Zimbabwe.

The recent Extraordinary Summit of Sadc Heads of State and Government held
in Tanzania should be an eye-opener to the British establishment.

Much as the Dare anti-Zimbabwe project might want to portray the summit as a
victory to Morgan Tsvangirai and his band of hooligans, the bottom line is
regional leaders categorically refused any notion of outside-induced regime
change.

South African President Thabo Mbeki has always stood out as the choice
mediator to Zanu-PF and the MDC although the latter has not always been on
the affirmative.

At one time, they called the South African President a dishonest broker.
There is nothing new in that.

What is new is the realisation by Sadc leaders that if they prevaricate on
Zimbabwe, any one of them could be the next target for the regime change
agenda.

South Africa has, in its own backyard, the unpredictable Congress of South
African Trade Unions, a union of sheep in wolves' clothing clandestinely
waiting for an opportune time to pounce. The two protagonists will never
retire to bed together. It is just a question of time when the wolf shows
its true colours. This bunch of pseudo-trade unionists, who always indicate
left when they are turning right, have remained on the mute mode as they
brazenly watch their counterparts in Zimbabwe who have been transformed by
the British government into a political grouping in bed stark-naked with the
capitalists.

Thank God, we will soon be seeing the back of Tony Blair out of No. 10
Downing Street. Not that it makes any difference to the British government
policy on Zimbabwe, but, perhaps, a new order might realise the necessity of
engagement with the Government of Zimbabwe as an equal.

More importantly, Ricketts, Dare and the arsenal of weapons of mass
deception that have been assembled must realise that Zimbabwe is no
pushover.

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