WE heartily welcome the conclusion reached by Ahmed Bin Sulayem during his recent visit.
If others in his position of authority could emulate him I do not doubt that we would quickly solve many of our challenges.
Sulayem, from the United Arab Emirates, is the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS) chairperson.
The KPCS chairperson’s visit to Zimbabwe is part of his familiarisation tour of KPCS member-states that will see him visiting Namibia, Burkina Faso, Congo, Angola and the Central African Republic.
There was pressure on the leader of the influential body that controls the trade of diamonds to reprimand Zimbabwe for taking the decision to assume control of diamond extraction in the country.
We had to be censured.
As a little African country, we have no right to determine how our resources must be exploited.
How dare we make such decisions without consulting the West?
But we made the bold decision for we do not feel small in the family of nations.
And we are used to being censured left, right and centre by the so-called powers and authorities for doing what is right for our country and people.
Thus we appreciated the conclusion reached by Sulayem after his tour.
He was doing us no favours or seeking anything from us but simply respected us as a sovereign people who know what they want and what they are doing.
“This is the situation that Zimbabwe has taken, and they know what is best for them,” said Sulayem.
Clearly our efforts at turning around our economy are being hampered by some international bodies that would rather we operate according to their dictates.
Refusal to operate according to these dictates that seek nothing but to benefit nations that sponsor these bodies has resulted in the country being sanctioned in many ways.
After the expiry of mining licences of companies that extracted diamonds in the Chiadzwa and Marange diamond fields, we took stock and got to the conclusion that it would be prudent for Government to firmly control the extraction process.
We could never ask for a better response from Sulayem, indeed we are free to regulate our diamond industry and as much as we do not mind advice and beneficial partnerships, we will not brook interference.
The decision to consolidate the firms that operated in the diamond fields into one is truly an internal issue which does not warrant the world body’s intervention.
No amount of pressure from the West and organisations that they sponsor will influence us; we shall always do what is, and act in ways, best for the Nation, for the people.
We are tired of the meddling West and organisations that act as if they know what is best for us.
We have solid reports and evidence that show foreign companies, way before operations at the Marange diamond fields, carted out large quantities of diamonds claiming they were prospecting.
Elsewhere in the world, governments control their major resources and they seek no approval from other nations or organisations to do so.
How we want to exploit our resources and the manner of exploitation is entirely dependent on us.
And we respect organisations that will let us get on with our business without interference.