By Rutendo Matinyarare
THE origins of Land Reform Programme in Zimbabwe can be traced back to 1998 when the Government initiated a process to reclaim land from former colonisers and illegal settlers.
This move, however, posed a threat to the interests of Western countries that had acquired property rights through the colonial ‘Discovery Law’.
In order to counter the land reform efforts and preserve the colonial-era property rights of ‘Discovery Law’, the West, particularly the US, UK, Canada, Australia and the EU took action.
They created the Zimbabwe Democracy and Economic Recovery Act (ZDERA) and imposed Executive Order sanctions on Zimbabwe.
These measures were designed to cripple the Zimbabwean economy and put pressure on the Government to abandon land reform.
ZDERA cut off financial assistance and loans to Zimbabwe, while the Executive Order sanctions imposed by the US government further restricted economic activities and targeted specific investors and entities.
In parallel, Zimbabwean activists and the opposition colluded with Western powers to tarnish the reputation of Zimbabwe.
Their objective was two-fold – to encourage Western nations to impose more sanctions on Zimbabwe, thereby creating economic hardships that would force people to vote for the opposition, or to create a pretext for the West to intervene militarily and remove the Zimbabwe Government.
The collusion between Zimbabwean activists and the opposition with the West was aimed at manipulating public opinion and painting a negative image of Zimbabwe internationally.
To achieve their goals, the opposition strategically manufactured consent by making false claims of human rights abuses, corruption, abductions and political repression to gain support from Western governments and media outlets, as a means to isolate Zimbabwe.
Ironically, while the opposition in Zimbabwe was working hand-in-glove with the West to sabotage the country, Western nations themselves had laws to discourage their own citizens from colluding with foreign actors to undermine their own countries’ interests.
These laws serve to safeguard their national security and protect them from foreign interference.
Some examples of these laws include the US Patriot Act, which aims to prevent Americans from aiding terrorists; the Logan Act, which prohibits unauthorised Americans from engaging in negotiations with foreign governments; the Smith Act, which criminalises the advocacy of overthrowing the US government by force; and the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), which requires individuals and organisations, acting on behalf of foreign entities, to register with the US government.
In light of these considerations, I am also one of those who conceived and proposed the creation of a Patriotic Act in Zimbabwe.
Now the Act has been enacted as an amendment to the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform Amendment).
Contrary to false media reports, it is not aimed at preventing Zimbabweans from criticising the Government or the President.
But the law prohibits Zimbabwean citizens and permanent residents from becoming agents of foreign powers, engaging in lobbying for or promoting foreign nations to impose or escalate sanctions on the country, thereby hindering its economic development.
Additionally, it criminalises Zimbabwean citizens and permanent residents who spread false information or actively campaign against their own country with the intention of soliciting sanctions, encouraging military intervention or advocating the overthrow of the Government.
The penalties for these offenses include jail terms of no less than five years.
Furthermore, individuals found guilty may also face the possibility of losing their citizenship if they hold dual citizenship, provided that their loss of citizenship does not render them Stateless.
I, like many others, firmly believe that such laws are long overdue and I take pride in having contributed to the protection of our national interests by proposing this legislation.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with Zimbabwe having the Patriotic Act.
Indeed it was long overdue!
