By Elizabeth Sitotombe

THE US reeks of desperation. 

Clearly they are agitated. 

August 23 is the date slated for this year’s general elections.

That their opposition puppets have lost the elections even before the day of voting is clear.

On May 26, the US Embassy started tweeting over the forthcoming elections, encouraging Zimbabweans to register to vote and make sure their voice is heard. They made accompanying flyers which called on Zimbabweans to vote peacefully.

They crossed the line. 

Article 2 (4) of the UN Charter prohibits the threat or use of force and calls on all member-States to respect the sovereignty, territorial integrity and political independence of other States.

The undiplomatic US diplomats are our visitors; but when visitors start having a say in how we run our household, clearly they have overstayed their welcome.

The Vienna Convention is very clear on that.

Western intrusive politics have been Zimbabwe’s cross to carry for far too long. 

The US considers Zimbabwe a nation in need of massive hand-holding in order to conduct credible elections which are, in essence, an election outcome favouring their puppets.

Their blatant meddling in our country’s electoral processes has been obvious from the start. We have unearthed many of their plots time after time that include tarnishing the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission.

We are used to these antics.

But this time their unhealthy obsession has morphed into open aggression.

And the Zimbabwe Government rightly summoned the US diplomats and called them to order.

The Government of Zimbabwe was represented by the acting Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade Ambassador Rofina Chikava. Chikava met with the Charge D’ Affaires of the US Embassy in Zimbabwe, Elaine French.

The Ministry pointed out that the conduct by the US Embassy was unacceptable as it deviated from conventional diplomatic norms and values enshrined in the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations (1961)

French reiterated her mission’s commitment to improve communication in line with expected diplomatic conduct.

But even then, so-called independent media headlines the next day screamed: ‘US Embassy refuses to back down over register to vote tweet’. 

“We stand by our recent media posts calling for peace during the election season,” the US Embassy spokesperson Meg Riggs said in her interview with Voice of America’s Studio 7.

And all this noise is coming from people whose own backyard is burning. Their influence is waning all over the globe while their brand of democracy is highly questionable.

Just recently, pro-democracy activists in the US were sentenced to many years in prison for protesting election results. 

An 18-year prison sentence was given to the leader of the Oath Keepers, Stewart Rhodes, for attempting to overturn the 2020 elections in the US. 

Certain groups could not stomach the election outcome and decided to protest. It did not end well. The protests turned violent and lives were lost.

At Donald Trump’s bidding, many of his hardcore supporters descended on Washington DC to dispute results of the presidential elections — again, it did not end well.

In Zimbabwe, CCC leader Nelson Chamisa unleashed his followers on the streets after losing the elections. The US saw nothing wrong in that.

But remember, what’s good for the goose should also be good for the gander!

“What we absolutely cannot have is a group of citizens who — because they did not like the outcome of an election, who did not believe the law was followed as it should be — foment revolution that is what you did. I dare say, Mr Rhodes — and l have never said this to anyone l have sentenced — you pose an on-going threat and peril to our democracy and fabric of this country,” said District Judge Amit Mehta as he handed down his sentence.

“I dare say we all now hold our collective breaths when an election is approaching, will we have another January 6 again.  You are not a political prisoner; Mr Rhodes that is not why you are here. It is not because Joe Biden is the President right now. Even as you have been incarcerated you have continued to allude to violence as an acceptable means to address grievances.”

The Judge may as well have been talking to some of our countrymen. We all hold our breaths each time elections draw closer. The opposition, as guided by their Western handlers, always have some political mischief up their sleeves.

When it comes to Zimbabwe, the US supports exactly what they are against in their own country. They have always stood with their puppets whenever they reject election results.

In fact, they expect chaos that might lead to the violent overthrow of ZANU PF.

Ironic, isn’t it!

Prior to the 2018 elections, with their guidance, a group of organisations and the opposition took part in a week-long workshop where strategies that were to be implemented before and after the elections were discussed. 

It was a three point strategy that included dilemma action, declare own results and question legitimacy.

Activists were taught to generate messages to the effect the then MDC-Alliance had won the July 31 2018 elections even before the results were counted and announced. 

Others were to be independent analysts who would confirm the image of poor human rights record in the country and yet others were trained to be perpetrators of violence in the ranks of the opposition.

And it happened as planned.

Part of that script played out in the US and someone got 18 years imprisonment; in Zimbabwe, despite the same script having played out, no-one was incarcerated for 18 years.

When Job Sikhala was arrested for committing crimes of the same nature, he became a political prisoner whose rights were abused, according to them.

They have made continuous calls for his release and even sent lawyers all the way from New York to help on his case!

They make noise on all the international platforms and call them human rights abuses. And use it as an excuse to sanction Zimbabwe more!

Zimbabwe is not an appendage of the US.