Editorial Comment: Western embassies must respect convention Mr Delahousse
Mr Delahousse

Mr Delahousse

IT is no longer a secret that some Western embassies have shamelessly reduced themselves to opposition political party players in violation of the Vienna Convention governing diplomatic relations.

The violations have been going on for some time, with the French ambassador to Zimbabwe Laurent Delahousse clearly showing he is in the country for other reasons far removed from building ties between Harare and Paris.

We single out Delahousse because his hand has been very visible in efforts to destabilise a country he found at peace with itself, its neighbours and progressive members of the international community.

Initially, Delahousse funded the Occupy Africa Unity Square activists.

He thought he was doing so covertly only for the activists to fight over “donations” from the French Embassy.

Earlier, he had vainly funded the Itai Dzamara demonstrations in the hope of turning Zimbabwe on its head.

Delahousse and other Western ambassadors accredited to Zimbabwe were also actively involved in Evan Mawarire’s “Shut Down Zimbabwe” rhetoric. We use the word rhetoric because the campaign was nothing, but a heap of manure as Zimbabwe is still standing in the face of demonic aggression by political activists in embassy regalia.

We remind Delahousse and his regime change gang that such efforts were tried with zeal by their predecessors, but still yielded thorns.

It is this belief by men from the West that Africans are inferior that drive them to do the unimaginable to prove their superiority. They disrespect us as if we were still their colonies. They want to decide for us who should be the next President of the Republic of Zimbabwe as if we were an ignorant lot who need serious hand-holding in choosing our leaders.

Now that they have failed to topple Zanu-PF and President Mugabe from power via the ballot, they are resorting to all kind of dirty tactics to throw the country into turmoil and place a stooge at State House.

No, the Vienna Convention is very clear on the role of diplomatic missions. Since most Western embassies accredited to Zimbabwe appear to have fast forgotten their mission here, we do hereby remind them. The Vienna Convention, especially in Article 3, clearly informs diplomats on their roles abroad.

It spells out the functions of a diplomatic mission as;

Representing the sending State in the receiving State; protecting in the receiving State the interests of the sending State and of its nationals, within the limits permitted by international law and negotiating with the Government of the receiving State.

Ascertaining by all lawful means conditions and developments in the receiving State and reporting thereon to the Government of the sending State; promoting friendly relations between the sending State and the receiving State and developing their economic, cultural and scientific relations.

It is also clear in Article 9 that offending diplomats qualify for dismissal by the receiving State “at anytime”.

“The receiving State may at any time and without having to explain its decision, notify the sending State that the head of the mission or any member of the diplomatic staff of the mission is persona non grata or that any other member of the staff of the mission is not acceptable.”

It is either time for the diplomats to respect the Vienna Convention or dismiss themselves from Zimbabwe. Not so funny enough, some of the Western diplomats whose countries try to lecture Zimbabwe on democracy and human rights are the worst violators of the same.

France, for example, owns almost all the resources in its former colonies, denying those nations the right to their own resources or how such resources can be exploited.

In the US, blacks are being slaughtered daily by the police with President Barack Obama doing nothing more than moaning. It is unimaginable to think that blacks are being killed by none other than the POLICE.

We want to remind our guests from the West that all animals are equal. To claim otherwise is a dangerous half truth!

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