Foreign Secretary complacent & hypocritical on Mugabe

Gerard Batten MEP today accused Jack Straw of "complacency and hypocrisy" in reaction to the Foreign Secretary's speech at the Labour Party Conference.

[ClickPress, Wed Sep 28 2005] In the speech earlier today, Straw said that Zimbabwean dictator, Robert Mugabe was guilty of "bad governance" and accused the dictator of "indifference to the well-being of his own people".

Mr. Batten said "This totally underplays the British government's laissez-faire attitude toward Zimbabwe, and the plight of Zimbabweans. Jack Straw accuses Mugabe of 'bad governance'; I accuse him of brutal tyranny."

Mr. Straw went on to call for action from beyond the EU, potentially involving the rest of democratic Africa in the fight for restoration of democracy in Zimbabwe. Mr. Batten added: "Straw has replaced action with lethargy. There are many more direct options that the Foreign Secretary could take to hasten Mugabe’s removal from office. He is now seeking to press these problems onto others, despite quietly accepting the status quo for years. If the Foreign Office utilised their considerable diplomatic clout on South Africa, the African Union or even the Commonwealth, the situation could be resolved, and in a far more humanitarian way. As it is, Straw has sleepwalked into this situation by not taking action sooner."

Editors notes:

Quotations taken from speech made by Secretary of State for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Rt. Hon Jack Straw MP, at Labour Party Conference, Brighton. Wednesday 28 September 2005.

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