Whilst the British Government seem to be considering easing some sanctions against Mr Mugabe and his personal allies, I am not convinced that the time has come to weaken international opposition to the President of Zimbabwe\u2019s irresponsible, undemocratic, lawless, and at times brutal regime. I certainly won\u2019t be placing an order for a new clerical collar at Wippells just yet.<\/p>\n
We cannot allow Robert Mugabe off the hook. When I cut up my clerical collar, I said I would not put it on again until Mr Mugabe had gone from office \u201d\u201c we need to stand in solidarity with the people of Zimbabwe and not forget the abuses and exploitation they have suffered at the hands of that administration.<\/p>\n
The reason given by Her Majesty\u2019s Government for this \u201d\u02dcstep change\u2019 in relations with Zimbabwe is the work going in to drafting a new constitution for that country. The recent meeting of European Union foreign ministers, which agreed to lift these restrictions on Mr Mugabe\u2019s colleagues, have made this decision dependent only upon whether a \u201d\u02dccredible\u2019 referendum is held on the new constitution. Perhaps if they had read the draft constitution they might have taken a different view.<\/p>\n