Ambassador Joyce Musenge, the chairperson for international relations of the opposition Movement for Multiparty Democracy (MMD) party, has released a statement raising the party’s concerns over a series of undiplomatic incidents committed by the ruling administration, including a highly publicized insult by Vice President Guy Scott toward South Africa, as well as the public booing of President Micael Sata during his speech before the African Union.
The text of Musenge’s statement follows:
As a Country, Zambia has stood fast, bold and beyond reproach on certain principles which have become the bedrock of our country’s foreign policy. These have been above partisan politics and good for the upkeep and promotion of Zambia’s interest and sovereignty for more than four decades. This was the case during our 1st and 2nd Republics, when we supported the liberation struggle, and during the three administrations of the MMD government in which we brokered peace in the Congo, and led the negotiations towards the creation of greater stability in the ‘Great Lakes’ region. In all the previous administrations, Our Foreign Policy, while driven by Zambia’s agenda, was never insular or isolationist to the extent that our neighbors felt belittled or threatened by the words used by our leaders nor the actions taken by the state.
Given this stable and admirable foreign policy environment, painstakingly built over so many decades, we, as MMD, are gravely concerned and take great exception to the recent utterances attributed to senior PF leadership at the highest level, which have come into the public domain through media reports. We further express serious concern over many issues and particularly as it regards some of the following recent matter;
a) Utterances by the Vice President, His Honor Dr. Guy Scott during what appears to have been an impromptu interview in a foreign country with the guardian newspaper in which disparaging remarks about South Africa were made.
b) Recent comments by Home Affairs Minister, Hon Edgar Lungu,(who has been acting as President) in which indication was given that Zambia does not care about what it is thought of by other countries and the international community in general
c) Comments by government regarding the accusation of unsubstantiated interference of South Africa in Zambia’s internal affairs regarding Former President Rupiah Banda, and
d) Comments by His .Excellency, President Sata during the African Union(AU) Summit, regarding Zambia’s position on the AU passport and the fact that the AU is not in charge of Zambia
All of these careless utterances or positions appear to have been arrived at without a clear policy framework. This is highly regrettable and confirms our fears that there is an apparent lack of focused direction by the government in its interaction with our friends in the international community.
We appeal to the government to urgently undertake a more coordinated and focused approach in handling issues relating to Zambia’s relations with the international community in order to avoid denting not only the image of Zambia but the good relations the country has built over the years. The denting of our foreign image will have a negative reputation not only on our foreign relations with neighboring states and the international community, but will also serve to discourage investors coming to Zambia and providing the much needed impetus towards job creation and economic growth.
In this regard, we wish to seriously implore the government, through the ministerial spokesperson to give clear government policy on issues bordering on Zambia’s relations within the region and beyond.
Ambassador Joyce Musenge
Chairperson- International Relations
Movement for Multi-Party Democracy (MMD)
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