Activists send Valentine’s Day letter to Mugabe and Tsvangirai
16 February 2009
President Mugabe still has a chance to leave a legacy of transformation and progress, UK Christian Leaders have said in an open Valentine’s Day letter to the heads of the new government of Zimbabwe.
The Christian Leaders, launching the Love Zim campaign of prayer and fasting, delivered the letter at a vigil on Saturday (Feb 14).
The letter says: “The opportunity for a legacy of transformation and progress is not yet beyond President Mugabe. With the help of God he can once again show love to the Zimbabwean people.
“We believe that the new Prime Minister has, in spite of the obvious limitations and difficulties, an opportunity to provide leadership to a government and a nation that can pick itself up from the ashes, with the support of its neighbours and friends.”
It also challenges Prime Minister Tsvangirai to show determination, wisdom and perseverance in seeking to work with those who formerly sought to destroy his very life.
“Yet the MDC will be held responsible and will be equally culpable for the successes and failures of the new government,” it says.
“The time of apportioning blame to a remote and remorseless government is over. Now, Prime Minister Tsvangirai will have to create the space needed to run a responsible government.”
The activists, including Women of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA), who handed out roses at the vigil, called on the UK church to pray and fast for the situation in Zimbabwe.
Representatives of Christian organisations including the Council of Zimbabwean Christian Leaders in the UK, the Evangelical Alliance, Tearfund, New Frontiers and other Christian agencies handed Valentines cards to the Zimbabwean Embassy, the South African and Ugandan High Commissions and No 10 Downing Street. The event served to launch the Love Zim campaign of prayer. The campaign follows the swearing-in of Morgan Tsvangirai as Prime Minister in a new coalition government.
Each card, headlined with the message “Don’t go breaking our hearts”, included a personalised message and text from the a Bible passage in Psalms.
Miles Giljam, Head of Communications at the Evangelical Alliance, said: “This demonstration may seem like a small gesture compared to the size of the problems in Zimbabwe, but if we learn anything from Valentine’s Day, it’s that a small gesture can make a big difference to peoples’ lives.
“We hope that the British public will continue to make small gestures through prayer, friendship and actions to uphold the Zimbabwean people in the weeks and months to come.”
The Love Zim campaign aims to build support among UK churches for Zimbabwe, and is calling on Christians to pray and fast for its people at this crucial time. The letter commented that: “Those of us in Britain recognise the long, complicated and difficult history our two nations share and the consequent extra moral responsibility we shoulder to… help with the burden of rebuilding [Zimbabwe].”
For more information, go to www.lovezim.org
NOTES TO EDITORS:
Text of the open letter from the Love Zimbabwe Coalition:
Open letter to President Robert Mugabe and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai
The people of Zimbabwe are broken hearted. We are joining in prayer at this crucial time to ask that God bless the people of Zimbabwe and the work of your new government of national unity.
The Love Zim Campaign, a United Kingdom based coalition of Christian agencies and organisations that work for the good of Zimbabweans, welcomes the new government of national unity. This development is not ideal for a free and democratic Zimbabwe, but we nevertheless view it as an opportunity for rebuilding this once thriving nation.
We believe that the success of this new government in lifting Zimbabwe from its quagmire is conditional on the sincerity of the parties involved, and on the reordering of priorities so that the national welfare is placed above personal or political party interest. It is conditional on the government’s determination to achieve its own benchmarks as set out in the global agreement. It is conditional on a return of the rule of law, the restoration of human rights, the widening of media space, complementary efforts by the civic sector and the normalising of international relations.
We therefore call on President Robert Mugabe – once a revered liberator and statesman – to redeem his legacy by sincerely facilitating political and economic reform that will lead to the improvement of the lives of ordinary Zimbabweans. We challenge the veteran President to embrace reconciliation.
We remind President Mugabe of his speech broadcast to Zimbabwe on the eve of independence from colonialism wherein he stated that: ‘as we become a new people we are called to be constructive, progressive and forever forward-looking, for we cannot afford to be men of yesterday, backward-looking, retrogressive and destructive. Our new nation requires of every one of us to be a new man, with a new mind a new heart and a new spirit.…if yesterday you hated me, today you cannot avoid the love that binds you to me and me to you.’
We believe that more than ever, Zimbabweneeds a leadership with a desire to sow love not hatred, and make progressive policies not war on its own people. The opportunity for a legacy of transformation and progress is not yet beyond President Mugabe. With the help of God he can once again show love to the Zimbabwean people.
We believe that the new Prime Minister has, in spite of the obvious limitations and difficulties, an opportunity to provide leadership to a government and a nation that can pick itself up from the ashes, with the support of its neighbours and friends. Prime Minister Tsvangirai will be challenged to show determination, wisdom and perseverance in seeking to work with those who formerly sought to destroy his very life. Yet the MDC will be held responsible and will be equally culpable for the successes and failures of the new government. The time of apportioning blame to a remote and remorseless government is over. Now, Prime Minister Tsvangirai will have to create the space needed to run a responsible government.
We believe that the success in the war against hunger, disease and tyranny in Zimbabwe is dependent on an honest partnership between the political leaders of Zimbabwe and the people of Zimbabwe and their friends.
As a Christian civic society, which cherishes the wellbeing and prosperity of Zimbabwe, we shall continue to avail ourselves to facilitate humanitarian assistance, to promote national healing and reconciliation and where possible to monitor the performance of this new government.
Those of us in Britain recognise the long, complicated and difficult history our two nations share and the consequent extra moral responsibility we shoulder to listen to our sisters and brothers in Zimbabwe and help with the burden of rebuilding their country.
None of this is an easy task. This is why we are calling the UK Church to commit to prayer and fasting for Zimbabwe over the next month. With God’s help all is possible. Our commitment to prayer will be mirrored in our love and care for our friends in Zimbabwe and our engagement will not end until all know Shalom in the land. You have a choice – please choose to lead by binding the wounds of the broken hearted.
Yours in Hope,
Levy Moyo, President, Council of Zimbabwean Christian Leaders in the UK
Steve Clifford, General-Director, Evangelical Alliance
Joel Edwards, International Director, Micah Challenge
David Stroud, Leader of New Frontiers UK
Nims Obunge, Director of the Peace Alliance
Katei Kirby, CEO of the African and Caribbean Evangelical Alliance
Bishop Joe Aldred, Black Christian Leaders Forum
Martyn Lee, Executive Director of Global Connections.
Olave Snelling, Chair of African Enterprise UK
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