VZCZCXYZ0000
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHWL #0235 0782304
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 192304Z MAR 07
FM AMEMBASSY WELLINGTON
TO SECSTATE WASHDC 4045

UNCLAS WELLINGTON 000235 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR AF/S STEVE HILL AND EAP/ANP DAN RICCI 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PHUM NZ
SUBJECT: NEW ZEALAND RESPONSE TO DEMARCHE FOR SUPPORTING 
DEMOCRACY IN ZIMBABWE 
 
REF: SECSTATE 34009 
 
 
¶1. (U) On March 19, Poloff delivered reftel demarche to Charles 
Kingston; Senior Policy Officer; United Nations, Human Rights and 
Commonwealth Division; New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and 
Trade.  Kingston reiterated that New Zealand strongly condemns 
Zimbabwe's human rights abuses.  Most recently, PM Clark told the local 
media that the arrest of opposition leader Morgan Tsvangerai was 
"disgraceful," and "confirms everything we know about Zimbabwe.  It is, 
in effect, a dictatorship." Also on March 12, FM Peters called for the 
immediate release of Tsvangerai, describing the situation in Zimbabwe a 
"appalling." Peters further condemned the Mugabe regime, saying that it 
response "to legitimate and understandable political protest continues 
to be violent repression." 
 
¶2. (SBU) In March 2002, GNZ instituted strong sanctions against the 
Mugabe regime, including a travel ban on 20 key members of the 
Government of Zimbabwe.  The list was expanded to 249 people in Februar 
2006 to include spouses of the ruling Zimbabwe African National Union - 
Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF), senior officials of the Electoral Commission 
officials involved in Operation Murambatsvina (Clear out Rubbish), and 
business people who have profited from the Mugabe regime.  In July 2005 
New Zealand instituted a ban on all sporting teams representing Zimbabw 
from entering New Zealand, except where New Zealand sport teams were 
impaired by contractual obligations. 
Keegan