Morgan Tsvangirai, President of Zimbabwe travels to Brussels demanding massive financial aid to economically devastated government, caused by Robert Mugabe.

BRUSSELS (AFP) — Zimbabwean groups on Friday called on the European Union to unblock “massive aid” to their devastated country, days ahead of the first visit to Brussels by Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai.

“Tsvangirai will be travelling to Europe next week to request much-needed funding,” NGO and union representatives said in a statement.

So far western donors “have provided humanitarian aid including salaries for health workers but withhold billions of euros in development aid,” due to reluctance to deal with President Robert Mugabe, they noted

“After years of maladministration, the country now needs a massive injection of aid,” said Fambai Ngirande of the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions during a trip to Brussels.

He and his fellow lobbyists insisted that such aid should go not through Mugabe but agencies working on the ground.

Mugabe and his rival Tsvangirai on February 11 formed a power-sharing government tasked with steering Zimbabwe back to stability after disputed elections last year plunged the country into crisis.

Tsvangirai is on an international tour looking for assistance as his country seeks to emerge from years of economic chaos, which has seen rampant inflation and forced many Zimbabweans to flee the country.

His welcome abroad contrasts with the international chill towards Mugabe.

Both the EU and the United States maintain a travel ban and asset freeze on Mugabe, his wife and inner circle in protest at controversial elections and alleged human rights abuses by his government.

Tsvangirai visited the United States this week and will travel to several European capitals in the coming days in an attempt to demonstrate the progress the unity government has made and to convince the EU to unblock the long-frozen development aid.

However a European source said that he should not expect a change in EU policy until there was “significant progress” in Zimbabwe.

If the aid is resumed too soon “we relieve the pressure” on the government, she added, stressing that the European Commission was nonetheless the main donor to Zimbabwe with offering 100 million euros in humanitarian aid annually.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told Tsvangirai in Washington Thursday that the United States would like to resume development aid to his poverty-stricken country.

But Clinton also said US support had to be appropriate as Washington seeks to bolster reform rather than corruption in the tense unity government.

Aid groups like Oxfam are urging US and other donors to go beyond emergency relief and send development aid that would allow Zimbabwe to repair broken water and sanitation systems responsible for a deadly cholera outbreak.

In Brussels the Zimbabwe NGOs stressed that the travel ban on Mugabe and his coterie should remain “until Mugabe, his party and the military abide by the rule of law and show tangible commitments to the unity government.”

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Africa's culture of dependence on Whites: Zimbabwe President Tsvangirai urge the E.U. to give "massive aid" funding, 5.0 out of 5 based on 1 rating

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