London protesters condemn Mugabe

LONDON – About 50 people, including a member of Britain’s Parliament, held a protest on Saturday against Zimbabwe’s President Robert Mugabe and urged other African countries to condemn him.

The demonstrators outside Zimbabwe’s embassy held banners reading ‘No Mugabe No’ and chanted and sang songs as Dumi Tutani, a demonstration coordinator, said: “We are trying to raise awareness of the problems back home. ….We won’t rest until there are no more human rights abuses and until there are free and fair elections.”There are people in Zimbabwe who don’t have access to water or electricity.We have the highest child mortality rate in the world.Something needs to be done immediately,” Tutani said.Legislator Kate Hoey, chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Zimbabwe, received a petition from the protesters and promised to give it to Prime Minister Gordon Brown and other European Union governments.It urges the British government and the EU to suspend government-to-government aid to all 14 Southern African Development Community countries and to give it directly to Zimbabweans until human rights have improved in their country.The petition says those other southern African countries must publicly speak out against the Zimbabwean leader.Nampa-AP….We won’t rest until there are no more human rights abuses and until there are free and fair elections.”There are people in Zimbabwe who don’t have access to water or electricity.We have the highest child mortality rate in the world.Something needs to be done immediately,” Tutani said.Legislator Kate Hoey, chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Zimbabwe, received a petition from the protesters and promised to give it to Prime Minister Gordon Brown and other European Union governments.It urges the British government and the EU to suspend government-to-government aid to all 14 Southern African Development Community countries and to give it directly to Zimbabweans until human rights have improved in their country.The petition says those other southern African countries must publicly speak out against the Zimbabwean leader.Nampa-AP