Mugabe blames “West” for false claims of bomb at Victoria Falls
By Tererai Karimakwenda
False claims by Robert Mugabe that “the West” had tried to sabotage this week’s tourism conference at Victoria Falls have been dismissed as propaganda by some observers, as evidence points to an individual from Zimbabwe as the source.
According to the state run Herald newspaper, Mugabe departed from his prepared speech at the official closing dinner of the United Nations sponsored event Wednesday night, claiming online posts had suggested a bomb was planted at Victoria Falls “to drive delegates away and kill the mega event”.
The paper quotes Mugabe as saying: “We are not terrorists, we are not murderers. We don’t kill people. There was a post on the Internet from London that a bomb had been planted somewhere here for you to be scared and disperse.”
He added: “Then also from Washington and we are surprised, is the warning given to those wanting to visit this country saying that visiting the Victoria Falls was dangerous.”
But SW Radio Africa can confirm that the threats of a bomb originated from a person with a Shona accent, who had earlier emailed us a press statement about bombs at the tourism conference. The station received a phone call from the same individual, and the call originated from South Africa. SWRA did not follow up on this story as it was not regarded as credible and was clearly designed to create problems.
Harare based journalist Angus Shaw, who was not at the conference, told SW Radio Africa that Mugabe’s comments had come as a surprise to everyone. Shaw said he had spoken to travel agents and others who were in Victoria Falls, and none of them were aware of any such posts on the internet. There was also no evacuation or panic among the delegates.
“It certainly wasn’t widely known and in fact it wasn’t known at all. I suspect it was part of his usual attack on the western countries for criticizing the human rights record and so on,” Shaw explained.
He added: “It would seem to me that the security people here had intercepted this communication and briefed him on it and he’s used it as the usual approach to demonize the west and the Brits and Americans.”
Mugabe has tried to use Zimbabwe’s hosting of the tourism event to promote a positive image of the country and boost tourism, especially in the wake of the disputed July 31st elections.
“This historic attendance is indeed an endorsement of our destination and a welcome statement to all doubting minds that our continent and, in particular, our two countries remain must visit tourism destinations,” Mugabe told delegates in his closing speech.
According to Angus Shaw, the outgoing tourism minister Walter Mzembi has continued to promote the idea of a Disneyland theme park in Zimbabwe, which he estimates would cost about $300 million. But Shaw said it remains to be seen where this investment would come from.
Shaw explained that the UNWTO Secretary General, Taleb D. Rifai, was on record Thursday defending the organization’s decision to hold this year’s conference in Zimbabwe, saying it is a leisure event that does not address security and international issues.
Rifai suggested they simply wanted to promote optimism and hope the country’s natural resources can be exploited for the benefit of the people.
But UN Watch, an organization that promotes human rights and monitors the UN, has been highly critical. Speaking to SW Radio Africa last week, the group’s Executive Director Hillel Neuer said the UN risked discrediting itself and what it stands for, by allowing the meeting to go ahead.
“We cannot understand how a major UN body would decide to legitimise that government. The government is also using this (the meeting) for propaganda reasons and we think this is the wrong place and the wrong time,” Neuer said. SW Radio Africa
