UK plans evacuation

The British government said on Wednesday that it had made contingency plans to evacuate its approximately 25,000 nationals from Zimbabwe should lawlessness in the country worsen, but dismissed speculation that it was already massing troops around Zimbabwe’s neighbours in readiness for such an evacuation, the ‘Financial Gazette’ reported.

“Yes, it is true that we have a plan in place to help our citizens in Zimbabwe, but I cannot disclose the details of the plan,” Richard Lindsay, second secretary at the British High Commission in Harare, was quoted as saying. “It is however grossly untrue that we are deploying troops in neighbouring countries. We have no troops massed around the borders of Zimbabwe at all,” he said.

Lindsay spoke as pressure mounted on the British government to lead efforts to stop President Robert Mugabe from attending the Commonwealth summit in Brisbane, Australia, in October because of the continued violence and lawlessness by his supporters on commercial farms and against political opponents, the report said. However, Lindsay was quoted as saying that Britain’s position was that Mugabe would attend the Brisbane summit just like any other Commonwealth head of state or government. “Zimbabwe is a member of the Commonwealth and President Mugabe is its head of state so he has an entitlement to attend,” Lindsay said. “Our position is that he should freely attend if he so wishes. Any issues about Zimbabwe can always be discussed at the forum if the members so wish,” he added.