Zimbabweans can be seen stocking up on wine and snacks to celebrate the arrival of their president police 26 Climate Summit.
In photos shared by the country’s information minister, two men are seen pushing aside a trolley filled with bottles of whiskey, wine, beer and crisps at a Costco store. Glasgow.
The video shows men dressed in Zimbabwean colours, wearing scarves, driving a trolley carrying at least six bottles of Glenfiddich whiskey outside a shop, saying ‘Cop 26 we are ready’.
One of the men is heard saying: ‘We are welcoming President Emerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa to Scotland, UK’.
The video was shared by Zimbabwe’s Information Minister Nick Mangwana, who also tweeted a video of men and women dancing to music on the beach.
However – amid criticism the video was ‘sending the wrong message’ about the climate conference – Mr Mangwana insisted that no delegates were involved.
He said that the ceremony was organized by Zimbabweans in Britain who wanted to welcome their President to Britain.
This is the first time in 25 years that a Zimbabwean state leader has visited Britain.
Sharing the video, Mr Mangwana said: ‘Tonight a huge reception has been held in honor of His Excellency President Emmerson Dambudo Mnangagwa.
Images shared by the country’s information minister showed two men pushing a trolley filled with bottles of whiskey, wine, beer and crisps at a Costco in Glasgow. The video shows men dressed in Zimbabwean colours, wearing scarves, driving a trolley carrying at least six bottles of Glenfiddich whiskey outside a shop, saying ‘Cop 26 we are ready’.
Yesterday, Mr Mnangagwa met with other world leaders, including Boris Johnson and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, at the Cop 26 climate summit.
Glasgow is where Zimbabweans from all corners of the UK attend shindigs and welcome their President.
The party will hit the streets tomorrow. in the uk? join the party.’
This is the first time Mr Mnangagwa, known as the ‘Crocodile’ because of his political ingenuity, has visited the UK.
He was installed as president in November 2017, when his predecessor Robert Mugabe resigned following a military takeover and mass demonstrations – after Mr Mnangagwa was sacked as vice president.
Like his predecessor, Mr Mnangagwa is from the Zimbabwe African National Union – Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF).
Their faction in the party is known as Lacoste – after the French sportswear brand that has a crocodile for its logo.
Yesterday, Mr Mnangagwa met with other world leaders, including Boris Johnson and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, at the Cop 26 climate summit.
This is the first meeting between the President of Britain and Zimbabwe on British soil since Tony Blair met Mr. Mugabe in 1997.
Relations between the two countries soured soon after, with Blair withdrawing from talks that year to fund Robert Mugabe’s controversial land reforms.
Yesterday, Mr Mnangagwa met with other world leaders, including Boris Johnson and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, at the Cop 26 climate summit. This is the first meeting on British soil between the presidents of Britain and Zimbabwe since Tony Blair met Mr. Mugabe in 1997 (pictured)
This is the first time Mr Mnangagwa (pictured), known as the ‘Crocodile’ because of his political ingenuity, has visited the UK.
Mr Mugabe raided Britain and its political leaders because they opposed land reform and management of Zimbabwe’s economy.
Britain, the European Union and the United States imposed targeted sanctions on the country to punish Zimbabwe’s human rights record, including harassment of journalists and failure to punish security forces for misbehavior under Mugabe.
Despite Mugabe’s departure, he has maintained targeted sanctions. Last week, UN reporter Alina Dohan urged the West to lift the restrictions, saying they restrict public access to health, food and sanitation.
Although concerns remain over human rights abuses in Zimbabwe, Human Rights Watch, headed by Mr Mnangagwa, has warned that the situation will be “the worst” in 2020.
The New York-based charity last year warned state security agents suspected of kidnapping and torturing more than 70 critics of the government.
Separately, Amnesty warned that the Zimbabwean government had used Covid-19 to impose ‘severe restrictions’ on freedoms in the country.
“Women were denied access to essential maternal health care, and violence against women and girls was widespread,” Amnesty said.
Information Minister Mr. Mangwana’s decision to post pictures of the ceremony drew some reactions on social media.
One Twitter user wrote, ‘The rest of the world: ‘The world is dying, let’s come together and talk about it…’
‘ED pro: “Let’s go to Costco and buy wine”.
Nick (official spokesperson for the government): “Let me promote this on social media.”
Another wrote: ‘Optics is so important, it doesn’t look good.’
A Twitter user asked what Zimbabwe was going to do about climate change, prompting Mr Mangwana’s response. He said: ‘We’ll cover it.
‘We covered the bits this morning. The people of Zimbabwe are currently welcoming their President in Glasgow.
He also responded to those suggesting that the men were part of the Zimbabwean delegation, to say: ‘There is no representative.’
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