Community | November 22, 2008 | 2 comments

Annan and Carter say barred from Zimbabwe

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Zimbabwe has barred former U.N. secretary general Kofi Annan, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and other prominent figures from visiting the country to assess the humanitarian crisis, the group said on Saturday.

They said they were denied travel visas to Zimbabwe despite the intervention of former South African president Thabo Mbeki, who is mediating the political conflict between President Robert Mugabe's ZANU-PF party and the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC).

"We had hoped to go to Zimbabwe this morning but we had to cancel because the government has made it clear they will not co-operate," Annan told a news briefing in Johannesburg.

Annan, Carter and Nelson Mandela's wife, Graca Machel, are part of a group of prominent figures and former statesmen called The Elders.

"Our purpose in coming here was never to be involved in the political issues that have been so controversial in the establishment of a new government in Zimbabwe, but only to help with the humanitarian issue and we will continue to do that," Carter said.

Zimbabwe's government denied it had refused the three Elders permission to enter the country.
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