The Zimbabwe Information Centre (ZIC) has launched an online anti-sanctions campaign to compel the Australian government to remove its sanctions regime against Zimbabwe.

“The Australian sanctions are out of date.

“By lifting these residual ‘smart sanctions’, Australia would increase pressure on the USA, UK and Europe to also lift these outdated measures with their perverse sweeping impacts on ordinary Zimbabweans,” reads the petition addressed to Australian foreign affairs minister Senator Penny Wong.

Australia imposed sanctions against Zimbabwe in 2002 following similar actions by the United States and European Union at the behest of Britain at the onset of the land reform programme by the former President Robert Mugabe seeking to correct historical injustices in land ownership brought about by years of colonial misrule.

ZIC is an Australian civil support organisation born out of student activism as part of the anti-apartheid movement operating under the auspices of the Southern Africa Liberation Centre (SALC) in the 1970s.

The organisation is still active to this day and rose to prominence in Australia for organising and hosting Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU) chairman Herbert Chitepo in July 1973 in his capacity as ZANU chairperson as well as chairperson of the Organisation of African Union’s African Liberation Committee.

This anti-sanctions campaign coincides with the 50th anniversary of this historic Chitepo 1973 visit to Australia and Australasia.

In 1971 a group of students from a coalition of organisations which were part of the anti-apartheid movement – SALC, with a lot of support from the first Australians (Aboriginal Peoples Organisations) and the Australasia region, stormed the Rhodesian Information Centre in Crowsnest in North Sydney. The raid was to challenge the existence of a formal Ian Smith embassy at a time there were United Nations sanctions against the regime. The student activists established what they called the Alternative Rhodesia Information Centre. Cde Chitepo later suggested they rename it Free Zimbabwe Centre. After Independence, it was renamed ZIC.

ZIC has had 50 years of unbroken commitment to the restoration of the people’s dignity as outlined by Chitepo during his visit to Australia then. The ZIC views that the sanctions are a major reason why the current government has partly not been able to carryout its mandate.

“50 years later all the countries believe in inclusion, equity for all, so they ask how do you keep sanctions on Zimbabwe.