Account for January killings, says EU

EUROPEAN Union ambassador to Zimbabwe Timo Olkkonen has said the bloc is still concerned about the January 2019 killings of protesters by the military and warned that the suspended restrictive measures on several individuals and entities risk being restored for gross human rights abuses.

Speaking to journalists in Gweru on Tuesday after launching a legal aid clinic at the Midlands State University, Olkkonen said although the annual review of the restrictive measures took place mid this month, the EU council can always come back anytime in view of positive or negative developments in order to review the measures.

Speaking on the list of people on the restrictive measures, the ambassador said the bloc wanted to punish those responsible for human rights violations as well as send a message that the bloc was watching developments in the country.

This story is for NewsDay subscribers.