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Open Letter to His Excellency Akio Egawa, Ambassador of Japan to Zambia, His Excellency Mark Storella, Ambassador of the United States to Zambia, and His Excellency James Thornton, High Commissioner of the United Kingdom to Zambia June 6, 2013 Your Excellencies, We respectfully address this open letter toward your distinguished offices with regard to recent commentary published in the Zambian media on the recent removal of fuel and maize subsidies by the Patriotic Front (PF) government. On May 21, His Excellency Ambassador Storella was quoted as saying Right now your government is making hard decisions on agriculture and government had to make these hard decisions because you cannot keep on subsiding maize forever because the country can go bankrupt and, ultimately, farmers too.1 On May 23, the Times of Zambia quoted His Excellency Ambassador Egawa, commenting Government has made a tough decision which may cause pain on the part of the public but will contribute to the welfare of the people in the long term.2 His Excellency High Commissioner Thorton was similarly quoted on June 4 as saying I commend the Government of Zambia for tackling these subsidies. () It is better that money currently used for subsidies is used for more sustainable
measures targeted to help the really poor and to promote development in Zambia.3 On behalf of numerous Zambian citizens, including members of opposition parties and civil society organisations, the Coalition for the Defence of Democratic Rights (CDDR) wishes to register its disappointment with these statements, which may be based on mistaken assumptions regarding the motivations of the PF government. The CDDR requests that the diplomatic community take a stronger stance toward the deteriorating environment for civil and human rights in Zambia, rather than solely focusing on economic policy. It is not our intention to enter into a debate over the short- and long-term costs of maintaining subsidies, and generally, we acknowledge the common sense notion that principles of unfettered market competition tend to produce the ideal efficiencies that eventually deliver the lowest prices to the poor. However, it is a grave mistake to assume that the PF has undertaken this policy out of a desire to implement reforms or achieve any sort of efficiency. It is also a mistake to assume that funds saved from the cancellation of these subsidies will be applied to development. The truth of the matter is that the fuel and maize subsidies have not actually been removed, but rather they have been transformed by the PF into the One- Party State Subsidy. Far from running an austerity programme of reform, the PF government has spent prolifically since coming into power in 2011. For the 65% of Zambias 13 million citizens who live on less than $1.25 a day, it is not comprehensible how they should be chosen to carry the burden while at the same time the president
can
give
himself
and
his
cabinet
salary
increases
of
100%,4
initiate
a
re- nationalization
and
expropriation
spree
of
numerous
private
companies,5
while
at
the
same
time
engineering
an
unprecedented
10
parliamentary
by-elections,
with
more
to
come.
The
sudden
removal
of
fuel
and
maize
subsidies
by
the
PF
is
not
a
question
of
economics.
It
is
a
question
of
how
the
ruling
party
intends
to
fund
its
destruction
of
Zambian
democracy.
It
is
unreasonable
for
foreign
governments
to
congratulate
the
PF
on
fiscal
policy
at
a
moment
in
which
the
presidents
cabinet
is
bloated
to
more
than
70
members.
There
extraordinary
costs
of
keeping
so
many
deputy
ministers,
many
of
whom
are
said
to
not
even
bother
reporting
to
office
and
function
more
as
ghost
bureaucrats.
Each
of
these
deputy
ministers
is
given
a
brand
new
car,
support
staff,
travel
allowances,
fuel
allowance,
a
house
or
accommodation
allowance
and
other
financial
disbursements,
costing
Zambian
taxpayers
millions
of
dollars.
The
main
reason
why
the
PF
has
created
the
largest
cabinet
in
the
history
of
the
Third
Republic
is
because
the
awarding
of
these
positions
represents
the
key
instrument
of
bribery
to
engineer
the
defection
of
opposition
Members
of
Parliament
from
the
Movement
for
Multiparty
Democracy
(MMD)
and
the
United
Party
for
National
Development
(UPND)
to
the
PF,
thus
forcing
the
vacation
of
the
seat
and
triggering
a
costly
by-election
which
is
usually
snapped
up
by
the
ruling
party.
The
PFs
by-elections
strategy,
which
is
aimed
at
taking
over
a
rubber-stamp
majority
in
the
National
Assembly
in
order
to
pass
a
new
constitution
to
re-
4
See:
http://www.zambianwatchdog.com/sata-and-his-ministers-increase-their- salaries-discreetly/
5 The
PF
government
has
re-nationalized
Zamtel
in
a
highly
irregular
takeover,
while
also
revoking
the
private
concession
for
the
operation
of
Zambia
Railways,
and
has
seized
control
over
the
Collum
Coal
mine,
while
also
threatening
to
take
over
numerous
other
privately
owned
businesses.
3
implement
the
one-party
state,
is
enormously
expensive
and
has
drained
state
coffers
to
the
point
that
the
leadership
has
improvised
not
planned
the
cancellation
of
fuel
and
maize
subsidies.
According
to
the
Electoral
Commission
of
Zambia
(ECZ),
the
cost
of
holding
these
by-elections
ranges
anywhere
from
a
minimum
of
5
billion
kwacha
to
a
staggering
11
billion
kwacha.
The
upcoming
by-election
in
Feira
will
cost
7.7
billion
kwacha,
while
on
July
25
there
will
be
another
four
by-elections
in
Solwezi
East,
Kafulafuta,
Chipata
Central
and
Mkushi
North.6
The
PF
government
is
facing
budget
shortfalls
due
in
part
to
the
ad
hoc
creation
of
unplanned
and
unbudgeted
new
districts
and
ministries
for
political
expediency
(and
bribery
of
opposition
MPs)
which
is
draining
the
treasury.
The
Ambassadors
comment
that
it
was
brave
or
difficult
for
the
PF
to
remove
the
subsidies.
However
that
is
not
the
case.
We
ask
that
you
consider
the
reasons
behind
the
extreme
haste
and
total
lack
of
preparation
or
communication
regarding
the
cancellation
of
subsidies,
especially
with
regard
to
the
social
consequences.
When
the
fuel
subsidy
was
removed
in
April,
prices
shot
up
21
per
cent,
while
workers
commuting
to
Lusaka
saw
at
least
a
1
kwacha
increase
in
minibus
fares
posing
a
sizable
cut
into
the
weekly
salary
for
many
poor
people.
As
for
mealie-meal
prices,
which
have
more
than
doubled
since
the
election
of
the
PF,7
real
issues
of
starvation
and
food
riots
may
soon
become
a
reality
in
many
parts
of
the
nation,
with
no
provisions
made
by
the
government
to
protect
the
most
vulnerable.
Were
it
possible
for
the
United
States
to
suddenly
curtail
the
staggering
$84.4
billion
they
have
spent
on
corn
subsidies
between
1995
and
2012,8
it
would
most
likely
be
done
in
a
carefully
staged
and
planned
manner,
as
to
avoid
a
shock
to
6
the
producers.
If
the
United
Kingdom
were
to
cancel
just
one
of
the
3.5
billion
subsidy
programmes
that
it
pays
out
to
wealthy
landowners,
it
surely
would
not
disappear
overnight
without
a
plan.9
Japans
economic
miracle
of
the
past
century
is
widely
credited
to
its
statist
policies
of
subsidies
for
steel,
machinery,
electronics,
chemicals,
autos,
shipbuilding,
and
aircraft
industries.10 But
in
Zambia,
where
the
subsidy
removal
has
an
immediate
impact
on
citizens,
not
just
producers,
there
has
been
no
plan,
preparation,
or
explanation,
which
has
alarmed
not
just
civil
society
organisations,
but
also
industry.
According
to
a
detailed
statement
by
the
Zambia
National
Farmers
Union
(ZNFU),
while
although
they
do
not
support
subsidies
on
the
consumption
side,
the
way
in
which
the
PF
has
removed
these
programmes
without
any
clear
plan
may
lead
to
deeper
problems:
It
is
very
easy
to
remove
subsidies
because
anyone
can
do
it
but
what
is
simultaneously
and
urgently
required
is
to
put
in
place
bridging
measures
to
avert
a
food
security
calamity
and
more
importantly
to
find
solutions
to
the
challenges
facing
our
poor
small
scale
farmers
in
the
rural
areas
in
order
to
keep
them
alive.
An
in-depth
analysis
and
full
appreciation
of
what
it
takes
to
be
a
farmer
in
a
rural
area
where
basic
social
amenities
and
services
are
nearly
absent
and
even
sophisticated
business
models
flop
should
have
been
done,
and
in
full
consultation
and
dialogue
with
those
that
such
a
decision
was
going
to
affect.11
Finally
and
most
importantly,
the
CDDR
wishes
to
make
Your
Excellencies
aware
that
many
Zambian
citizens
are
deeply
disappointed
with
the
diplomatic
9
communitys failure to respond to a recent violent attack on a church in Matero by an alleged PF-organised militia. Civil society organisations such as the Foundation for Democratic Process (FODEP) and the Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI), as well as opposition party members had only gathered in this church because the PF denied their constitutional rights to organize an outdoor assembly under the Public Order Act. Then further to be violently attacked by a PF militia simply for debating the issue of subsidy removal further represents a flagrant violation of basic human rights that this government has become known for. To be silent in the face of these violent incidences, but then only to come forward and praise the government for recklessly endangering the lives of Zambias poorest citizens in order to fund their takeover of every branch of government, is not helpful for the future of democracy in Zambia. We understand that the principle of subsidy removal may be positive, but the reality is that this move is not going to produce any decrease in government spending in Zambia or improve balance of payments, but rather only re-direct this portion of the budget toward highly questionable political objectives to benefit the private interests of a very small coterie of ruling elites who are already in control of the main newspaper and one of the countrys largest banks. The sudden appearance of trained militias is but one product of the one-party state subsidy. While recognizing the importance of strong bilateral relationships between Zambia and Japan, U.S., and U.K., and underscoring our continued commitment to cooperation and communication with your offices, we hereby respectfully request that the diplomatic community remain vigilant to the abuses of power by the current Zambian leadership and cognizant of the fragile condition of democratic freedoms in Zambia. Yours faithfully,
Robert R. Amsterdam International Counsel to the Coalition for the Defence of Democratic Rights (CDDR)