Two wins tonight in Zimbabwe are being hailed as good news for that country’s beleaguered tourism industry. Cabinet officially banned mining in its national parks and, in a separate communique, announced international flights will resume on October 1st.
The mining decision, taken by cabinet this evening at a special sitting, follows a national and international outcry, prompted by the discovery of Chinese miners found prospecting in Hwange National Park. When confronted, the trespassers revealed they had been granted special licenses by ‘official’ sources.
An urgent application was lodged in the High Court on Monday, September 7 to stop drilling in Hwange National Park.
An anti-poaching team from Bhejane Trust were conducting routine checks on rhinos in the area on September 1 when Chinese workers were discovered looking for coal samples. Details emerged that two mining concessions had been created.
The workers were arrested for defiling the park. The national park had been closed due to lockdown restrictions.
The workers later returned with permits for exploratory drilling despite there being no environmental impact assessment.
In a Facebook post, the Bhejane Trust wrote: ‘They did this without any consultation with the Area Manager and seem to feel they have a right to go wherever they like to. We followed up on this and discovered the Government has allocated two coal mining concessions in the middle of Sinamatella and Robins!. The mining concessions are Special Grants which apparently can only be issued by the President, and both been granted to Chinese companies.’
Environmentalists, activists and nature lovers alike pleaded to the government to prevent the mining from taking place. On Tuesday September 8 government announced their decision in a cabinet briefing that mining in national parks would be banned with immediate effect.
#PostCabinetBriefing
Mining on areas held by National Parks is banned with immediate effect. Steps are being undertaken to immediately cancel all mining title held in national parks. pic.twitter.com/XbUwfcLvKY— Ministry of Information, Publicity & Broadcasting (@InfoMinZW) September 8, 2020
In a second win, Zimbabwe’s government announced that domestic and international borders would be reopened, allowing air travel to resume on September 10 and October 1 respectively. More details to follow.
#PostCabinetBriefing Domestic and International flights will resume on 10 September and 1 October respectively. All travellers will be required to have a PCR COVID-19 Clearance Certificate issued by a recognized facility within 48 hours from the date of departure. pic.twitter.com/xqHB3p5X0F
— Ministry of Information, Publicity & Broadcasting (@InfoMinZW) September 8, 2020
Image credit: Twitter/ Ministry of Information, Publicity & Broadcasting/ @InfoMinZW
