‘Just a meeting, nothing else,’ says the presidency of Ramaphosa’s Zimbabwe visit

The presidency has defended President Cyril Ramaphosa’s recent working visit to Zimbabwe, rejecting strong criticism from the Democratic Alliance (DA), which has raised concerns about the timing of the trip, the political context in Zimbabwe and the presence of [certain] individuals at an informal meeting during the visit. Speaking to the media on Wednesday, Ramaphosa’s spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said that the trip to Zimbabwe over the weekend was a “working visit”, which took place at the invitation of Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa at his private residence. He argued that it formed part of routine bilateral engagement between the two neighbouring states. Magwenya said the discussions between the two heads of state covered a wide range of issues of mutual interest, including trade relations, agriculture and broader cooperation within the Southern African Development Community. Magwenya said the visit is a recognised diplomatic practice intended to allow leaders to engage outside formal protocol environments. “The President flew to Zimbabwe for a meeting with his counterpart and nothing else.” The response comes after the DA’s international relations and cooperation MP Ryan Smith sharply criticised the visit, arguing that it took place in a politically sensitive environment in Zimbabwe and raised questions about South Africa’s foreign policy posture. Smith said the timing of the visit occurred as Zimbabwe’s ruling Zanu-PF advances constitutional changes that could extend presidential term limits. “This visit takes place as the ruling Zanu-PF attempts to entrench its dictatorship in Zimbabwean law through the recently gazetted Constitution Amendment Bill No. 3, which would introduce far-reaching proposals to usher in extended and potentially limitless presidential terms.” He added that both Ramaphosa and International Relations and Cooperation Minister Ronald Lamola remained deafeningly silent when Mnangagwa and his regime arrested and detained Zimbabwean