PRETORIA - Smart sanctions against Zimbabwe’s elite are “retarding” progress in the country, South Africa’s deputy president kgalema motlanthe said in the national assembly on Thursday.

Smart sanctions against Zimbabwe’s elite are “retarding” progress in the country, South Africa’s deputy president kgalema motlanthe said in the national assembly on Thursday.

Motlanthe, who had been asked about restrictions on shopping placed on Zimbabwe’s zanu-pf ministers, said the sanctions were affecting the free flow of capital and goods into the country.

“The government’s view is that the problems of Zimbabwe cannot be solely attributed to the tastes of ministers in Zimbabwe, but that the smart sanctions affect the free flow of capital and goods into Zimbabwe,” Motlanthe said.

It was the view of the governments of South Africa and Zimbabwe, including the movement for democratic change party, that sanctions had to be lifted to place the country on the path to recovery, he said.

“These sanction retard progress in Zimbabwe. This is the view of our government.

“It is why sadc [the southern African development community] and the au [African union] have called on the European Union, the government o¦ the United Kingdom and the government of the United States to reconsider the position of these smart sanctions.”

By SAPA