Former Zimbabwean dictator Robert Mugabe summoned over alleged diamond loot

Mugabe, who resigned in November following a military intervention and extraordinary public demonstrations, had said $15 billion worth of diamonds were looted from fields in the country’s east.

A Zimbabwean parliamentary committee is summoning former leader Robert Mugabe to explain past comments on alleged diamond looting — the first time a public institution has called him to account for such claims made during his 37-year rule.

Former Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe. (AFP/File Photo)

Mugabe, who resigned in November following a military intervention and extraordinary public demonstrations, has said $15 billion worth of diamonds were looted from fields in the country’s east. He later said he had no basis for that figure and spoke off the top of his head.

But parliamentary committee chairman Temba Mliswa told The Associated Press that the 94-year-old still should appear on May 9 to explain his comments. The Parliament will dispatch an official letter for Mugabe to appear “very soon”, Mliswa said.

It was not clear whether Mugabe, who has lived quietly in the capital since his resignation, will agree to show up.

The allegations of diamond looting have been a source of anger in the once-prosperous southern African country whose economy collapsed under Mugabe’s long rule. Non-governmental organisations such as Global Witness have accused government and security agencies of both looting and human rights abuses.

The parliamentary committee also has asked former vice president Joice Mujuru to provide evidence. Former and serving top police officers, government officials and mining executives already have appeared before the committee.