Zimbabwe's whites branded racists and fascists

Zimbabwe’s white farmers were branded racists and fascists by a government minister today who urged tough action against those who are defying an order to stop working their fields.

The leaders of President Robert Mugabe’s ruling ZANU-PF party said many white farmers were ignoring the government order, which took effect earlier this week.

‘‘We dismiss the claim that the government is destroying the backbone of the country’s agriculture based economy by resettling landless people,’’ said Agriculture Minister Joseph Made.

But despite promises to redistribute the confiscated land to landless blacks, many of the farms have been given to loyal MPs and confidantes of Mugabe and ruling party leaders.

Made accused white farmers of trying to take over the country, saying they were taking ‘‘a racist and fascist approach of wanting to continue white dominance in this country.’’.

He added ‘‘The confrontational approach is another conspiracy to wipe out the indigenous people of this country as whites tried in India, Australia and New Zealand.

In a statement the ruling party said:’’The government should take swift action against any farmer who breaks the law.’’

But most farmers stopped working months ago, paralysed by the threat of the government’s ‘‘fast track’’ programme to seize white-owned farms and redistribute them to landless blacks, and intimidated by armed ruling party militants occupying their land.

The land seizures come amid a potentially devastating food crisis in Zimbabwe. Government officials said the crisis had nothing to do with the land seizures, which have decimated the nation’s commercial farming industry.

Less than 1% of Zimbabwe’s population is white - most the descendants of British and South African settlers.

Zimbabwe won independence from Britain in 1980 and Mugabe’s critics have accused him of trying

to stir up racial tensions in an effort to deflect attention from the country’s crumbling economy.

Information Minister Jonathan Moyo said whites were ‘‘leaving behind a trail of malicious destruction,’’ as they prepared to leave their farms.