THE upcoming First Ladies of African Impact and Resilience (FLAIR) Summit in London was supposed to be a celebration of women’s leadership. Instead, it has become a lightning rod for controversy.
The decision to invite Zimbabwe’s First Lady, Auxillia Mnangagwa, as a key speaker is not just questionable, it’s indefensible, given how entangled she is in corruption scandals and human rights abuses back home.
For Zimbabweans worldwide, Mnangagwa’s inclusion is a bitter insult. The Mnangagwa regime, with Auxillia playing a central role, has presided over a period marked by political repression, media crackdowns, and the siphoning of state resources.
Auxillia Mnangagwa was directly implicated in the explosive “Gold Mafia” documentary, which documented how Zimbabwe’s gold reserves were plundered through elaborate smuggling and laundering operations, enriching the elite while ordinary citizens suffered.
The United States Treasury has sanctioned Auxillia for facilitating her husband’s corrupt activities, yet here she is, being given a global platform to pose as a champion for women and resilience. How can the FLAIR Summit, which claims to empower African women and advance accountability, justify such a choice? The answer is as clear as it is cynical: the promise of prestige and powerful connections outweighed principle.
Adding to the summit’s credibility crisis, organisers widely advertised that Dawn Butler, a prominent UK Member of Parliament, would be speaking at the event.
But after diligent investigative work by the Zim for All Foundation, it was revealed that MP Butler had never agreed to speak and refused any involvement with the summit. The same pattern unfolded with Barclays and the House of Lords. Both were listed either as partners or participants but later distanced themselves from the gathering after inquiries, exposing an attempt by organisers to inflate the event’s legitimacy.
Outrage has erupted at home and abroad as Zimbabweans in the UK, many of whom fled the regime’s brutality, are planning protests. Activists and journalists have slammed the summit for “whitewashing” Mnangagwa’s record.
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“There is no justification for allowing Auxillia Mnangagwa to parade on international platforms while her government jails journalists and crushes dissent,” one activist group stated.
It’s not just the organisers who should be held accountable - fellow speakers are now confronted with a stark choice: share a stage with a figure synonymous with oppression or take a stand for the values they preach. By going ahead to speak at the summit, they risk awarding legitimacy to someone who has done nothing to earn it. For Zimbabweans, the spectacle of Auxillia Mnangagwa being celebrated in London is a cruel reminder of how rich and powerful ZANU PF has become. The organisers’ refusal to reconsider her invitation will haunt the summit’s reputation.
History won’t remember this as a moment of hope, but as one when impunity was welcomed with open arms. The FLAIR Summit’s choice is not just disappointing, it’s disgraceful.
- Charles Kanyimo is a Zimbabwean based in the UK. He writes in his personal capacity
