No role for spouses at summit, EU tells Zimbabwe.

Zimbabwe's First Lady Grace Mugabe (AP)

Cape Town – EU ambassador to Zimbabwe Aldo Dell'Ariccia has reportedly said that only those with a role to play in meetings at the forthcoming EU-Africa Summit in Belgium next week had been invited.

Dell'Ariccia said this following a report by The Herald on Tuesday that the European Union had denied President Robert Mugabe's wife Grace, a visa to allow her to travel alongside her husband.

A Sapa report on Wednesday said the Zimbabwe government indicated it would boycott the summit if Mugabe's wife was not granted a visa to travel with him.


Earlier reports quoted Mugabe's spokesperson George Charamba as saying it was "strange" that the EU had not extended an invitation to the first lady, adding "What God has put together the EU is trying to separate".

Restrictive measures

According to New Zimbabwe.com, Dell'Ariccia maintained "we have invited those with a role to play in the meetings, and the programmes of the meetings do not have any role for spouses".

Dell'Ariccia said since Mugabe's wife was under restrictive measures, the host country (Belgium) had to seek a green light for her to attend.

Mugabe and his wife are under an EU travel ban imposed in 2002, after a government crackdown on the opposition and the eviction of white farmers from agricultural land.

The EU had waived the visa ban on Mugabe, who is the vice-chairperson of the AU, saying it was not bound by the ban when hosting large international conferences.