Zimbabwe summons US diplomat over social media adverts urging voter registration

Partial screenshot of a recent social media post by the U.S. Embassy in Zimbabwe.

The Zimbabwe government said it summoned the acting U.S. ambassador to Zimbabwe over an ad urging citizens in the southern African nation to register to vote.

In a statement late Tuesday, Livit Mugejo, spokesman for Zimbabwe's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said Elaine French, the Charge d'Affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Harare, had been summoned by Harare over several advertisements shared on social media this month by the U.S. Embassy.

Mugejo said, "The most notable post was captioned: 'Register to vote and make sure your voice is heard,' among other tweets."

Mugejo said French met with Rofina Chikava, Zimbabwe's acting secretary for foreign affairs, who "expressed concern over the [U.S.] mission's election related-social media posts, bordering on activism and meddling in Zimbabwe's internal affairs."

Meg Riggs, the spokeswoman for the U S. Embassy in Harare, confirmed the meeting between French and Chikava and said there was no problem with the ads, which irked Zimbabwe.

"We stand by our recent social media posts calling for peace during the election season," said Riggs. "These neutral apolitical messages feature the work of Zimbabwean artists who wanted to engage their fellow youths on the importance of peace during an electoral process."