Read other letters about this article

• Tuesday, June 24, 2008 09:54 PM

  Zimbabwe does not exist in a vacuum

  Their cross border friends in ZA's ANC and the ZACP are keeping Mugabe in power. Openly. From the President on down (including and especially Ronno "Einstein" Kasrils, dear readers), the official line is that Mugabe is a hero and Zimbabwe's problems are solely the fault of 'outside agitators'. It's not often clear what this is a code word for. Sometimes it's westerners, America, the CIA, Mossad, the usual suspects of tinpot cannibal kings everywhere.

  The problem really is that 'elections' as such are rather meaningless and almost besides the point in Zimbabwe. Even if they held halfway transparent elections tomorrow, Mugabe has already stated he would use the Army to hold on to power at all costs "For the Revolution!" unquote. And that's not saying anything of their 80% unemployment, 100,000% inflation rate and an economy that crashed past free fall into anarchy long ago. And that's not saying anything about how Mugabe is using food itself as a terror weapon against his opponents. Famine is rife in Zimbabwe and western reporters, or even ZA reporters who attempt to cover it are threatened with arrest or death and then kicked out of the country.

  Again though, someone should ask Mbeki and ANC head and next President Zuma why they're shipping weapons and money to Mugabe and refusing as many Zimbabwean refugees as they can catch. Even the ZA populace is getting fed up. Last month's xenophobic violence against mostly Zimbabwean refugees resulted in the deaths of about 200.

  But there will always be Mugabe supporters in the west because people here are as deluded and stupid as people there.

  —James T. Kirk Read James T. Kirk's other letters
  Permalink
  Flag
  Click "Submit Flag" if you feel this post is inappropriate. Explain why below if you wish.

  Cancel