Mugabe Not Recognised

Britain has used the strongest language yet about the recent goings-on in Zimbabwe by not recognising the legitimacy of Robert Mugabe as President elect. Paddy Ashdown has warned that Zimbabwe could descend into another Rwanada if the attacks on MDC supporters continues and heads towards genocide. Morgan Tsvangirai has sought refuge in the Dutch Embassy in Harare following his stepping aside from the presidential rerun, while his supporters at the MDC headquarters were rounded up and detained.

There are moves afoot at the world level, the UN Security Council have said that a free and fair presidential run-off vote on Friday would be "impossible".
This statement had much earlier been a more strongly worded draft from the UK but the fact that South Africa, China and Russia joined in an unanimous Security Council condemnation of Robert Mugabe is a positive step. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon had earlier called for the elections to be postponed. So the UN has recognised the "campaign of violence against the political opposition", "the killing of scores of opposition activists and other Zimbabweans, and the beating and displacement of thousands of people, including many women and children."

So what next? If God doesn't intervene with Mugabe might the UN? Lord Ashdown has said that military intervention 'might' be justified at this stage to stop the Zanu-PF backed militia from their regime of terror and intimidation of the people of Zimbabwe. What Other sanctions may be brought to bear? Can these bring about freedom and fairness without hindering the people who are already suffering.

Africa Finally Wakes Up To Mugabe

It's taken a while but finally fellow African nations have added their authoritative voices to those international observers about the lack of freedom and democracy in Zimbabwe's elections.

Having been intimidated, arrested, beaten, charged with treason, banned from advertising, starved and even killed or having close family members killed the supporters and leaders of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change have gained some support from their own Continent. Tanzanian Foreign Minister Bernard Membe who is part of the monitoring Troika said:

"The first impression we have is that if the elections were to take place today, these elections would never be free and fair... because... the report we received still indicates that violence is escalating throughout Zimbabwe."

With the re-run presidential elections only 7 days away on 27 June that does not bode well that the will of the people from the 29 March election will be strong enough to overcome the will of Robert Mugabe 3 months later. But with the leaders of South Africa, Kenya and Senegal all now expressing concerns about the fairness of next weeks poll is it too little too late.

It may not be too late as the people may still find a way to have their voice heard through the ballot box, and seeing the level of intimidation, starvation and deprivation he is willing to inflict on his own people they may see change through the MDC as their best hope for personal survival no matter what they risk by voting so on the day.

Aid Supsended in Zimbabwe

Robert Mugabe is only just returning for the UN-sponsored summit on the food crisis. His own country is one of those most heavily hit so of course naturally his first course of action is to suspend all overseas agencies for providing that aid to his people. Only governemnt agencies will be providing the aid that people need.

That will be agencies of the same government that manged to detain US and British diplomats. The British delegation said that at least that action taught them a little more of what is a regular occurance to Zimbabwe's own citizens if they diagree with the way they are being run.

The actions by Mugabe may be be another way to try and strangle through manipulation of their daily food supply the people into voting for him. I hope they have the strength and resolve to realise that if he's prepared to play god with their existance to try and maintain, even overturn the choice that they had already made that they should overwhelmingly vote him out of office in the re-run Presidential elections.

Tsvangirai Held in Zimbabwe

Opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai was arrested and held yesterday for 8 hours while on his way to address an election rally for the rerun Presidential Election.

The Movement for Democratic Change leaders arrest highlight not just the need for democratic change but the need for democracy in Zimbabwe. Robert Mugabe's Zanu-PF supporters are still hounding, beating, and killing MDC supporters in political attack. The arrest of their leader is light compared to what some of his supporters have gone through since the disputed election in March.

Mugabe is of course currently at the UN-sponsored global food crisis summit. Sadly Zimbabwe is not merely affected by the current world trends but also by the fact that state sponsored removal of the traditional farmers from their land to be given to untrained people has turned the lands of plenty into a pitiful shadow of what they could and ought to be.

Don't Forget Zimbabwe

The opposition parties in Zimbabwe have appealed to the UN Security Council for help. It calls amidst calls by Zimbabwe human rights groups that in rural areas violence is being used on behlaf of Robert Mugabe's Zanu-PF party in an attempt to rig the re-run of the Presidential election.

The UN's Under-Secretary for Political Affairs, Lynn Pascoe fears Zimbabwe is in the midst of its worst humanitarian crisis since independence. Where violence and food are being used as political weapons.

Tendai Biti, Secretary General of the main opposition (or should that be Government by now) Movement for Democratic Change, is hoping that as a result the UN will send an envoy to Zimbabwe as soon as possible. This beggars the question why haven't the UN done something like that before now.

At Last Some Regional Pressure on Mugabe

It has been a while in coming. Possibly cause many have deeper links with the Mugabe regime than they are prepared to admit in polite society.

But at least one of the countries of Southern Africa has called on Zimbabwe's Election commission to release the results of last month's Presidential Elections. It follows a special session of the UN Security Council yesterday chaired my South African President Thabo Mbeki. So his call for the results to be declared as soon as possible is the first call from within the African Union to avert a potential crisis like that which occurred in Kenya earlier following their disputed election results.

South Africa has been the quiet mediator in recent weeks and South African government spokesman admits that his country's position has not 'been coming out as clearly as it should.' Hopefully now that President Mbeki has made his statement the region to start to bring some pressure to bear on Mugabe and Zanu-PF to bring to a conclusion the secrecy regarding the result, which somebody somewhere must have some knowledge of after all this time.

Tim'rous Beastie Brown

Wee, sleeket, cowran, tim'rous beastie,
O, what panic's in thy breastie!

To a Mouse Robert Burns

Well echoing the words of Scotland's bard Gordon Brown could well be discribed as a Timorous beastie. First there is his confised state of what he's doing over China and Tibet, then the Prudent Chancellor seems unable to take responsible action for the economy now he has his coveted top job. Now to get another panic off his breastie he's sneaked out a hard hitting statement to Robert Mugabe under the cover of the papal visit at the same time.

Admittedly Brown did say Mugabe must not be allowed to steal the Presidential election. Also he did say it to the United Nations security council. However, he hasn't been this forthright on that issue for the last almost 3 weeks since the elections took place for which we are still awaiting a result.

Of course Brown's statement in going to get lost on a good media day to bury a story as the Pope criticised the US Bishops for their handling of the child sex scandals. So much for Brown being different from Blair in not spinning his message.

Maybe like the end of Burn's poem Tim'rous Beastie Brown is just like the poet:

But Och! I backward cast my e'e,
On prospects drear!
An' forward, tho' I canna see,
I guess an' fear!

Vote Mugabe or You Will Die

It's been 12 days since the election for Zimbabwe's President closed and the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission have yet to release the result of that poll. However, Zanu-PF henchmen of President Robert Mugabe have already started their campaign for the re-run of that vote in areas where the Movement for Democratic Change polled strongly.

Armed with AK-47s, shotguns and pistols they are terrorising groups getting them to sing liberation songs or chant Zanu-PF slogans and telling them, 'You messed up when you voted. Next time you vote you must get it right or you will die.' In order to try and balance up the vote in their favour they asked people to point out those who had supported the MDC. Fortunately in the incident reported in the Grauniad today nobody was pointed out.

Now in democracy there is no right or wrong merely the will of the people. The people who are messing up are clearly Zanu-PF and the ZEC. Violence and intimidation were not prevelant in the elections of 29 March unlike 3 and 6 years ago. They are returning now in a last ditch effort to save the presidency of Mugabe. However, the eyes of the world are on Zimbabwe and are still watching.

Drip, Drip, Drip From Zimbabwe

Okay the long drip, drip, drip of results from Zimbabwe's elections is indicating a different result than expected following the intial postings of results outside counting stations at the weekend. This is looking like some sort of Zanu PF attempt at manipulating as close to a statistical tie as they can manage.

Now after Movement for Democratic Change claims that Morgan Tsvangirai had run 60% of the Presidential vote, but that we sould expect a result saying Robert Mugabe would have 52% just eenough to avoid a run off, it appears that the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission on on the verge of calling a run-off.

So obviously there weren't enough votes stolen or otherwise to even get to the magic figure of 52%. The eyes of the world are still on this and the BBC presence inside Zimbabwe seems to be increasing on a daily basis at the moment.