THE PLANK MARCH 26, 2008
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There is no room for middling outcomes—Saturday’s elections in Zimbabwe will either be historic or painfully routine. Clinging to the tatters of a liberation mandate claimed in Zimbabwe’s 1980 independence movement, Robert Mugabe is seeking a sixth term as head of a now-failed state. One challenger, Simba Makoni, is an exile from Mugabe’s Zanu-PF party, whose experience as finance minister will—he hopes—reverse his opponent’s prideful neglect of the national economy (“million-dollar hamburger" and all). The other, Morgan Tsvangirai, is running on a solidly populist platform that also promises relief from the embarrassing poverty that has gripped the nation for a decade.
Both insurgents offer change we may believe in. But at 84, Mugabe epitomizes the respect-your-elders culture that has continually undermined democratic institutions in sub-Saharan Africa. He is feared in the manner reserved only for the reckless sadist: in 2000, he had thousands of whites were beaten and expelled from their lands; years later, a Harare slum-razing sent additional millions into homelessness and exile; state advisers and experts—kept close by cash and threats—are said to have no say in government. And shamelessly, “old man” Mugabe still pulls rank on the trail. Just this month he endowed his loyal police force with the power to enter polling stations on Saturday, bearing arms. Of an opposition victory, he said, "It will never happen as long as we are still alive—those [of us] who planned the liberation struggle." Emblematically, Mugabe is not even the longest-serving despot on the continent; Togolese president-for-life Gnassingb
6 comments
I just finished a long, detailed post describing the perceptions of Zimbabwean friends of mine in Namibia. I went to submit it, and there was a glitch, telling me that the primary post couldn't be found. It's too late at night here for me to re-type it all now. I'm sad about it though. This was actually the most meaningful thing I've had to say on Talkback in a long time.
- aeromonas
March 26, 2008 at 9:54am
aeromonas:
That makes me very sad and sorry. When adding the cartoon graphic, I reposted the thread. Please do share again if you're able--it's not often African affairs get an airing, let alone first-hand analysis, at TNR.
Dayo
- Dayo Olopade
March 26, 2008 at 10:11am
"it's not often African affairs get an airing, let alone first-hand analysis, at TNR."
You're very right, Dayo. And it's only worse in the non-New York Times media. It's a forgotten continent by the West.
- rozenson
March 26, 2008 at 1:00pm
ditto for most of Eastern Europe, ex-China East Asia, Latin America...
- teplukhin2you
March 26, 2008 at 1:24pm
Dayo: "...it's not often African affairs get an airing..."
tep: "...ditto for most of Eastern Europe, ex-China East Asia, Latin America..."
Hmmm. I wonder if there'$ a common denominator among$t all tho$e region$--$omething important each lack$...$omething in which, relatively $peaking, the U.$., We$tern Europe, much of the Middle Ea$t, and China are awa$h...
- williamyard
March 26, 2008 at 1:47pm
Good post, thank you for posting it. It's nice to see someone on TNR blogging about Zimbabwe. Well, someone who doesn't end up leaving the impression that his whole point of bringing up Zimbabwe was merely to say something nasty about Jimmy Carter or The Nation or something like that, anyway. Someone who's actually interested in Zimbabwe for itself. Keep posting about it, please.
And what Tep said, some coverage of Eastern Europe or Latin America would be nice too.. would make The Plank a little less parochial.
- jobeek2
March 26, 2008 at 5:32pm