Mugabe in shock outburst, calls UK reporters 'bloody idiots'
FLARE-UP: President Mugabe snaps in a confrontation with British journalists in Egyopt on Monday, June 30
By Lebo Nkatazo
Last updated: Tue, 01 Jul 2008 18:26:58 GMT
PRESIDENT Robert Mugabe flew into an amazing outburst in Egypt on Monday, branding reporters who hustled him as he left an African Union summit “bloody idiots”. Security guards remonstrated with British journalists who used pointed language against the Zimbabwean leader, one congratulating him for “stealing an election”.
When a Channel 4 reporter asked him “on what grounds does he stake his claim to be President?”, Mugabe shot back: “On the same basis as mister (Gordon) Brown (British Prime Minister) regards himself as prime minister of Zimbabwe.”
In further exchanges with reporters, Mugabe blasted: “We are not a British colony, you must know that. We are not a British colony.”
The journalists continued to hustle the 84-year-old Zimbabwean strongman as security guards headed him towards the exits of the conference room in the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm El-Sheikh.
In a parting shot, a visibly angry Mugabe snapped: “What have you got to do with Zimbabwe? Who are you? Bloody idiots!”
The amazing scenes came on the first day of the two-day gathering of African leaders who are under pressure to find a solution to Zimbabwe’s political stand-off after Mugabe was sworn in for a sixth term last Sunday following a disputed poll which opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai pulled out of, although his name remained on the ballot paper. Mugabe won a landslide – claiming 85.5 percent of the votes cast.
Earlier, veteran African leader and Gabon President Omar Bongo told journalists that Mugabe "is president" of Zimbabwe, despite the way he was elected.
"He was elected, he took an oath, and he is here with us, so he is president and we cannot ask him more," said Bongo, Africa's longest serving leader who took power in 1967. "He conducted elections and I think he won."
African Union observers on Monday condemned the election as undemocratic, intensifying pressure on Mugabe as he faces his peers after a vote much of the world has dismissed as a farce.
European countries, the United States and the United Nations have been leading calls for firm action against Mugabe who has led the southern African country since 1980.
"I can certainly tell you that we are not obliged to obey orders from overseas," Bongo said.
Asked about the rising international calls for the AU to condemn Mugabe election, Bongo said that "Africans are able to decide for themselves. We have even received Mugabe as a hero," he said.
"We understand the attacks (by the international community) but this is not the way they should react. What they've done is, in our opinion, a little clumsy, and we think they could have consulted us (the AU) first," he said.
The strongest words in open session came from the UN. Its deputy secretary general, Asha-Rose Migiro, put pressure on African rulers to intervene directly to broker a political settlement. "This is a moment of truth for regional leaders," Migiro said.
In London Gordon Brown called on the summit to "make it absolutely clear that there has got to be change" in Zimbabwe. "I think the message that is coming from the whole world is that the so-called elections will not be recognised," he said.
The Kenyan Prime Minister, Raila Odinga, offered advice from Nairobi informed by his experience in opposition. "They should suspend him and send peace forces to Zimbabwe to ensure free and fair elections," he said.
However, inside the conference centre the language, at least in public, was considerably more circumspect. The host, President Hosni Mubarak, who has jailed many of his opponents and has been in power for 27 years, one less than Mugabe, stressed peace, stability and development rather than democracy.
Jakaya Kikwete, the Tanzanian president chairing the summit, even referred to the Zimbabwean elections as "historic".
One of Mugabe's toughest critics, the Zambian president, Levy Mwanawasa, was taken to hospital with a suspected stroke before the leaders gathered.
According to diplomats in Sharm el-Sheikh there were pointed exchanges in closed session. There was debate over whether to appoint an AU mediator to work alongside the South African president, Thabo Mbeki, who has been designated broker by the Southern African Development Community.
"Mbeki is trying very hard to stop it," said one diplomat. "Mbeki's argument is that this is a SADC lead, but the arguments of others is that Kenya shows the need for a full-time mediator."
Agencies report that Mugabe was greeted warmly by some other African leaders at meetings closed to the media. "He was hugging everyone, pretty much everyone he could get close to," one delegate told The Associated Press.
FIX: Zambian leader Levy Mwanawasa's place was taken by National Planning Minister Ng’andu Magande, who was positioned next to President Mugabe (far right)
FIX: Zambian leader Levy Mwanawasa's place was taken by National Planning Minister Ng’andu Magande, who was positioned next to President Mugabe (far right)
Labels: INTERNATIONAL MEDIA, MDC VIOLENCE, NEOCOLONIALISM
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The misimpressions of the cover of good intentions
Reason Wafawarova
Tue, 02 Sep 2008 14:31:00 +0000
THE understanding of human affairs is no easy task and the challenge of discernment on matters relating to international relations is probably the biggest problem with the majority of the people across the world today.
If one takes a look at the multitudinous approach adopted by Western media whenever they want to create an impression over the activities of countries they view as threatening Western interests, then reality dawns that the world is being misled by misimpressions that are disguised as news and intellectual opinion.
It is unfortunate that nature does not provide each of us the capacity to detect and dismantle barriers erected by doctrinal systems, which adopt a wide range of devices that flow from the concentration of power. In international affairs the concentration of power, till of late, has been concentrated in Washington and the last eighteen years of US’s mono-power status has been most telling.
The quest to control political behaviour and economic patterns across the world is the sole objective driving U.S. foreign policy and central to this objective is the inevitable need to meddle into the internal affairs of other nation states. It is common knowledge that Washington has more respect for its foreign policy than it has for international law, just like it is apparent that the US almost only recognizes the relevance of the United Nations when the White House intends to abuse the Security Council in punishing perceived foes.
To this end intervention and other military action is often disguised in the doctrine of good intentions just as we saw in July, when the Security Council was meant to endorse ruinous sanctions on Zimbabwe in the name of freeing Zimbabwean people from “a ruthless dictatorship”.
It was good intentions that were preached before the invasion of Grenada in 1982, it was good intentions preached before the invasion of the Dominican Republic, the bombing of Laos in 1958, the sponsoring of Contras in Nicaragua, the invasion of Panama, the sponsoring of the overthrow of Salvado Allende in 1973 and most recently the invasion of Iraq in 2003.
Samuel Huntington, a Harvard Professor of the Science of Government explained very well how good intentions are used in implementing US foreign policy. In 1981, when the incoming Reagan administration was cranking up the Cold War, Huntington explained very well the role of the Soviet threat.
He said, “You may have to sell (intervention and other military action) in such a way as to create the misimpression that it is the Soviet Union that you are fighting.”
He wrote further, “That is what the United States has done ever since the Truman Doctrine.”
In Zimbabwe it is important for Britain and the United States to create the misimpression that it is a cruel dictatorship that they are fighting. It is very important that firebrand evangelists of the human rights regime are funded and tasked to paint the Zimbabwean government in the blackest of colours. The granting of asylum visas to Zimbabweans has been largely a very generous practice in the West more for its role in playing good politics than the merit of applicants meeting the criteria at international law.
To facilitate the marketing effort, doctrinal systems commonly portray the current enemy by its weaknesses and its diabolical nature; real, imagined or made up – it is all the same. It really matters very little whether or not the characterization has elements of truth, the reality remains that the crimes portrayed are rarely the source of the call for forceful measures against whatever target that may be standing in the way of Western interests.
If one looks at the illustration of Saddam Hussein for example – here was a completely defenseless target characterized as an awesome threat to the survival of Western citizens. He was baselessly linked to the 2001 September 11 attacks and the whole world was being coerced into the solemn admittance that Saddam Hussein was about to attack the West yet again.
This was despite the fact that in 1982, the Reagan administration dropped Saddam Hussein’s Iraq from the list of states supporting terrorism so that the United States could begin a flow of military and other aid to the murderous Hussein. The murderous Saddam-US relationship continued long after Saddam Hussein’s worst atrocities and after the end of his meaningless war with Iran, and the relationship included means to develop weapons of mass destruction.
This record is hardly obscure but it falls under the tacit agreement underlying Western foreign policy, that “it wouldn’t do to mention that particular fact,” borrowing George Orwell’s phrase.
The record that Britain reneged on the Lancaster House Agreement over the land question in Zimbabwe is hardly obscure too, but it falls under the same tacit agreement that “it wouldn’t do to mention that particular fact.” What is necessary and convenient to mention is that well-meaning white commercial farmers had their farms and properties unjustly grabbed by a ruthless dictatorship that went on to give this land to Mugabe’s cronies and unskilled landless peasants?
The fact that the opposition MDC is an investment project to regain these farms is hardly obscure but again “it wouldn’t do to mention that particular fact.” What is convenient is to suggest endlessly that the MDC is standing for democratic freedoms and liberties that suddenly disappeared from the Zimbabwean space with the disappearance of white privilege over commercial farming.
Now the opposition MDC has been notoriously obnoxious with the negotiations for a political settlement to the problems bedeviling Zimbabwe, yet even the most ridiculous barbarity showcased by the goons masquerading as Honourable Members of Parliament was celebrated as an expression of democracy in the Western media.
It is clear that the Western media stand alone in celebrating the madness captained by Tongai Matutu in the Zimbabwean Parliament on the 26th of August, with the rest of the world widely condemning the uncouth behaviour as childish and plainly stupid.
How can heckling the opening process of a Parliament to which one has just sworn to become a member ever be viewed as reasonable? What would have been reasonable was never to be part of the swearing in process itself, if the idea behind the menacing hooliganism was to prove that the process at hand was illegitimate. But who is known to operate on reason from the MDC?
For the West it is necessary to create misimpressions not only about the targeted “Great Satans” or “axis of evil” but also about the West’s own nobility. In this context gross aggression and terror must be portrayed as self defence and dedication to such inspiring visions as democratization of the “uncivilized world”.
The devastating sanctions on Zimbabwe have been understated as “mere travel bans” on targeted individuals although publicly owned companies are inexplicably part of this list. The sanctions are portrayed as international pressure to uphold human rights and also as a dedication to the freedom and happiness of Zimbabweans by the British and U.S. governments. What crass contradiction of terms. Britain dedicated to the happiness of Zimbabweans!
Britain has a blatantly pathetic history of criminal conduct in India, China, Afghanistan, Zimbabwe, just to mention a few places and the British historians have sometimes vaingloriously portrayed England as a novelty in the world – a nation always in the service of others and selflessly bearing the costs of bringing peace and justice to the world. This is the context in which we are supposed to solemnly view the British funding to the opposition MDC in Zimbabwe.
The image of righteous exceptionalism is universally shared in the West. The constant theme is the dedication to bring democracy and freedom to a suffering world.
The standard story in scholarship and in the media is the oscillation of Western foreign policy between two conflicting tendencies. One is the U.S.’s Wilsonian idealism, which is based on the doctrine of noble intentions and the other is sober realism, which says that there is need to realize the limitations of good intentions. For the West those are the only options. .
Arno Mayer, a US historian, observed that since 1947, the United States has always been a major perpetrator of “state terror” and other “rogue actions,” causing untold harm, “always in the name of democracy, liberty and justice.”
Whatever the glorious rhetoric about Western democracy it takes a lot of blunt arrogance not to recognize the elements of truth in Mayer’s assertion when one looks at Iraq, Afghanistan and even Zimbabwe.
The United States has a documented history of fighting independent nationalism because to them it is a viral infection that can make the world ungovernable by Western powers. It is a virus that needs to be extirpated as was done in Chile on September 11, 1973.
General Pinochet rode on US subversion to lead his forces in overthrowing Allende’s democratic socialism and in the process demolishing the then Latin America’s oldest and most vibrant democracy.
Morgan Tsvangirai of Zimbabwe has tried and failed to emulate General Pinochet in taking advantage of US-led Western subversion in the economy of Zimbabwe. Riding on this subversion to effect an illegal, undemocratic and sanctions-induced regime change has clearly failed and this is why Tsvangirai is considering pursuing his mission from within the ruling structures of the country.
The West is now portraying President Robert Mugabe as anti-West and that is very deliberate. It is meant to set him against the generality of the Western population and this is the brush that has been used to paint the political character of Arthur Mutambara as well.
This is the same brush used to paint Muslims and the Arab world. In fact Western citizens are literally instructed to believe that Mugabe hates the Western people, that Arabs hate Westerners, and that the mission in Iraq and Afghanistan is to bring democracy there. Equally the mission in Zimbabwe is to bring freedom and happiness there.
In September 2004, a Pentagon advisory panel, the Defence Science Board (DSB) wrote this, “Muslims do not hate our freedom, but rather they hate our policies......when American public diplomacy talks about bringing democracy to Islamic societies this is seen as no more than self-serving hypocrisy.”
The report concluded, “American occupation of Afghanistan and Iraq has not led to democracy there, but only more chaos and suffering.”
President Robert Mugabe can speak for himself but by observing his utterances over the West one can clearly see that he does not hate Western freedoms and Western people but he has deep resentment for Western foreign policy.
The assertion that the man is anti-West can only be described as self-serving rhetoric meant to incite hatred and nothing more.
Against the backdrop of the unfolding disaster in Iraq, the tragedy of Pinochet in Chile and even the tragedy of British sponsored Idi Amin in Uganda it is most advisable for Zimbabweans to be wary of an uncritical faith in the doctrine of good intentions.
Zimbabwe, together we can be one. It is homeland or death and together we will overcome.
Reason Wafawarova is a political writer and can be contacted on
wafawarova@yahoo.co.uk or
reason@rwafawarova.com or visit
www.rwafawarova.com
Labels: INTERNATIONAL MEDIA, NEOCOLONIALISM
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Full marks for Mbeki and his quiet diplomacy
St. C─Opinion
Mon, 25 Aug 2008 17:39:00 +0000
WHEN one studies the events in Zimbabwe starting with the lead up to the March and June elections and the current situation clearly shows that Thabo Mbeki is a real political genius.
The South African leader’s quiet diplomacy has paid off. Not in the sense that the western media has been drilling in the minds of everybody exposed to it but a triumph for the billion Africans of all races and tribes who have been on the receiving end of slavery, colonisation, dominance and exploitation by Europeans and their allies for close to two decades.
Mbeki realized that to take on the Europeans and their allies head on was going to be tough so he applied his guerrilla tactics with ingenuity. When he announced his policy of quiet diplomacy most people assumed he meant to use it against and to topple Mugabe and Zanu PF.
Instead the tactic has exposed the true enemy of the freedom loving people of Africa . No, it has not exposed Morgan Tsvangirai and MDC as such but rather and more importantly that they are also victims of blatant blackmail, exploitation and manipulation by the Europeans using their legacy from Rhodes’s, Mussolini’s, Hitler’s, Blair’s, Bush’s.
The weapon used is now THE WESTERN MEDIA.
Quiet diplomacy exposed that the turning point for the worse for Zimbabwe was 1997/8 exactly when MDC was formed with the Western Media going to bed with them and diverted from representing the interests of workers to those of employers instead. It was after the formation of MDC that the polarization with Zanu PF government was born, that the economy started to slide, that sanctions were muted and executed, that the campaign of demonizing Mugabe began and sustained, the resistance to land reform began, a campaign to white wash the evil side of capitalism put in place, a return to divide and rule tactics re-emerged.
The fact that now MDC wants a transfer of power where power sharing has been offered after an election they did not win in spite of blackmailing a whole nation with starvation and economic battering clearly shows who indeed does not respect democracy and the rule of law. The only vociferous voices you now hear against Mugabe, Zanu PF, Mbeki and other progressive forces are those of the son of a British mother in Gaborone and a terror leader from Kenya. Even the Western media is subdued as the unfolding of events expose the true colours of Morgan Tsvangirai’s treachery to genuine African interests.
All the sons and daughters of Africa of all races say "Pamberi na Mbeki" and quiet diplomacy.
Labels: COLOUR REVOLUTIONS, INTERNATIONAL MEDIA, NEOCOLONIALISM, THABO MBEKI
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Western media should stop lying about talks
EDITOR — I read with amazement in some publications last week that the talks between Zanu-PF and the two MDC formations had collapsed after the parties reached a deadlock.
Over the years, I have come to realise that there are some sections of the media that only want to report negative things about Zimbabwe.
So I waited for a truer picture of what was happening to emerge and, sure enough, your paper correctly reported that there was no deadlock and that the negotiators were only coming home to brief their principals on progress made so far.
It is with this in mind that I would like to thank you for keeping the nation and the world at large well-informed about what is happening on our political scene.
I can no longer trust some newspapers and websites, especially those from the West, because they lie about us and try to derail our efforts.
I now understand why the Government has in place laws regulating how the media operate because there are many vultures out there who would like to destroy our country.
While I believe that there should be freedom of the media, I urge the authorities to ensure that there is a modicum of regulation so that liars cannot have the wherewithal to mislead the nation at such a sensitive time in our political development.
It is in the country’s best interests to put in place adequate measures so that those people resident in Zimbabwe who sabotage our progress by giving out false information and working in cahoots with the liars in the Western media are dealt with.
Why should the nation be held to ransom by a bunch of poorly trained journalists who want to make a quick, dishonest dollar?
Barnabas Murefu.
Borrowdale,
Harare.
Labels: COLOUR REVOLUTIONS, INTERNATIONAL MEDIA, ZIMBABWE
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UK photojournalist hanged self in Zimbabwe hotel
By Lebo Nkatazo
Last updated: 08/02/2008 04:33:51
THE family of an Irish photojournalist who hanged himself in Zimbabwe while working undercover for the London Times newspaper has said there will be no need for an enquiry after accepting he took his own life. Richard Mills, an award winning Northern Ireland journalist was said by Zimbabwean authorities to have died of asphyxiation by hanging – an explanation initially rejected by his family. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) said Thursday that it had also withdrawn a call for an inquiry into Mills’ death in a hotel room on July 14.
“Having had the chance to examine in detail the circumstances surrounding Richard’s death we are now reconciled to the fact that he did indeed take his own life,” a statement released by the family said.
“We acknowledge that the amount of suffering and extreme hardship he witnessed at first hand in many harrowing situations throughout the world proved too much for him to bear.”
The family’s statement forced the IFJ to recoil from a statement issued earlier this week demanding that the South African government puts pressure on Zimbabwean authorities to launch a full investigation.
The IFJ said: “We share the deep suspicion of Richard Mills’ family over the circumstances of the death of this gifted colleague. It casts a fresh shadow over the crisis for democracy in Zimbabwe.”
The IFJ now admits its suspicions were misplaced. IFJ Secretary General Adrian White said the organisation’s call for an enquiry was made in response to a request by the Mills family. The 41-year-old renowned front-line lensman, who had worked on assignments in Iraq and Afghanistan had been due to leave Zimbabwe the day after he died.
A veteran of the Royal Air Force, Mills had been working in Zimbabwe undercover, a situation which made The Times cautious about reporting details of his death. The paper would not even disclose whether Mills had been working with a reporter, although it later emerged his body was found by Catherine Philp, The Times’ Diplomatic Correspondent who was covering the story in Zimbabwe with Mills.
Mills was laid to rest on Tuesday after a funeral service at Roselawn Cemetery in Belfast.
Labels: INTERNATIONAL MEDIA, JOURNALISM, PRESS
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Zimbabwe’s new experts and commentators
Philip Mukaronda—Opinion
Wed, 16 Jul 2008 00:45:00 +0000
DEAR EDITOR—A while ago a white man once said that if you want to hide something from a black man put it in a book. I hate to harshly criticize my own people, but the commentaries and arguments we hear on Zimbabwe sometimes point to this remarkable ‘truth’. I have seen and heard many a commentator on Zimbabwe who are ignorant of the issues being discussed and often replace facts with emotion and mindless opinion. I hate to be so brutally frank, but it had to be said.
Many of these experts find it fashionable to just criticize the government without giving themselves time to reflect on the future and how they can positively contribute themselves - today or sometime in the future. Mugabe bashing has almost become a songbook that everybody sings from. i think people should grow up and learn to think about possible scenarios to get themselves out of their problems without 'gundamusaira'.
We are all unhappy and sad about the state of our nation; but I don't know how a whole nation can think in concert and 'sing the same song'. Those who stand in front of people day-in-and-day-out and repeat the same mantra about hopw eveiul and how bad Mugabe is without giving concrete solutions and ways out might as well stay put where they hail from and feel sorry for themselves.
I read an article on the Zimbabwe Guardian a while ago which criticized ‘political and economic commentators’ from Zimbabwe. That article was spot-on. Many of these commentators should give themselves time to read about Zimbabwe and what exactly caused the problems we currently experiencing in the motherland before they make a shameful spectacle in front of the world. I find it ridiculous to see the marked difference in depth between a BBC correspondent (interviewer) and some excitable Zimbabwean political commentator, that just goes there to repeat a mantra we have heard a thousand times: "Hee Mugabe this, Mugabe that..." We are tired of these shallow commentators.
A few days ago, I heard a Zimbabwean 'economics commentator' who spoke about the hyperinflationary climate in the country, but failed to even mention the word ‘sanctions’ in the whole interview. How could one make such a mistake when discussing inflation in Zimbabwe, especially when they are an 'economics expert'? What do they teach in political economy these days? How do these people become experts overnight? This is ridiculous and bizzare, to say the least. He (the 'economics commentator') used all the reasoning he had learnt in his ‘elementary’ economics class about “too much money chasing too few goods,” etc, etc.
The ‘economics expert’ as he was called by his interviewer also failed to mention that the IMF and World had squeezed the Zimbabwean economy and contributed to the heavily skewed structure we see today. The interviewer failed to ask questions on the role of sanctions in creating the hyperinflationary environment we see in Zimbabwe today. All they could talk about was how quickly the rate was dropping and how many Zim dollars it takes to get a pound. Ridiculous stuff! What should I do with that kind of information? I need solutions and rational analyses, not these shallow junior school debates.
The IMF in Zimbabwe has abrogated its role of ensuring world economic stability; and has been complicit in economic destabilization. The twin Bretton Woods institutions have been used by its principal powerful shareholders from Britain and the U.S., in particular the IMF, to penalize Zimbabwe for its national policies, especially the land redistribution exercise.
This is not to exonerate Zimbabwe from bad policies, but how could an ‘economics expert’ miss this brute economic reality?
This 'commentator' also failed to explain that when Zimbabwe defaulted on its IMF debt in 2001, the IMF refused to reschedule its debt, or offer alternative lines of credit or other support to ensure stability. Yet, the IMF has learnt such support to countries such as Argentina which defaulted on their sovereign debts. This was either missed or not understood by our expert.
Many other issues have been discussed which have shown ignorance on the part of the interviewer and the interviewee and such parroting by these individuals has poisoned the ever-gullible Zimbabwean population. Emotion has substituted facts in most cases and what should be intellectual debates have been reduced to ‘cheap pub talk’.
I think institutions that hire these people should vet them properly and not just throw ‘anything’ to discuss otherwise complicated and significant issues. I cannot believe the BBC sometimes when it asks the same ignorant people to come on the programme. Sometimes I feel like they are trying to say: 'Look how dumb Zimbabweans are!' Zimbabweans have a reputation of being very literate. That reputation is slowly being eroded by those who just hop-step-and-jump onto TV platforms they know nothing about and discuss issues that expose their naivety. I have noticed Sky News has stopped inviting Zimbabwean political commentators and are substituting them with informed ‘African’ ones. We are the only country where our issues are discussed by other nationalities on TV. This is because we never delve deeper into issues and take a step back and learn. We are quick to jump in front of lights, like rabbits that jump in front of a moving car in a daze and get hit.
Philip Mukaronda—Opinion
Labels: INTERNATIONAL MEDIA, ZIMBABWE
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Western media’s lies exposed
By Peter Mavhunga
IN this London Letter you will find that I take my hat off twice. First, I salute the Sunday Times for admitting that it got it all wrong when it accused what it described as Zanu-PF militia of hurling an eleven-month-old baby onto a concrete floor in an imagined scene of violence that has typified British Press reports on Zimbabwe.
Some sections of the British Press would rather I shut up and instead become a consumer of their propaganda. Indeed some newspapers here will not tolerate an alternative view to theirs which they present as the gospel truth.
So it was refreshing to find that the Sunday Times this week admitted it was fallible and that there was no evidence to support its allegation against Zanu-PF the previous week.
This is what happened.
On Sunday 30 June, the Sunday Times carried a traumatising story about Zanu-PF cruelty against the opposition. On the front page was a picture of a distressed 11-month-old baby, Blessing Mabhena with the legend, "A tiny victim of a terrible nightmare" above it.
Below the picture was the caption: "Blessing Mabhena had both of his legs broken by Zanu-PF supporters searching for his father."
The title of the story, by Christina Lamb, was: "Mugabe’s thugs shout: ‘Lets kill the baby’."
The report began: "A baby boy had both legs broken by supporters of President Robert Mugabe to punish his father for being an opposition councillor in Zimbabwe."
It went on: "Blessing Mabhena, aged 11 months, was seized from a bed and flung down with force as his mother Agnes, hid from the thugs, convinced that they were about to murder her."
In another, more detailed report on page 27, the paper declared: "Even Zimbabwe’s babies are targets. From infants to the frail elderly, no one is safe as Zanu-PF killers hunt down the opposition."
This report, apparently by a freelance journalist, Douglas Merle in Harare, was even more dramatic. "There was a tremendous hammering on the door of her home," it began.
"Realising that President Mugabe’s thugs were hunting for her, Agnes
Mabhena, the wife of an opposition councillor, quickly hid under the bed. It was too late for her to grab Blessing, her 11-month old baby, who was crying on top of it.
"‘She’s gone out. Let’s kill the baby,’ she heard a member of the gang say. The next thing she saw from under the bed was Blessing’s tiny body hitting the concrete floor with a force that shattered his tiny legs.
"‘It is just a baby — leave it alone,’ another said, and the thugs left. All day Mabhena stayed at home with her screaming son, too terrified to move.
"Her neighbours, knowing that the family were regarded as opponents of Mugabe, were too frightened to help."
The Sunday Times report went on: "Now encased in plaster, his little legs stick out at an odd angle below his blue romper suit. Unless he has orthopaedic help soon, he may never walk."
This is the sort of report on Zimbabwe the British public is subjected to frequently here. It is quite standard. Journalists appear too ready to accept what they are told. There is a lack of journalistic curiosity; no-one will bother delve deeper.
After all, if what is said helps to nail the regime, it must be right.
So reports, even in "serious" papers like the Sunday Times, have tended to be emotional rather than factual.
At the same time there is a willing readership. The public has been made to believe everything bad said about Zimbabwe and its "regime" must be right.
This ready acceptance of a one-sided story has led to an abuse of the system. People can lie point blank because they have been led into believing that "the regime" knows no limits to its level of cruelty and badness.
In this case this was a story being given by one side of the political divide in Zimbabwe. One side was making serious allegations against the other and even a journalist who has just heard the word "objectivity" or "balance" for the first time would say OK but I have to verify this.
Failure to do so leads to a sensational report which fuels people’s anger against one of the parties — for the wrong reason.
Indeed, anybody seeing the picture on the front page of the paper on June 30 would not fail to be moved by it.
Not unexpectedly, there was an outpouring of emotion towards the little victim of this unspeakable cruelty allegedly perpetrated by Zanu-PF.
Somehow, this is how the whole story began to unravel. The story prompted readers to offer money for medical treatment for little Blessing.
According to the Sunday Times published on 6 July 2008, "Doubts about the mother’s account arose when our reporter tried to arrange an operation. An orthopaedic surgeon said an X-ray of the child’s legs showed no sign of fractures.
"Doctors in Harare and London said he had club feet." The paper went on to say: "The mother, whose husband is an opposition councillor, repeatedly insisted that the child had been maimed when he was picked up from a bed and hurled to the floor.
"Her story, which was first reported in The New York Times, was reiterated last week by Newsweek, the US magazine. While there is no suggestion that the mother’s account of an attack is false, doctors have yet to find any evidence to support her claims that her son was injured…Further X-rays are due tomorrow."
Unless evidence could be found to suggest the child had been injured, the suggestion that the so-called Zanu-PF militia were there suddenly becomes just hot air.
Hot air that should have been checked and re-examined before being spread across the globe by institutions that seem to have lost all sense of decent reporting!
The Sunday Times blames this failure to check allegations on President Mugabe "who has virtually banned foreign journalists from Zimbabwe. As a result, most have had to report clandestinely on last month’s violent elections. The price of being caught is prison", says the report.
My information is that the Government of Zimbabwe has not virtually banned foreign journalists from the country.
It is the BBC who have been banned. Any other journalists can work in Zimbabwe, subject to registration with the relevant authorities.
The Sunday Times makes an interesting comment on the difficulties of checking information.
It says in this instance, "A photographer took a poignant picture of the baby with his legs in plaster, sticking out at odd angles, as he sheltered in a church hall with others displaced by the violence.
"Aware that other children have been hurt in attacks on the opposition, a freelance reporter who provided the story took the mother at her word. Part of this reporter’s article was then inserted into a front-page story by Christina Lamb without her knowledge.
"Our inquiries in the past few days suggest we were wrong to report that the baby’s legs had been broken in an assault. For that, we unreservedly apologise."
This is an apology for wrongly accusing Zanu-PF for a terrible crime it did not commit.
Some aspects of this story illustrate that there are insidious forces working hard out there to demonise the Zimbabwe Government.
For if it was not the case, how is it that a false report about an alleged Zanu-PF atrocity manages to be sneaked without the reporter’s knowledge onto the front page of the Sunday Times with the report and photo fitting in nicely to the other story?
Even if I was born yesterday, I still would not believe it. And because I was not born yesterday, I find the report offensive to say the least.
Some of my friends do not read newspapers or listen to the news on TV because of what they perceive as its inherent bias.
They are particularly angry that objectivity, truth and facts are no longer the lifeblood of British journalism when it comes to reporting Zimbabwe.
It is disappointing, though in this instance I still take my hat off to the Sunday Times for its admission. Many others might not have done so. I am saddened though that little Blessing has had to be at the centre of this bizarre story.
Turning now to the question of how Zimbabwe moves forward from here, it is pleasing to note that there is some re-allignment of Zimbabwe politics taking place. The process may be slow but it certainly is happening. My purpose as an analyst is to identify that process and perhaps encourage it.
And nothing symbolises that re-alignment more than the recent statement by Mr Gabriel Chaibva and I take my hat off again as a mark of respect.
Zimbabwe is crying out for men and women who put national interest before narrow party considerations. The country is looking for leaders with vision to take the country forward in the interest of the population. National interest ought to be seen in the context of the country, its history and the direction it wants to travel.
Mr Chaibva’s statement and his general posture tells me we have in him a man who meet these criteria. He is a man of courage and vision. He wants dialogue and he maps out the conditions for fruitful dialogue.
But: "Unless Arthur Mutambara and Morgan Tsvangirai are prepared to approach President Mugabe, shake his hand and say ‘Mr President’, we will not move forward and there can be no talks."
His sense of history is impressive too. He regretted the opposition parties’ failure to recognise the President in 2002 and asks pointedly: "Where did that get us?"
He goes on to say: "Who would have thought that in 1980 people like Ken Flower (head of CIO under Ian Smith) and General Peter Walls would be incorporated in the administration?"
He deplored and castigated the divisive "foreign influence" in the politics of Zimbabwe. According to him, such foreign influence created disunity within the ranks of the opposition.
He was clearly in favour of land redistribution at the time of the split. "We were nationalist and Pan African," he said.
What African worth the name would be against that? "But the providers of capital see this as a threat to their permanent economic interests in Zimbabwe," he said. "That is why just before the elections the two MDCs failed to unite."
I disagree with a description of Mr Chaibva as being repentant as I read somewhere the other day.
Here is a man of vision who can learn from past mistakes in the interest of the nation. He lampoons those who listened to the Americans and the Germans who produced a report telling Mr Tsvangirai that he would win 85 percent of the vote on March 29 and that he did not need the support of Mr Mutambara.
He deplored those in opposition parties who over-estimated themselves and underestimated Zanu-PF. On this, history is on Mr Chaibva’s side too.
At the Independence elections in 1980, those who over-estimated themselves and under-estimated Zanu-PF were embarrassed with the result.
One such person was Ken Flower who told the then Prime Minister, Bishop Muzorewa, that he did not need even to remove his slippers from State House because he was going to be returned there with a huge majority.
The rest is history.
A new consensus is emerging in Zimbabwe and Mr Chaibva is a good example of how this process is taking shape.
Dialogue based on the premise that the people of Zimbabwe alone can find solutions to their problems is the way forward.
President Mbeki of South Africa might mediate but the solution belongs to Zimbabweans, no-one else. Negotiations based on a new consensus have a far greater chance of success than those that are held in an atmosphere akin to having one of the players trying to play cricket with one hand tied behind his back. Or negotiations held with one party always waiting for instructions from the "international community"!
What kind of negotiations are those other than a cover for the British and the Americans to come and take over?
I favour Mr Chaibva’s approach of bringing a purely African agenda to the talks where my brothers and sisters from all shades of political opinion in Zimbabwe come together to find solutions to our lovely country’s problems. It can be done.
Labels: COLOUR REVOLUTIONS, INTERNATIONAL MEDIA, NEOCOLONIALISM
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Buy from Zimbabweans, and sell it to the world!
By Fred Chingonzoh
Late morning today (27-06-08), while driving through Munich, I was listening to a radio show about Zimbabwe. There was a lot of rubbish being preached and I decided to call in and give them a dose of Zimbabwean patriotism. I parked my car and dialed in and a woman answered. The call went on as follows:
Woman 1: Hello, welcome to the show. Who am I speaking with?
Me: Mike Tumuti (I don’t know why Tumuti but hey, Tumuti sounds ok)
Woman 1: What do you want to say?
Mike: I am from Zimbabwe and I would like to comment on my experience in my home country.
Woman 1 (now obviously taking notes): Did you run away from the Mugabe regime.
Mike: No
Woman 1: So what do you want to say? Are you a member of MDC?
Mike: No I just want to contribute just like the West African caller a few moments ago.
(up to now no Zimbabwean had called in )
Woman 1: So do you criticise the government? Have you been tortured?
Mike: No, I just want to contribute my experience as a Zimbabwean.
(This cat and mouse game goes on for a while but I am not telling her what I want to say. Finally she asks for my number and I give her and she says someone will call me. I park my car and wait. Finally Woman 2 calls me)
Woman 2:Hello Mike Timuti! Welcome to the show!
(Now I am Timuti! Hey I love this, I am flexible, you know! I guess that’s Australian so I‘ll change a bit )
Mike: Hi
Woman 2: So what do you want to contribute?
Mike: I am Zimbabwean and I wanted to say a few things about this very interesting subject.
Woman 2: What exactly do you want to say?
(Now I remember the magic words that will open any door in the West )
Mike: I want to say how bad Mugabe is!
I can feel it. If she could reach out through the phone to give me a job she would! This is what she wanted to hear! Nigerians please take note. They don’t care where you’re from.
Just say those words and the coffers are open for you. But hey Aibongbe, don’t say I told you! Woman 2 gives instructions on turning down my car radio volume etc etc.
I wait as I now listen to the show from my mobile. After a few more callers I am introduced by the announcer then he says to go ahead and comment. (Big mistake!!
Mike: As a Zimbabwean I would like to make a comment. First of all Zimbabweans are the most literate nation in Africa (South Africa included). Because of this they take in and process information differently compared to, say, Kenya.
The other thing is that we do not have that blatant tribalism as in Kenya. In Zimbabwe you will find members of the same family on different sides of the political divide and this is why they will not go marauding and killing their own brothers and sisters.
They are intelligent. When they hear all this hullabaloo about Mugabe being in power too long (and they know that Hosni Mubarak of Egypt has been in power for about the same amount of time) they become skeptical to Western intentions.
When they see that Algerian elections are almost always annulled because of fear of an Islamic takeover and a new Iran, they are skeptical of the West’s standards.
So far we have been talking about Zimbabwe and not one person said a word about Rhodesian atrocities against our people. The Germans built a monument in Berlin for the dispossessed and every year they will commemorate the taking away of their lands in Eastern Europe after WW-II yet not one person asks how the Rhodesians got that land.
These are double standards and Zimbabweans don’t believe them anymore. I urge listeners to please order the book by Dr Davis called "Zimbabwe: The land Question" I repeat, by Dr Davis "Zimbabwe: The land Question" and this book will explain to you what is going on.
I was expecting the chop at any time and finally the announcer cuts me off and goes to the next caller. I was using the name Dr Davis because as long as they think the author is white they will hunt for the book using Google and if 2 percent of those buy the book then that’s ok too. (Next time I meet Dr Davis Gazi I will ask for a commission)
Satisfied I drive on for my assignment at Bayerische Rundfunk, the parent organisation of the Radio station I was listening to. I got a message out and I advertised the book. Well you know the Zimbabwean paradigm should be: "Buy from Zimbabweans and sell to the world!"
This just shows you that there is a concerted effort to build a certain picture about Zimbabwe and those in the Diaspora should fight this effectively. Not by shouting but presenting facts at key events or shows. You know, in total darkness a small light bulb is like flood lights.
God bless all Zimbabweans. Don’t fear, He that is among you is greater than he who is their guiding instance.
Labels: INTERNATIONAL MEDIA, ZIMBABWE
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Illegal regime change takes Internet by storm
By Dambudzo Mapuranga
THE British Government appoints the BBC’s entire top management. In fact, one can safely say BBC is a mouthpiece of the British Government. This being said, how then can BBC be expected to report objectively concerning the Government of Zimbabwe seeing that Zanu-PF has been labelled enemy number one by the residents of Number 10 Downing Street.
"We cannot independently verify the contents of this story as BBC is banned from reporting in Zimbabwe".
This is the disclaimer that you will find under many of the stories on Zimbabwe on the BBC’s website, TV and radio broadcasts.
The disclaimer is posted solely for the purpose of protecting BBC from being sued by the Government of Zimbabwe over its blatant false news stories.
Several questions arise when one closely examines the disclaimer and chief among them is, if the BBC has failed to verify a story why then would they report it and also post it on its website as a news article?
The only answer that there is to the actions of the BBC is that as long as any story paints a heinous picture of Zanu-PF, President Mugabe and Zimbabwe it will find itself attaining high priority on the BBC website, TV and radio. I am confident that if I were to open a fictitious story chronicling how Zanu-PF supporters have done all sorts of evil deeds on my being and on my property and even include several pictures of road accident victims it will make it on to BBC.
The game of creating news stories is not anything new; in fact the Americans perfected it a long time ago.
A classic example is seen from the American movie "Wag the Dog" starring Robert de Niro and Dustin Hoffman. The concept of the movie being that after news broke out that on the run up to the first Gulf War the Kuwaiti Lobby in Washington, DC commissioned the production of false news stories that showed Iraqi army tanks and soldiers advancing towards a supposed Iraqi/Kuwaiti border. It turns out that the entire footage was shot in the Nevada Desert with the help of the Bush administration.
The deception did not end there. These unscrupulous people went on to produce false testimony before the US Congress (the equivalent of our parliament). The daughter of the then Kuwaiti Ambassador to the United States was coached into testifying and lie before the US Congress on how her entire village was razed and how she escaped being killed by pretending to be dead and covering herself with the intestines of her dead mother.
The partiality of western media houses is well known, as most of them are nothing more than public relations offices of their countries’ foreign affairs ministries.
The negative reporting of the BBC and CNN on Zimbabwe is a mockery of the same institutions their governments claim to be propagating across the globe.
Rumours make juicy stories and are very difficult to take back. The type of irresponsible journalism being witnessed on the Internet has turned BBC and CNN into some of the biggest rumour mills.
Only myopic people and racists would find such rag tag stories to be of value.
Here are two stories that highlight gross irresponsibility on the part of the BBC and CNN. Some of them leave the reader wondering whether the editors of these media houses even bother showing up for work.
Zimbabwe campaign: Secret document
The article claims that undercover BBC news correspondent Ian Pannell obtained evidence of plans by Zimbabwe’s ruling party to harass and drive out opposition supporters.
I for one would like to have whatever medication Zanu-PF legal affairs secretary Cde Emmerson Mnangagwa is drinking, because according to the secret document, Cde Mnangagwa is doing the work of ten very strong men.
One day he is reported to be in South Africa consulting with the ANC, the next day he is hailed as the man running the so called military junta that is now "ruling" Zimbabwe, and now he is heading the Zanu-PF presidential election campaign.
That being said an analysis of the secret document shows that it is a total take. Zanu-PF takes great pride in its work and anyone who is familiar with Zanu-PF’s operations would know that any correspondence or party documents would have the Zanu-PF letterhead. The so called Zanu-PF secret document contains no logo or letterhead to show its origin.
Given that the cunning legal brains of Cde Mnangagwa are said to be heading the Action Plan documented in this disgraceful and shoddily down piece of work one wonders whether there is another Mnangagwa with half a brain who would come up with such a poor strategy.
One can only conclude that this secret document came from some opposition dim-wit with nothing better to do. The poor English used in the document leaves the mouth with a sour taste. The poor fellow then adds the names of several prominent Zanu-PF figures and accredits them to be from the Zanu-PF Midlands Province.
With the exception of Cde Mnangagwa, the rest of the party functionaries are not from the Zanu-PF Midlands Province. Senator Edna Madzongwe is from Mashonaland West Province.
Both Senator Joshua Malinga and Cde Jabulani Sibanda are from the Bulawayo Province, while Cde Joseph Chinotimba is from Manicaland Province.
The BBC failed to realise this and further more it is common knowledge that Politburo members such as Cdes Madzongwe and Mnangagwa head teams in their respective provinces and are not thrown all over the country in a haphazard manner.
Death of a Zimbabwe Activist
In an ironic twist of events Tonderai Ndira became a hero in death and yet he lived the life of a thug.
Despite all her hatred for Zanu-PF, Trudy Stevenson can attest that she did not moan the death of a former MDC-T activist who was responsible for her assault in Mabvuku in 2005, an assault that resulted in head injuries and a fractured arm.
The two police officers based at ZRP Marimba who were unfortunate to be at the station when it was petrol-bombed by Ndira and his accomplices surely did not shed a tear for the man responsible for their skin burns.
None of these heinous acts were featured in the glowing obituary that BBC News posted on Tonderai Ndira. Instead the news article glorified a violent man who died a violent death. The elderly are correct when they say those who live by the gun die by the gun.
"I knew him personally, he was a youth activist who went around the country holding workshops and teaching people their rights."
That is what one unnamed ZimRights official is quoted to have said. Too bad we cannot contact the so-called official and ask him for the names of the three towns where Ndira held human rights workshops.
Ndira’s farewell should have been a true reflection of what he was. It should have said "the death of an MDC-T foot soldier".
The story then tells of how ten men came in a pick up truck to Ndira’s house in Mabvuku armed with AK-47 rifles around seven in the morning and boldly asked Ndira’s wife to inform him that they had come to collect him. The men then abducted Ndira in his underwear in front of his children.
Of all the incredible things you have ever heard this is right up there with "the dog ate my homework" story.
Anyone who has been to Mabvuku or any other high-density suburb knows that there is no way anyone can be abducted at seven in the morning.
Are we meant to believe that somehow there were no people going about their business to witness ten armed men in an open pick-up truck kidnapping Tonderai Ndira?
With the way the MDC-T loves to cry for attention should this not have been on BBC and CNN within thirty minutes of Ndira’s abduction?
Observe how the BBC and CNN seem to be able to report of MDC-T leader Morgan Tsvangirai’s arrests within minutes of them happening.
How then did Ndira’s abduction go unreported for days only to have the news of his death reported to coincide with Tsvangirai’s return from self-imposed exile?
As if that was not enough, Tsvangirai, Zimbabwe’s self-proclaimed saviour "cried" at Ndira’s funeral, to invoke emotions of the Holy Book’s shortest, "Jesus wept" before raising Lazarus from the dead.
BBC now offers to answer readers’ questions about Zimbabwe through their undercover correspondent Ian Pannell. One can only guess what lies this hack of a journalist will be peddling to those who intend to ask him about the political situation in Zimbabwe.
I sent Ian Pannell several questions which I believe to be very pertinent to the Zimbabwean situation, but he is yet to respond to. My questions were:
l Why has the BBC and CNN not reported on MDC-T perpetrated violence against Zanu-PF supporters?
l Why has the BBC failed to reveal where it got the copy of the alleged Secret Zanu-PF campaign document?
l Why has the BBC never written about the effects of the illegal sanctions on ordinary Zimbabweans?
l Why is there no reference to the US’ Zimbabwe Democracy and Economic Recovery Act of 2001 on its website?
l Why does the BBC only quote right wing Rhodesians and MDC-T as the people representing "Zimbabweans"?
In conclusion, the long and short answer is that the Zimbabwe situation has largely been played up by the Western media and it is clear that it is an extension of their foreign relations policy on Africa.
This stark reality puts our private media poles apart with the Western media that they mimic, since our private media believes that "following the flag" is retrogressive.
The Internet, where lies, half truths and misinformation are peddled as news has internationalised the issue with pseudo experts and arm chair critics who have an axe to grind against Zanu-PF, President Mugabe and his Government always being available with "opinions and analyses" of every news item reported by the BBC and CNN and a whole host of other foreign networks.
However, the shameful thing is that the lies always come through, and the embedded journalism shows itself.
Labels: BBC, CNN, ELECTIONS, INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
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Sata tells the west to stop demonising Mugabe
By Patson Chilemba
Tuesday July 01, 2008 [12:31]
OPPOSITION Patriotic Front (PF) president Michael Sata has told the west to stop demonising Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe, saying
the people had given him the right to lead Zimbabwe. And Sata urged the west to
stop practising double standards over Zimbabwe. Commenting on the recent election runoff in which President Mugabe emerged winner Sata said
President Mugabe clearly defeated Tsvangirai.
"He (President Mugabe) didn't stand alone because Morgan won some votes. Morgans name was on the ballot paper, so where was the withdrawal? Sata asked. Mugabe defeated Morgan. Asked if the election was democratic, Sata responded: It was an African election. I have experienced that. If you say Morgan has been arrested, even today I was in court (over the defamation of President Mwanawasa case). So what are you talking about?"
Sata said it was unfortunate that Tsvangirai withdrew from the race after participating 90 per cent in the process.
He also said it was sad that most countries especially those from the west were practising double standards over Zimbabwe. Sata said in Zambia for example, the west were even supporting the National Constitutional Conference (NCC) which had no support of major stakeholders.
Who is condemning the NCC? Where is the west? They are even funding the NCC . . . what legitimacy will come out of the NCC which the west is supporting? There is more double standard by the west and some African countries, said Sata.
President Mugabe was recently sworn in for a five-year term after a sweeping victory in the solo runoff election which registered a record number of spoilt votes in that country's elections.
President Mugabe won the the elections by over 85 percent against MDC's Tsvangirai who polled about nine percent although he pulled out of the race on grounds that the environment was not condusive.
Labels: INTERNATIONAL MEDIA, MUGABE, SATA
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When obedience becomes the problem
Reason Wafawarova—Opinion
Mon, 30 Jun 2008 09:40:00 +0000
TO some people the Movement for Democratic Change-Tsvangirai appears to have suddenly evolved or reformed into an African outfit, especially after the March 29 election. The MDC-T’s March expostulation over the election result was not motivated by a realisation that Africa held the solution to African problems, in this case the Zimbabwean problem.
Rather, the MDC-T was doing the bidding of the real MDC-T in London – a bidding that seeks a remonstrant African regional body that sees Zimbabwe as an island of anarchy, barbarism and political ferociousness.
The appeal to Sadc by the MDC through President Levy Mwanawasa of Zambia was neither an appeal of Africanhood nor that of neighbourhood. It was rather a well-calculated appeal for obedience to the voice that is pretending to rule this world – the Anglo-American voice.
By riding on the crest of an admittedly remarkable performance in the harmonised election, the MDC sought to stand on high ground to play bait and magnet to the obnoxious African leaders who have frustratingly and continually failed to obey the Western order to condemn President Robert Mugabe.
On homesoil, the Western ruling elite runs what they call Western democracies and that is done on the principle of obedience. This is the same principle that drives both the imperialist doctrine and the Western foreign policy. It is the principle that calls for international obedience to the US’ idea of world order.
SADC countries are now meant to see Zimbabwe the way Condoleeza Rice wants them to – and some have obeyed. Thabo Mbeki continues to be called names because he happens to be the “disobedient” yet well-positioned leader.
Howard Zinn, in his essay “The Problem Is Civil Obedience” says, “Civil disobedience is not our problem. Our problem is obedience.” He was talking of people behaving and taking orders and not questioning the US political system.
Zinn was talking about the Western population being turned into “media echo chambers” through obedience to power and authority. In the US the suppression of the critical facts about the potential confrontation with Iran is just obedience authority.
Equally the suppression of critical facts over why Zimbabwe has been going on the economic downtrend in the last years is just a mere obedience to power and imperial authority.
The suppression of critical facts over the economic strangulation of Cuba in the last 48 years is yet another example of obedience to authority.
The list goes on and on but surely those who in 2007 dismissed claims from Washington and London that Zimbabwe was a hopelessly failed state cannot today point at what has made them see the American light all after Morgan Tsvangirai found himself in what he thought was striking distance to the leadership of Zimbabwe.
Then these African leaders placed hope in an African solution and now some have joined those who call Britain and the US the international community – and they want this “international community” to intervene in Zimbabwe. This is not a matter of independent change of opinion but a classic example of the problem of obedience and subordination to power, not just over Zimbabwe but also over Iraq, Iran and other places like Afghanistan. If there were a world referendum over the Iraq War, George Bush would be lucky to get 10% of the vote. But the war is still on because many people chose to obey the emperor.
In the West this obedience and subordination is so apparent because there the state is always so powerful – take for example the United States. In the same way they control their population the US uses its economic and military might internationally to make sure that this kind of obedience obtains across the world.
Many European investors have pulled out of Iran not because they agree or believe that Iran is planning to destroy the world – the nonsensical myth that George W. Bush shamelessly wants the world to believe. The Wall Street Journal of January 2006 quoted some of them saying, “We do not want to offend the United States. Its too dangerous” No doubt President Levy Mwanawasa will understand their position empathetically.
International affairs have become very much like the mafia. One cannot offend the don. It’s dangerous, especially if the don is wounded and cornered like the case with George W. Bush right now. It is difficult to know what he is going to do before he joins the dustbins of history in December this year. It is understandable when some people chose to play it safe for the sake of safeguarding US donor funding and of avoiding the unthinkable prospect of US-led sanctions. This is when obedience becomes our problem.
And how do we confront this knotty quagmire? Zimbabwe has a lot of models to copy from. Malaysia is one, Cuba is an excellent model, Venezuela is another and Iran is yet another very good model. These countries have managed to do without the required obedience from the empire and it is always important to look at how this has been achieved.
In terms of democracy, the Western populations are subjected to the idea of two main presidential candidates who went to the same elite universities and often run with the same programmes all because the same corporations fund them.
Just over three years ago, Bolivia and Haiti had democratic elections in the true sense of the word. In December 2005, Bolivia elected someone from the ranks of its population. It was the first time an indigenous person was ever elected to lead that Latin American country. That man was Evo Morales.
There was no obedience to Washington as we are all being coerced to do when it comes to Morgan Tsvangirai of Zimbabwe.
We are all supposed to obey the Western voice that says this man is the hope for democracy, he is a victim of a brutal dictatorship, he is the saint that was slain for our tribulations and he is the light shining in the abyss of primitive African darkness.
Some people have even had the temerity to question, “What kind of a person actually votes Mugabe?” And the logic behind this? He is a dictator just one level below Pol Pot and Adolf Hitler. And who says so? It is of course the mighty Americans and their bitter cousins in Britain.
Why do they say so? He is the man who violated the West’s idea of property rights by repossessing, or is it grabbing white occupied land before redistributing it to unskilled black villagers. Surely dictators do not come any worse, do they?
What should the world make of a “Third World” African leader of a landlocked country who says Western investors can ONLY own 49% of the means of production in his country? He is of course a bloody dictator!
This is why when such a man is running in an election against a “democrat” like Morgan Tsvangirai the whole election must, by definition be a Tsvangirai issue. And if the “democrat” sees a threat in the “dictator” and tells the mighty Americans about it everyone must, by the law of democracy, listen attentively to what the Mighty White House will say through the lessor emperors in London.
Washington and London then speak to Tsvangirai and tell him not to legitimise “the dictator” through an impending loss and Tsvangirai only asks what, when and how should he act. An election withdrawal is ordered and the master says even a Sunday, the Christian Holy day will do. The order is carried out and is accompanied by the hilariously unnecessary theatrics of “fleeing” to the Dutch embassy. Did the Holy Book say, “The wicked flee when no one pursues”?
When Tsvangirai wants the world to believe that someone wants to assassinate him we are all supposed to believe that without question and yet we are told we are all a bunch of conspiracy theorists when we point out that the CIA has carried out more than 600 assassination attempts on Fidel Castro of Cuba.
For “dictators” like Castro it must all be the figment of the imagination of hopeless leftists drugged in conspiracy theories. Of course assassination claims are no doubtable claims if they come from such Western approved democrats like Morgan Tsvangirai. They are natural targets of such barbarity.
In Bolivia, they acted in a way that enabled them to participate in the democratic system. They did not have to obey the voice that told them to vote someone favourable to the empire. They obeyed their identity. They obeyed the Bolivian voice and they obeyed their national interest. That is real obedience and not the kind America is trying to force on Zimbabweans and the leadership of Africa.
The one expected of us is an obedience that can get you birthday banquets in packed auditoriums in London if only your stature could be used as a role model for others.
The striking thing about Bolivia is that there is an indigenous majority, just like in Zimbabwe and most of the African states. That is one sure thing that the Pentagon and the US foreign policy planners are dead worried about.
Not only is Latin America and Africa falling out of control but for a start the indigenous populations are beginning to occupy both the political and economic arena, and the loss of control is getting substantial. For Latin America the threats are Peru, Venezuela, Ecuador and Bolivia while Zimbabwe leads the likes of Namibia, Sudan and a few other African countries that are aiming to free themselves from the doctrine of Western obedience.
Some Latin Americans are even calling for an Indian nation and the idea is to control their own resources. It does not matter much that they barely have the capacity to develop those resources because some of them do not even want those resources developed. They would rather have their own lives and keep their resources unprocessed than have their society and culture destroyed so that some people can sit in traffic jams in New York and London.
This is what is called democracy – the reclaiming of land by indigenous Zimbabweans. That’s the functioning of democracy where the needs of the grassroots are carried out. This threatens the US and the rest of the West and they call it populism.
When Martin Luther King led a popular movement in the US there were great truly democratic changes that took place. It is interesting to note that King’s legacy has been imperially modified to suit what today stands as American democracy. He is greatly honoured for having opposed racist sheriffs in Alabama and this, as well as other glorious rhetoric is what we are solemnly told to believe each Martin Luther King Day.
What happened to King when he turned his attention to poverty and war? He was condemned and they said he had lost his marbles and he did not know what he was doing. The last two years of King were full of condemnation and when he was assassinated he was supporting a strike of sanitation workers in Memphis and he was planning a poor people’s march on Washington. Not only is he not praised for this but also we are never told that he did such things.
When he did his belated and tepid criticism of the Vietnam War, he was sharply denounced, condemned and the US elite bitterly told the world that he had lost his direction and he did not know what he was doing anymore.
The editors of the New York Times and those of the rest of the Western mainstream media do not have a problem with denouncing racist sheriffs and this is why it is easy to honour Nelson Mandela as the epitome of great world leadership. They all think fighting racism is just fine and for sure it is.
What about letting landless peasants get their land back from those who stole it? This is like Luther letting sanitation workers have decent wages or letting poor people participate in the political and economic system of the US. It is what is called unacceptable and one will be overstepping the line.
There is no need for quantum physics if one wants to see why President Mugabe was “honoured” with the knighthood in 1994 and why such an “honour” has had to be revoked in 2008.
He got that honour for excellent leadership in leading his people against colonialism and for shifting to the right after the fall of the USSR. That is fine and within the limits of what is seen as respect for Western civilisation.
Reclamation of land and passing an indigenisation law that entails 51% control of local resources are quite a different issue. It is called overstepping of the line of obedience and by definition that is what the West calls lawlessness and whoever leads such a thing is again by definition, a despot and a dictator.
This is the position President Thabo Mbeki is hopelessly failing to appreciate by not doing exactly what Washington and London have been telling him for the past nine years. This the position so well understood by President Mwanawasa who has expressed his horror about what is happening Zimbabwe in the traditional Western analogy of the Titanic for the benefit of Westerners. What a good global citizen this African brother has become.
This is when obedience becomes a problem. When we have to obey a democracy that promotes only candidates compatible with Western aspirations. It is good for Africa to correct the ills of its own political systems – ills such as the trends of violence that we saw after the 29th of March Zimbabwe election. Such correction must be guided by honesty and fair judgement. It must be corrected in the context of its causes and effects and not in the context of political benchmarks from Washington or London.
When London says, “We are appalled” we must remember this is an appalled former slave master, an appalled former oppressor and coloniser and there should naturally be nothing romanticising about such a position. Basically, Zambia cannot be appalled because London has been appalled, especially over Zimbabwe. It simply makes no minimum sense.
Africa, we are one. This is time for discernment. It is homeland or death. Together we will overcome.
Labels: HOWARD ZINN, INTERNATIONAL MEDIA, MDC, ZIMBABWE
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BBC, CNN, Sky News losing credibility
Sihle Dube—Opinion
Sat, 28 Jun 2008 14:10:00 +0000
DEAR EDITOR—I am concerned by the portrayal of Zimbabwe in international media and the negativity surrounding the reports on Zimbabwe. It seems like Zimbabwe is breaking news on every channel in the United Kingdom. Can any of your readers care to tell me what the fascination with our country is. I see wars and conflict elsewhere in the world where the news do not even make it to prime time.
Is there something that is in Zimbabwe that these people know about that we don’t – like hidden oil, diamonds or something?
The media onslaught is unwarranted. We need 'real news' not their opinions.
President Mugabe might be bad, but surely not so bad as to warrant such a media onslaught.
Western media’s bias has made it lose its credibility, especially with regards to Zimbabwe.
The BBC, CNN, Sky News unfortunately are exposing their inability to report on complex political crises like in Zimbabwe.
There has been an increasing number of political analysts from the opposition and human rights organisations expressing their ignorance on Zimbabwe.
I wonder how these analysts are selected by these seemingly authoritative news channels, but no more.
I’ll give an example of the hyperbole spread by ‘analysts’. The BBC entertained Wilf Mbanga of The Zimbabwean newspaper saying: “We have a leaked memo saying that the military junta in Zimbabwe is trying to kill off all MDC MPs.”
Now if this is not crazy, I do not have another definition of that term.
And why does The Zimbabwean always have these ‘leaked memos’ that never materialize. It is shocking that the BBC gives such people, obviously shallow analysts, the time of day.
The BBC has to work hard now to regain its credibility.
Sihle Dube—Opinion
sihledube@hotmail.co.uk
Labels: BBC, INTERNATIONAL MEDIA, ZIMBABWE
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Tsvangirai seeks ‘refuge’ at Dutch embassy
Crime Reporter
IN a desperate attempt to besmirch Friday’s presidential run-off, MDC-T leader Morgan Tsvangirai yesterday "sought refuge" at the Dutch Embassy in Harare, a move police described as a dirty political antic to stir international anger and further damage the image of the country.
Addressing a Press conference last night, Police Commissioner-General Augustine Chihuri said the move was also meant to further brutalise the image of Zimbabwe and in particular the Zimbabwe Republic Police on the international arena.
"We wonder whom Mr Tsvangirai is running away or hiding from. We do not have any complaints from him or his party of any threats of violence or attempts on his life that would cause him to fear for his safety and seek sanctuary in a foreign embassy.
"As far as we are concerned, we do not want Mr Tsvangirai for any crime and we have always been open about any arrest we make."
Comm-Gen Chihuri said if police wanted to arrest Tsvangirai, they would have made it public.
"If we wanted to arrest Mr Tsvangirai this would also have been in the public domain without hesitation, apology or misgivings from us as it is our constitutional duty to arrest offenders and bring them before the courts of law," he said.
Comm-Gen Chihuri said of late, Tsvangirai and his entourage has been freely moving around the country without any challenge whatsoever on his life in spite of his earlier claims that his life was under threat.
"We believe the latest development of seeking refuge at the Dutch Embassy is an exhibitionist antic intended to provoke international anger and mustering of sympathy from his handlers," he said.
Zimbabwe, Comm-Gen Chihuri said, was currently pursuing an electoral process in which Tsvangirai is a key stakeholder seeking to get the public mandate to rule the country and was puzzled by his fleeing.
"For him now to turn around at the eleventh hour running away from his own shadow is a development beyond comprehension. Aspersions of threats on his life decry the safety he has always enjoyed since he entered into the political arena and even when he was still with the trade unions. Who is he trying to please by these antics? Whose agenda is he pursuing with this dithering?" asked Comm-Gen Chihuri.
He said police were surprised why information on what is happening concerning MDC-T was coming from external sources.
"Is this a genuine Zimbabwean agenda? These are a lot of questions that plead for answers," he said.
Comm-Gen Chihuri also stated that ZRP would not condone any form of lawlessness and would investigate every crime reported without fear or favour.
"We therefore declare that Mr Morgan Tsvangirai is under no threat at all from Zimbabweans and he should cast away these delusions.
"We at the same time ask the Dutch Embassy if indeed he is there to tell him to go home and enjoy his sleep and nothing will happen to him. Zimbabwe is a peaceful country and
Comm-Gen Chihuri dismissed the opposition and its Western handlers’ claims of acts of violence against its supporters.
"Besides the antics displayed by Mr Tsvangirai we are surprised at the lies peddled by some sections of the local and international media houses. These media houses speak of hangings. We believe the same media organisations work in cahoots with the MDC-T to distract international community from the real and substantive issues in Zimbabwe," he said.
The Western media has heightened the propaganda to the extent of shamelessly lying that opposition supporters are being hanged.
On Sunday the British Independent lied that so far two opposition members have been hanged.
However, the last hangings to be carried out in Zimbabwe were in 2003 when murderers Stephen Chidhumo and Elias Chauke were sent to the gallows for killing a prison officer during their escape from Chikurubi Maximum Prison.
The two were executed together with William Mukurungunye and John Nyamazana, who were also convicted of murder without extenuating circumstances.
Early yesterday the Harare City Council raided MDC-T headquarters and moved about 37 supporters and their children who were living at the city building under hazardous health conditions to Ruwa Rehabilitation Centre.
The local authority, together with the Ministry of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare, raided Harvest House at mid-morning following a tip-off by fellow tenants in the building along Nelson Mandela Avenue.
The tenants had complained that the building was no longer conducive for business owing to the unhygienic conditions.
Social Welfare Director Mr Sydney Mhishi said the conditions at the building were appalling hence the move to relocate the people to a better place.
"As the ministry responsible for the welfare of our people, we moved in together with the City of Harare to assist these people who are living in intolerable conditions. We have identified a place where we will take them and assist them," Mr Mhishi said.
He said his department, with the help of police, would screen the people.
Police spokesperson Superintendent Jessie Banda said police would take the opportunity to look for wanted persons.
"During the screening process we will be looking for those persons wanted for political violence who might have been using the MDC-T headquarters as their safe house," Supt Banda said.
When the Harare City Council raided the premises most of the alleged victims of political violence had fled leaving only a handful of women and children and their property.
The property included bags and blankets, which were in Tsvangirai’s boardroom on the fourth floor of Harvest House and on the first floor.
In an interview, one of the alleged victims, Mr Simon Kamoto from Mutimbanyoka under Chief Nyakusingwe in Rushinga, said he arrived at the offices on May 4.
"I came from Rushinga on May 4 and I have been living here since then," he said.
He also revealed that they were sleeping together with women and children in the offices.
Comm-Gen Chihuri dismissed rumours that about 2 000 MDC-T supporters were arrested at Harvest House, saying only 37 people were found during the raid.
"There were only 37 people found at Harvest House and not 2 000 as suggested by the rumour. They are now at Ruwa Rehabilitation Centre,’’ he said.
Labels: COLOUR REVOLUTIONS, INTERNATIONAL MEDIA, MORGAN TSVANGIRAI
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Tsvangirai running away from his own shadow — police
Floyd Nkomo
Tue, 24 Jun 2008 00:10:00 +0000
ZIMBABWE’S police commissioner-general has issued a statement quashing claims by the Movement for Democratic Change leader that he was seeking refuge at the Dutch embassy because he feared arrest by police authorities. At a Press yesterday Zimbabwe’s police commissioner-general Augustine Chihuri said there was
no warrant of arrest issued for the MDC-T leader.
“We do not have any complaints from him or his party of any threats of violence or attempts on his life that would cause him to fear for his safety and seek sanctuary in a foreign embassy,” said the commissioner-general adding that they “do not want Mr Tsvangirai for any crime and we have always been open about any arrest we make.”
The commissioner-general said if they wanted to arrest Tsvangirai they would have done it without any hesitation as it was their “constitutional duty to arrest offenders and bring them before the courts of law,” regardless of any public opinion about the arrest itself.
He also said any impending arrest of the MDC-T leader would be in the public domain.
Chihuri said: “We believe the latest development of seeking refuge at the Dutch Embassy is an exhibitionist antic intended to provoke international anger and mustering of sympathy from his handlers.”
The commissioner-general said Tsvangirai was “running away from his own shadow” and asked: “Who is he trying to please by these antics? Whose agenda is he pursuing with this dithering?”
Labels: COLOUR REVOLUTIONS, INTERNATIONAL MEDIA, MORGAN TSVANGIRAI
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Tsvangirai: Please grow up
MORGAN TSVANGIRAI, the man aspiring to lead a nation of 13 million enlightened Zimbabweans is at it again, grandstanding for a foreign audience while pretending to be doing it for the benefit of the people. On Sunday, Tsvangirai announced at a Press conference in Harare that he was withdrawing from the presidential run-off slated for Friday citing concern for Zimbabweans he claimed were bearing the brunt of violence at the hands of Zanu-PF.
The violence, Tsvangirai said, did not bode well for a free and fair poll.
We agree with him that violence is anathema not only to politics but to basic human decency, and it was high time he condemned the barbarism being visited by his supporters on innocent people countrywide.
We, however, can’t help but smell a rat in the timing and reasons for Tsvangirai’s announcement.
Two factors stink to high heaven.
Firstly, it is a fact that since his party’s launch on September 11 1999, Tsvangirai has always aspired to curry sympathy from international gatherings which is why his announcement came just days before two such events: The African Union heads of state and government summit that begins in Cairo, Egypt next Monday and the European Union meeting in Brussels, Belgium.
Secondly, the United States, which has been at the forefront of trying to get Zimbabwe on the agenda of the Security Council, assumes chairmanship of the organ next week.
What better way to abet the regime change agenda than by finding Zimbabwe in the crisis in-tray?
For the sceptics, what was Tsvangirai after in making an announcement that he knew very well was a nullity at law unless he first wrote to the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission if not to grandstand for the foreign media and their audience?
Furthermore, what was the point in mak 
