Zimbabwe raids opposition, arrests “scores”
posted at 7:59 am on April 25, 2008 by Ed Morrissey
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Robert Mugabe apparently has tired of playing recount games. Today, his security forces raided the offices of the opposition MDC party, arresting perhaps as many as 100 members in their attack on the government’s opponents. The move comes weeks after an election whose results Mugabe has refused to release, but obviously had removed him from legitimate claim to his office:
Armed riot police raided the headquarters of Zimbabwe’s main opposition party on Friday and detained scores of people in the biggest crackdown on the MDC since elections last month, officials said.
The Movement for Democratic Change says it defeated President Robert Mugabe in the March 29 elections as well as ending his party’s 28-year hold on parliament.
A delay to the presidential result and a recount of some parliamentary votes has brought growing international pressure on Mugabe, 84, and stoked fears of bloodshed in a country already suffering an economic collapse.
Dozens of riot police detained around 100 MDC supporters who were bundled into a crowded police bus before being taken away, a Reuters witness said.
The police also confiscated the computers and other materials in MDC offices. They probably want to get their hands on the photographs taken by MDC members of the polling station results posted in each precinct. Those photos prove that Morgan Tsvangirai won the election, and it has kept Mugabe from creating fictional numbers to steal yet another election in Zimbabwe.
The blame for this violence, besides Mugabe himself and his security forces who committed it, belongs squarely on the SADC and Mugabe’s chief toady, Thabo Mbeki. The president of South Africa publicly supported Mugabe, removing his lips from Mugabe’s backside only long enough to proclaim that “no crisis” existed in Zimbabwe. Instead of acting on behalf of the people of Zimbabwe, who have suffered tremendously under Mugabe and are starving in the continent’s breadbasket, Mbeki chose to support a dictator — squandering South Africa’s moral standing. It gave Mugabe breathing room and apparently the confidence to start rounding up and silencing the opposition.
At some point, Africa has to quit seeing everything through the lens of a colonialism long past and start taking responsibility for itself. How seriously can we take Mbeki and the other so-called leaders on that continent when they remain willfully impotent in the face of dictators like Mugabe? Nations like South Africa demanded the world’s cooperation to throw off a racist regime that kept them from the freedom they deserved. Now they use that freedom to maintain similarly despotic regimes over their own neighbors. Shame on them for their hypocrisy and their deliberate blindness.
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RAAAACIST! /leftist tool.
You may find this next statement to be racist. Fair warning:
Africa is the same backwards place it has always been. The only remotely respectable nations in those areas were all previously colonized areas of European populations.
Slavery started in Africa by Africans selling out their own people. First to Arabs, then to Europeans. Arabs have kept the slavery but mostly confined it to women of certain extreme strains of a certain religion of war these days. The only thing the Europeans did was export it worldwide. The Europeans eventually learned the error of their ways, but Africa remains the land of deep-seated and inexorable tribalism.
The “white man” is just a useful scapegoat in Africa for what they all know in their hearts: An African leader in power is 10 times worse than a European leader ever has been, so soon as he values power more than the welfare of his own people. There are plenty of “European” dictators nobody liked, Hitler and Stalin being the most primary of these, but Africa breeds little Hitlers and little Stalins all over the place. The only difference is the spread of their power, not the cruelty they display to their fellow men.
BKennedy on April 25, 2008 at 8:10 AM
Bingo, BK. Africa is an economic cesspool into which money and the good will of a liberal Western world disappear. Their people, who as individuals represent the greatest value of the dark continent, are also the most despicable plague upon the place.
The casual disregard for each other and human life in general is apalling. We need to profile the entire continent politically, and – as the leftists here keep whining about Iraq – assign extremely short and tight strings to every penny of aid that we send there. Clearly these maggots don’t know how to behave, so we should tell them: “Behave like this, and we will send more money and food and medicine; behave like you normally behave and we will abandon you to civil war, butchery, malaria and dysentery.”
Jaibones on April 25, 2008 at 8:19 AM
Yet more proof of the uselessness of the UN. Not that we needed any more. IMHO it’s time for some unilateral action to eliminate that jerk.
dogsoldier on April 25, 2008 at 8:24 AM
I blame Bush.
Bishop on April 25, 2008 at 8:33 AM
And Rove.
Bishop on April 25, 2008 at 8:33 AM
And what the hey, Rumsfeldt too.
Bishop on April 25, 2008 at 8:34 AM
This is a country of good people that are always on the brink. What is going on is pure evil. All the UN would bring is rape to the locals and taking a cut of any funds that are sent towards aid. There are many Christians in this country, and they are just trying to literally scratch out a life for themselves.
Hening on April 25, 2008 at 8:36 AM
Time for Jimmy and Roz to swing in to action. Maybe they can talk some sense into that knucklehead Mugabe. We all know how good Jimmy is at cojoling knuckleheads into behaving like the gentlemen they really are. Has his plane left yet ?
JonRoss on April 25, 2008 at 8:51 AM
Carter’s Mugabe is not going to give up without a fight. We should get guns to the opposition, since we haven’t the fortitude to help directly.
tarpon on April 25, 2008 at 8:59 AM
A brief history as to why this situation is particularly disgusting. Some of us may not be old enough to remember but Zimbabwe was once a British colony named Rhodesia. This was up until only 40 years ago. It was the bread basket of Africa. It was under the control of a small ironfisted white minority. Very bad situation. But there was no starvation and very little crime.
After the minority was forced out, as it should have been, Mugabe took control and has managed to turn a once prosperous and relatively peaceful country into one of the world’s premier hell holes. The left in our country participated in the destabilization of Zimbabwe/Rhodesia with the same politics of identity that they are using to dismember America. The elite Donks in our country think that they can live in their enclaves and avoid most the mess that they are creating. This is not Zimbabwe however and some of us will not let them off the hook so easily.
JonRoss on April 25, 2008 at 9:22 AM
BKennedy, that’s not racist in the slightest. The sad truth is that Africa has always been a backwards ‘begging bowl’ continent for hundreds if not thousands of years. Only a handful of nations buck the trend in any way (like Egypt).
—warning— you may consider this racist.
After much research and critical thinking, I have come to the firm conclusion that the black man is unable to rule a nation unassisted. Surely there are great black leaders and accomplished men, but blacks cannot, unassisted, bring a country to prosperity. And if they suddenly posses a prosperous nation they run it into the ground.
For evidence I first point to the continent in general. Human beings of all colors have had ~6000 years to get their acts together and build a civilization. Knowledge in general was once almost nonexistent from king to peasant. Most Africans remained illiterate, ignorant, and fearful of malignant spirits around every bush until missionaries came on the scene and risked their lives to help them. Only a few notable all-black civilizations (like the Isonghee) have been observed in the Dark Continent and none of them left behind much of interest – where are the great structures and massive fortresses that so many other once-great civilizations left behind?
As poor as the African accomplishment record is on it’s own…it is far worse when they took over countries formerly ruled by whites. Zimbabwe was once the jewel of grain-growing for all of Africa. Now it is the all-time inflation record holder and a joke to the world. South Africa’s apartheid was unfair…but the ‘Rainbow Nation’ is a dangerous cesspool to everyone in general and whites in particular. Their industries are dying and their leaders are corrupt beyond comprehension.
Dark-Star on April 25, 2008 at 9:25 AM
As a brainwashed American I look at this as a golden opportunity for capitalism to step in and right the ship. It would be a win-win for all parties involved. Of course to do that you would have to have an international body of nations willing to provide a bit of security WITH CONVICTION.
But there I go thinking evil thoughts again. Order out of chaos isn’t in anyones best interest, is it?
Limerick on April 25, 2008 at 9:35 AM
The entire black race needs to stop seeing themselves as wounded, separate, exploited etc etc etc. They might then make some progress in the big world.
jeanie on April 25, 2008 at 9:35 AM
Perhaps Mugabe should just cut to the chase – kill all opposition party members, declare elections to be a thing of the past, and announce that Zimbabwe is now a totalitarian dictatorship. That is what he is trying to do, might as well be honest about it. The left in this country knows this as well, why aren’t they calling for it?
Think_b4_speaking on April 25, 2008 at 9:59 AM
You’re right, I do consider that racist. I also think that not much critical thinking went into that rambling discourse, or that if that’s what passes for critical thinking for you, you might want to read a book or two other than Mien Kampf.
Just a thought.
lodestonejames on April 25, 2008 at 10:23 AM
Time to send in the Jimmy Carter brigade.
TooTall on April 25, 2008 at 10:53 AM
You are certainly entitled to your opinon, although I notice you didn’t address any of the evidence I offered.
And as a sidenote, I have never read Mein Kampf and never intend to.
Dark-Star on April 25, 2008 at 10:56 AM
That collection of photographs that the MDC has, showing the actual vote totals, should be on the front page of Hot Air’s site. In fact, they should be published by every free newspaper in the world.
Does anyone here have communications with the MDC? If so, they need to understand the potential to focus world attention through that photographic evidence.
blueguitarbob on April 25, 2008 at 11:34 AM
I’m thinking of applying for a job as Thabo Mbeki’s Press Secretary. How does this sound?
“The President of South Africa issued the following statement this morning following press reports of arrests in Zimbabwe.
Mr. Mbeki views with concern the reports of ongoing violence in Zimbabwe. “Opposition reports are unconfirmed” he said, “and we regard it as unhelpful that foreign media, who are not on the scene, continue to repeat unsubstantiated rumours. Our preference would be that these reports, which continue to concern us, be constrained so that they may no longer concern us.” He added “Imagine what these “journalists” would report if they were actually permitted to be inside Zimbabwe!”
Mr. Mbeki observed that the recount procedure is being undertaken despite the logistical difficulties involved. He said he was aware of suggestions that the delays in the recount are the result of breakdowns of government printing presses which have overheated (from the printing of currency) and are therefore unable to print fresh ballots and characterized such remarks as “unhelpful”.
Mr. Mbeki also commented on the run-off election which he said ought to be allowed to continue. He said that comments by analysts to the effect that, in the absence of official results, it was impossible to assess whether a run-off was actually merited as “agenda-driven”. He also indicated his disappointment in the rejection of his suggestion of a national unity government with President Mugabe at its head. “Commentators who suggest that Zimbabweans voted in droves against Mr. Mugabe and that, in effect, the real national unity government is the MDC are doing so in the absence of the official results. Their remarks are, therefore scurrilous.”
Mr. Mbeki concluded that this is not the time for precipitous action. “We must wait and be paitient” he counselled. “Don’t worry. Be happy.”
What do you think? Do I get the job?
Blaise on April 25, 2008 at 11:38 AM
Hopefully the photographs in their offices (if they were there) weren’t the only copies. If Zimbabwe’s internet access is anything like it was when I was there a few years ago, digital pictures would be too large to send out. If they are hard-copy pictures, lets just hope they got the film out of the country to a friendly party.
its vintage duh on April 25, 2008 at 12:00 PM
Yep. Racist. All that focus on skin color.
Mind you, the anecdotal evidence you list could also support the hypothesis that there is something intrinsically wrong with the local culture on The Dark Continent…let’s see…Tribalism, redistributionalist policies, totalitarian impulses, “big man” leadership, government projects as ego-boosters rather than to benefit the nation, notion that participation in government leads to participation in profits…yes, there’s a lot of cultural issues that have lead to Africa being the backward region that it is.
But it’s not because of black men — after all, these are pretty much defining characteristics of Democrats here in the US.
cthulhu on April 25, 2008 at 12:38 PM
its a tragedy. it was such a lovely country. but I’ll never again be able to see the jacaranda’s in bloom in zimbabwe.
right4life on April 25, 2008 at 1:03 PM
Nope, it is just pure liberal policy in action that caused Zimbabwe to fail.
just like here
Detroit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T6WKMNmFsxM
Philly http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RzPT2PGlPH4
TheSitRep on April 25, 2008 at 1:20 PM
WWOS?
(What Would Oprah Say?)
PattyJ on April 25, 2008 at 10:54 PM
Vote Obama. Only the poster boy for arrogant upper-class black liberal elitism can possibly solve the problems with rampant racism, warfare, and tribalism in Africa.
Vote Obama crackers! Do it now!
(That wasn’t on tape, was it?)
/Oprah.
BKennedy on April 26, 2008 at 12:42 AM
Not even vaguely seriously. Africa love a strongman like Mugabe – Mbeki is an emasculated coward.
Ares on April 26, 2008 at 8:56 AM
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