Tsvangirai “shelters” in Dutch embassy

posted at 5:15 pm on June 23, 2008 by Ed Morrissey
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Morgan Tsvangirai has decided to increase the pressure on Robert Mugabe by making a move that the international community cannot ignore.  He has fled to the embassy of the Netherlands in Harare, ensuring that Europe at least will be engaged in the disaster in Zimbabwe.  The Mugabe regime fended off an increasingly critical UN over the collapse of the run-off election it had hoped to rig to extend Mugabe’s rule:

Zimbabwe opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai was holed up in the Dutch embassy in Harare Monday after pulling out of a run-off election he said should be declared “null and void” due to violence.

As international pressure mounted on Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe, with Britain and the United States raising the prospect of UN Security Council action, the Dutch foreign ministry said Tsvangirai spent the night in its mission in Zimbabwe’s capital.

Meanwhile, police, some of them in riot gear, raided the headquarters of the opposition party MDC on Monday afternoon.

Zimbabwe’s police chief accused Tsvangirai of a political stunt by hiding in the embassy.  However, saying that while his thugs ransacked the offices of the MDC makes him a little less than credible on the issue, and points out why it’s not all a stunt.  The police arrested dozens at MDC headquarters, while telling the press that they had been taken away for “health reasons”.

Perhaps they’re explaining to the opposition that it’s unhealthy to oppose Mugabe.  It certainly has proven so for dozens others in the last few days.

This guarantees Tsvangirai headlines around the world.  It makes an internal election dispute into an international incident.  Even better, the move embarrasses the South African government of Thabo Mbeki, which has attempted to rescue Mugabe from the crisis by convincing Tsvangirai to place himself in a partnership with the dictator to supposedly share power.  Tsvangirai ignored Mugabe’s pal in South Africa to place himself in the hands of the Dutch, which sends a strong message about South Africa and the SADC to the global community.

How long can the UN ignore Mugabe now?  Not much longer; Ban Ki-moon has openly questioned the legitimacy of Mugabe’s rule — finally.  Let’s hope Tsvangirai has forced Turtle Bay and the rest of the world to take further action.

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