Zimbabwe Watch
  About ZW
  Press statements
  Publications
  Column Wilf Mbanga
  Links
  Contact us
 
 
Zimbabwe Watch - Press statements
view all: 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002


8 March 2007
I write as I please - biweekly column by Wilf Mbanga

Kangaroo curfew

South African diplomats in Harare this week whispered some revealing snippets about the current thinking of their government on its problematic northern neighbour.
For the past seven years. as Zimbabwe has spiralled inexorably into chaos and disaster, with untold suffering for 90% of its population, the government of President Thabo Mbeki has resolutely stood by the Mugabe regime.

Wilf Mbanga
Mbeki has, to the detriment of his own economy and society and the anger and frustration of Zimbabweans, refused to condemn or censure Mugabe in any way. He has defended him at international forums, made life hell for the estimated 2 million refugees in South Africa and confounded the international community with his blindly loyal support for what he terms “an elder statesman and African brother”.

But it would appear that even African brotherhood has is limits. And at long last those limits have been reached.
The tipping point appears to have been Mugabe’s brutal suppression of the MDC rally two weeks ago, which had initially been given official permission to take place. This was followed by a draconian crack down on all opposition activity – including a total ban on all gatherings and an unofficial curfew in the capital city, Harare, and its satellite town Chitungwiza.

Under the “kangaroo” curfew, people are not arrested, but thrashed by the security forces for daring to gather in public places – even for going down to their local pub.
The leaking diplomats revealed Mbeki’s fury at Mugabe’s obstinacy regarding his destructive economic policies, which have further isolated Harare from the global economy.
Apparently he has tried to persuade Mugabe to embrace economic reform and work with the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.

The ripple effects of Mugabe’s mess have caused a lot of pressure on Mbeki, both from within and without his African National Congress (ANC) party.
At the same time, sources say, pressure has been mounting from Zimbabwe’s civil society and the opposition, who all blame Mbeki for harbouring the rogue regime.
It is interesting to note that SABC, which has in the past been censored for negative coverage of the Zimbabwe crisis, this week screened a moving documentary about the plight of Zimbabwean border jumpers.

It revealed the stark reality of the risks thousands of Zimbabweans take every week – battling crocodiles, armed gangs, the corrupt SA Police and Army, thirst and exposure to get away from Mugabe’s mess and try to make a living, any sort of a living, in South Africa. It was heart wrenching.
The programme showed a white farmer describe how he found a dead women next to a game fence with a baby that had lived for 3 or 4 days after the mother had died of exposure.
Not that this would have moved Mbeki. Such tragedies have been taking place on his northern border every day for seven years now. The man is made of stone. We anxiously await further developments, and pray the whisperings mark the beginning of a change in policy, if not a change of heart.



Subscribe today to The Zimbabwean, Wilf Mbanga's new weekly!!



All columns by Wilf Mbanga on Zimbabwe Watch

Order 'Standplaats Tilburg': columns published in 2004

Wilf Mbanga, one of the founders of the independent Zimbabwean daily newspaper "The Daily News", is currently living in the UK. He writes about the current situation in Zimbabwe.

back




Recent documents:
Difficult dialogue: Zimbabwe-South Africa economic relations since 2000
Solidarity Peace Trust, Oct 23, 2007
To what extent is South African business profiting from the crisis in Zimbabwe?
Destructive Engagement: violence, mediation and politics in Zimbabwe
Solidarity Peace Trust, July 10, 2007
Increasing repression, what are the chances for mediation by South African president Mbeki?
Zimbabwe: an end to the stalemate?
International Crisis Group, March 5, 2007
Is Mugabe finally loosing his grip on power?