Zimbabwe activists' bodies found

[Tom B]

Shame on the international community including the uk, but in particular the other african leaders for allowing this to happen, and not condeming it loudly and constantly.

"The bodies of four opposition activists have been found near the Zimbabwe capital, after being abducted, the Movement for Democratic Change says. An MDC spokesman accused supporters of President Robert Mugabe of being behind the deaths, ahead of next week's poll. The body of Harare's recently elected opposition mayor's wife has also reportedly been found, badly burnt. International leaders have condemned the violence but Mr Mugabe's allies have denied any responsibility.

The MDC says at least 70 of its supporters have now been killed and 25,000 forced from their homes in a state-sponsored campaign of violence ahead of the 27 June presidential run-off. Earlier, Zimbabwe's public broadcaster ZBC said it will no longer carry campaign adverts from the MDC - a decision the opposition said it would challenge.

Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa defended the move, saying international coverage favoured the MDC and never reported the ruling Zanu-PF's position. MDC Secretary General Tendai Biti is expected in court shortly to face treason charges. He was arrested last week after returning from South Africa.

The MDC says his arrest is political and is seeking his release on bail. His court appearance on Wednesday, when he was wearing leg irons, was cut short because of a power cut in the magistrates' court. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Wednesday expressed concern over the political violence in Zimbabwe."

more - http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/7463034.stm

[Beachcomber]

It really is a tragedy what's happened to Zimbabwe in the last decade or so.

My wife lived there for several years back when it was still the 'Breadbasket of Africa'. Mugabe has turned it into the 'Dustbowl of Africa'.

I know it's cynical but I wonder if perhaps the international community would have taken a stronger approach had there been valuable mineral resources in Zim'?

[Tom B]

Good graphic on this page - showing how each of the other neighbouring african states view mugabe

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa ... 9.stm#next

[Govangirl]

I think it would matter if Mandela spoke out.

[Sheik Yir Erse]

I know it's cynical but I wonder if perhaps the international community would have taken a stronger approach had there been valuable mineral resources in Zim'?

I know what you're saying Beachcomber, and I've heard this arguement before, i.e. if Mugabe had been sitting on oil we'd have done something about it by now! Personally I don't think it would make too much difference, there been many valuable mineral resources in Africa, all generally leading to bloodbaths in one way or another, and very few attracting any great interest from International Community e.g. Angola, Sierra Leone, Mozambique. We (the Western World) tend to pick and choose our battles. I had to laught when I heard a Foreign Office minister say that we were bringing democracy to the people of Afghanistan, well correct me if I'm wrong but Saudia Arabia is hardly a paragon of democracy and I don't see us rushing in there, North Korea, Indonesia....... But I may be heading off topic.

Had the pleasure of living in Zimbabwe myself for a short period of time, what a beautiful country it is and the people are incredibly friendly. Mugabe, and his hangers on, have single-handedly destroyed it. It's incredible to hear his rhetoric - not sure you can keep blaming it all on the colonialist white man, when you've been in power for almost 30 years.

[ionnsaigh]

I would say that Zambia's stance regarding Zimbabwe, acts only as a smoke screen, particularly when it comes to examining the living conditions of many Zambians. That said - this governments sheer naked hypocrisy - the Saudi and that puppet Brown spring to mind. Although Mandela may have some influence - I cant agree with his " Throw your guns into the sea " statement.
We must bear in mind that this governments propaganda machine is working full tilt - churning out what they want us to believe. Iraq and weapons of mass destruction - here we go again - lets invade occupy and rape Zimbabwe, all in the name of freedom and democracy.

[Tom B]

..........- lets invade occupy and rape Zimbabwe, all in the name of freedom and democracy.

I don't think we're about to do that, but I would like to see some international force (UN?) stepping in.

[Sheik Yir Erse]

Tom - it has to be an African force that is put in to keep the peace, the slightest hint of a white soldier will play straight into Mugabe's hands.

[EMDEE]

The Queen stripping Mugabe of his honorary knighthood will really make him sit up and take notice.

[WC1]

There's a petition on the Downing Street website calling on the government to be more proactive in finding an international solution to the situation in Zimbabwe. The URL is:-

http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/actnow4zimbabwe/

Let's all add our signatures!

[Tom B]

Got the response to this petition today. Pretty non-commital, waffly stuff, agreeing with the problem - 'say something, but don't say anything.' kind of response. Can't help feeling this 'petition no.10' site is just so 'they' can say they're doing something/ listening etc, with actually having to do so. I'm still ashamed of our country for not doing more to urge the international community to act in Zimbabwe.

The petition - “We the undersigned petition the Prime Minister to pro-actively respond to the current crisis in Zimbabwe and bring real, International pressure to bear upon those who have led a nation into starvation and poverty

The response - "The UK Government welcomed the announcement on 15 September of a political agreement between the parties in Zimbabwe. However, more than a month later, we are still waiting for a Cabinet to be appointed. Even as the talks continue, the people of Zimbabwe endure further suffering and the economic crisis only deepens.

Prior to the second round of the Presidential elections on 27 June, the Zimbabwean Government created a climate of fear that denied the Zimbabwean people the opportunity to vote in a free and fair manner. We condemn the use of violence against innocent Zimbabweans in order to retain power. Both the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the Pan-African Parliament observer missions reported that the conditions in Zimbabwe were not conducive to a free and fair election.

Zimbabwe remains high on the UK Government’s agenda in both our bilateral contacts with other countries and at international organisations such as the United Nations and the European Union. Though we regret Russia and China’s veto of a resolution imposing targeted sanctions at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), we welcomed the UNSC’s statement on 24 June condemning the violence and ZANU(PF)’s actions. The UN Secretary General has also made it clear that the situation in Zimbabwe is not simply a matter of internal concern. We continue to encourage the UN to send a human rights mission to Zimbabwe to investigate human rights abuses and continue to raise Zimbabwe both in the UNSC and the UN Human Rights Council.

Until a new Zimbabwean government is appointed and demonstrates its commitment to reform, EU targeted measures will remain in place. On 22 July, with our European partners, we extended these measures against key figures in ZANU(PF). The measures now comprise an arms embargo and a travel ban and assets freeze on Robert Mugabe and 167 other members of his ruling clique. For the first time, the EU agreed to freeze the assets in the EU of four companies that are owned by individuals on the EU visa ban list. The EU also agreed in principle to restrict further the exemptions that apply to the EU visa ban list to make it harder still for any on that list to come to the EU. EU Foreign Ministers agreed to maintain these targeted sanctions following the agreement between Morgan Tsvangirai and Robert Mugabe.

We continue to supply humanitarian aid to the people of Zimbabwe. In the last financial year, we provided £47 million in aid and were the second largest bilateral donor to Zimbabwe. All our aid is channelled through the UN and non-government organisations and not the Government of Zimbabwe.

Humanitarian relief is vital but it is not the long term solution in Zimbabwe. We and others want to help the people of Zimbabwe and a new inclusive administration deal with the root causes of those problems. For that to happen, a new and genuinely representative government must be put in place and it must commit itself to reform and change.

Along with our international partners, we will monitor the actions of the new government as it forms and judge it by its actions. Any solution to the situation in Zimbabwe must include a cessation of all violence, allow non-governmental organizations to deliver aid throughout Zimbabwe, and produce a political accord that reflects the will of the people as expressed in the elections on 29 March. We hope that the political agreement will allow Zimbabwe to chart a new course towards economic recovery and political stability and that the new government will now reverse the tragic policies and decline of recent years.