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The virtues of isolationism
The Economist
July 05, 2007

http://www.economist.com/opinion/displaystory.cfm?story_id=9441332

Robert Mugabe should be a pariah, not a regular feature on the summit circuit

Another week, another stark contrast in how to deal with Zimbabwe's president, Robert Mugabe. In a blistering attack on Mr Mugabe's rule, the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Bulawayo, Pius Ncube, said that the state of the country was now so bad that foreign governments (particularly Britain's) should intervene to "remove" Mr Mugabe from power. Meanwhile, at an African Union summit in Ghana, Mr Mugabe was, as usual, feted by his fellow African leaders, where he pronounced on the virtues of pan-African unity. Not only that, but the African Union is also insisting on Mr Mugabe's presence at a summit with the European Union to be held in Portugal in December. The Portuguese, who took over the rotating European Union presidency on July 1st, are making better links with Africa a priority of their six-month presidency. They say they would prefer not to have Mr Mugabe (who is already subject to an EU travel ban) at the summit, but that it would be worse to lose the summit altogether.

It is shameful that African leaders continue not only to shield but also positively to promote Mr Mugabe in this way. Apart from anything else, it makes a mockery of the noble talk of human rights and good government the African Union spouted when it relaunched itself five years ago. Instead, the African Union is coming increasingly to resemble its discredited and unlamented predecessor, the Organisation of African Unity, a mutual-protection club for dodgy presidents. The continent's leaders should by now be confident enough to see Mr Mugabe's harping on about African solidarity against imperialism for the self-serving smokescreen it is. Every week brings grimmer news about the impoverishment and degradation of what used to be one of Africa's most prosperous countries. Zimbabwe's official inflation rate has now passed 3,700%; unofficially it is a good deal higher than that. The government's only response has been to try to impose a price freeze by force, arresting 194 people in the process. Shops have shut down and factories have stopped production because they could only carry on at a loss. Mr Ncube's courageous outburst reflects the huge frustration that is building up inside Zimbabwe as the country falls into ruin. He also has a special animus against the president. Apart from witnessing the worst of Mr Mugabe's regime over the full 27 years of its existence, Mr Ncube was a priest in Matabeleland when Mr Mugabe first turned on those he saw as potential opponents there and massacred some 20,000 people, most of whom were entirely innocent civilians.

For that reason, Mr Ncube's appeal to the West to remove Mr Mugabe should be taken as a cry of pain, not a reason for the West to invade. Mr Ncube stressed that any intervention should be non-violent. And he knows that the threat of Western interference, particularly by Britain, the former colonial power, is one of the few ways in which Mr Mugabe can still drum up domestic support. So although the West is preparing to put Zimbabwe back on its feet once Mr Mugabe is gone, it is only the Africans, and particularly the southern Africans, who can apply the strong pressure needed to get rid of him quickly. Yet the Portuguese do now have a way to give the African Union a much-needed jolt. They should refuse to let Mr Mugabe come to Lisbon. That will force Africa's leaders to reconsider their priorities. If that stops the summit from taking place, so be it: a firm stand would send a powerful message of solidarity to all those in Zimbabwe who long to be rescued from their plight. Welcoming their tormentor to Lisbon for the sake of a jamboree would be a corresponding disgrace.

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