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Mugabe must end the Zimbabwe nightmare
The Australian
April 02, 2008

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,23468958-16741,00.html

The international community can no longer do nothing. Now that the people of Zimbabwe have spoken, the international community, in particular South Africa, should apply as much moral and economic pressure as possible to lever the evil madman Robert Mugabe out of power. Given the rebuilding task that awaits, virtually from ground zero, he should be made to go as soon as possible. As The Australian reports today, Mugabe's security cabinet, which met on Sunday to consider its position, is split between declaring martial law to block the opposition taking power or falsifying the results. At this stage, Mugabe appears to have opted for the latter course.

Official results from Saturday's election continue to trickle out painfully slowly. Zimbabwe's state-run newspaper, the only one available, is proclaiming the result "a tight contest". The opposition party Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), led by Morgan Tsvangirai, insists otherwise, and they are more credible. Based on results posted outside the 8000 polling booths, their figures show the opposition well ahead in the parliamentary elections and Mr Tsvangirai ahead of Mugabe in the presidential poll. It remains to be seen if the "official" presidential figures require a second ballot.

Whatever the rigged "official" figures, the anti-Mugabe landslide is not unexpected. The people want real change and the world cannot allow their wishes to be cast aside. Many Zimbabweans are starving, 80 per cent are unemployed, power, transport and telephone services have broken down. Once-rich farming lands and all kinds of businesses have been destroyed by a regime that will rank as one of the worst in African history. Inflation of 100,000 per cent has forced the few people with money to spend as much on a piece of fruit as they once did on a home. The Government has even had trouble printing more cash, lacking the money to import ink. AIDS and every form of suffering are rife. Not that this has worried Mugabe in his 25-bedroom $16 million mansion, with every imaginable luxury, two lakes and ceilings painted by Arab craftsmen.

While voters have annihilated Mugabe, the despot's horrific track record suggests that a concession could take a miracle. If the true result of the poll is stalled much longer or suppressed, Zimbabwe is at grave risk of descending into even worse violence than that which broke out in Kenya following its election late last year. The fighting left more than 1000 people dead and more than 300,000 displaced. Already the threats have been made in Zimbabwe, with security officials loyal to Mugabe warning Mr Tsvangirai against declaring victory: "It is called a coup d'etat and we all know how coups are handled."

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was spot on yesterday when she labelled Mugabe a "disgrace" to his people and to Africa. But given Mugabe's ludicrous claims that Zimbabwe's economic woes have been orchestrated through a conspiracy in foreign capitals, the pleas of the West are likely to fall on deaf ears. They could even be counter-productive.

This leaves Zimbabwe's African neighbours, particularly South Africa, best placed to tap Mugabe on the shoulder and tell him that at 84 he has no choice but to go. Through one atrocity after another in Zimbabwe, Mr Mbeki has been curiously reticent about criticising Mugabe, but there can be no more excuses. South Africa must step up and show it has the maturity to act as a force for good in its own region.

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