The African leaders who drove independence from colonial powers have a rather mythical status in much of Africa.
Fact and detail is lost and their faults are ignored, in most of Africa this is of little importance as those leaders are now historic figures. In the case of Zimbabwe this near mythical status has help keep Mugabe in power. Many of those voting for Zanu-PF will have done so because of what Mugabe was in the 1970s and 1980s.
For too long there has been an unwillingness within African governments to criticise Mugabe and his actions. The recent period of violence and intimidation has been so extreme that this unwillingness has begun to crumble.
The ANC have said they are "dismayed" by the recent actions, although Mbeki has publicly defended Mugabe in the recent past. Jose Eduardo dos Santos, of Angola urged him to "embrace a spirit of tolerance", this is not good enough. Powerful voices in Africa must publicly and unambiguously condemn Mugabe and his regime. A failure to do so will be seen as culpability in the evilness that he is perpetrating.
African governance has a chance to show some maturity, I pray that it is not an opportunity missed.
Extremism taskforce after Woolwich
10 hours ago
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In Iraq and Afghanistan the exit strategy was never particularly clear, in Zimbabwe the exit strategy is clear - the new regime is easy to put into place and has already won the first round of the election.
We could keep on saying that this is a problem for African leaders to sort out, or the UN could allow NATO/international forces to go in as they did in Iraq and Afghanistan.
If we had a duty to go into Afghanistan, Iraq, Sierra Leone, Somali, and Serbia, we equally have a duty to deal with the situation in Zimbabwe and despose the illegal despot. We never left Russia to deal with Serbia, and we should not leave South Africa to deal with Zimbabwe. Troops in now!
'What Mugabe was in the 70's and 80's'
What he was - and is - is an evil-minded murdering marxist thug who should have been executed before he came within a mile of power.
That Britain let him do so is a mark of shame and the resultant destruction of one the towering economies of Africa proves the point beyond contention.
Ian Smith was an awkward cuss who led a white elite who gave up power far too grudgingly; but who can now argue that his vision of a slow enfranchisement of Rhodesia/Zimbabwe running hand in hand with improvements in education wouldn't have been better than the catastrophe we have now?
Hang your heads trendy lefty campaigners for Black African majority rule at all costs, you have helped murder thousands.
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