Why Africa won't rein in Mugabe

For the West, Zimbabwe is a pariah nation. British newspapers regularly refer to Mugabe as "Mad Bob," and Australia said Monday it would spend $15 million backing Mugabe's critics, just a day after banning the cricket tour. But for many in Africa, Mugabe is something of a hero. He's seen as a man who took land away from whites whose ancestors swindled or stole the land from blacks nearly a century ago.

This is not the first time Africa has shown its independence on matters of international import. Over the past decade, African leaders have welcomed Chinese development loans, which, unlike those of the World Bank, don't make aid conditional on economic or political reforms. In its year-long stint on the UN Security Council, South Africa has voted against sanctioning Burma and Zimbabwe for their human rights records and backed Iran's efforts to avoid sanctions because of its uranium-enrichment programs.

At a March 28 conference of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, South African President Thabo Mbeki called for African unity above all.

"The fight against Zimbabwe is a fight against us all. Today it is Zimbabwe; tomorrow it will be South Africa, it will be Mozambique, it will be Angola, it will be any other African country. And any government that is perceived to be strong and to be resistant to imperialists would be made a target and would be undermined. So let us not allow any point of weakness in the solidarity of SADC, because that weakness will also be transferred to the rest of Africa."

At the end of the conference, African leaders threw their unanimous support behind Zimbabwe's Mugabe and called on Mr. Mbeki (not the West) to mediate between Mugabe and the political opposition. Leaders who had been critical of Mugabe before the conference, including Zambian President Levy Mwanawasa, fell silent.

'Quiet diplomacy'

South Africa's attempt at "quiet diplomacy" needs time to bear fruit, says Mr. Maroleng. By taking the West out of the negotiation process, Mbeki has disarmed Mugabe of his most resonant arguments for holding on to power.

"It shifted the battleground from the international arena, which Mugabe loves," he adds, "to the domestic issues of economic recovery and constitutional reform and the violent nature that Mugabe engages his opponents. And to a degree this strategy may be working."

This week, Zimbabwe's Minister of Rural Housing and Social Amenities, Emmerson Mnangagwa, revealed that Mbeki has imposed conditions – including the acceptance of Mugabe as president and the renunciation of violence – on the two main opposition leaders, Morgan Tsvangirai and Arthur Mutambara, in order for talks to proceed.

No such conditions were imposed on Mugabe, Mr. Mnangagwa told parliament.

Page: 1 | 2