Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Tuesday, September 02, 2008
...in mysterious ways!
Stuart Shepard, director of digital media at Focus Action a right wing religious group asked in an online video if "it would be wrong to pray for rain of biblical proportions" during Obama's keynote speech at the Democrat National Convention. As it turns out it was a beautiful day with perfect weather and Obama's speech was seen universally as a success even by many Republican commentators.
There is a tinge of irony that Hurricane Gustav has taken up all the media coverage at the start of the Republican National Convention leaving far less time for the Republicans and John McCain to make their case.
BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR!!!
There is a tinge of irony that Hurricane Gustav has taken up all the media coverage at the start of the Republican National Convention leaving far less time for the Republicans and John McCain to make their case.
BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR!!!
Saturday, August 09, 2008
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Democracy... Crazy Demo... Crazy Demonstration
In this Guardian (UK) article, Robert Mugabe makes the case for why we need a "supranational" system of law and order. A system that will not be subject to any nation but will have the power and authority to protect the citizen individual nations from their own political leaders.
The world is full of dictators and tyrants from Burma to North Korea. Usually, while they remain inside the territory that they control they can easily to manipulate the governance and legislative structure in order to place themselves and their associates and cronies out of reach of the law. They might try to gain some credibility and respectability around the world by creating the semblance of due process, holding dummy elections for example. In Mugabe's case, this backfired despite the brutal use of state apparatus, a majority of Zimbabweans voted against his party, Zanu-PF in elections in March 2008. For a brief moment, the world held its' collective breath and imagined that this old school tyrant was about to accept his loss and bow out gracefully. There was even talk of negotiations for immunity from prosecution or being allowed to go into exile with his looted fortunes in return for handing over power. How naive we all were!
After a ridiculous delay in releasing the results of the March election, the regime declared that there was no outright winner of the presidential poll and has set about "campaigning" for the June 27th run off election. Despite their howls of protest that they had won the presidency fair and square, the world powers very quickly made it clear that if the opposition MDC party did not contest the run off they would, in effect be handing Mugabe the presidency. How can this be fair? By contesting the election, the opposition is condemning its supporters to become targets of the Mugabe intimidation machine. Many opposition activists have already been killed. Even diplomats from the US and UK were briefly detained and had their vehicles tyres slashed while trying to find out for themselves what life was like for ordinary Zimbabweans. Still we all do nothing.
Pontificating about how horrible it must be in Zimbabwe does nothing to change the status quo. As an African, I am disappointed in but not surprised by the silence and inaction of other African leaders, in particular Thabo Mbeki. Many African leaders themselves have dubious and tenuous claims to power and cannot (or more likely, will not) therefore criticise Mugabe. Mbeki however is the leader of what is purported to be Africa's premier democracy and a neighbor of Zimbabwe. His country has had to deal with a steady stream of Zimbabwean immigrants fleeing the repression and poverty. His lack of action on this issue is shameful! It took a strike of dock workers refusing to unload cargo to highlight that South Africa had been allowing shipments of weapons from China to pass through its' territory bound for land locked Zimbabwe. Stopping this shipment would have been a concrete statement to Mugabe's regime that their actions were beyond the pail. The problem here is that Mbeki, just like Mugabe, has has his world view indelibly marked by the colonial and racial history and politics in southern Africa in particular and Africa as a whole.
Mugabe has been expert at invoking the memories of white minority rule in what was then Rhodesia and by implication South Africa. He points out that the rich countries only showed interest in Zimbabwean politics when well off white farmers began to be evicted. On this narrow issue, he actually has a point. There was no outrage about the massacre in Matabeleland in the early 1980s. Other injustices in Africa have gone unnoticed. There are still many Africans resentful of the history of European intervention in Africa that see Mugabe as a symbol of freedom from that era of subjugation. In reality, Mugabe has proved that his regime can be just as repressive and oppressive as any of the previous white minority governments. Mugabe's political opponents are treated no better (and maybe even worse) than black South Africans were under Apartheid. Mugabe has always been a blood-thirsty tyrant but his loosening grip on power has led him to "release the beast within".
It is with a deep sadness and a heavy heart that I predict that on the 27th of June, Mugabe will make sure he rigs the election correctly this time. The Zimbabwean people will still be living in an essentially collapsed economy and the rest of the world will do ABSOLUTELY NOTHING.
The world is full of dictators and tyrants from Burma to North Korea. Usually, while they remain inside the territory that they control they can easily to manipulate the governance and legislative structure in order to place themselves and their associates and cronies out of reach of the law. They might try to gain some credibility and respectability around the world by creating the semblance of due process, holding dummy elections for example. In Mugabe's case, this backfired despite the brutal use of state apparatus, a majority of Zimbabweans voted against his party, Zanu-PF in elections in March 2008. For a brief moment, the world held its' collective breath and imagined that this old school tyrant was about to accept his loss and bow out gracefully. There was even talk of negotiations for immunity from prosecution or being allowed to go into exile with his looted fortunes in return for handing over power. How naive we all were!
After a ridiculous delay in releasing the results of the March election, the regime declared that there was no outright winner of the presidential poll and has set about "campaigning" for the June 27th run off election. Despite their howls of protest that they had won the presidency fair and square, the world powers very quickly made it clear that if the opposition MDC party did not contest the run off they would, in effect be handing Mugabe the presidency. How can this be fair? By contesting the election, the opposition is condemning its supporters to become targets of the Mugabe intimidation machine. Many opposition activists have already been killed. Even diplomats from the US and UK were briefly detained and had their vehicles tyres slashed while trying to find out for themselves what life was like for ordinary Zimbabweans. Still we all do nothing.
Pontificating about how horrible it must be in Zimbabwe does nothing to change the status quo. As an African, I am disappointed in but not surprised by the silence and inaction of other African leaders, in particular Thabo Mbeki. Many African leaders themselves have dubious and tenuous claims to power and cannot (or more likely, will not) therefore criticise Mugabe. Mbeki however is the leader of what is purported to be Africa's premier democracy and a neighbor of Zimbabwe. His country has had to deal with a steady stream of Zimbabwean immigrants fleeing the repression and poverty. His lack of action on this issue is shameful! It took a strike of dock workers refusing to unload cargo to highlight that South Africa had been allowing shipments of weapons from China to pass through its' territory bound for land locked Zimbabwe. Stopping this shipment would have been a concrete statement to Mugabe's regime that their actions were beyond the pail. The problem here is that Mbeki, just like Mugabe, has has his world view indelibly marked by the colonial and racial history and politics in southern Africa in particular and Africa as a whole.
Mugabe has been expert at invoking the memories of white minority rule in what was then Rhodesia and by implication South Africa. He points out that the rich countries only showed interest in Zimbabwean politics when well off white farmers began to be evicted. On this narrow issue, he actually has a point. There was no outrage about the massacre in Matabeleland in the early 1980s. Other injustices in Africa have gone unnoticed. There are still many Africans resentful of the history of European intervention in Africa that see Mugabe as a symbol of freedom from that era of subjugation. In reality, Mugabe has proved that his regime can be just as repressive and oppressive as any of the previous white minority governments. Mugabe's political opponents are treated no better (and maybe even worse) than black South Africans were under Apartheid. Mugabe has always been a blood-thirsty tyrant but his loosening grip on power has led him to "release the beast within".
It is with a deep sadness and a heavy heart that I predict that on the 27th of June, Mugabe will make sure he rigs the election correctly this time. The Zimbabwean people will still be living in an essentially collapsed economy and the rest of the world will do ABSOLUTELY NOTHING.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
"Mash it up in-a Zimbabwe"
Robert Mugabe has proved himself so incompetent that he hasn't even been able to rig an election properly.
Last time these was an election in Zimbabwe, the results were released in under 24 hours. Of course Mugabe had “won” that election which by all account was hardly free and fair. This time around with all the dice loaded favour of Zanu-PF, Mugabe's party, it would appear that they have not been able to pull off a repeat of the fraud.
It has been confirmed that the opposition have won the parliamentary polls despite the ruling party attempting to “recount”... Hmmm! Anyway we are left with the absurd spectacle of the ruling party in Zimbabwe agreeing to a run-off presidential election before any results have been released in the presidential election.
After presiding over a disastrous land "redistribution" policy and taking a country once known as Africa's bread basket and turning it into an almost unimaginable 100,000% inflation economy it would appear that Mugabe's desire to have the semblance of a democratic mandate has been his undoing. We are at a crossroads now. Fear of prosecution will prevent a smooth transition but it will be nigh on impossible to explain away hanging on to power after losing in a process that he had sought to give him legitimacy. It will essentially be a "constitutional coup d'etat" (a term coined by the opposition in Zimbabwe) if Mugabe stays in power. We wait to see what the outcome is but the whole episode is a further proof that democratic processes can bring about just outcomes even in the most inhospitable and unexpected places.
One final word of warning: As an African I have seen and even participated in celebrations after the removal or death of a dictator only to see the new regime take up the baton of tyranny and often commit worse crimes and hold on to power tighter than the previous regimes. We all hope the Zimbabwean opposition bucks this trend but on this note also, we will wait to see what happens.
Last time these was an election in Zimbabwe, the results were released in under 24 hours. Of course Mugabe had “won” that election which by all account was hardly free and fair. This time around with all the dice loaded favour of Zanu-PF, Mugabe's party, it would appear that they have not been able to pull off a repeat of the fraud.
It has been confirmed that the opposition have won the parliamentary polls despite the ruling party attempting to “recount”... Hmmm! Anyway we are left with the absurd spectacle of the ruling party in Zimbabwe agreeing to a run-off presidential election before any results have been released in the presidential election.
After presiding over a disastrous land "redistribution" policy and taking a country once known as Africa's bread basket and turning it into an almost unimaginable 100,000% inflation economy it would appear that Mugabe's desire to have the semblance of a democratic mandate has been his undoing. We are at a crossroads now. Fear of prosecution will prevent a smooth transition but it will be nigh on impossible to explain away hanging on to power after losing in a process that he had sought to give him legitimacy. It will essentially be a "constitutional coup d'etat" (a term coined by the opposition in Zimbabwe) if Mugabe stays in power. We wait to see what the outcome is but the whole episode is a further proof that democratic processes can bring about just outcomes even in the most inhospitable and unexpected places.
One final word of warning: As an African I have seen and even participated in celebrations after the removal or death of a dictator only to see the new regime take up the baton of tyranny and often commit worse crimes and hold on to power tighter than the previous regimes. We all hope the Zimbabwean opposition bucks this trend but on this note also, we will wait to see what happens.
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Mission Accomplished??
Just a quick one today.
It's 5 years almost to the day when US forces and thier allies invaded Iraq. We now have more than 4000 dead American soldiers as a result of the conflict.
But what percentage of them died after George W. declared "Major combat operations" to have ended on the 1st of May 2003 under the now infamous "MISSION ACCOMPLISHED" banner?
97 percent...
Go figure.
It's 5 years almost to the day when US forces and thier allies invaded Iraq. We now have more than 4000 dead American soldiers as a result of the conflict.
But what percentage of them died after George W. declared "Major combat operations" to have ended on the 1st of May 2003 under the now infamous "MISSION ACCOMPLISHED" banner?
97 percent...
Go figure.
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Shalom, Salaam... No Justice, No Peace
It is my opinion that history will judge the treatment of the Palestinian people at least as harshly as the treatment of black South Africans during the Aparthied era.
This is not to say that the two situations are identical as they most definitely are not. There are however some striking similarities. From infrastructure built for use by Jews only to the townships/refugee camps the subjugated population are crammed into with only basic ameneties available... Even the fact that the "oppressors" are mostly decendants of Europeans. The main differences are the degree to which religion is a factor on both sides.
After the treatment meted out to Jews in much of the first half of the 20th century it is easy to understand where the determination to defend thier kith and kin comes from. It is unfortunate that in thier zeal to protect thier young homeland, many of the actions they have chosen to take have proven to be profoundly counterproductive. The nation of Israel has a habit of shooting itself in the foot while trying to defend herself.
The current situation in Gaza is a case in point. In response to militants (I deliberately did not use terrorist in this instance) firing makeshift rockets at thier towns, the actions taken by Israeli Defence Forces have taken can only be described as collective punishment. Infact some Israeli government officials admitted that the Palestinians had brought the wrath of Israel on themselves by electing Hamas.
Palestinians will point out that they are having had thier country stolen from under thier feet. Many areas are being concreted over and settlements are being built on land the Palestinans claim is thiers. Aside from the land captured after the 1967 war between the Arabs and Israel, Israel has encroached steadily on the land left over for the Palestinians.
Over the 5 decades since the birth of Israel the Palestinians, and other Arab Nations have consistently underestimated, to their cost, the resolve of the Jewish people to defend themselves and their young state. This resolve however has made the Israelis look cruel and frankly racist despite them taking actions that can be argued are legitimate.
This is not to say that the two situations are identical as they most definitely are not. There are however some striking similarities. From infrastructure built for use by Jews only to the townships/refugee camps the subjugated population are crammed into with only basic ameneties available... Even the fact that the "oppressors" are mostly decendants of Europeans. The main differences are the degree to which religion is a factor on both sides.
After the treatment meted out to Jews in much of the first half of the 20th century it is easy to understand where the determination to defend thier kith and kin comes from. It is unfortunate that in thier zeal to protect thier young homeland, many of the actions they have chosen to take have proven to be profoundly counterproductive. The nation of Israel has a habit of shooting itself in the foot while trying to defend herself.
The current situation in Gaza is a case in point. In response to militants (I deliberately did not use terrorist in this instance) firing makeshift rockets at thier towns, the actions taken by Israeli Defence Forces have taken can only be described as collective punishment. Infact some Israeli government officials admitted that the Palestinians had brought the wrath of Israel on themselves by electing Hamas.
Palestinians will point out that they are having had thier country stolen from under thier feet. Many areas are being concreted over and settlements are being built on land the Palestinans claim is thiers. Aside from the land captured after the 1967 war between the Arabs and Israel, Israel has encroached steadily on the land left over for the Palestinians.
Over the 5 decades since the birth of Israel the Palestinians, and other Arab Nations have consistently underestimated, to their cost, the resolve of the Jewish people to defend themselves and their young state. This resolve however has made the Israelis look cruel and frankly racist despite them taking actions that can be argued are legitimate.
Saturday, March 08, 2008
Reactivation... Reactivation
After a few months on hiatus, I am breathing life back into this blog.
With all the goings on in Israel/Palestine, political violence in Pakistan, the ongoing wars is Iraq and Afghanistan not to mention the upcoming US elections there is much history making politics to express opinion on.
So let the political blogging recommence.
With all the goings on in Israel/Palestine, political violence in Pakistan, the ongoing wars is Iraq and Afghanistan not to mention the upcoming US elections there is much history making politics to express opinion on.
So let the political blogging recommence.
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