'Go hang' - Mugabe's message to the west
As I pointed out the other day, there was once a time when we in the West could have condemned what recently took place in Zimbabwe, but - with Bush almost openly embracing the use of torture - our ability to condemn him is seriously limited.
He now appears to be of a similar mind, as he's given his reaction to the world's condemnation of his beating up of political opponents. He's told us that we can all, "Go hang."
Amid signs that other African leaders are increasingly keen to distance themselves from the Zimbabwean regime, President Mugabe robustly defended his police forces which this week allegedly beat opposition protesters with iron bars and truncheons. Morgan Tsvangirai, leader of the Movement for Democratic Change, suffered a suspected fractured skull but was last night out of danger,More than fifty people have been beaten by Mugabe's henchmen, beaten for daring to form an opposition to his dictatorial rule. And those of us who oppose what he has done can, "go hang".
Mr Mugabe said that the opposition was using violence in an attempt to topple him. "It's the west as usual ... when they criticise the government trying to prevent violence and punish the perpetrators of that violence, we take the position that they can go hang," said Mr Mugabe.
Now, at last, even the governments of Africa are beginning to realise that this man is out of control.Last night, Margaret Beckett, the foreign secretary said that Britain would seek to take Zimbabwe to the UN Human Rights Council. She said the British government wants the attackers of the MDC activists to be named and added to the list of those subject to visa bans. "It's appalling," she said. "This is the direct responsibility of the government of Zimbabwe."
Although Mr Mugabe directed his most recent comments against western powers, African leaders are also beginning to criticise him. The Tanzanian president, Jakaya Kikwete, made an unscheduled visit to Harare yesterday to express the concerns of all the leaders of the Southern African Development Community over the beating of Mr Tsvangirai. The 15-nation southern African body has given the task of mediating Zimbabwe's deepening crisis to Tanzania, Lesotho and Namibia.
Mr Mugabe used to be able to count on support from African leaders but this week several have publicly criticised him.
But I can't help thinking that our ability to condemn him would carry more moral weight were George Bush not currently engaging in a clandestine policy of torture by another name: "alternative interrogation techniques". If the leading country in the world now embraces such a policy, what hope is there of us persuading country's like Zimbabwe that they should desist from the beating up of political prisoners?
Who are we to condemn Mugabe for following similar practices to those of the US government? Or do we simply have better enemies that justifies atrocities we allow to be carried out in our names?
In the meantime, we have his response. We can all, "go hang".
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