I had been optimistic when Mugabe lost the parliamentary elections, it had seemed as if his hold on power had slipped far enough that it was over. It appears I’ve underestimated his capacity for repression.
Mark Bellamy and Stephen Morrison over at the CSIS Africa Policy Forum outline what the U.S. could be doing to help.
It is now possible to transcend this indifference. Mugabe’s unpopularity, his crumbling reputation as a liberation hero, the increasing savagery of his security chiefs, and the regional economic and social costs of Zimbabwe’s meltdown — all favor an external diplomatic push...
A top priority has to be ending South Africa’s patronage of Mugabe through diplomatic pressure that exploits growing regional dissatisfaction with Thabo Mbeki’s leadership. Botswana’s new President Ian Khama, Zambian President Levy Mwanawasa, Tanzanian President and African Union head Jakaya Kikwete, as well as Mbeki’s presumptive successor Jacob Zuma, all understand the urgent need to act on Zimbabwe. Other strong African voices, such as Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga, are also now questioning South Africa’s role in Zimbabwe and calling for change. Once the South African linchpin is removed, the other external props that sustain Mugabe — Angola, Namibia, Equatorial
Guinea, Libya, and China — will cease to matter.
As I understand it, the value added the U.S. provides under their proposal is that of an organizer. Appoint an envoy, the envoy gathers an international team, that team works for the long haul to change the situation. Presumably the envoy would have relevant credibility and be well positioned to answer Mugabe’s constant charges that all criticism is a re-colonization attempt. This envoy then, with the official backing of the U.S. would be able to organize figures ready to criticize government already. Only once that team, with substantial African representation, would we probably be in a position to convert those not critical.
Picture taken by frontlineblogger and used under a Creative Commons license. Here’s the blog of the picture taker.
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