Published by the government of Zimbabwe
6 September 2008
opinion
Harare — "The Bush administration said yesterday it no longer considers President Mugabe to be the legitimate leader of Zimbabwe and called upon the 'body politic' of his country 'to go forward and correct that situation'.
"We are continuing to work on what are some of the strategies that we can use to isolate Mugabe in the sense that he has to realise that the political status quo is not acceptable." He said the US and some European countries are working with the civil society in Zimbabwe, including human rights groups and private media journalists. -- The Washington Times, citing US Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Walter Kansteiner, August 21 2002).
WE begin with the passage from The Washington Times of August 21 2002 in order to put into context the direct link between US-UK interference in Zimbabwe's internal affairs and the continuing demand for illegal transfer of power by MDC-T as well as Morgan Tsvangirai's refusal to accept the mandate of "inclusive governance" which voters created through the March 29 harmonised elections and the subsequent presidential run-off election of June 27 2008.
In other words, there is a direct link between the external manoeuvres of the regime change forces led by the US and UK and the internal manoeuvres of the internal proxies of those same in the form of MDC-T and its NGO cohorts here in Zimbabwe. The demand for the illegal transfer of power comes from exactly the same voters. But the same voters hold the key to solving the same problems.
First let us examine the external manoeuvres by the US, the UK and the allies. Having failed to stage the coup d'etat which the US State Department called for on August 20 2002, the US, the UK and the EU in June 2008 sought to subvert Zimbabwe's constitutional and electoral process in order to achieve the same objective stated by the State Department on August 20 2002: The overthrow of the elected Government and the unilateral cancellation of the people's vote.
How exactly did these powers try to achieve this objective?
l First, the US State Department again rejected the sovereign mandate of Zimbabwe's voters in the 2005 parliamentary elections which all the participating observers declared free and fair.
l Second, Bernard Kouchner for the European Union presidency; Gordon Brown for the British Labour government; and Condoleezza Rice and Jendayi Fraser for the US government -- all stated in June 2008 that the only government of Zimbabwe they were willing to recognise was one led by Tsvangirai.
l Third, the same leaders sought to force Zimbabwe to cancel the presidential run-off, even though it was required by our Constitution. They wanted to force the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission and the voters to revert to the indecisive election results that gave the opposition a slight edge over the liberation movement, Zanu-PF.
l Fourth, when 80 percent of the presidential run-off vote went to President Mugabe, the same white powers denounced the result and demanded the installation of Tsvangirai of the MDC as President of Zimbabwe.
l Fifth, they successfully recruited at least three leaders in Sadc to agitate for the position of the UK, US and EU -- that is to urge Sadc and the AU not to recognise President Robert Mugabe as the legitimately elected head of state of Zimbabwe. It took the firm resolutions of AU and Sadc summits to silence those three heads of state.
l Sixth, and finally, the UK and US manipulated the G8 and the UN Security Council to invoke Chapter Seven of the UN Charter against Zimbabwe in order to obtain UN permission for a military invasion of Zimbabwe which the US and the UK had been contemplating since the days of their Iraq invasion in 2003.
These political and diplomatic manoeuvres by the US, the UK and the EU were packaged as aimed only at removing one man, President Robert Mugabe, in the very same way that the vicious and illegal economic sanctions against all the people of Zimbabwe have also been misrepresented as targeted against the same President and his so called "cronies".
Yet a close analysis of all the manoeuvres by the white powers shows that their aim is to cancel the will of the people and the emphatic results of the people's vote. This was the aim of Walter Kansteiner's declaration on August 20 2002 as much as it was the aim of all the pronouncements by Gordon Brown, Bernard Kouchner, Condoleezza Rice and Jendayi Fraser in June 2008. What these white racist powers have been saying since 2001 is that the aspirations and votes of the people Zimbabwe do not count. What counts are the interests of white Britain, Europe, North America and the proxy groups they have chosen to sponsor within Zimbabwe.
But Sadc, through the mediation efforts of President Thabo Mbeki, has recognised both the aspirations and the votes of the people of Zimbabwe as the only bases for legitimate governance.
The people of Zimbabwe aspire to fully reclaim and use their once stolen land. The people of Zimbabwe aspire to secure and exploit the natural assets and human resources of their country. The people of Zimbabwe aspire to choose their trade and development partners in the world. And the people of Zimbabwe elected a multi-party Senate and House of Assembly to pursue and implement these aspirations and objectives through mechanisms of "inclusive governance" to be led by President Robert Mugabe and to be based on the results of the presidential run-off on June 27 2008. That is democracy at work.
Sadc has conveyed these aims and aspirations of the people to the AU and to the Non-Aligned Movement who have also endorsed them. Together, Sadc, AU and NAM have also succeeded in getting China, Russia, Vietnam and Libya to block the Anglo-Saxon attacks on Zimbabwe at the UN Security Council.
So far it would seem as if the Euro-American onslaught from Walter Kansteiner in 2002 to Bernard Kouchner in 2008 has been fully rebuffed by Sadc, AU, NAM and those members of the UN Security Council who are friendly to Zimbabwe. However, there is need for an internal spear to complement the external diplomatic shield against foreign intrusion.
The majority of the people of Zimbabwe, the true and intended victims of sanctions and destabilisation, hold the internal spear against the internal proxies of the external powers. Since the end of the presidential run-off election President Robert Mugabe and President Thabo Mbeki of South Africa have been pleading with those who may have become proxies of the external powers against Zimbabwe without knowing the tragic implications of such collaboration. The two leaders have been advising all those who became prodigal sons or prodigal daughters, without much though, to come back home and affirm the unity of Zimbabwe and the wish of the overwhelming majority for inclusive governance, national unity and an immediate end to sanctions.
It is now September, a long way from June 2008, and it looks as if MDC-T has definitely not listened to the appeals of the two leaders. The following evidence leads to this conclusion and our readers must judge for themselves each of the following examples.
The unelected military leader of Botswana, Ian Khama, is one of the three Sadc leaders once recruited to divide Sadc over Zimbabwe and to help the UK and US governments to destabilise the country. Yet it is that same leader and that same country which MDC-T and its leader are now using as a financial, diplomatic and propaganda rear-base from which to divide and destabilise Zimbabwe on behalf of the British and the North Americans.
The external infiltration of Zimbabwe through Botswana is so rife that even the EU and US shooting list of Zimbabwean patriots is being circulated and implemented by the Khama regime and the Botswana Diocese of the Anglican Church of the Province of Central Africa. One Reverend Archford Musodza frequently communicates with the regime change elements inside Zimbabwe.
In the run-up to the June 27 presidential run-off election Musodza wrote a letter to one Christine in which he assumed that MDC-T was going to bury Zanu-PF and President Robert Mugabe on June 27. He wrote the following astounding things, among many others:
"Once the old man, Mugabe is ousted, either by the ballot box or by the MDC-T's other plan as discussed over the phone, that will also be the end of (Bishop Nolbert Kunonga). Once MDC-T's Tsvangirai takes the reins, then all former white farmers are assured of a return to their farms. The church will be restored and we can mobilise all Anglicans to now vote for a Bishop of Zimbabwe from Britain who is not polluted.
Read comments. Write your own.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
Of course the 2008 elections were unfair, the country had been under a economic deadlock for years by the West.
Tsvangirai didn't contest the run-off because he was likely to lose and withdrawing from the run-off was his only way to allow him to pretend he won. You obviously don't know anything about Zimbabwe otherwise you'd know that Tsvangirai was still on the ballot, as obligated by the constitution. Tsvangirai won that other 20%.
China and Russia weren't manipulated, YOU have been manipulated. And are you seriously going to bring up Georgia? This isn't about Russian intervention, this is about… [Read Full Text]
You see to so easily forget that the 80% that Mugabe won in the run off, a gain of some 37% was purely due to the violence, murder and intimidation of opposition supporters, and the forced votes of so many. If you for one moment even consider the 80% a true reflection of the peoples will as accurate, this simply shows how stupid, idiotic, irrational and brainwashed you are.
Why do you support and condone a man who has so blatantly beaten, murdered, raped and tortured your fello Zimbabweans to keep power?
This post was deleted because it contravenes AllAfrica's commenting guidelines.
As I said "If you for one moment even consider the 80% a true reflection of the peoples will as accurate, this simply shows how stupid, idiotic, irrational and brainwashed you are".
Tsvangarai pulled out 4 days before the run off 'election' saving countless lives at the hands of Mugabe thugs. A true leader of the people.
You're not suggesting that Mugabe, the butcher of Harare, responsible for tens of thousands of deaths of Zimbabweans is a better leader of the people are you? Dear oh dear.
Tsvangirai pulled out to "save lives"? Is that right? Then his recent call for new elections means... what?
He's literally asking for the same kind of violence once more because he couldn't finish the job (and by finish the job I mean create a justification for a Western invasion) in the run-off. The guy is completely contradictory in everything he does. A good leader would have signed the generous deal presented by Mbeki and patiently await the next election after the economic crisis has subsided. The problem is, Tsvangirai NEEDS to economic crisis because that's his entire campaign strategy.
Personally,… [Read Full Text]
I think you'll find that Tsvangarai would like elections in a controlled peaceful environment where people can vote freely without the fear that vote may cost their life. If he wanted to promote a "western invasion" then he would have stayed in for the run off. But seriously, you must be pretty deluded to even consider the west invading Zimbabwe.
Under these free and fair conditions, its pretty clear that Tsvangarai would win an election.
You really are stupid though. Why do you think its ok for Mugabe and his thugs to unleash waves of violence on the people of… [Read Full Text]
Tsvangirai hasn't done anything to prove to me that he has the interests of Zimbabwe at heart, so no I will not have faith in what he says wants. Everything he has done since the first election has been meant to cause instability as he and his party regularly broke Zimbabwe laws to try to appear to the Western media as the victim. Why change now?
"Under these free and fair conditions, its pretty clear that Tsvangarai would win an election."
^-- Purely your opinion.
"You really are stupid though. Why do you think its ok for Mugabe and his… [Read Full Text]
See all comments (138).
Some questions for Cde George:
"First, the US State Department again rejected the sovereign mandate of Zimbabwe's voters in the 2005 parliamentary elections which all the participating observers declared free and fair." - George, you have overlooked to mention that neither SADC's nor the AU's observer missions found the 2008 presidential run to be free and fair. Any reason for that small oversight?
"Second, Bernard Kouchner for the European Union presidency; Gordon Brown for the British Labour government; and Condoleezza Rice and Jendayi Fraser for the US government -- all stated in June 2008 that the only government… [Read Full Text]