Reader Rwanda Zimbabwe

Zimbabwean Opposition Leader Morgan Tsvangirai has said more than once that
he has come to see China as "the worst enemy" of Zimbabweans,
with Beijing relegating human rights concerns far below the value it places on Mugabe's regime
as a bridgehead to secure steady and reliable supplies
of Africa's mineral resources.

ZIMBABWE SPADE RED CHINA

The South African president Thabo Mbeki "waved through"
an arms shipment from China destined for Zimbabwe,
which ran contrary to what the media reported elsewhere.
These weapons are now being used against the Zimbabwean citizens
in what is labeled by those outside the country as
a coup d’état.

Greetings from Great Lakes. How is your struggle? I am writing to express my sincere thanks to your Website for all the efforts of highlighting the wrong doings of the Big brothers as well as the small/Little brothers.

It is a very sad day for African continent when one looks at what is happening in Zimbabwe. It becomes even worse to learn the deafening silence of African leaders, especially neighbors to Zimbabwe. Can you imagine that today, after so many have suffered and died in Zimbabwe, no one, particularly an African leader, is courageous enough to call a spade what it is? It is only after Morgan Tsvangirai's withdrawal, which I strongly support as it will save some poor souls in Zimbabwe, that we hear some few voices here and there, and even those are not calling a spade by its real name.

Our mutual friend President Kagame spoke on the issue last week in his usual press conference, but even he did not hit the nail properly, he was just being too soft unnecessarily:

I don't really understand what the world and Africa in particular is waiting for. People of Zimbabwe are calling for help but no one is ready to incur the wrath of Mugabe. My head turned upside down when after all is happening there today in the timesonline comes this story:

I asked myself is there justice in this world? The super power is continuing strengthening Mugabe’s regime. Just like the way the Chinese are strengthening him and Kabila with lucrative deals. Will we never see the back of him?

It is incredibly sad the way African leaders (and Western World leaders) have condoned, through their silence, the atrocities that Mugabe and his backers, Communist China, have been inflicting on the people of Zimbabwe all these years.

I did notice that President Kagame made a comment last week in the news, speaking out a bit about Zimbabwe, but, as you say, he didn't hit the nail on the head. I think his main point was that Zimbabweans had to try and solve their own problems first, before expecting help from others. The problem is that there is no army of Zimbabweans to come to their country's rescue - as was the case with the RPF when all hell was breaking loose in Rwanda in 1994.

But no leader in Africa, or the Western World, has the courage to suffer the consequences of condemning the true source of Zimbabwe's descent into the abyss, ie its colonization by China, a nation favoured by BIG BROTHER.

For example, Australia's Prime Minister, Kevin Dodd, while a member of the opposition, criticised his predecessor, John Howard, for his failure to speak out against China's dealings in Zimbabwe, but now that he's in office he's silent, like the rest.

"...Zimbabwean Opposition Leader Morgan Tsvangirai has said more than once that he has come to see China as "the worst enemy" of Zimbabweans, with Beijing relegating human rights concerns far below the value it places on Mugabe's regime as a bridgehead to secure steady and reliable supplies of Africa's mineral resources. China arms Mugabe's security forces and provides soft loans or barter terms for trade with his regime. Mugabe has openly praised China for its continued support in the face of economic sanctions imposed by the West...."

And here in Canada, and the USA and UK, no politician puts the blame on China's tyrants for their backing of the tyrant Mugabe. Instead they help drive the nail into Zimbabwe's coffin by petitioning to have Western-based companies pull out of Zimbabwe, instead of petitioning that China-based companies pull out - which is what the Zimbabwean people would support - given half the chance. They don't want their resources being mined or farmed by China whose record of inhumanity, at home and abroad, is an incontrovertible fact.

For that reason I disagree with your head-turning-upside-down reaction disapproving of plans by that UK mining company (symbolically named 'Anglo American') to invest millions in Zimbabwe. On the contrary, I think it's a shred of good news. It's about time, for a change, to have Western World development again in Africa, instead of leaving it all for China.

Western World embargoes or sanctions against Zimbabwe don't hurt Mugabe, who lives like a king while his people eat rats, they just hurt the Zimbabwean people who will suffer even more when China is the only game in town.

But I agree with you that it's good that Morgan Tsvangirai withdrew from participating in the farce of an election scheduled for tomorrow, not only to save his own life, but also that of millions of Zimbabweans who face genocide if they vote for anyone other than Mugabe. As ex-Rhodesian Prime Minister Ian Smith said many times in his book BITTER HARVEST, THE GREAT BETRAYAL AND THE DREADFUL AFTERMATH (which I finished reading recently) democracy in Zimbabwe (and most of Africa) means "one man, one vote, one time".

It's beyond time to call a spade a spade, and in present-day Zimbabwe (and elsewhere in the world) that spade is Red China.

PPS - I just got this month's National Geographic today (July 2008 edition) and there's a picture of Laurent Nkunda in it (but I haven't had a chance to read the article yet)

Zimbabwe election crisis unravels (seeing Mugabe for what he is: undemocratic, senile and evil). Real Truth, Jun 26, 2008
...The South African president [Thabo Mbeki] "waved through" an arms shipment from China destined for Zimbabwe, which ran contrary to what the media reported elsewhere. The paper also stated that these weapons are now being used against the Zimbabwean citizens in what is labeled by those outside the country as a coup d’état....Meanwhile, as events unfold in Zimbabwe, hospitals continue to be overcrowded with patients. Many are suffering from severe injuries because of beatings received by the militia, who support the Mugabe regime. Others are sick and starving due to lack of food aid, which is being given only to those who support the present government. Across the country, health officials report that the stress of constant militia attacks and the uncertainty of what the future holds have also led to worsening health conditions.

Australia's Mugabe rhetoric needs action (recoils at notion of confronting Beijing over its support for Mugabe regime). The Age, Jun 26, 2008
...In an ABC radio interview in May 2005, Prime Minister Rudd said he would be deeply concerned if China was to prop up Mugabe's regime: "When it comes to any form of assistance from China which would act to neutralise what the rest of the international communities are doing, I'd say to our friends in Beijing: That's not a step in the right direction. That doesn't help in terms of bringing about meaningful political change in Zimbabwe upon which most of the members of the international community are united and I would be encouraging our friends in Beijing to have a long close look at anything they've done which may head in the wrong, reverse direction." Such were Rudd's fine words in Opposition. Now that he's in government, will there be action to match his rhetoric? A stern phone call from the Prime Minister to our friends in Beijing, setting out Australia's concerns in plain English, would be a start.

China not cracking down on firms violating UN sanctions: US. AFP, Jun 25, 2008
...The Pentagon observes Chinese firms and individuals transferring a wide variety of weapons-related materials and technologies to customers around the world" -- including to Burma, Zimbabwe, Cuba, Sudan and Syria. In April, a ship belonging to a Chinese state-owned shipping firm was forced to abandon plans to deliver a shipment of arms to Zimbabwe amid fears they could be used to crack down on opposition supporters. China is a major supporter of beleaguered Zimbabwean leader Robert Mugabe....

Outrage over £200m UK investment in Zimbabwe. The Times, Jun 25, 2008
Anglo American, the London-based mining giant, is to make what is believed to be the largest foreign investment in Zimbabwe to date, just as the British Government puts pressure on companies to withdraw from the country. Anglo will invest $400 million (£200 million) to build a platinum mine in Zimbabwe — a move that has raised concern among some of the company’s shareholders and been condemned by politicians....Zimbabwe is rich in mineral resources and has the second-largest deposits of platinum but most large miners are avoiding the country or have put their investments on hold....Almost no large investments have been made in Zimbabwe for years over uncertainty about the Mugabe regime. Anti-Mugabe campaigners said that the Anglo investment was likely to be the largest ever in the country....Anglo American was founded by Sir Ernest Oppenheimer in South Africa in 1917. Oppenheimer had already taken over De Beers, the diamond corporation, from Cecil Rhodes, who founded the country that became Zimbabwe...

Kagame says Africa has failed Zimbabwe. New Times, Jun 19, 2008
The President made the remarks during his regular meeting with members of the local and international media at Village Urugwiro, Kigali....He pointed out that even though neighbouring countries had a moral obligation to help, it was up to the people of Zimbabwe to take the first step. "The problem cannot be solved by outsiders, but Zimbabweans themselves should be seen to be trying to solve their own problems," pointed out Kagame, though he suggested that if they failed, then SADC (Southern African Development Community) should "step in."...President Kagame was sceptical as to whether the elections would be free and fair in view of the current war drums sounding from Mugabe's camp. "It does not need a genius to understand that free and fair elections can be hard to contemplate in the current situation," Kagame pointed out. See HOW KAGAME BECAME RWANDA'S LEADER