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  Posted By:
  kwame123 at 04/14/2008 2:40:32 AM
  Comment:
  Why hasn't the author of this article not discussed the 7 years of illegal, immoral and racist sanctions imposed on the people of Zimbabwe? The Anglo-Saxon nations of the US, EU, Australia and Canada are directly responsible for the economic conditions in Zimbabwe. 13 million Zimbabweans are made to suffer because these racist leaders didn't like the Magabe. It is shameful that the Congressional Black Caucus and other so-called Black leaders and organizations stand by and allow Zimbabweans to be terrorised. Yet! most will bend over backwards to support the racist, apartheid and terroist occupying force which is Israel. Are we not ashamed of ourselves?
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  Posted By:
  mdwenner at 04/08/2008 2:43:35 PM
  Comment:
  Mugabe has got to go. He has mismanaged if not ruined the economy. He has frustrated the democratic will of the people by rigging elections. He has beaten and imprisoned political opponents. He has given valauble arable land to people who have no background in farming. He has razed urban informal settlements thereby displacing thousands and aggravating poverty.
  
  What more will he have to do to prove that he is unfit to remain in power. The West did not make him do these things. He needs to be roundly criticized by both the West and other African leaders. Black Africa will not progress, if bad leaders are coodled and excuses made for them. He has got to go. The question should be how to help him transition out of power with the the least damage.
  
  Mark Wenner
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  Posted By:
  fine ask atsande at 03/31/2008 6:47:41 PM
  Comment:
  There are quick solutions to Zimbabwe. A fair vote. The people voted in 2002. The victory of the MDC and the majority of the people was stolen by Mug and Zanu PF. On 3/29/03, the people of Zim voted and showed their dissatisfaction with Mug's regime by voting him out of power. The people voted peacefully.
  The SADC/Mbeki sponsored Zanu Pf/ MDC talks during 2007 enshrined the new regulation whereby election results would be posted at each polling station after couting by designated government polling officers. That was done and all the results from the posted polling station vote counts indicated a landslide victory for the MDC. The government appointed Zimbabwe Electoral Commission delayed the announcement of official results for 48 hours and announced a close victory for ZANU PF. How long should the people of Zimbabwe be subjected to this? Could someone tell Mug that rigging the vote to secure a majority by just one vote is still fraud? African and SADC leaders will back Mug and Zanu PF. Please tell them the time is up. Help the liberation of Zimbabwe. Do not support rigging. Do not back Mugabe. The vote of 3/29/08 has been stolen yet again. Please speak your mind. Back a regime change in Zimbabwe. Support THE PEOPLE. Ask for a re-count. Accept the published results collated from all polling station as the will of the the people. Get ZANU PF OUT! Ther is no need for bloodshed!
  Fine ask atsande
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  Posted By:
  rootsicle at 03/31/2008 2:18:11 AM
  Comment:
  You write that "South African businesses are taking advantage of Zimbabwe's weaker national economy and have begun to establish a foothold in the country" - er, sorry, mate, but that's called business is exactly what Zimbabwe needs. As long as its not wholesale natural resource export, there will be strong local benefits, not just salaries, but also linkages with Zimbabwean businesses (suppliers and downstream clients) as well as innovation spillovers. That, in turn, should help to create the opportunities that talented young Zimbabweans need to stay in the country, and eventually establish more Zimbabwean businesses outside its borders. Please don't talk about a need for more (false) protectionism in Zimbabwe now!
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  Posted By:
  rootsicle at 03/31/2008 2:00:14 AM
  Comment:
  You write that "South African businesses are taking advantage of Zimbabwe's weaker national economy and have begun to establish a foothold in the country" - er, sorry, mate, but that's called business is exactly what Zimbabwe needs. As long as its not wholesale natural resource export, there will be strong local benefits, not just salaries, but also linkages with Zimbabwean businesses (suppliers and downstream clients) as well as innovation spillovers. That, in turn, should help to create the opportunities that talented young Zimbabweans need to stay in the country, and eventually establish more Zimbabwean businesses outside its borders. Please don't talk about a need for more (false) protectionism in Zimbabwe now!
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  Posted By:
  Alfiaj at 03/30/2008 11:44:49 PM
  Comment:
  It is a shame that this article did not address the issues related to human rights abuses, injustices to women and children by the Mugabe government, and the senseless land reform policies that were not even addressed until the late 1990's, long after independence was won. Upon visiting Zimbabwe in 1991, it was expressed to me by residents in Harare that the issue of land reform had not yet been properly addressed. Yes, there are economic policies initiated by international financial institutions that have assisted in the further crippling of Zimbabwe's economy, however, one must ask, for the sake of the people, why nothing has changed. I would conclude by saying that all African governemtents and heads of state must be held accountable for all actions and policies, and we, as persons represented the interests of the African Diaspora wholistically, should not be afraid to question the actions of our fellow leaders abroad (and at home for that matter). The waves that accountability makes is the reason why Thabo Mbeki has been very soft on his criticisms of Mugabe. Again, one must ask the real reasons why. I would hope that TransAfrica would advocate for a call to action by Zimbabwe's citizens to exercise their right to a fair and just government, and their right to hold those in power accountable for their actions when human rights injustices and basic services are suspended.
  
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  Posted By:
  gw at 03/30/2008 10:46:47 PM
  Comment:
  Dont hurry,with life expectancy of 37yrs,who can afford to wait?gw.
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  Posted By:
  gw at 03/30/2008 10:44:05 PM
  Comment:
  With life expectancy of 37 yrs,do nothing now and it wont be long before there will be no one left..gw
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  Posted By:
  kwame123 at 03/30/2008 5:15:58 PM
  Comment:
  It is very disingenuious of Lee to write an article about Zimbabwe without mentioning the harmful impact of sanctions which has been imposed by the West. The racist Anglo-Saxon countries of the EU, Australia and the US are evil and immoral. The sanctions have caused much of the economic and social problems in Zim.
  
  Least we forget the countries listed above are many of the same countries which have immorally and illegally attacked Iraq and Afghanistan, slaughtering over a million human beings. How can the criminal gov'ts of the US, England and Australia have any credibility to dictate internal matters of other countries?
  
  It's yet another crime against the people of Africa.
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    Posted By:
    mdwenner at 04/08/2008 2:54:20 PM
    Comment:
    This is an apology. The sanctions came in response to rigged elections. You argue as if the West wanted to punish Zim for nefarious reasons. Mug is a liberation hero but he has just stayed in power too long and has lost his way. It is time for a change. What Mug is doing to his own people is unpardonable. Face facts. Do not blame outsiders for all ills. Westerns take advantage of situations when there are weak and corrupt governments. It is in the interest of Black Africa to have good governments, not governments that hurt the majority and only benefit an elite and the foreign devils. Mug has got to go.
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  Posted By:
  Undercover Black Man at 03/30/2008 1:40:52 AM
  Comment:
  So it's white people's fault that Robert Mugabe is a tyrant? Goodness gracious.
  
  You mention offhandedly that the dispossession of white farmers has led to economic ruin. Shouldn't that have been a major focus of your analysis, Ms. Lee? How about a critical examination of the ideology of "land reform"?