Zimbabwe: Only One Way

Posted to the web 25 July 2008 HAVEN'T we been here before? "Talks about talks"; the search for a "settlement"; the palpable need for legitimacy on the part of the incumbents; the public media presenting dialogue as something the opposition seeks; the diehards trying to keep the British and Americans out of the picture? It all has a familiar ring about it. We need to remind ourselves this is 2008, not 1978. The difference being of course that after 15 years of sanctions, isolation and civil war the country was in better shape than after eight years of Zanu PF's sanctions, isolation and civil war. Still we are treated to the rhetoric of exclusion. This is a uniquely African exercise, we are told. The Europeans and Americans should not interfere. But their help with balance-of-payments support and economic recovery will not be... [read full story]