Zimbabwe

[Gaspode]

Reports that the Zimbabwe army has seized control of the country and that both Mugabe and his wife are being held. They're denying it's a coup....

[Mostyn6]

36 minutes ago, Gaspode said:

Reports that the Zimbabwe army has seized control of the country and that both Mugabe and his wife are being held. They're denying it's a coup....

hope it's true, if only about 30 years too late!

[sage]

6 minutes ago, Moist One said:

hope it's true, if only about 30 years too late!

That was my immediate thought but it depends on what follows.

Ideally free and fair elections followed by economic improvement and a new place to watch cricket.

[Stive Pesley]

3 minutes ago, sage said:

That was my immediate thought but it depends on what follows.

Indeed - remember Mugabe was a hero when he liberated Rhodesia from the imperial forces that had raped the country

 

[Mostyn6]

2 minutes ago, sage said:

That was my immediate thought but it depends on what follows.

Ideally free and fair elections followed by economic improvement and a new place to watch cricket.

I have family that had to flee Zimbabwe so have strong feelings about it. But one thing that has failed badly in handing power back to the people who should have power is that the lack of transition ruined both Zimbabwe and to some extent South Africa. Yes, I do mean the black population. Taking land off people who stole it is not the thing for conversation, but handing farms to people who didn't know how to run farms, handing over a thriving agricultural sector to a load of native blacks may have seemed fair, but it turned out to be an absolute disaster. A good thriving country ruined by the rushing of handing over 'power'.

[Van der MoodHoover]

4 hours ago, StivePesley said:

Indeed - remember Mugabe was a hero when he liberated Rhodesia from the imperial forces that had raped the country

 

There was more than just mugabe. He was Zanu,  but there was a Joshua Nkomo who was a rival  (Zamla?) party.

Can't remember exactly what happened to old Joshua. But seem to recall some mugabe skullduggery. 

The man's been a despot and now wants to engineer a handover to his wife without bothering to consult the electorate. 

[uttoxram75]

12 hours ago, Moist One said:

I have family that had to flee Zimbabwe so have strong feelings about it. But one thing that has failed badly in handing power back to the people who should have power is that the lack of transition ruined both Zimbabwe and to some extent South Africa. Yes, I do mean the black population. Taking land off people who stole it is not the thing for conversation, but handing farms to people who didn't know how to run farms, handing over a thriving agricultural sector to a load of native blacks may have seemed fair, but it turned out to be an absolute disaster. A good thriving country ruined by the rushing of handing over 'power'.

It wasn't "handed over", it was taken back. Britain had no choice but to give it back other than occupation and slaughtering the native population to protect the whites. I suppose its an occupational hazard of empire building!

 

[Van der MoodHoover]

Some archive footage on BBC newsnight. Mugabe sounding conciliatory.  The deputy that he's just sacked suspected of massacring 20 thousand people in matabeleland in 198o for not supporting zanu. 

A murky world alright.....

[TigerTedd]

On 15/11/2017 at 11:32, Moist One said:

I have family that had to flee Zimbabwe so have strong feelings about it. But one thing that has failed badly in handing power back to the people who should have power is that the lack of transition ruined both Zimbabwe and to some extent South Africa. Yes, I do mean the black population. Taking land off people who stole it is not the thing for conversation, but handing farms to people who didn't know how to run farms, handing over a thriving agricultural sector to a load of native blacks may have seemed fair, but it turned out to be an absolute disaster. A good thriving country ruined by the rushing of handing over 'power'.

A big problem they had in south Africa was that as soon as made frircand democratic, with black people allowed to vote, elections became not about who’s the best man for the job, but it just came down to colour. More black people in South Africa, so the black candidate gets in. Then the whole people end up being oppressed. 

So since Mandela, they’ve had a string of presidents who only got the job due to their colour, not necessarily because they’re the best man for the job. (Which is not to say they weren’t the best man for the job, I don’t know what all the candidates were like, but they had one president recently who believed, if you took a bath after sex, you’d stop the spread of of AIDS!). 

So it ends up being a viscous circle. 

Like america. If trump says ‘most people agree with me, so I most be right’ but if it’s 1000 red neck yokels vs 10 highly qualified scientists, then the majority is not necessarily always right. 

[StringerBell]

Another socialist success story.

[King Kevin]

16 hours ago, uttoxram75 said:

It wasn't "handed over", it was taken back. Britain had no choice but to give it back other than occupation and slaughtering the native population to protect the whites. I suppose its an occupational hazard of empire building!

 

We don't half miss the old gunboat diplomacy