Dear Editor,
The letter in SN, by Clyde B Chakupeta entitled ‘Mugabe has made the same mistake as Ian Smith,’ (12.5.08) paints a picture of gratuitous violence perpetrated by Zanu-PF. “He (Mugabe) has tortured, mutilated, assaulted and killed Zimbabweans at different times in the country’s history,” says Mr Chakupeta. There is no doubt that extensive acts of violence were committed by supporters of Zanu-PF, and I unreservedly condemn all acts of violence and criminality.
In most developing countries, there is violence by supporters of rival political parties, particularly during the highly charged atmosphere of elections and electioneering. An example is the bombing by different factions during Pakistan’s recent elections. It is doubtful whether the leaders of these parties always themselves trigger or even condone the violence committed in their names.
But the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) also has a history of blood on its hands which the media, particularly the British media, sweep under the carpet. The MDC has killed supporters of Zanu-PF, such as Gibson Masariri, who was hacked to death in front of his family. And in Kwekwe where the houses of three Zanu-PF supporters were burnt down. None of these were ever reported in the British press.
These atrocities echo the activities of the white Rhodesian police and the notorious Selous Scouts in the 1970s, which is not surprising since several occupy important positions in the MDC. It was the Selous Scouts who killed refugees, including women and children, in Nyadzonia, Chimolo, Tembue, Mkushi, Luangwa and Solwezi, where they were buried in mass graves.
There is a tendency grossly and tendentiously to exaggerate the deaths under Mugabe’s rule. Baroness Amos, the Esse-quibo-born lady of the British New Labour Party, is on record as having agreed in the David Frost interview during the preceding elections that “100,000 people were killed by Mugabe supporters over the last two years.” In fact, human rights groups estimated the number killed on both sides as 160.
Reading about Zanu-PF you would not think that there is a positive side in its balance sheet. You would never guess that Zimbabwe has made substantial social progress under Mugabe. Under Zanu-PF, Zimbabwe has moved from one university at independence to 14, from a handful of secondary schools to hundreds, from 456 health centres to over 612 rural hospitals and 25 district hospitals, from 25% coverage in immunization at independence to 92% and from 20% antenatal coverage to 90 per cent. The list can continue.
Arguably, the most sinister development was the report on the BBC main news a few nights ago. It showed the BBC top reporter in covert mode, (BBC was banned from operating in Zimbabwe), describing evidence of massacres of 20,000 by Mugabe in Matabeleland in 1983. Apart from the puzzle why it took the BBC a quarter of a century to divulge this atrocity on its screens, the pictures of the mass graves were unconvincing – just a few bricks arranged in a square shape. However, my real point is not whether this allegation is true or false but about the intention behind the BBC report at this critical time. Could the so-called international community be scheming to do the work of the Zimbabwe’s electorate, which Mr Chakupeta so extols, by hauling the President to the Hague, as was done with Slobodan Milošević, and there dispose of him for crimes against humanity?
Yours faithfully
D Ramprakash
