RSS 2.0 FeedAugust 2009 vol 4
DA Accuses Mugabe of Preparing for War
South Africa's main opposition party on Thursday warned that Robert Mugabe is preparing for war ahead of the next elections, saying the ageing dictator is in discussions with Venezuela, Cuba and Korea over funding a 'war chest.'
"I think there is no doubt Mugabe is preparing for war. We spoke to very, very reliable sources," Mubu told SW Radio Africa on Thursday. He said these included various human rights groups in Zimbabwe.
Mubu said that Mugabe and his ZANU PF party appeared to be 'mobilising for war against their own citizens.' He expressed concern about the growing presence of youth militia and war veterans in rural areas, saying there is belief that violence will once again be used to garner support for ZANU PF.
"Every time there are elections there is violence," Mubu said. "We are now concerned that there is evidence of the same actions that Mugabe has used in the past."
The MPs have now called on South African President Jacob Zuma to impose an arms embargo on Zimbabwe, as well as prepare to send independent election monitors to the country in time for the next elections and for all elections following that.
The pair also called on Zuma to hold Mugabe to account for the ongoing land invasions, particularly land protected under recent rulings by the human rights court of the Southern African Development Community (SADC). The SADC Tribunal last year ruled in favour of more than 70 white commercial farmers who had been targeted as part of Mugabe's 'land reform' programme, and ordered the government to protect the farmers right to their land. But the SADC order was completely ignored and the same farmers have been targeted by land invaders this year. The farmers returned to the SADC Tribunal earlier this year, which ruled that the government was in contempt for allowing the land attacks to continue.
Meanwhile, Mugabe this year called SADC's land ruling 'null and void,' saying the ruling was 'nonsense' and of 'no-consequence.' Zimbabwe, as a signatory to the SADC treaty, is bound to respect rulings made by the human rights court, and Mubu said that Zuma as the current SADC Chair, has a responsibility to hold Mugabe to account. He continued that some of the affected farmers are South African citizens, and Zuma has a greater responsibility therefore to protect the rights of his own people.
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As shown by last years presidential run-off, Mugabe doesn't need a stockpile of arms to stay in power. Mugabe purposefully destroyed the economy so the people would be more concerned with surviving than putting up resistance.
The arms are probably to defend against SADC countries when they realize Mugabe is just a criminal raping a once proud nation.