Hope for Zimbabwe at last?

[Jovial Monk]

ZIMBABWE'S opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai was sworn in as prime minister today, joining President Robert Mugabe in a unity government after a decade of struggling to push him from power.
"I will well and truly serve Zimbabwe in the office of prime minister," Mr Tsvangirai said as he took his oath of office from Mr Mugabe under a white tent in the lawn of the presidential mansion yesterday.

http://www.news.com.au/story/0,27574,25 ... 01,00.html

The first step, hopefully, in the long road to rebuilding Zimbabwe back into a prosperous country, the breadbasket of Southern Africa. Sorry to say, I am not that optimistic.

Al reports, pretty much, concentrate on Mugabe and his refusal to leave office etc. However, it is the people behind Mugabe that worry me. The army & security services and the so-called 'veterans' of the war of liberation that camped on the fields of the former white farmers in Zimbabwe. They won't like no longer being able to do sod all but run riot!

Also, as the article I linked to states that there is a danger of Morgan Tsvangirai becoming part, eventually, of the autocratic govt. Doubt that danger is high.

[skippy]

As you've said monk, hard to be optomistic when Mugabe and his backers still hold the ultimate power, I dont think anything is going to change, except Mugabe and his mob will always know where Tsvangirai is, its always helpfull to know the movements of your enemy.

[TomB]

Mugabe and his cronies are war criminals so giving up power would be their death sentence.

My guess is that Tsvangirai has privately agreed to not pursue any of them once Mugabe is dead and gone.

[JW Frogen]

Any belief that any sort of power sharing with Mugabe "Zimbabwe is mine" Mugabe will result in him really reliquishing real power is a fantasy.

He must go for the country to be free.

And only South Africa has both the strategic need, moral authority and most importantly of all, military ability to acheive this.

[Ethnic]

South Africa won't do anything.

[JW Frogen]

Sadly I agree.

When the ANC was fighting for freedom they meant only their freedom, and only for a while, not the concept writ large.