It Takes Two – Blair and Mugabe

IT seems suddenly the two men are fascinated by the sultry Latin American dance.

They actually want to tango, according to latest news reports. There is, however, one problem preventing them: both don’t know how to dance it.Solution: bring in someone to teach them how to.And someone is ready to do just that.The former Tanzanian President, Benjamin Mkapa, has volunteered his good office and skills to act as a mediator between Harare and London, or more precisely between Prime Minister Tony Blair and President Robert Mugabe.The stand-off between the two ego-centric men started off when Mugabe introduced what is inaccurately referred to as a ‘revolutionary’ fast-track land reform in early 2000.And in turn Blair launched an aggressive sanctions regime against Zimbabwe.Countries such as Australia, New Zealand, the US, Canada and the EU then joined the fray.So they in turn imposed sanctions on Zimbabwe, including a ban on travel – which is one of Mugabe’s favourite activities.Remember he was nicknamed ‘Vasco da Gama’ and, by the way, our former President was called Christopher Columbus.The travel ban also affected Mugabe’s senior government officials which has hampered their work.It was at this point, we are told, that the melt-down started and the country began going down.The gravity of the Zimbabwean crisis has made headlines over the past few years and still is, thus no need for a rendition here.When and where the dancing will take place is not spelled out yet.Is it going to be in the form of tele-conferencing? Or maybe something with a human touch allowing the two men to meet face to face, of course in the company of Mkapa? Or would Mkapa traverse between Harare and London to deliver messages? I would personally suggest Victoria Falls.Al least this would show Blair and his entourage that Zimbabwe still has some world-class facilities and that not all things British have been erased from the face of Zimbabwe.Alternatively, why not in London? This would be a good gesture not only to show that perhaps the sanctions against Zimbabwe are slowly melting down but also to give Mugabe’s delegation a chance to visit Harrods and other trendy places! We would also like to know what the two men would be whispering into each other ears as they tango, or better still what Mkapa would be telling them – after-all he is the one who is supposed to teach them how to do it and what to say to each other? I would expect to hear this line: why can’t we just forget about the past and get along again? That is if they ever did.But does the process of forgetting the past solve the Zimbabwean crisis? Sanctions are lifted, travel ban undone and Zimbabwe is back in the community of nations.And is it then business as usual? The long queues are over, food is back on the shelves and cities like Bulawayo, Qweru, Harare, Mutare etc, are once again brimming with life? Some critics would say Zimbabwe problems started way before the implementation of the so-called fast track land reform process.In Zimbabwe: A Revolution that Lost Its Way, Andrew Astrow, a British political scientist, employing a leftist analysis, concluded way back in 1984 that the Zimbabwean state was failing because Mugabe’s Government has abandoned the masses that were the back-bone of the Chimurenga War.Now, some might say this was too early in the regime’s life to arrive at such a definite conclusion.But in retrospect, and in the light of recent happenings, he seems to have hit the nail right on the head.In 2004, I wrote a lengthy, albeit sympathetic, opinion piece in The Zimbabwean Mirror looking at the regional and global causes of the crisis in Zimbabwe.Some of the causes are linked to the Lancaster House Agreement where the liberation movement was tied to a host of requirements that the successor state to the former Rhodesia had to honour for a decade or so.This included protection of private property, including the now hotly-contested land issue.Then came economic structural adjustment programmes (ESAPS).The ESAPS are now recognized as having been total failures even by the World Bank itself.But it left a bad taste in the mouth of those who had to swallow it.The crisis also stems from the very fragilities of the other SADC member economies which are thus unable to provide any cushion during Zimbabwe’s hour of need.Thus Sam Nujoma can talk of mobilizing Namibians to fight along with their Zimbabweans friends should imperialist Britain invade, but is unable to organise food to feed the hungry there.The thawing of relations between the two countries would be highly welcomed.But Mugabe must start to jettison some of his policies which are out of sync with reality.Who could forget the scenes of the so-called urban clean-up campaigns that targeted the urban poor? Remember those bulldozers literally making people homeless (in Zimbabwe’s cities) in a blink of an eye? I think we Africans tend to be very selective in our moral judgment.The same justification that Mugabe used to dismantle people’s homes is precisely what the Apartheid regime used to force people out of what is today called Hochland Park and into Katutura.And many people have probably by now forgotten the speed and ferocity with which the Fifth Brigade crushed the Matabeleland uprising in the 1980s.There is no middle way with Mugabe.You are either with him or against him – in which latter case you must perish.The humiliating treatment meted out against the late Joshua Nkomo and his ZAPU (PF) party and his current disdain for the current opposition is what defines Mugabe.We shouldn’t forget Zimbabwe’s costly involvement (along with Namibia) in the war-prone DRC and how that dissipated the country’s economy.So, we say to Mugabe: don’t just tango with Blair, but also with your people including the opposition.Dialogue and respect for dissenting view (s) would push the country forward not downward.There is, however, one problem preventing them: both don’t know how to dance it.Solution: bring in someone to teach them how to.And someone is ready to do just that.The former Tanzanian President, Benjamin Mkapa, has volunteered his good office and skills to act as a mediator between Harare and London, or more precisely between Prime Minister Tony Blair and President Robert Mugabe.The stand-off between the two ego-centric men started off when Mugabe introduced what is inaccurately referred to as a ‘revolutionary’ fast-track land reform in early 2000.And in turn Blair launched an aggressive sanctions regime against Zimbabwe.Countries such as Australia, New Zealand, the US, Canada and the EU then joined the fray.So they in turn imposed sanctions on Zimbabwe, including a ban on travel – which is one of Mugabe’s favourite activities.Remember he was nicknamed ‘Vasco da Gama’ and, by the way, our former President was called Christopher Columbus.The travel ban also affected Mugabe’s senior government officials which has hampered their work.It was at this point, we are told, that the melt-down started and the country began going down.The gravity of the Zimbabwean crisis has made headlines over the past few years and still is, thus no need for a rendition here.When and where the dancing will take place is not spelled out yet.Is it going to be in the form of tele-conferencing? Or maybe something with a human touch allowing the two men to meet face to face, of course in the company of Mkapa? Or would Mkapa traverse between Harare and London to deliver messages? I would personally suggest Victoria Falls.Al least this would show Blair and his entourage that Zimbabwe still has some world-class facilities and that not all things British have been erased from the face of Zimbabwe.Alternatively, why not in London? This would be a good gesture not only to show that perhaps the sanctions against Zimbabwe are slowly melting down but also to give Mugabe’s delegation a chance to visit Harrods and other trendy places! We would also like to know what the two men would be whispering into each other ears as they tango, or better still what Mkapa would be telling them – after-all he is the one who is supposed to teach them how to do it and what to say to each other? I would expect to hear this line: why can’t we just forget about the past and get along again? That is if they ever did.But does the process of forgetting the past solve the Zimbabwean crisis? Sanctions are lifted, travel ban undone and Zimbabwe is back in the community of nations.And is it then business as usual? The long queues are over, food is back on the shelves and cities like Bulawayo, Qweru, Harare, Mutare etc, are once again brimming with life? Some critics would say Zimbabwe problems started way before the implementation of the so-called fast track land reform process.In Zimbabwe: A Revolution that Lost Its Way, Andrew Astrow, a British political scientist, employing a leftist analysis, concluded way back in 1984 that the Zimbabwean state was failing because Mugabe’s Government has abandoned the masses that were the back-bone of the Chimurenga War.Now, some might say this was too early in the regime’s life to arrive at such a definite conclusion.But in retrospect, and in the light of recent happenings, he seems to have hit the nail right on the head.In 2004, I wrote a lengthy, albeit sympathetic, opinion piece in The Zimbabwean Mirror looking at the regional and global causes of the crisis in Zimbabwe.Some of the causes are linked to the Lancaster House Agreement where the liberation movement was tied to a host of requirements that the successor state to the former Rhodesia had to honour for a decade or so.This included protection of private property, including the now hotly-contested land issue.Then came economic structural adjustment programmes (ESAPS).The ESAPS are now recognized as having been total failures even by the World Bank itself.But it left a bad taste in the mouth of those who had to swallow it.The crisis also stems from the very fragilities of the other SADC member economies which are thus unable to provide any cushion during Zimbabwe’s hour of need.Thus Sam Nujoma can talk of mobilizing Namibians to fight along with their Zimbabweans friends should imperialist Britain invade, but is unable to organise food to feed the hungry there. The thawing of relations between the two countries would be highly welcomed.But Mugabe must start to jettison some of his policies which are out of sync with reality.Who could forget the scenes of the so-called urban clean-up campaigns that targeted the urban poor? Remember those bulldozers literally making people homeless (in Zimbabwe’s cities) in a blink of an eye? I think we Africans tend to be very selective in our moral judgment.The same justification that Mugabe used to dismantle people’s homes is precisely what the Apartheid regime used to force people out of what is today called Hochland Park and into Katutura.And many people have probably by now forgotten the speed and ferocity with which the Fifth Brigade crushed the Matabeleland uprising in the 1980s.There is no middle way with Mugabe.You are either with him or against him – in which latter case you must perish.The humiliating treatment meted out against the late Joshua Nkomo and his ZAPU (PF) party and his current disdain for the current opposition is what defines Mugabe.We shouldn’t forget Zimbabwe’s costly involvement (along with Namibia) in the war-prone DRC and how that dissipated the country’s economy.So, we say to Mugabe: don’t just tango with Blair, but also with your people including the opposition.Dialogue and respect for dissenting view (s) would push the country forward not downward.