A Man like Hitler and Stalin combined

Many Irish people take little notice of other countries and their affairs, especially when they are far away, on another continent.
However, the ongoing and ever increasing campaign of terror, violence and political intimidation that is unleashed daily on the people of Zimbabwe has now become a regular news item here on the Emerald Isle and thus Irish people are ever more aware of the worst abuse of political power in Africa.

Having lost the parliamentary elections of March 29th to the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) as well as the first round of the presidential election held on the same day, the now 84-year-old Zimbabwean leader (he is no longer the legitimate President) Robert Mugabe is using any possible means to cling on to power, while his country deteriorates into chaos, economic meltdown and famine.

Robert Mugabe (above), a Jesuit-educated Catholic and once a revered freedom fighter in the struggle for the independence of Zimbabwe, has in his old age become the worst and cruelest dictator the African continent has seen in modern times. As a historian one needs to be careful with the use of superlatives, but sadly there is no doubt that Robert Mugabe now outranks even Uganda's Idi Amin and Zaire's Mobuto when it comes to cruelty, brutality, violence and absolute egoism. Zimbabwe's dictator also outshines other African leaders in his combination of huge arrogance and ignorance, with total incompetence in the field of proper political and economical leadership. And the longer he carries on in power, the clearer it becomes to observers and analysts that he is a totalitarian maniac who has lost all sense for reality and the outside world. In this he resembles Adolf Hitler in his last days in the bunker beneath his office, still convinced of 'his special mission' while the world around him was shot to pieces by Russian artillery.

Like Hitler, the Zimbabwean dictator also believes that he is "chosen by God" as the leader of his people. And in a speech that can only be described as a bad copy of Hitler's Nuremberg rally speeches, Mugabe declared a few days ago that he "will never give up power to the opposition" and that "only God" could remove him as leader.

In private, it is said, he is quite a shy man who lives a rather simple life (another similarity with Hitler), and like Stalin he appears to be fond of much younger women in his old age. During his first marriage (to the Ghana-born political activist Sally Hayfron) this was not the case. It was in fact Sally who inspired him politically and believed in Mugabe as 'the chosen one' to rule and lead his country. A similar belief was shared by Mugabe's mother, a pious Catholic who saw her son Robert as some kind of Messiah after a priest had told her that he was gifted and 'chosen by God to do great things'. As it happens, this priest was Irish and thus we have perhaps a share in the responsibility for the making of Robert Mugabe.
Hitler was a Catholic as well, even though not very practising and church-going. He also did enjoy a close relationship with the Church throughout all his life and was - despite his atrocious crimes against humanity - never excommunicated.

But Hitler is not the only of Mugabe's inspirational characters from history. In many ways he is actually closer to Stalin than to Hitler and shares several personality traits with the former Soviet dictator. Before he got involved in revolutionary politics, Stalin was a seminarian, studying to become a Russian-Orthodox priest. Mugabe, who grew up on a Catholic missionary station in (the then British colony of) Rhodesia, took the name of the archangel Gabriel as his confirmation name and was educated by Marist Brothers and later by Jesuits, with the prospect of joining the order. But like Stalin he preferred politics to theology and got involved in the revolutionary underground of Rhodesia.

Stalin attempted a large-scale land reform, confiscating land from bourgeois private land owners and handing it over to collectives of landless peasants. The result was a dramatic shortage of food production, which led to a massive famine. More than 20 million Russians died within a decade, most of them from starvation, but many of the former landowners were also killed by the NKVD (later renamed KGB) on Stalins explicit personal orders.

Mugabe did the same. He confiscated the most productive farms in his country (which happened to belong mostly to successful white Zimbabwean farmers) and handed them over to motley crews of so-called 'war veterans', uneducated and arrogant young thugs who never saw a war in their life. High on alcohol and drugs, they wreaked havoc in the countryside, killing many farmers and driving the rest off their lands. Then they occupied the farms as the new masters, but since they have not the slightest idea how to run them, the result is the same as in the Soviet Union in the 1920s: a drastic decline in food production and subsequently a massive famine.

Meanwhile the unemployment rate in Zimbabwe is above 80%, and inflation is rising so fast that any percentage rate is already out of date by the time one mentions it. A British journalist who covered the elections of March 29th told me that he got one billion Zimbabwe Dollars for one pound sterling when he entered the country. A week later, when he left, the exchange rate had already doubled. And last week, when he went for another visit, the value of one pound sterling had jumped to a staggering 40 billion Zimbabwe Dollars!

Both Hitler and Stalin used their armies, police, secret police and uniformed party militias (formed from uneducated thugs, bullies and criminals) to intimidate their political opponents, bully the population and force people to comply with their political programmes and wishes. Robert Mugabe does exactly the same. Just like Hitler and Stalin he has also corrupted the leadership of the armed forces in such a way that meanwhile their own survival depends entirely on him and the continuation of his totalitarian regime. And there is another parallel between the modern African dictator and his two historical inspirations: Like the leaders of Nazi Germany and Soviet Russia the leader of Zimbabwe also is very blunt and open in his speeches. He freely admits his aim of absolute and total control, and he openly threatens his opponents in public speeches, which - like those of Hitler - are filled with references to war and fighting.

In the past week alone at least 84 MDC members and supporters were killed by armed thugs of the ZANU-PF (Mugabe's party) militia, modeled on Hitler's SA. About 3000 more were attacked and wounded with weapons or beaten up. Many have been arrested by the police and tortured in prison. And hundreds of women were assaulted by ZANU-PF thugs and raped, while their children were either killed or abducted. The wife and son of the Mayor-elect of the capital Harare, who is a leading member of the MDC, were abducted by soldiers last week. The wife was later found dead, while the son managed to escape injured.

Yesterday a large contingent of police has stormed and ransacked Harvest House, the MDC head office in Harare, and any MDC candidate trying to campaign in the second round of the presidential elections has been arrested.
Tendai Biti, the Secretary General of the party, has been in prison for a week now, held on the spurious charge of 'treason'. Subsequently the leader of the MDC, Morgan Tsvangirai (above), a former miner and trade union leader, had to abandon his campaign and seek protection and safety in the Dutch embassy in Harare.
Meanwhile the United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon has declared that "a free and democratic election in Zimbabwe is no longer possible". He urged Robert Mugabe and his party to stop the violence and intimidation and restore law and order. But as welcome these words are, they are just words and will have no impact. Mugabe, who lives in his own little world, has long ago stopped to listen, and especially to people from the outside world.

Every time I hear further news from Zimbabwe I find it hard to believe that in the 21st century such behaviour is still possible - and tolerated by the rest of the world. The scenes reported by journalist and people from Zimbabwe are the same as one finds described in books about Nazi Germany or the Soviet Union during the time of Stalin's terror. The only difference is that now the world looks on in horror - and does nothing. Critical words from western politicians are the only reaction of the so-called 'free' world.
George W. Bush, who mentions in almost every speech that his country's mission is to bring democracy to the third world, is ominously silent. There are no US or NATO troops preparing to go into Zimbabwe to defend and restore democracy. Of course not, as they are too busy in Iraq and Afghanistan, where they wage war against civilians and behave worse than the most brutal German forces in Poland and Russia during World War II.

The greatest disappointment is the silence and inactivity of most of the other African leaders. The ignorance displayed by them is nothing short of criminal, and they are co-responsible for the terror and chaos that is happening in Zimbabwe. Idle bystanders who could help to avoid a catastrophe, but chose not to, are as guilty as those who plan and execute acts of terror.

With the exception of Zambia's President Levy Mwanawasa, who is currently also the Chairman of the SADC (South African Development Council), Africa's leaders are in denial over the violent attacks on Zimbabwean democracy, most of all South Africa's spineless President Thabo M'beki, who recently declared in public that there was "no crisis in Zimbabwe".
Last month I had the privilege to meet Morgan Tsvangirai at a conference in Belfast, where he was the surprise guest of honour. He is a kind and friendly man, but also a determined politician and a true democrat, probably one of the few to be found in modern Africa. He needs all the support the free world can give, and I hope that our politicians will this time offer more than a few lukewarm words.

Many years ago, when racist white regimes in South Africa and Rhodesia oppressed the political will of their black people, the western world was outraged and imposed harsh sanctions on both countries. The imprisoned leaders of the black rebellion - among them Nelson Mandela and Robert Mugabe - were hailed as heroes all around the world. They both achieved the ultimate political and personal success and became the Presidents of their countries.

But where is the outrage of the world when an illegitimate and tyrannic black leader does to his fellow black compatriots worse things than the white minority governments ever did? Not much is seen and heard from the people who were so active in the 'Free Nelson Mandela' campaign. It is a real shame and a clear sign of hypocrisy. There is also absolute silence in the Catholic Church. No critical word about Mugabe is heard from any church pulpit or bishop's palace, and especially not from the Vatican.
Why has he not been excommunicated for his murders, terror and cruelties?
(A local woman, who got married again after her divorce, was refused communion by the priest in her church, with the backing of the bishop. It appears that for the Church she is a worse sinner than Robert Gabriel Mugabe...)

Dictators around the world and of all times have the same psyche as bullies on a playground: they are really cowards inwardly and need the constant harassment of other people to feel their apparent own importance. They can only succeed if they find enough others to go along with the cruel ideas they have, enough who are willing to get involved in their crimes. And they also need many others to accept their bullying and dictatorship. No country can be ruled against the will of its people, and each nation is responsible for its own destiny.

But the world as a whole - especially in the apparently so enlightened 21st century - has also a collective responsibility. Criticising Mugabe and his henchmen is not enough. A truly criminal and inhumane regime that kills its own population systematically with weapons and with starvation is unacceptable and needs to be removed by all means. The world's major powers have enough soldiers and equipment to liberate Zimbabwe in a week, if they want to.
Sadly it appears that the people of this once rich, fertile and prosperous country will have to suffer ever more in years to come, as no country has the courage and humanity to put an end to Robert Mugabe, the worst dictator in Africa and a man who is like Hitler and Stalin combined.

The African Union (the successor to the OAU) has actually the power for a military intervention in member countries 'under exceptional circumstances', which has been used recently in Lesotho and the Comoros Islands. It is more than time for the Africans to sort out their own problems, face the facts and restore law, order and democracy to Zimbabwe.

The Emerald Islander

Morgan Tsvangirai attends Congress in Belfast

The past few days have been very busy and eventful for me, and thus I did not have the chance to write entries on Friday and Saturday. I have just returned from a visit to Belfast, where I had the opportunity to meet Morgan Tsvangirai (photo), the leader of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) in Zimbabwe.

The MDC, Zimbabwe's largest opposition party, has won the parliamentary elections held on March 29th, thus ending a long and dominant majority of ZANU-PF, the party of President Robert Mugabe. In the presidential election, held on the same day, Mr. Tsvangirai also emerged as the clear winner, although it is disputed that he won more than 50% of the popular vote, as the MDC has claimed on the basis of the added-up results from all local polling stations in the country.

After an unprecedented delay of more than four weeks, the Electoral Commission of Zimbabwe, which is in charge of holding elections and declaring the results, has eventually said that Morgan Tsvangirai did indeed win the presidential election, but that he fell short of an outright majority (of more than 50%). Under the electoral rules of Zimbabwe this requires a second round, where a simple majority will decide who is the next president.

The MDC and many international observers, analysts and commentators - myself included - are certain that the result of the presidential election on March 29th has been manipulated during the month of political limbo. According to reports from inside Zimbabwe the current government printed three million more voting papers than there are voters in the country. During the long and protruded counting process, which was the longest known in any election, it is alleged that ZANU-PF manipulated the result by adding fake ballot papers in favour of Robert Mugabe and ZANU-PF. There were also reports of 'phantom polling stations' in tents on empty fields, to which ZANU-PF was bringing supporters to vote a second time.
As nobody in Zimbabwe would believe a result that declares a win for Robert Mugabe, ZANU-PF have stuffed ballot boxes only to the extent that Morgan Tsvangirai lost his outright win of the presidency in the first round.
Mugabe and his strategists in ZANU-PF have since embarked on a massive campaign of terror and intimidation against politicians and supporters of the MDC, and observers doubt that the second round of the election can be held under fair and democratic conditions.

The government campaign of terror, supported by police and the Zimbabwean army, reached a level of unprecedented intensity in recent weeks. Thus the MDC decided that it was currently not safe for Morgan Tsvangirai to stay in the country. The opposition leader has therefore spent a couple of weeks in neighbouring South Africa (whose President Thabo M'beki has so far - to the anger and annoyance of his own ANC party - taken the side of Mugabe and excused any crime and terror he is responsible for) and also visited Botswana, Namibia and Angola, where he had political consultations with the presidents of those countries and other politicians.

Before he returns home to Zimbabwe and prepares himself for the now once again postponed second round of the presidential election, Morgan Tsvangirai added another surprise visit to his busy schedule. He attended the 55th Congress of Liberal International in Belfast and addressed the gathered delegates from more than 100 liberal parties from around the world.

The annual congress of the world's liberal parties was for the very first time held in the North of Ireland, and the small local liberal party - the non-confessional and cross-community Alliance Party - was the proud host of the event.

In his address to the conference, which welcomed him as their guest of honour with a standing ovation, Morgan Tsvangirai gave a brief report about the catastrophic situation in Zimbabwe (where - due to Mugabe's rule of terror and incompetence - unemployment is now at 80% and inflation has reached the all-time world record of 250,000%) and outlined his own political plans.

"I must return to Zimbabwe to be with our people and to lift them out of the darkness," he said.
"On the 29th of March the people of Zimbabwe voted. Mugabe lost that first round. 57% of the people who cast their vote did not vote for him. I am so confident that in spite of the violence, come the second round they will reconfirm that rejection."

Mr. Tsvangirai denied reports that he was in exile and urged President Mugabe to peacefully accept the verdict of the second round vote.
"I did not run away, and I am not in exile," he emphasised. "It was for strategic reasons that I left the country for some time. We had to engage with all the African leaders about the crisis."

Former Alliance Party leader Lord Alderdice, currently the President of Liberal International, said it was a special honour that Morgan Tsvangirai attended the congress. The same warm welcome was also extended to the President of Senegal, Abdoulaye Wade.

Alliance Party leader David Ford said: "Getting the chance to host this congress is a massive boost for Belfast. This is the first time that Northern Ireland has ever hosted the prestigious gathering of Liberal International. It gives us the chance of a lifetime to showcase Northern Ireland to politicians and power brokers from across the whole globe."

Even though I am neither a politician nor a power broker, and not member of a liberal party, the congress was very interesting and inspiring for me, too. One does not often have the chance to speak with politicians from so many different countries, among them government ministers and opposition leaders of great significance. However, the highlight of the gathering was without any doubt the presence of Morgan Tsvangirai, his impressive speech and the chance to meet him in person afterwards.

I never had the chance to meet Nelson Mandela, but in the past I was one of the many activists in the long campaign for his release from prison. Time has moved on, history has restored Nelson Mandela to his rightful place and rewarded him with the South African presidency and many international honours.
But there is still a lot of terror and injustice in Africa. And even though the continent has many decent people who struggle for freedom and democracy, there is currently no-one who is more prominent in this fight for political rights, fairness and true democracy than Morgan Tsvangirai, who - in my opinion - would be a very deserving candidate for the Nobel Price for Peace. I feel privileged and honoured that I had the chance of a brief meeting with this exceptional man, and I wish him all the best for the future - personally as well as politically.

The Emerald Islander

Human Rights - a Challenge for us all

There is hardly any politician in the civilised world who will not publicly commit himself (and his party) to respect, uphold and defend Human Rights. This is good, and a great achievement for many campaigning groups and organisations (of whom the most prominent is undoubtedly Amnesty International). After all, only 65 years ago the world's nations were occupied with killing and destroying each other, and two centuries ago slavery was still seen as 'normal' by the majority of political (and religious!) leaders.

However, when it comes to implement the well-spoken words into policies and action, the record of the same politicians is far less impressive. In fact some of the most vociferous supporters of Human Rights are regularly found to be liars and hypocrites, who abuse in practice the same Human Rights they seem to support and uphold in their speeches.

The list of these politicians is long, too long to be published here. But I am sure that most readers will know plenty of the names that come to my mind. So I will concentrate for today - May 15th, the day Bloggers unite in a concerted international action for Human Rights - on some of the worst cases and their words and deeds.

Undoubtedly the worst hypocrite of our time is George W. Bush, who takes every opportunity to speak about "freedom, democracy and human rights". How much would one wish that he actually means what he says. But the most powerful man alive on this planet always speaks - as Native Americans used to put it so fittingly - with a forked tongue.
Occasionally he makes public gestures, such as awarding some medal or accolade to prominent Human Rights' campaigners and sufferers from political oppression and injustice. They include the Dalai Lama (above left) and Aung San Suu Kyi (above right), who are both the legitimate leaders of their nations - Tibet and Burma - and both recipients of the Nobel Prize for Peace.

But the same George W. Bush is responsible for the worst crimes and Human Rights' abuses in modern time. The wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and the ongoing illegal occupation of these countries by US and allied troops (for seven and five years respectively) have killed more than a million people, most of them innocent civilians. Even more were wounded, and further millions - including more than four million Iraqis - were made homeless and driven into exile as refugees: homeless, jobless, penniless and by now almost forgotten by the world. Bush is also responsible for the systematic torture of thousands of political prisoners - at Guantanamo Bay and in secret CIA prisons in foreign countries - and has personally vetoed the banning of the infamous torture technique named 'Waterboarding' by the CIA. In fact it is simulated drowning and was originally invented by the Inquisition of the Catholic Church in the Middle Ages.
The CIA, with Bush's personal approval, re-introduced this barbaric method some years ago. For that alone Bush and every CIA agent involved should be brought to the International Court of Justice. Sadly that is not going to happen, as the USA simply do not recognise the court.

One should also remember that the same George W. Bush, during his time as governor of Texas, had more prisoners executed than all other US states together. Nearly 200 US citizens died in six years on the orders of Governor Bush.
More than 4000 US soldiers have died meanwhile in Iraq, where he sends them as his human killing machines, and nearly 500 in Afghanistan. Additionally the lives of more than 60,000 US soldiers are blighted forever by serious wounds, many of them so severe that they will disable the wounded soldiers for life.

There is no shortage of public criticism of Bush, his henchmen and their criminal actions, but it only comes from ordinary people, including academics, writers, journalists and bloggers. Hardly any fellow politician has the guts to stand up and speak openly against the murderer, torturer and hypocrite in the White House.

As recommendable exceptions one has to mention Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez (right), Bolivia's President Evo Morales and Cuba's new leader Raul Castro - three men whose countries and people have suffered more than enough from US imperialism. They are not only very brave, honest and courageous, but also very popular with the people.
So there is, after all, some hope...

The vast majority of the world's political leaders, ministers and parliamentarians are cowardly bowing before Bush and his regime of systematic Human Rights' abusers. I suppose that some countries are simply too small and too weak to even raise their voice against the USA. But what about the strong nations?
When has one ever heard a critical word from Japan, still the second-largest economy on the planet? And how does Europe fare? The mighty European Union (EU) with meanwhile 27 member states is sadly also a gathering of hypocrites and lickspittles, following eagerly the lead provided by the White House. No-one seems to have learned any lessons from history, as if Stalin, Hitler, Mussolini and a dozen other dictators of the 20th century had never existed.
In our schools children learn little enough about them and their crimes, and what they learn there are usually stereotypes and twisted half-truths. Those in power are not really interested in well-educated and informed people. Tranquil and half-witted consumers, addicted to alcohol and various other drugs, are much easier to rule and control than enlightened and active citizens.

Subsequently there is little awareness - and even less open criticism - of the world's modern dictators and oppressive regimes. Since Russia is supposed to be our friend now, we close our eyes completely on its dark sides. There are no reports in our media about the brutal war in Chechnya, where Russian troops kill civilians at will and behave even worse than the Americans in Iraq. No mentioning either of the crimes against humanity that go on inside Russia, where power is now shared between ex-KGB officers (like Prime Minister and ex-President Vladimir Putin) and a mafia of common criminals which is well-organised, well-armed and absolutely ruthless. Anyone who dares to stand in their way, or even to speak about them in public, is in mortal danger. The number of journalists, writers and Human Rights' activists that have been murdered in Russia since 1991 is growing ever larger. If it were not for Amnesty International, we would never hear and know about them.

An even crueller and more cynical regime rules China, which has become a truly hybrid country: A totalitarian Communist state with absolute power, exercised by the one existing party, but with a more and more capitalist and consumerist mentality and society. Having enough manpower, available at very low cost, China has turned itself into the biggest workshop on the planet, manufacturing now about 85% of all basic consumer goods for the industrialised countries of the West. Many western books are also printed there, by people who cannot read English, while China is still blocking and filtering news from the free world, especially online.

Currently the country is in Olympic fever, preparing for this year's games in the capital Beijing. In a very Confucianist way the Chinese leadership is using the event also to humiliate the West (and the rest of the world) and make them bow before China's new industrial power. Protesters against the brutal occupation of Tibet (since 1952) are arrested, beaten up or simply shot in the streets, while at the same time the Olympic flame is paraded around the world by the Chinese in an unprecedented way. Showing off their newly gained strength, the Chinese leadership demanded that a stick with a flame would be treated by the world's major nations like a head of state, with 2000 policemen out on duty in London, and a similar sad spectacle in Paris.
In the past the flame travelled around a host country, carried by numerous athletes. There has never been any need for police or security, and everyone along the way cheered happily. But this year things are different. China managed to turn the Olympic flame - once a symbol of free sporting contest between the youth of the world - into a symbol of hypocrisy and oppression. The fact alone that it is surrounded at all times by ten burly 'flame attendants' (a job and word that did not exist until the Chinese government created it) says enough. It is a spectacle for political reasons, and like Hitler in 1936 the Chinese leaders use the Olympic Games to show off their newly gained strength.

What is the reaction of the 'free' world? Silence, ignorance and complacency. Having a few hundred hours of sports on TV this summer seems more important to most of us than the political conditions in China, and the freedom and well-being of the people of Tibet plays almost no role in most Westerners mind. Bestowing the odd honour on the Dalai Lama now and then is nothing but poor window dressing and no help for the Tibetans at all.
Being in economical hock to China now, the West is caught in its own trap. The capitalist demand for ever cheaper products, manufactured for less and less cost, has lead to the outsourcing of our manufacturing industry. Most brands you can think of as famous, fashionable and stylish in the West have their goods produced in Chinese sweatshops for years. People still pay high western prices for them, while a pittance is paid to Chinese workers. The balance fills the pockets of the super-rich in the USA, Japan and Europe.

In order to produce all the things the world wants to buy, China is in need of huge amounts of resources and raw materials. This has lead to a new form of neo-colonialism, especially in Africa, where now China call the shots in many of the 'independent' African countries. This suits many African leaders a lot better than co-operation with the West, because China never makes any comments or demands on them regarding Human Rights. Thus China is very happy to be the main supporter and arms supplier of the militant Islamic regime in Sudan, which commits genocide on a large scale in their western province of Darfur. The western world stands stunned and gapes, shouts and makes demands. The result: no change.
If our politicians would really be interested in Human Rights and the protection of innocent people from all kinds of harm and oppression, the US Army would be in Sudan instead of Iraq. (And there is even oil in Sudan...)

Africa is a subject one could - and should - write books about. It is a vast continent, with vast resources and riches. It could be feeding itself easily, produce plenty of food for export and give its people a live of great wealth and comfort. So why is it that Africa is the poorest, least developed and most suffering of all the continents?
Once again it comes down to the will of political leaders to act or not, to uphold Human Rights or to prefer shady deals with warlords and cleptocrats instead. Due to western hypocrisy and the selfish greed and brutal methods of Africa's tribal leaders the continent is experiencing now four decades of war, instability, turmoil and economic collapse. The obvious results are famine, genocide, destruction and the complete decline of culture and society, in the absence of law, order and proper administration.
Western countries, and especially the former colonial powers, carry a lot of the responsibility for this. But like the Thirty-Years War that devastated central Europe and especially Germany in the 17th century in a similar fashion, the catastrophe has many fathers and could not happen without the co-operation of the willing soldiers on the ground. The Thirty-Years War only ended when both sides ran out of people, food and other resources, after destroying and depopulating vast areas of Germany. If no alternatives are offered by the world's leaders - and especially the leaders of powerful nations - this is most likely the fate of Africa, too. They will carry on killing each other, destroying their infrastructure and devastating their fertile lands until no one has enough power and resources left to carry on.

One cannot write about Africa at present without mentioning Zimbabwe, where President Robert Gabriel Mugabe - a Jesuit-educated Catholic - has declared total war on the entire population. Having destroyed the economy of this once rich, prosperous and very fertile country, Mugabe is now bullying his people with brute force into submission, trying to make them elect him again as President. With over 80% unemployment and meanwhile 250,000% inflation (which is a sad all-time world record, making even the massive inflation that blighted Germany in the 1920s look insignificant) Zimbabwe is on its knees. Most people spend all their time with nothing else but searching for a little bit of food, in order to survive another day.

Mugabe (pictured here in one of his Rolls Royce state cars at an official function) and his clique of criminal henchmen still live a life in luxury, while ordinary people have two choices: death by starvation or fleeing into neighbouring countries. There are now nearly four million Zimbabweans living in South Africa alone. Nevertheless, South Africa's spineless President Thabo M'beki sees "no crisis in Zimbabwe". His lack of leadership, action and humanity makes him one of the worst of the political hypocrites alive, and even his own people have now lost confidence in him and elected Jacob Zuma as the new leader of their ruling party, the African National Congress (ANC).

The list of Human Rights' abuses and hypocritical politicians is long, and so is meanwhile this text. There is so much more one could say and write, but I will draw to a close, to keep this article to a readable length. One could, however, not end a post about Human Rights without mentioning Burma. This poor and long-suffering country, almost unknown to most Westerners, is currently experiencing its probably worst period in centuries.
Devastated by the forces of cyclone 'Nargis', which wiped out whole communities and killed a very large, but still unknown number of people (the early estimates are between 70,000 and 250,000), the south-western part of Burma, including the largest city (and former capital) Rangoon, is a disater area for the past two weeks.
Despite that, and the inability to deal with a catastrophe of that dimension alone, the Burmese military junta is still refusing foreign aid workers visas and entry to their country. In an act of cruel cynicism, matched only by Stalin and Hitler, the Burmese generals went ahead with a nationwide referendum on a new constitution (which will keep them in power for the foreseeable future) while people died of injuries and starvation unattended on the roads outside the polling stations!
Once again western politicians made speeches and demands, and than backed down and left it at that. France is the only western country that suggested to invoke a special clause in the UN Charta which allows foreign intervention under exceptional circumstances, even without co-operation from the target country's government. But since no-one else picked up the idea, it died even faster than the victims of cyclone 'Nargis' in Burma.

If the leaders of the western world were serious in their many verbal commitments to freedom, democracy and Human Rights, American and international troops would not be in Afghanistan and Iraq, but in Burma, Chad, Congo, Somalia, Sudan and Zimbabwe. There would be no jovial business deals with the Russians, and no bowing down before the cruelties of the Chinese.
But as long as the majority of people in the western countries does not care, keeps electing the wrong people to positions of power and prefers getting drunk to taking an active part in politics, there will be no change.

No-one can change the world single-handed, but every single hand put to a good cause will help to make the world a little bit better. The challenge is there, for you, me and everyone. Let's see who takes it up, let's see if we want a decent future for this planet and the human race!

The Emerald Islander