So... the sham election came and went in Zimbabwe, and with state repression at its highest in some time, Mugabe, the sole candidate.... won. Imagine that. They did a quick swearing-in on Friday during which he and his ministers gloated over their "triumph," an "election" which just about everyone else in the world called a fraud, with the sole exception perhaps of that constructive-engage-ionist Mbeki.How bad was it? Let's just say it made Florida 2000 look like a model election.Forecast? Mugabe will continue to terrorize the opposition. And South Africa will continue to thwart any meaningful international reaction.... until Mbeki is replaced/removed/told to "go home, you've done enough harm, sir."

eeek - a free and fair election in Zimbabwe that is...

UN has said the a free and fair election is impossible.Nonetheless, South Africa continues constructive engagement with Mugabe.WHAT HYPOCRITES.

the only thing you got wrong in your memory banks is that once we got out the flipped-ver car and you were cursing me, a car stopped and instead of asking if we were allright, he rolled down the window and said "watch your toungue, son" and then drove off...Toyota corolla 1976, we love you!

how could anyone forget that MDC show! or rather, what preceded it...I hope you are well. Will have to check out your blog.Zimbabwean opposition candidate dropped out, citing the increasing violence directed at his supporters... Police raided his headquarters.War crimes trials for Mugabe and his cronies and supporters!

Hi Franklin! I just mentioned that one particular MDC show we played on my blog. Remember that? Cheers!http://popenorton.stumbleupon.com/

Global military spending up 45% in ten years, with the U.S. accounting for most of it.http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5i4sG_dfTSlvH_ckBVY5docV1C2dg

During his 2nd detention this week, Zimbabwean opposition leader is told that political rallies are forbidden, even though the election is just a few weeks away.And on top of it all, Mugabe, the thug in chief, has halted the operations of international aid groups like CARE, even though millions of Zimbabweans depend on these groups for food.All the while he's been in Rome attending a UN Conference on the Food Crisis.The shame of it all! The horror of it all!http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080606/ap_on_re_af/zimbabwe

Bad BAd BAD news in Zimbabwe, again.A day or so ago, the main presidential opposition contender was detained for several hours, being told that there's a prohibition on campaigning, even though the so-called run-off election is only a few weeks away.And here's a report from AP i think: U.S. and European Embassy officials out on a fact-finding investigation into political violence targeting opposition supporters was itself attacked and a U.S. Embassy official was reportedly beaten. Apparently, they are still being held!http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080605/ap_on_re_af/zimbabweThe election is widely believed to have bee won by the opposition but the official electoral commission held the results for a month or so even though they were supposed to give the results in a few days or weeks.Following in the footsteps of Kenya!These "electoral commissioners" assets should be frozen and Mugabe ought t be charged with war crimes.