Foreign Policy Blogs

Peering Through the Zimbabwe Fog

The real status of events in Zimbabwe continues to be shrouded in a fog of obfuscation, misinformation, and disinformation. Despite reports apparently emanating from the Southern African Development Community (SADC) heads of state, the leaders of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) have denied that they have agreed to form a unity government. MDC's unwillingness to be bullied, cowed, or coerced shows fortitude, is wholly justifiable, but it does carry with it a significant risk, inasmuch as Robert Mugabe's ZANU-PF is likely to move forward with unilaterally forming a new government.

One X-factor, or perhaps O-factor, worth considering: Is the Obama administration about to take a harder line with Mugabe? It appears so. I hope that harder line involves more than stronger sanctions, but would hope that any serious pressure from the United States might help to provide a tipping point. It would be apt if the beginning of the Obama era marked the end of the deleterious reign of Mugabe .

 
Add a comment

Comments (1)

  1. Ben Friday - 30 / 01 / 2009 Reply
    Is it really that realistic that Zimbabwe will reach Obama's agenda in the near future? I can think of more than a few things that will probably come up higher on his to-do list.

Add a comment

Author

Derek Catsam
Derek Catsam

Derek Catsam is an associate professor of history at the University of Texas of the Permian Basin. Derek writes about race and politics in the United States and Africa, sports, and terrorism. He is currently working on books on bus boycotts in the United States and South Africa in the 1940s and 1950s, the Freedom Rides, and South African resistance politics in the 1980s. He has lived, worked, and travelled extensively throughout southern Africa. He is also a lifelong sports fan, with the Boston Red Sox as his first true love. He was one of about three dozen people to write books about the 2004 World Champion Red Sox, and the result is Bleeding Red: A Red Sox Fan's Diary of the 2004 Season. He writes about politics, sports, travel, pop culture, and just about anything else that comes to mind.

Areas of Focus:
Africa; Zimbabwe; South Africa; Apartheid

Contact