Lest we forget, in the one-crisis-at-a-time media mindset that tends to prevail, especially in the West (and I know I’ve been pretty myopic lately, but I’m one man, not an entire newspaper!) Kenya is not out of the woods yet. The major players are squabbling anew, this time over the composition and size of the country's […]
South Africa's premiere political cartoonist, Zapiro (who received an honorary doctorate recently at Rhodes University, one of my old stomping grounds) has been on the Mugabe beat in recent days. Here are some samples: From 2 April: From 1 April: From 28 March: And a classic, from March 2005, republished 27 March, 2008:
Across Africa, and indeed the world, all eyes are on Zimbabwe. That includes mine, as I’ve been writing extensively about the election at the FPA's Africa Blog. If it is possible to be both optimistic and cynical, that probably sums up the tone of my coverage.
If you’ll pardon the self indulgence, we all probably could use a bit of a respite from the constant focus on Zimbabwe, important as events there are. The Association for the Study of the Middle East and Africa (ASMEA) has published my review of Robert O’ Collins’ and James N. Burns’ new book, A History […]
Tea leaves are everywhere to be read in Zimbabwe. It appears that Robert Mugabe has lost the House of Assembly, the one area of the vote over which he had the least control. So what does this defeat mean for Mugabe? Will it provide more impetus for him to continue to find a way out while […]
Is it possible that endgame is approaching in Zimbabwe, and that as a result Robert Mugabe will try to find a face-saving measure to allow him to step down and Morgan Tsvangirai to take his place as Zimbabwe's president? This is a story that will continue to develop and I plan to follow it over the […]
Should a government have any role whatsoever in regulating journalism? That is the central question in the emerging debate about the African National Congress’ prospective establishment of a “Media Appeals Tribunal.” My initial reaction is that government is best removed from the business of regulating or challenging or facilitating its critics. This is especially the case when the […]
Not many people thought it would come to this. I did not. Most of us who assumed that Robert Mugabe would steal the election simply assumed that he would do so early enough to make the theft seem obvious if a bit more difficult to prove. I still expect Mugabe to keep his grip on power, but […]
I am leaving the country for a few days and almost surely will not have a chance to write here. I will return Tuesday (or possibly Monday night). In the meantime, you can ponder the following: is South Africa looking at imminent and enduring inflation?
I am leaving the country for a few days and almost surely will not have a chance to write here. I will return Tuesday (or possibly Monday night) when the fodder for conversation will be the aftermath of the Zimbabwe election. Until then you should check out the following: Mary Ndlovu and Pambazua News is […]
The Thabo Mbeki-Jacob Zuma divide in the party has mainly revealed political, ideological, and personal fissures within the African national Congress. But one area in which Zuma could significantly undermine Mbeki (and in the process do serious harm to the country) could be in the area of foreign policy. Zuma's recent trip to Angola clearly […]
So, how does one assess Jacob Zuma's first 100 days as ANC President? As with so much in politics in South Africa and elsewhere, where one sits determines where one stands on this question. While the general assessment seems to be that he has experienced a stormy first few months, survey data indicates that support […]
Two high school sisters in the Boston area have helped begin a program to bring sturdy, inexpensive laptop computers to underprivileged students in South Africa. What is most remarkable is the way that this small idea is already beginning to grow and how two people have been able to make a difference. Some might argue […]
Last week Roger Cohen wrote a column in The New York Times in which he used his childhood in South Africa as a way to frame his thoughts about Barack Obama's (to my mind pitch-perfect) speech on race last week. I am afraid that in the United States right now we are going to start […]
In five days Zimbabweans who are not too afraid to do so will go to the polls to cast a vote that won't much matter unless the polling goes in President Robert Mugabe's favor in what is almost guaranteed to be, according to the International Crisis Group, a “flawed election.” Mugabe is undeterred by economic […]