http://africaunauthorised.com/?p=2942

The Brits; Prime Partners On Zimbabwe’s Road To Ruin.

by Hannes Wessels

This last week saw the broken people of Zimbabwe being being gunned down and beaten into merciless submission by goons deployed by a poorly disguised Junta determined to protect the ill-gotten gains of a miniscule minority at the expense of a benighted multitude.

Finding themselves destitute and bereft of hope, thousands took to the streets of Harare, Bulawayo and other centres on Monday to protest against a regime that promised reform but delivered only more ruinous misrule. The response to the protests has been swift, brutal and illegal, a communications blackout has been imposed and Zimbabwe is slipping into lawlessness; a failed state run by warlords, disturbingly similar to Liberia or Sierra Leone, is now a distinct possibility. The response from the international media and governments around the world has been pathetic; it’s as if they don’t want to know. God knows; if a white cop had bludgeoned a black man in the streets of Harare the BBC and CNN would have dispatched a battalion of reporters but this does not fit their false narrative so they look the other way.

For us who hold the country and the people so dear, the images of recent days are heart-breaking but they also enrage; and while the people who have governed this once prosperous, proud and peaceful nation are directly to blame, there is no doubt this human tragedy would not have been possible without the solid support, commitment and clever planning of successive British governments.

The genesis of this catastrophe goes back to 1974 when British agents, using their treacherous counterparts within the Rhodesian security establishment spirited Robert Mugabe out of what was then Rhodesia and into exile in Mozambique. From that moment on, he was earmarked by Whitehall for power and Labour Foreign Secretary David Owen worked assiduously to finesse his assent to high office. When British missionaries and their children were gruesomely murdered at Elim Mission by a ZANLA gang, Owen did his best to dampen the furore before going on to suggest Rhodesian soldiers were the likely culprits; a despicable lie and he knew it. But he was prepared to go to extraordinary lengths on behalf of the man he so wanted to lead a ‘liberated Zimbabwe’.

Owen’s mission was thwarted by an election won by the Conservatives led by Margaret Thatcher in 1979, but he need not have worried about his protégé. Mrs. Thatcher, despite having promised to recognise the moderate black majority government led by Bishop Muzorewa (who had won the only ever free and fair universal adult suffrage election in the country’s history) soon bowed to the demands of her Foreign Secretary Peter Carrington (described by Ian Smith as the “most evil man I ever met”) with powerful, almost unprecedented support from Her Majesty the Queen (the Sovereign is supposed to be apolitical) and reneged on her earlier pledge.

The so-called ‘Iron Lady’ demanded a new election under British supervision which was then ‘won’ by Britain’s favourite ‘freedom-fighter’ despite the breaking of all the agreed electoral rules. The message to the electorate from Mugabe’s people was clear; vote for us or we return to the bush and we will kill you. The strategy worked and the British were thrilled with the result. The pompous patrician, Lord Soames, was appointed as interim Governor and brushed aside the mountain of evidence of violence and intimidation for the greater good of freeing the people of Zimbabwe from servitude under their colonial and settler oppressors.

Prince Charles jetted in resplendent in his gold-braided Navy uniform to dance around the downing of the Union Jack and rejoice at the breaking of a thrilling new political dawn with his new best Commonwealth friends.

With the sun still low in the sky Mugabe and Mnangagwa sent troops into Matabeleland to silence a potential opposition and butchered thousands of innocent men, women and children. Alarm and outrage in some quarters was squashed by Mrs Thatcher’s new Foreign Secretary Geoffrey Howe who dismissed the slaughter as a response to a ‘legitimate security concern’. Mugabe, thanks to this defence on his behalf, learned quickly and correctly that he had a license to murder. Indeed, in 1994, during the Premiership of John Major, Mugabe was bestowed an honorary Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath by the Queen.

Later, when Lord Carrington was asked by journalist, Heidi Holland, whether he thought that “Mugabe learned from the fact that he got away with the massacre of thousands of people in Matabeleland in the early 80s” and “if Mugabe got a sense of his own invincibility from Britain’s failure to condemn the outrage convincingly?”, Carrington replied “Did we sweep it under the carpet? … I suspect we did, didn’t we?…I expect we wished it would all go away, didn’t we? So, I suppose Mugabe did get away with it, and perhaps that did make him feel he could get away with anything.” Holland responded: “It’s a pathetic answer isn’t it?: to which Carrington responded, laughing, “terrible… I think it’s terrible but it’s probably the answer. But other than the killing of the Ndebele, it went terribly well under Mugabe at first, didn’t it?’.

Through successive governments led by John Major and Tony Blair the policy towards Mugabe was always empathetic until the start of the land invasions in 2000 when public opinion forced the British government to express its displeasure and distance itself. But this did not stop Blair’s government shipping hundreds of donated Land Rovers to the Zimbabwean police just before the cutting of aid to Harare. These vehicles came in very useful in the subsequent murder of farmers, looting of property and the destruction of the economy.

Fourteen years after the start of the land-grabs, the Conservative government, led by David Cameron, decided to repair and revitalise its relationship with Mugabe and despatched Ms Catriona Laing as ambassador to Harare to initiate the renewal of a better and stronger bilateral relationship. She set about this task with great gusto, showed almost brazen contempt for the political opposition, signalled Britain’s commitment to the incumbents and barely bothered to hide an almost childish infatuation with then Deputy-President Emmerson Mnangagwa who she quickly identified as her preferred ‘go to guy’.

In early 2016 she initiated an attempt to reduce the government debt (largely the result of state-sponsored theft) by facilitating the intervention of former Blair Cabinet Minister Peter Mandelson. Mandelson, a former communist, a.k.a. ‘The Prince of Darkness’, had become chairman of Lazard International after leaving politics and offered to assist in the raising of a $1.1 billion loan. Meetings with then Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa (he and his wife both recipients of stolen farms) followed but the loan was never made.

Mrs. Laing denied accusations of going so far as to involve herself in the internal machinations of the ruling party where she was said to be lobbying for Mnangagwa as heir-apparent to Mugabe. What is beyond doubt is she was disdainful of any alternative party forming a government and when she liked a Tweet stating that “too many freedoms have been extended for Zimbabweans and need to be trimmed” she indicated her intention to accept an unspecified dose of authoritarianism.

One MDC official accused her of “putting lipstick on a crocodile” and this indeed appeared to be the case when she appeared reluctant to criticise the government’s conduct before, during and after the flawed 2018 election. At this time she was photographed outside No. 10 Downing Street wearing a trademark Mnangagwa scarf along with a beaming smile. The new president sent a gushing note of appreciation saying the country’s prospects under his new administration were “.. as bright and positive as your wonderful scarf”.

Sadly, as we all know, this has not come to pass and the plight of millions of poor people is worse than it has ever been in the history of the country. Just why the British governing and media hierarchy have so diligently defended and nurtured a political monstrosity is perplexing. But perhaps Ian Smith was right when he insisted that British policy towards the country was, after UDI (Unilateral Declaration of Independence) in 1965, driven solely by a vengeful desire to punish the rebellious whites who had defied them. In this they appear to have succeeded. But they destroyed the country in the process.

Gary Hopkins WhatsApped me this AM. Plenty of police presence in Bulawayo but all quiet now. Fuel scarce but available if you have hard currency. Life moves on in dear Zimbabwe.

Mark

quote:

This last week saw the broken people of Zimbabwe being being gunned down and beaten into merciless submission by goons deployed by a poorly disguised Junta determined to protect the ill-gotten gains of a miniscule minority at the expense of a benighted multitude.

Posting such as the above will only inflame the situation on this end for folks wanting to go there. Emails this week, and today withing the last few minutes show it is not anywhere this bad. I would hate to think PHs lose business because of this. Many here are going this year as will I in July and August. Hunting in Botswana and South Africa followed by a vacation and maybe a bit of hunting in Zim.
Cheers, all.
Cal

quote:

Originally posted by cal pappas:

quote:

This last week saw the broken people of Zimbabwe being being gunned down and beaten into merciless submission by goons deployed by a poorly disguised Junta determined to protect the ill-gotten gains of a miniscule minority at the expense of a benighted multitude.

Posting such as the above will only inflame the situation on this end for folks wanting to go there. Emails this week, and today withing the last few minutes show it is not anywhere this bad. I would hate to think PHs lose business because of this. Many here are going this year as will I in July and August. Hunting in Botswana and South Africa followed by a vacation and maybe a bit of hunting in Zim.
Cheers, all.
Cal

I feel the same way Cal. I read that opening line and immediately identified it as the tactic the media has been using on us for decades. They take a grain of truth, blow it up to match their bias, then sensationalize and report it breathlessly in order to reap the maximum benefit. What they don't realize is that many of us are waking up to these tactics and turning off FAKE NEWS.

quote:

Originally posted by cal pappas:

quote:

This last week saw the broken people of Zimbabwe being being gunned down and beaten into merciless submission by goons deployed by a poorly disguised Junta determined to protect the ill-gotten gains of a miniscule minority at the expense of a benighted multitude.

Posting such as the above will only inflame the situation on this end for folks wanting to go there. Emails this week, and today withing the last few minutes show it is not anywhere this bad. I would hate to think PHs lose business because of this. Many here are going this year as will I in July and August. Hunting in Botswana and South Africa followed by a vacation and maybe a bit of hunting in Zim.
Cheers, all.
Cal

Cal,

I don't think anyone that's been there puts much stock in these things. Check with our people and if all is good, off we go.

At least I do.

Jeff

I have been there 3 times and having been in a camp (120 miles from the closest city) that was overrun and had to evacuate, I do put spme stock in "these things".

When a dictator decides he can't feed his Security Forces anymore and doubles the price of food overnight what do you think happens? Even in the rural areas?

Your PH doesn't know what he doesn't know.

Everybody should make up their own mind and decide what they want to decide.

A comment was posted earlier about being a DG hunter and being used to danger. So very true, except when you hunt Cape Buffalo or Elephant you get to shoot your assailant. Just how well will you do as an American in the Zimbabwe justice system.

One should always consider downside risk vs. upside gain.

quote:

Originally posted by Mike_Dettorre:
I have been there 3 times and having been in a camp (120 miles from the closest city) that was overrun and had to evacuate, I do put such stock in "these things".

When a dictator decides he can't feed his Security Forces anymore and doubles the price of food overnight what do you think happens? Even in the rural areas?

Your PH doesn't know what he doesn't know.

Everybody should make up their own mind and decide what they want to decide.

A comment was posted earlier about being a DG hunter and being used to danger. So very true, except when you hunt Cape Buffalo or Elephant you get to shoot your assailant. Just how well will you do as an American in the Zimbabwe justice system.

One should always consider downside risk vs. upside gain.

Sorry for the confusion.

I never meant that I would willingly get into a firefight with either military or police forces.

Being a former LEO who served felony warrants in neighborhoods controlled by MS-13 gangs here in Houston and having my entire retirement portfolio invested in the stock market (in addition to dangerous game hunting), I am accustomed to taking a little risk, both financially and physically.

I hope that this helps to clarify my current perspective with regards to hunting in Southern Africa.

Under the whatever it is worth category, Zimbabwe just signed a bunch of treaties with Russia. In theory, this should provide some relief if the ministers don’t pilfer everything.

Should be interesting how the Russians and the Chinese get along.

I am slated to hunt the BVC with John Sharp in August.

If John says come, I'm going!

Will be there in May with Tinie and Lin. Just can't get too excited about African politics.

I would not let this stop me going hunting.

Providing that I never set foot in any city apart from the airport.

Landing in and taking a flight out to the hunting camp should not be a problem.

Our friends in Zimbabwe deserve all the help we can give them.

But not at the expenses of putting ourselves in danger.

Make plans to avoid any population centers.

quote:

Originally posted by Saeed:
I would not let this stop me going hunting.

Providing that I never set foot in any city apart from the airport.

Landing in and taking a flight out to the hunting camp should not be a problem.

Our friends in Zimbabwe deserve all the help we can give them.

But not at the expenses of putting ourselves in danger.

Make plans to avoid any population centers.

Totally agree. If we are prepared to put ourselves in front of dangerous game and in wild remote Africa then we bear those consequences.

Cal is 100% correct. Unlike most of the folks commenting here, I have the advantage of living in Zimbabwe, and each and every time something like this happens, folks are quick to quote the ubiquitous "friends in Zimbabwe", but the majority of the "friends" are the coffee klatsch set who have nothing better to do than inflame the rumour mill over a vanilla latte with self-generated gossip. And then there are PHs and others whp actually know what's going on and who are worth listening to.

Hannes Wessels is a very good journalist and writer, but he writes from a South African perspective and it is in his best interests to promote that perspective because it ties in with other agendae about what is happening now in South Africa. He will benefit from a broad "I told you so" approach.

I will be the first to admit that last week's protests were "different". There was an intensity that I had never seen before, and the fact that the guy in charge was a "retired" general was a little worrying as to what the government's response would be. But the situation on the ground was nowhere near as bad as most reports were claiming.

The internet shutdown exacerbated matters, because when "friends" here can't get news, like CNN, they make it up.

I drove around out and about during the whole week, and I was clearly in a different country than a lot of the media reports and "friends" were talking about. DO NOT let the urban legends keep you from coming here.

who supplies credible

quote:

Originally posted by cal pappas:

quote:

This last week saw the broken people of Zimbabwe being being gunned down and beaten into merciless submission by goons deployed by a poorly disguised Junta determined to protect the ill-gotten gains of a miniscule minority at the expense of a benighted multitude.

Posting such as the above will only inflame the situation on this end for folks wanting to go there. Emails this week, and today withing the last few minutes show it is not anywhere this bad. I would hate to think PHs lose business because of this. Many here are going this year as will I in July and August. Hunting in Botswana and South Africa followed by a vacation and maybe a bit of hunting in Zim.
Cheers, all.
Cal

I received a Whats App today from Norman Crooks that lives in Bulawayo.

Hi Mike, A couple of Riots and a little violence,but otherwise no big deal. In my opinion every one is over reacting. This happens in South Africa and other African Countries every day and nothing is said about it.

“the Economist” 1/19/2019 page46 has an article on the current events in Zimbabwe. Many, if not most, of the folks posting here likely have ulterior motives promoting one view or another of these events. I suspect “The Economist” is a reasonably unbiased reporter worth reading.