Zimbabwe: US and Europe's Disinformation Campaign

Posted on Thursday, March 29 @ 09:36:14 VET 
Topic: Zimbabwe  
More of the same...

By Ayinde
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March 29, 2007

If you flip over the rock of American foreign policy of the past 
century, this is what crawls out ... 

Invasions, bombings, overthrowing governments, suppressing movements 
for social change, assassinating political leaders, perverting 
elections, manipulating labor uni0ns, manufacturing "news", death 
squads, torture, biological warfare, depleted uranium, drug 
trafficking, mercenaries ... 

It's not a pretty picture. It is enough to give imperialism a bad 
name. 


-- William Blum
What is the moral authority of the West based on?

The hypocrisy of these Western leaders, all of whom have the blood of 
hundreds of thousands on their hands, makes hollow their outrage over 
Zimbabwe. Having already demonstrated the disregard they have for the 
lives of ordinary people, they cannot now be the moral authority for 
anyone. 

Even if African nations wanted to make statements opposing President 
Mugabe's governing, the US, UK and Australia are making it difficult 
for them to do so with their constant demands and interferences. The 
leaders in these Western countries are demanding that leaders of 
African nations react harshly to President Robert Mugabe, as if the 
African leaders cannot see the tactics they are using in their attempts 
to remotely control them. Which African leader really wants to appear 
as US and Europe's lacquey? 

All the anti-Mugabe reports in the mainstream are suspect as being 
part of a disinformation campaign to the point that any person who 
takes them seriously is either foolish, dishonest or both. 

Here is how the the mainstream media is reporting on the detention of 
members of the opposition for questioning following a spate of petrol 
bombings at Zanu-PF district offices. The article 'Zimbabwe Opposition 
Leader Nabbed' states:

The country's main opposition party leader has been nabbed by police 
along with other political opponents of President Robert Mugabe. Party 
head Morgan Tsvangirai had been scheduled to talk to media about the 
government's recent political violence against the opposition.

Without ever mentioning the reasons these opposition members were held 
for questioning, they are making it appear as if peaceful opposition 
members were being detained because of their views or intention to 
speak to the media.

This is a typical US and European disinformation campaign. The US and 
Europe are encouraging the opposition to violently destabilize Zimbabwe 
and are supporting them with their disinformation campaign to make it 
appear that the government and police are being brutal when attempting 
to stop the violence. I know this because this is also typical US 
'regime change' conduct.

Here is the government website's version of the arrests in Zimbabwe:

Police yesterday arrested 35 MDC activists and seized explosives and 
arms after the recent spate of terror bombings, hours after the ninth 
bombing, this time of two petrol tankers in Mutare yesterday morning.
(Police nab 35 MDC activists, confiscate arms, explosives )

Why must we summarily dismiss the police's reason for detaining 
persons and only believe the opposition together with US and Europe's 
version of events in Zimbabwe? Are they neutral parties who come to us 
with clean hands? 

So people won't forget the Zimbabwe government's version of the events 
that precipitated this latest opposition onslaught that coincided with 
the opening of the latest session of the UN Human Rights Council, the 
Ambassador of Zimbabwe to Canada, Florence Zano Chideya, reminds us in 
her letter 'Zimbabwe's Ambassador Takes Issue with Arrogant 
Editorial': 

...these MDC supporters masquerading as church-goers were breaking a 
section of a law passed by the Zimbabwean parliament, the Public Order 
and Safety Act that had been invoked to temporarily ban political 
gatherings after the MDC thugs had caused violence the previous week 
resulting in the serious injury of four police officers.

This information can be easily verified. Zimbabweans including the 
opposition leaders knew the law that temporarily banned political 
gatherings and if they wanted they could have challenged the ban in the 
courts. Mugabe does not control the courts in Zimbabwe, contrary to 
what the West would like the world to believe. The court routinely 
rules against the Zimbabwe government. 

It should again be noted that the opposition is attempting to gain 
political power through the use of violence with support from the US 
and European countries, and not from gaining popular support in 
Zimbabwe through articulating policies to improve the country.

In the article 'Opposition warning to Mugabe' on BBC's website in 
2000, Morgan Tsvangirai is reported to have told a crowd of about 
20,000: "What we would like to tell Mugabe is please go peacefully. If 
you don't want to go peacefully, we will remove you violently."

The opposition does not command the support of the majority and their 
cries of unfair elections rings hollow. Elections seem only to be 
considered "free and fair" as long as they serve the interest of the 
West. The South African Development Community and the African Uni0n 
certified Zimbabwe's elections in 2005 as "free and fair" and this was 
rejected by the Western governments (US rejects Southern African 
verdict on Zim vote 2005). Although some in the Western mainstream 
press blamed the Zimbabwe opposition and their leader, Tsvangirai, for 
the MDC's poor showing at the polls, that same media is now resuming 
the unfair election diatribe. Blatant Racism is the reason these 
Western governments along with their white controlled media feel the 
nations in Africa cannot monitor their internal affairs to determine, 
without US and European interference, what is "free and fair".

This article 'Call for Tsvangirai to resign after poll' from the 
Independent UK blamed the opposition for doing badly at the 2005 polls. 
The author Christopher Thompson wrote: 

Eric Bloch, a regional political analyst, said there was growing 
resentment and "tremendous disillusionment" with the party among MDC 
supporters over his handling of the election. It will now need a period 
of "extensive restructuring" to survive, he told The Independent. The 
ruling Zanu-PF took 78 seats from a possible 120, with the MDC taking 
41. That was 17 seats less than in 2000 and the result gives Mr Mugabe 
the power to change the constitution and install a successor without 
first having to call elections, as presently necessary. It is feared 
that Mr Mugabe will use his majority to bring in a senate system of 
government, which was rejected in a 2000 referendum. 

Mr Tsvangirai has come under fire for failing to sufficiently 
capitalise on spiralling inflation, widespread unemployment and food 
shortages. His policy of threatening to boycott the elections back in 
September 2004, only to do an about turn in February this year, led to 
far fewer MDC voters registering than anticipated. This was reflected 
in the low turn-out of MDC support, especially in rural areas, where 
Zanu-PF dominated. Analysts said the MDC had, in part, been a victim of 
its own early success.

The opposition failed at the polls and then cried foul. They are now 
trying to gain power via a coup and want us to believe that they are 
promoting democracy.

Zimbabweans should continue to reject the constant meddling of foreign 
governments in their internal politics. They are right to see the MDC 
as a foreign-sponsored party whose mandate is to uphold the Western 
neoliberal structural adjustment programme and halt land reclamation.  

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