A cloak of nationalism that doesn’t fit.

Zimbabwe

Jonathan MoyoZimbabwe IndependentHistory is repeating itself in Zimbabwe, said Jonathan Moyo in Harare’s Zimbabwe Independent. Fifteen years of rule by Ian Smith of the Rhodesian Front—when this former British colony was known as Rhodesia—left both democracy and the economy in shambles. Today, after 26 years of rule by Robert Mugabe of Zanu PF, we have the same crisis—only this time, like all historical second acts, it’s a farce. Britain solved the first crisis in 1979, by stepping in to restore colonial rule temporarily. Now, Mugabe, despite his “legendary posturing about sovereignty,” wants Britain to solve this second crisis for him. Mugabe claims that Zimbabwe’s current economic meltdown stems from Britain’s imposition of sanctions over his “land reform” program, in which he seized the white-owned farms that produced the country’s food and handed them over to unskilled blacks who knew nothing of agriculture. In his mind, it’s all Britain’s fault. “African leaders with this mendacious nationalistic outlook always blame their former colonial powers for every major ill,” while accepting no responsibility for their own policies. Mugabe acts as though he is not the president, but a “powerless and frustrated opposition politician.” How quickly the man who built his reputation on “Africa for Africans” goes running to the colonizer for cover.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up