Harare, Zimbabwe
The government of the increasingly unpopular President Robert Mugabe has declared it a crime to make any “abusive, indecent, or obscene” gesture at the president’s motorcade. Mugabe tends to barrel through the streets in a convoy of limousines and 4x4s filled with soldiers, which locals call “Bob and the Wailers” because of the screaming sirens. Pedestrians are supposed to stand aside respectfully so the motorcade can pass. But as the state’s disastrous policy of confiscating white-owned farms spreads famine across the country, angry activists have been demonstrating in the streets. The new laws could send such people to jail. “If anything is an admission that your subjects dislike you,” said David Coltart of the Movement for Democratic Change, “it’s these regulations.”
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
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.
-
Cocktail of the summer: the Hugo spritzThe Week Recommends The refreshing elderflower-based tipple is giving Aperol a run for its money
-
How the Erin Patterson mushroom trial caught the world's attentionIn the Spotlight Australian woman who laced beef wellington with deadly mushrooms found guilty of murder
-
The failed bombings of 21/7The Explainer The unsuccessful attacks 'unnerved' London and led to a tragic mistake
