The Cruel Suffering of the Zimbabwean People

Interesting Times has been closely monitoring the plight of the people of Zimbabwe, the victims of an unreasonable dictatorship that has turned a formerly prosperous country into a valley of tears.

We have reported on the formerly bread basket of southern Africa becoming a country on the brink of widespread famine, a former democracy collapsing under the extreme burden of corruption and malfeasant, a free press environment giving way to an asphyxiating censoring regime that will prosecute anyone deviating from the official version of events.

The situation in Zimbabwe has become so desperate, a mission of some of the world's most prestigious peacemakers finally decided to travel to the country to help the victims of the humanitarian catastrophe triggered by Robert Mugabe's rejection of democratic elections and stubborn stance on relinquishing power.

The peace mission, however, was a terrible failure. The Mugabe regime denied entry in the country to the ambassadors of peace, (above from left to right) Former UN General Secretary Kofi Anan, Former US President Jimmy Carter and Nelson Mandela's wife, Graca Machel.

From the Washington Post:

Annan said no official reason had been given for the refusal, but Zimbabwe's state-run Herald newspaper reported that the group had been asked to "come at a later date" to accommodate the crop-planting season. It quoted an unnamed source as saying they were seen as antagonistic toward Zimbabwe's government.

Zimbabweans are suffering from disease and hunger while political crisis over a power-sharing government occupies its politicians. A current cholera outbreak has killed nearly 300 people in Zimbabwe, the United Nations said.

It takes a special kind of cruelty to keep your country suffering as Zimbabweans are in the face of international efforts to alleviate their pain. But then again, Mugabe has proven to be an unassailable bunker totally oblivious to his people's tears.

Thanks to the cooperation of our friends at South West Radio Africa, we can offer you a photo gallery that depicts this suffering in excruciating detail. Warning: these pictures are very graphic.