How China's Diamond Interests In Zimbabwe Ensured Mugabe's Presidential Win

Photo: An illegal diamond dealer from Zimbabwe displays diamonds for sale in Manica, near the border with Zimbabwe, in September. (Goran Tomasevic/Reuters)

Diamonds Ensure Mugabe Is Forever -- Miles Amoore, The Australian/The Times

THE president of Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe, used $850m of diamond money to rig the country's elections, intelligence documents obtained by The Sunday Times reveal.

The documents, dated June 3, detail how Chinese and Zimbabwean diamond companies pumped cash into a war chest used by Mugabe to manipulate the results of the election and intimidate the population.

As Zimbabweans prepared for another five years of autocratic rule after the country's electoral commission announced that Mugabe had won the presidential elections with 61 per cent of the vote.

The classified documents reveal how Mugabe's Zanu-PF party received $800m from two diamond mining companies controlled by Chinese investors and senior military commanders in the Zimbabwean army, police and intelligence services. Joseph Kabila, president of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, allegedly gave $85m and the government of Equatorial Guinea gave $92m to the slush fund.

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My Comment: I was not aware that it cost this much money to rig an election in a place like Zimbabwe .... but I guess for the companies that are receiving billions in resource profits .... spending a few hundred million is "chump change".

Update: Zimbabwe: Diamond Revenues Could Be Funding Zimbabwe Election-Rigging, Says Global Witness -- allAfrica.com

Zimbabwe's Mugabe Declared Winner In Presidential Election

Zimbabwe President Mugabe Re-Elected Amid Fraud Claims -- BBC

Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe has won a seventh term in office, officials say, amid claims of electoral fraud.

Mr Mugabe, 89, won 61% of the vote, against Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's 34%.

Mr Tsvangirai earlier said the elections for parliament and president were fraudulent and promised to take legal action.

He said his Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) would no longer work with Mr Mugabe's Zanu-PF party.

The two parties have been in a coalition since 2009, after the last election sparked widespread violence.

Results from this week's parliamentary election showed the MDC had been trounced, winning just 49 seats compared with Zanu-PF's 158.

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More News On Zimbabwe President Mugabe Being Re-Elected As President

Mugabe Re-Elected; Opposition Vows Challenge -- Voice of America
Mugabe declared winner of presidency in Zimbabwe -- CNN
Mugabe still the boss at 89 -- FOX News/AFP
Mugabe claims landslide win in 'fatally flawed' election -- Sydney Morning Herald
Zimbabwe opposition furious over Robert Mugabe's 'fraudulent' election victory -- ABC News (Australia)
Mugabe re-elected amid fraud claims by MDC's Tsvangirai -- BBC
Zimbabwe election results not 'credible': US -- AFP
Zimbabwean poll not credible: Kerry -- Herald Sun
Zimbabwe election: William Hague voices 'grave concerns' -- BBC
Is Mugabe a classic strong man? -- Inesha Premaratne, CNN

Zimbabwe Election Labeled A Farce By Opponents Of Mugabe

Zimbabwe's Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai gestures during a media briefing in Harare, August 1, 2013. VOA

Zimbabwe Election Was 'Huge Farce' - Morgan Tsvangirai -- BBC

Zimbabwe's presidential election was a "huge farce", PM Morgan Tsvangirai has said, alleging vote-rigging by rival President Robert Mugabe's camp.

Mr Tsvangirai said that Wednesday's poll was "null and void".

The largest group of election observers described the vote as "seriously compromised" and said up to a million Zimbabweans were prevented from voting.

Mr Mugabe's party - which is claiming a victory - denied the accusations, saying the voting went smoothly.

The 89-year-old leader is running for a seventh term as president.

The head of the African Union observer mission, former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo, said his initial assessment was that the vote was free and fair.

And other regional observers have praised the peaceful nature of the election.

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More News On Zimbabwe's Presidential Election

Zimbabwe opposition says vote a 'farce' as Mugabe's party claims win -- CNN
Tsvangirai denounces Zimbabwe vote as 'huge farce' -- Reuters
Zimbabwe PM denounces election as 'huge farce' -- CBC/AP
Tsvangirai Dismisses Zimbabwe Election as 'Farce' -- Voice of America
Mugabe claims victory amid fears of widespread rigging -- Sydney Morning Herald
Mugabe's party pulls back election victory claim on Twitter as opposition cries foul over results -- CBS/AP
Zimbabwe election: victory claimed, fraud alleged -- Euronews
Challenger in Zimbabwe Calls for Investigation Into Election -- New York Times
Zimbabwean Poll Compromised by Biased Voters Roll, Observers Say -- Bloomberg Businessweek
Morgan Tsvangirai's triumph: surviving Robert Mugabe rule -- The Australian
Zimbabwe election: Bitter fallout begins -- Andrew Harding, BBC

Zimbabwe Votes For A President

Zimbabwe Votes For New President -- Sydney Morning Herald

Crisis-weary Zimbabweans are voting in a fiercely contested election dominated by veteran President Robert Mugabe's bid to extend his 33-year rule and suspicions of vote rigging.

The 89-year-old firebrand, Africa's oldest leader, is running for office for the seventh and perhaps final time, after a series of violent crackdowns, economic crises and suspect elections.

But on the eve of the vote, Mr Mugabe vowed to step down if he lost and claimed the army – long the bulwark of his rule – would also respect a victory for Morgan Tsvangirai, his perennial rival and reluctant partner in an uneasy coalition for the past four years.

"If you lose you must surrender," the 89-year-old said, insisting: "We have done no cheating."

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More News On Zimbabwe's Presidential Election

Zimbabwe election: High turnout prompts vote extension -- BBC
Zimbabwe election 2013: Voting around the country -- BBC
Mugabe Bids to Extend 33-Year Rule as Zimbabwean Vote Starts -- Bloomberg Businessweek
Hope and Tension Both Run High as Zimbabwe Heads to the Polls -- Time
Zimbabwe voters stand in long lines for vote after 3 decades with Robert Mugabe at helm -- Washington Post/AP
Riot police deployed ahead of Zimbabwe election dubbed Mugabe's 'last stand' -- NBC
Zimbabwe opposition alleges vote-rigging in presidential election -- CBC/AP
Vote Rigging, Fraud Allegations Overshadow Zimbabwe Vote -- Voice of America
Zimbabwe elections free and fair, says Robert Mugabe after casting vote -- The Guardian
As Zimbabwe heads to polls, worries about votes from the cemetery -- Christian Science Monitor
Zimbabwe election: twice as many registered voters as people in some areas -- The Telegraph
Zimbabwe Vote Tests Long Rule of Mugabe -- New York Times
A look at the candidates and issues in Zimbabwe’s elections -- Washington Post/AP

West Suffers Historic Defeat As China And Russia Veto Zimbabwe Sanctions

From Times Online:

Britain’s diplomatic strategy in Zimbabwe collapsed last night in an historic defeat for the West in the UN Security Council that will have repercussions across Africa and beyond.

Russia and China wielded their veto to kill a resolution imposing UN sanctions on President Mugabe and his inner circle in a defining vote in the 15-nation council.

Sir John Sawers, the British Ambassador to the UN, said: “The people of Zimbabwe need to be given hope that there is an end in sight to their suffering. The Security Council today has failed to offer them that hope.”

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More News On Zimbabwe

2 Vetoes Quash U.N. Sanctions on Zimbabwe -- New York Times
Zimbabwe veto: Britain and US condemn Russia and China -- Telegraph
China and Russia veto Zimbabwe sanctions -- The Guardian
Fury as Zimbabwe sanctions vetoed -- BBC News
China defends veto of Zimbabwe resolution -- Reuters
Zimbabwe: Sanctions failure a win over racism -- MSNBC
FACTBOX - Sanctions on Zimbabwe -- Reuters
Opinion: Saving Zimbabwe -- Time Magazine

My Comment: Should anyone be surprised?

South Africa Stays Away From Regional Summit On Zimbabwe

Robert Mugabe

From The Guardian:

The Zimbabwean opposition leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, has returned to the Dutch embassy only hours after leaving it for the first time in two days.

He took refuge in the politically neutral territory of the embassy on Sunday night when his decision to withdraw from this Friday's presidential run-off meant he lost the official protection given to presidential candidates.

During his brief departure from the embassy, Tsvangirai, standing outside his own home to address the press, called for international backing for a political transition in Zimbabwe.

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More News On Zimbabwe:
Zimbabwe's Mugabe refuses to bow to world pressure -- Yahoo News
Opposition calls on UN to send peacekeepers to Zimbabwe -- International Herald Tribune
Zimbabwe election: two days to go until presidential run-off -- Guardian News Blog
Are some Mugabe-condemning nations hypocritical? -- France 24

My Comment: In two days this "election" is over, and the suffering will continue. Zimbabwe is presently destabilizing the entire South African continent, a situation that will only get worse. The South African's government response to all of this has not only been shameful, but complicit in the suffering.

Zimbabwe News Updates -- June 24, 2008

Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) leader Morgan Tsvangirai

From Yahoo News:

HARARE, Zimbabwe - Zimbabwe's opposition leader has sought refuge at the Dutch Embassy, the Dutch Foreign Ministry said Monday, while police raided his party's headquarters and took about 60 people away.

Morgan Tsvangirai went to the embassy Sunday shortly after announcing he was withdrawing from Friday's presidential runoff against longtime leader Robert Mugabe, citing violence against opposition supporters.

"He asked to come and stay because he was concerned about his safety," ministry spokesman Rob Dekker said. There has been no request for political asylum, Dekker said.

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News On Zimbabwe From Other Sources:
Mugabe's Victory by Violence -- Time Magazine
A.N.C. Rejects Outside Pressure on Zimbabwe -- New York Times
Zimbabwe: Tsvangirai hails UN Security Council statement -- Times Online
Zimbabwe: Election can't be fair, says UN Security Council -- Telegraph
U.N. declares fair Zimbabwe vote impossible -- MSNBC
Tsvangirai Seeks Dutch Refuge -- Time Magazine
Tsvangirai seeks refuge at Dutch embassy -- MSNBC
Mugabe forced out his foe. What comes next won't be pretty. -- Newsweek
‘All Robert Mugabe's campaigning goes on after dark' -- Times Online
Zimbabwe police raid opposition party headquarters -- The Guardian
'Stop Mugabe' plea as Tsvangirai quits election -- Times Online
Zimbabwe: UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon fears for democracy -- The Telegraph
'Mugabe declared war and we will not be part of that war' -- The Independent
Opinion: Zimbabwe’s Stolen Election -- New York Times
Opinion: Zimbabwe's collapse is no longer question of if, but when -- Times Online
Opinion: Gugulethu Moyo: Yes, Tsvangirai was right to pull out -- The Independent
Opinion: Basildon Peta: No, Tsvangirai was not right to pull out -- The Independent
Opinion: Mugabe Must Go -- USA Today

My Comment: Where is Nelson Mandela, the leaders of South Africa, Mozambique, Zambia, Botswana, Namibia, .... the list is so long that I do not have the time nor patience anymore on this issue. Shame on all of them .... and shame on all those in the West who supported thugs like Mugabe 25 years ago.

Zimbabwe -- News Updates For June 17, 2008

Robert Mugabe

From Yahoo News:

HARARE, Zimbabwe - President Robert Mugabe threatened to arrest opposition leaders he accused of supporting mounting election violence, state radio reported Tuesday.

Mugabe on Monday accused Morgan Tsvangirai and other leaders of the Movement for Democratic Change of condoning "arson and violence across the country," state radio reported. Mugabe called the violence systematic, showing that it was organized by opposition leaders, the radio quoted him saying.

Independent human rights observers, though, say it is Mugabe's police, soldiers and party militants who have orchestrated widespread violence aimed at ensuring Mugabe wins a June 27 presidential runoff after coming in second to Tsvangirai in the first round in March. The independent observers have noted some retaliatory attacks, but say the opposition violence does not approach state-sponsored violence in scale or scope.

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News On Zimbabwe From Other Sources:
Zimbabwe election: Mugabe threatens to arrest opposition leaders -- The Guardian
Mugabe threatens to arrest opposition leaders -- MSNBC
Robert Mugabe warns Zimbabwe's voters: 'How can a pen fight a gun?' -- Times Online
Zimbabwe's Corrupt Ruler Uses Violence to Hold Onto Power -- U.S. News And World report
Mugabe thugs kill two in election violence -- Telegraph
Zimbabwe's Mugabe meets UN official ahead of tense election -- Yahoo News
British map out Robert Mugabe endgame -- The Australian
Kenyan PM denounces Zimbabwe as Africa's 'eyesore' -- Yahoo News

My Comment: Zimbabwe is destabilizing all of Southern Africa. What is maddening to me, is that the leaders of most of these countries are silent in condemning these thugs.

Fears Of Civil War Rise As The Opposition Starts To Arm Themselves

Riot Police In Harare

From the Independent:

Fears of civil war in Zimbabwe escalated yesterday as it emerged that opposition supporters, frustrated by police inaction at the brutal intimidation campaign being waged by President Robert Mugabe's allies, have begun to form their own "revenge forces".

Since Mr Mugabe – the only president Zimbabwe has ever known – was pushed into second place by Morgan Tsvangirai in the first-round ballot of the presidential election, the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) says more than 60 supporters have been murdered and thousands more threatened in a well-oiled operation to rig the second round of voting.

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News On Zimbabwe From Other Sources:
Zimbabwean Opposition Leader Seen In Court -- CBS
African leaders unite to denounce Mugabe’s violence -- Times Online
Mugabe vows to fight 'traitors' -- BBC
Military 'runs Mugabe campaign' -- BBC News
A glimpse of Mugabe terror -- BBC News
Fears grow for MDC secretary general arrested for treason -- The Independent
Robert Mugabe says Opposition will never rule Zimbabwe in his lifetime -- The Telegraph
Barclays accused of giving Robert Mugabe 'financial lifeline' -- The Telegraph
Mugabe Foe: The Runoff Must Proceed -- Time Magazine
Zimbabwe's opposition leader brought to court -- Yahoo News

My Comment: It appears that armed rebellion will be the only way to get rid of this tyrant and his thugs.

The Tragedy Of Zimbabwe

From The New York Times:

JOHANNESBURG — Hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of Zimbabweans — orphans and old people, the sick and the down and out — have lost access to food and other basic humanitarian assistance as their government has clamped down on international aid groups it says are backing the political opposition, relief agencies say.

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News From Other Sources:
Report: Zimbabwe detains opposition leader -- MSNBC
MDC says Zimbabwe police detain leader Tsvangirai -- Reuters
CARE: Zimbabwe suspends aid operations -- MSNBC

My Comment: This crisis, like all of Africa's crisis, will be long term and deeply damaging. there is no light at the end of the tunnel. Even with Mugabe gone, his allies are too invested in the system continuing as is instead of changing it