Vengeance is coming

What need would Robert Mugabe’s Zimbabwe have for a shipload of 3 million rounds of ammunition for AK47 rifles, 1500 rocket-propelled grenades, and several thousand mortar rounds? A Chinese ship loaded with this “foreign aid” was apparently on its way to Malawi a few days ago after a South African court ruled that the cargo could not be transported across South Africa to Zimbabwe. China has a policy of not interfering in the internal affairs of other countries, and presumably that non-interference includes providing military assistance to dictators who have recently been voted out of office.

Reports from inside Zimbabwe indicate that Mugabe’s cronies are setting up “command centres” as key locations for a national campaign of violence and torture in an effort to change the will of the people and see Mugabe re-elected in a run-off following the recent presidential elections, the results of which have not yet been released. Each command centre will consist of one soldier, one war veteran and three policemen. They will organise militias to torture known and suspected opposition supporters.

The local police will be controlled to keep the militias immune from arrest. These efforts will be concentrated in the rural areas where 70% of the population live. Torture tactics are expected to include stripping victims naked and dripping burning plastic on their bodies. Similar campaigns of intimidation, violence and ballot-rigging are thought to have been responsible for Mugabe’s success at the 2000 and 2002 elections.