Zimbabwe...

[Boerseun]

This is an informal poll, so informal that there are no options!

What I want, is for you to tell me, briefly, what your impressions are of Zimbabwe, under Robert Mugabe's rule.

The only catch is that I don't want you to Google anything at all - I want to hear from you off the top of your head what you know about the situation in Zimbabwe.

The reason I'm doing this is simply because I'm interested in the common international perception of this specific issue, I don't want any ready-to-eat instantly-served pret-a-porter microwaved downloaded google opinions; I want to know what you know about this issue. Will I know if you cheated? Hell now! But you will be forever consumed by guilt for lieing to me...

[infamous]

Originally Posted by Boerseun

This is an informal poll, so informal that there are no options!

What I want, is for you to tell me, briefly, what your impressions are of Zimbabwe, under Robert Mugabe's rule.

The only catch is that I don't want you to Google anything at all - I want to hear from you off the top of your head what you know about the situation in Zimbabwe.

I can not tell a lie my friend, I know little or nothing about the situation there. Nevertheless, something tells me that maybe I should and for that reason I feel remiss. Maybe I've been reading the wrong newspaper or listening to the wrong media, in any case, trusting your judgement I suspect we all should be paying more attention...........................Infy

[eric l]

Boerseun, for a start, in Europe we are generally not that well informed about "black Africa", and that is both quantitatively and qualitatively.
It is quite exceptional to receive "good" news from that part of the world, be it from Zimbabwe or from Sudan.

I do know that many people (including myself) who believed in Nkomo and Mugabe are deeply desillusioned, but that is a long way from taking action.

In other African countries you generally have some "reliable" contacts (like "Medicins sans Frontières"), but not so in Zimbabwe (or Sudan for that matter).

I myself do have a little experience with Africa, and have seen corruption and nepotism and all that, but not at the scale that is reported for Zimbabwe. At first I thought the reports on Zimbabwe were exagerated, but we keep hearing similar stories. I am at a loss.

Maybe I should care more, and search more actively for more and correct information.

[gribbon]

What I want, is for you to tell me, briefly, what your impressions are of Zimbabwe, under Robert Mugabe's rule.

Well, my belief is that Mugabe, although being a dictator and an abysmal president, is villifed to a ridiculous extent. As far as I know he hasn't directly killed anyone, manwhile there are other dictators, currently in power, who torture and massacre people, like Omar Hassan al-Bashir, Isaias Afewerki and Than Shwe.

Having said that, Zimbabwe's economy is in sharp decline, and needs alot of international help. That is where we should be focusing on. Not writing sensationalist things about Mugabe....

10 Most Censored Countries

[Boerseun]

Originally Posted by gribbon

That is where we should be focusing on.

Yeah. But that's not the topic of this thread, now is it? Feel free to open up a thread regarding that issue.

Originally Posted by gribbon

Not writing sensationalist things about Mugabe....

So why do you think Zimbabwe's economy is in a sharp decline?
Don't Google it, now. I want to know what you know about this issue. And, please - if you don't know anything about the matter, please say so; I want to sample international awareness of this specific issue. See Infy's reply in post #2. I don't want to be awed by your knowledge, I want to know if you do or don't know about this issue.

Thanks

[eric l]

Originally Posted by Boerseun

So why do you think Zimbabwe's economy is in a sharp decline?

As for me, I heard it first on BBC World, and next day it was repeated (with reference to BBC) on Belgian networks. Haven't seen more than 2 or 3 columns in our newspapers, though. But I still consider BBC a relieable source.

[Qfwfq]

In recent months I read about him a few times and got the impression he ain't exactly the most paternal statesman around, but I don't remember much in detail.

[InfiniteNow]

[Boerseun]

Exactly... sad story, really. But no one seems to be interested in doing anything about it.

[freeztar]

I must admit to not knowing anything about the situation in Zimbabwe. I don't even think I could point it out on a map, let alone discuss its leader.