Christian Aid’s Africa specialist Judith Melby recently returned from 10 days in Zimbabwe. She describes a country in a ‘state of frenetic paralysis’.
People are very nervous and there is a lot going on behind the scenes. The country is in a state of frenetic paralysis.
There is a huge amount of apprehension in the air. Although there is a definite feeling that Mugabe’s spell has been broken, the fear is that the end could be bloody and ugly.
‘Mugabe buys his loyalty but actually it is just rented.’
Violence
I received lots of reports of rural people being beaten up. I also received reliable church reports that Zanu-PF officials are hiring venues to detain opposition MDC supporters.
Every time I visit Zimbabwe the basic infrastructure appears to be getting worse; there are more and more beggars on the street. The country is being hollowed out, depopulated and impoverished.
The end appears to be within sight, although one wonders if a crackdown will bring an end to this vision of the future. One seasoned observer commented that 'the people cannot take another five years of this. They have had their fill of pain and suffering.'
Disbelief
Amid claims Robert Mugabe was defeated in the election, respect for the president had been eroded. People burst out laughing when they read the headlines from the government’s newspaper.
Even in his rural strongholds where Zanu-PF held on to their parliamentary seats, Mugabe lost the presidential vote. His votes were way, way down. It was clear it was a vote to get Mugabe out.
Mugabe buys his loyalty but actually it is just rented. It remains to be seen how long the police and the army will stay loyal.