Opinion / Columnist
Mugabe & his CIO must account for the whereabouts of Itai Dzamara
13 Mar 2015 at 06:25hrs | Views
On March 10, 2015, Itai Dzamara, a courageous man who had held a one man protest for months in Harare, the capital city, to pressure President Mugabe of Zimbabwe to step down, was kidnapped by Mugabe's secret service men as he left a barber shop on an afternoon. Today is the fourth day and the man's whereabouts remain a mystery. Given Mugabe's handling of opposition forces in Zimbabwe, there is no guaranty that the man could return home alive.
Zimbabwe, one of the poorest and most corrupt places in the world where the rule of law has ceased to exist for 35 years, is writhing under a cruel dictatorship agenda by Robert Mugabe. Such a rule has taken deeper and daring roots. People now live in fear of a 90 year old life President (Mugabe) supposed to be in retirement. Mugabe has derived his power mainly from a brainwashed CIO, a secret service made up of anyone who is not afraid to kill at any time for Mugabe. Any freedom of speech as postulated in the newly-enacted constitution has lost value. The World over, now understands the problems the people of Zimbabwe are facing. This is the very government lobbying against sanctions by America and Europe to be removed so that Government leaders and their families can freely travel to Europe and America to shop in the big malls. What a sad reality.At a time when the Government has been trying to fool the world as a reformed champion of the rule of law just to lure foreign aid, the kidnapping of Itai Dzamara actually makes the human rights records in Zimbabwe worse. This is also a time when the "look east" policy has failed because the east is also looking at the West for real business that moves the global economy. In any case the Chinese have been smart enough not to trust Mugabe with decent financial aid because past dealings have shown imprudence and an appetite for senseless profligacy.
The kidnapping of Itai Dzamara is a sad development. It is also with such hypocrisy that Emmerson Mnangagwa, the newly-appointed Vice President who last week was bragging about his training to shoot and kill, comes out and claims innocence over the kidnapping. This is obviously a Mugabe-sanctioned job but what the Zimbabwean Government has failed to realize is that the World over today has this story on its headlines. It does not help a struggling country to have such barbaric human rights records that make headlines at a global scale. Everyone who gets to know about Zimbabwe wonders if such Hitler-Nazi projects of the Gestapo modes could still happen in this day and age. I had to write in detail to the world to pay close attention to this story under Mugabe's ticket. Now the world is fully aware and alert and is waiting to see either the dead body or the released Itai Dzamara. Many realize how paranoia affects a dictatorship.
Itai Dzamara was an innocent man. He was exercising his free speech. He wanted Mugabe to go because people are suffering in Zimbabwe. Mugabe and his family have caused endless suffering to the Zimbabwean people. Many have been killed. The majority want him to go. This was the very reason Itai Dzamara was kidnapped. He had the rare courage to openly stand up and demand that Mugabe must go. For decades, Mugabe has been destroying a great Zimbabwe. Now he is old and still wants to cling on to power. The World over should understand. The CIO in Zimbabwe is unreasonable but follows Mugabe's orders. Once a dirty act happens and gets media coverage, Mugabe looks the other way and feigns ignorance over such critical issues. At 90, he is still paranoid about losing his grip on power and anyone who dares challenge him must be eliminated. This is the current Zimbabwe where even national elections are stolen and ballot boxes are destroyed to sustain a dictatorship. A possible death of Itai Dzamara could bring more hopelessness to Zimbabwe where free speech could mean death. By continually torturing and killing innocent civilians, Mugabe hopes to rule till death.
This article that has been shared with major Global media is simply meant to give the World a clear picture of some of the events that are happening in Zimbabwe at a time when dictatorships should be practically handled to promote a feasible global human rights agenda. The Middle East has ongoing issues and has been lucky to be attended. We Africans also have related leadership crisis and human rights remain a remote dream. Some of the regional leaders especially from South Africa who get the opportunity to speak on the situation in Zimbabwe mince words and maliciously communicate wrong signals to the world at large. Also, on a sad note, not much world attention, action or media coverage reaches "Dark Africa". This is just one of the examples to prove how the Zimbabwe people have suffered for long without global intervention.
Source - Maxwell Nyandoro
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