What were they doing there? Zimbabwe: Diplomats detained after addressing MDC

No, they wouldn't. If, for example, the American Ambassador paid a visit to Conservative HQ, would the police arrest him?

This is the biggest load of bollocks I have ever heard the MDC are doing well to be still there thanks to the brutality of the zanu PF party why dont you crawl into your little hole and die brian as that is what everyone who supports dictatorships deserves to do

Joe is absolutelly right. Dictatorships are not a good thing and thats why all political parties worldwide should be removed from their dictatoral position. Or is Joe under the impression that the UK is any better? 3 parties, look the same, sound the same, act the same, control the media, make decissions affecting the livelihood of people throughout the world. That's demokkkracy

Im not saying the uk is particularly great either neither are all states hence why we need to get rid of them however the uk is at least better (for the time being) than zimbabwe

Whether the UK is better than Zimbabwe is at best a debatable subject. Sure internal state repression is much more low key in the UK, however that is because the UK's foreign intervention (more recently in iraq and afghanistan) makes Zimbabwe seem like heaven. The only reason the UK repression is slightly more mellow internally is because were all living a more comfortable existance using the wealth and labour of these pillaged nations and therefore resistance here is on a lower scale.Should the masses here riseup you will see the full scale repression that 'democracy' has to offer.

But the real question here is should we be supporting the lesser of 2 evils in Zimbabwe, or should we be looking at promoting freedom.

What there is is violence by the MDC to provoke the police to retaliate...

I challenge people to show ZANU IS repressing the MDC, but you will have to use other than MDC evidence as proof.

Those who support the MDC are supporting neoliberal privatisation of Zimbawbe...

'The establishment of a new opposition party, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), in September 1999, found instant support from Western leaders. Significant funding from Western sources enabled the party to rapidly grow to the point where it won 57 out of 120 seats in the June 24-25 2000 parliamentary election, less than one year after its creation. Ostensibly based in the labor movement, the program of MDC reads like a call for a return to ESAP. A policy paper issued by the party spelled out its plans for privatization. Upon taking power, the party plans to appoint a "fund manager to dispose of government-owned shares in publicly quoted companies." The boards of all public enterprises would be "reconstituted," and the new boards would be "required to privatize their enterprises within specified timetables...with an overall target of privatizing all designated parastatals [public companies] within two years." The interests of Western capital would not be ignored. "In areas where a high level of technical skill is required, foreign strategic investors will be encouraged to bid for a majority stake in the enterprises being privatized." A primary principle of the program would be that "all sales of major state assets will be conducted through open, international [that is, Western], competitive bidding." In order to counter opposition from workers made redundant, the National Privatization and Procurement Agency would be instructed to "carry out public awareness campaigns regarding the privatization program in order to generate public awareness and support for the exercise." Implementation of its program, the MDC feels, will mean "that foreign direct investment will take place on a substantial scale." (10) As a further incentive for Western investors, the MDC plans to review income and corporate tax levels "for regional competitiveness." (11)

The MDC appointed an official of the Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries, Eddie Cross, as its Secretary of Economic Affairs. In a speech delivered shortly after his appointment, Cross articulated the MDC economic plan. "First of all, we believe in the free market. We do not support price control. We do not support government interfering in the way people manage their lives. We are in favor of reduced levels of taxation. We are going to fast track privatization. All fifty government parastatals will be privatized within a two-year frame, but we are going far beyond that. We are going to privatize many of the functions of government. We are going to privatize the Central Statistics Office. We are going to privatize virtually the entire school delivery system. And you know, we have looked at the numbers and we think we can get government employment down from about 300,000 at the present time to about 75,000 in five years." (12)
 http://www.swans.com/library/art8/elich004.html

"What there is is violence by the MDC to provoke the police to retaliate...
I challenge people to show ZANU IS repressing the MDC, but you will have to use other than MDC evidence as proof. "

So anyone who has been tortured by the ZANU-PF security forces for membership of the MDC, their evidence doesn't count because they are MDC members and they were asking for it.

Thanks for cutting through the anti-imperialist smokescreen and finally stating your position clearly.

 http://www.sadc.int/news/news_details.php?news_id=927
COMMUNIQUE

2007 EXTRA-ORDINARY SADC SUMMIT OF HEADS OF STATE AND GOVERNMENT
28TH - 29TH MARCH2007

DAR-ES-SALAAM


The Extra-Ordinary Summit of the Heads of State and Government of SADC met in Dar-es-Salaam, United Republic of Tanzania on 29 March 2007 to discuss the political, economic and security situation in the region, with special focus on the situations in Lesotho, DRC and Zimbabwe.

The meeting was chaired by His Excellency President Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete, Chairperson of the SADC Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation.

The Extra-Ordinary Summit was attended by the following Heads of State and Government and Government representatives:

DRC H.E.President Joseph Kabila

Lesotho Right Honourable Prime Minister

Pakalitha Mosisili

Malawi H.E.President Bingu wa Mutharika

Mozambique H.E.President Armando E. Guebuza

Namibia H.E.President Hifikepunye Pohamba

South Africa H.E.President Thabo Mbeki

Swaziland Right Honourable Prime Minister

Themba Dlamini

Tanzania H.E. President Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete

Zambia H.E.President Levy P. Mwanawasa

Zimbabwe H.E. President Robert G. Mugabe

Botswana H.E.Vice-President Lt. Seretse Khama Ian Khama

Angola HonourableJoao Bernardo Miranda

Minister of External Relations

Madagascar H.E. Bruno Ranarivelo

Ambassador to Mauritius
Mauritius: H.E. Mahomed Dossa High Commissioner to South Africa



ON THE POLITICAL SITUATION IN ZIMBABWE

The Extra-ordinary Summit noted and appreciated the briefing by H.E. President Robert G. Mugabe on the current political developments in Zimbabwe.

The Extra-Ordinary Summit recalled that free, fair and democratic Presidential elections were held in 2002 in Zimbabwe.

The Extra-Ordinary Summit reaffirmed its solidarity with the Government and people of Zimbabwe.

The Extra-Ordinary Summit mandated H.E President Thabo Mbeki to continue to facilitate dialogue between the opposition and the Government and report back to the Troika on the progress. The Extra-Ordinary Summit also encouraged enhanced diplomatic contacts which will assist with the resolution of the situation in Zimbabwe.

The Extra-Ordinary Summit mandated the SADC Executive Secretary to undertake a study on the economic situation in Zimbabwe and propose measures on how SADC can assist Zimbabwe recover economically.

The Extra-Ordinary Summit reiterated the appeal to Britain to honour its compensation obligations with regard to land reform made at the Lancaster House.

The Extra-Ordinary Summit appealed for the lifting of all forms of sanctions against Zimbabwe.

'So anyone who has been tortured by the ZANU-PF security forces for membership of the MDC, their evidence doesn't count because they are MDC members and they were asking for it. '

heres your chance top show evidence for torture by the police...Keep in mind, the MDC has firebombed police stations, and that police actions cant be visited upon president Mugabe, anymore than UK police can be on the UK govt or american police on the US govt.

Would you like names and addresses of the torture victims and MDC activists I know in the UK?

Can you see why I might be reluctant to provide you that? Get a clue.

(Cue your declaration "ah ha! see! no evidence! Imperialist lies!...)

Show us proof they were tortured and on Mugabes orders.

Brian you are nothing but a stooge for totalitarianism and dictatorship. I bet you are still pining for the grand old days of the USSR, look back at Saddam's Iraq with fondness and are still waiting for the 'evidence' to show that the Tiananmen Square victims were not counter-revolutionaries who deserved what they got.

You are the enemy of progressive politics, no less so than a fascist. No wonder the Left is in ruins when there are so many coming from your point of view. As far as I am concerned you can keep holding onto the scraps of the Left's decaying carcass as long as you like. Not that I am tarring others here with the same brush as Brian, but surely we all need to wonder what has become of us when it is more important to back any sort of opposition to the west than to support human rights, democracy and freedom.

The old dichotomy of Left and Right has been revealed for the falsehood it always was. Underneath all is a bunch of totalitarian lunatics desperate to dictate to the rest of society, no more than factions of the same totalitarian party. NO leftist revolution was ever beneficial for the masses (ok so the only one anybody ever wants to defend anymore is Cuba, and I'm happy to rest my case with that). Nor Rightist one. The sooner we leave all this behind the sooner progressive politics can get going again, making modern industrial society better for the mass of the people. As it continued to do throughout and in spite of the century+ lost to the totalitarian blight.