Still in power

Despite the news publications I do get (and sometimes read), I am fairly woeful about keeping on top of a story--my reading comprehension is somewhat lacking, particularly when it comes to names--Russian novels were always tough to read, for example, because I would essentially skip past the names because of the complexity and unfamiliarity--so keeping abreast of a story is more difficult if you don't know the names.

This year, though, I have followed the election in Zimbabwe to some degree. Not enough to know how to pronounce "Tsvangirai" or remember Simba Makoni off the top of my head. I remember what was probably the first story on Makoni in a January Economist; how it was dismissive of Tsvangirai as a political hack and that Makoni might be the best hope for a turnaround in Zimbabwe. I followed the optimism in March that Robert Mugabe's rule might actually end. And then he did get defeated in the election, and it looked like he might be finished.

But then it all fell apart. Again.

Paul Wolfowitz wrote a piece in Wednesday's WSJ about how to place pressure on Mugabe. I think it's unconvincing in its approach--basically give Mugabe a "get out of jail free" card if he just leaves the country and retires to South Africa or Angola. As an op-ed piece, though, it provides more anecdotal interest than most news stories:

Morgan Tsvangirai is no coward. He has persevered despite arrests, beatings and assassination attempts. But Mugabe has made clear there will be only one result from elections. 'We are not going to give up our country because of a mere X [on a ballot],' he told Zimbabwe's state-controlled Herald newspaper last week.

Going meta for a bit, one of the things I wanted to do when I started the blog was to actually have commentary on topics. Reviews of things, explanations of things I'm learning about--those are easy, even if I don't post enough. But what kind of insight, what is the reason to care about what is happening in Zimbabwe?

An easy answer is a greater respect for the institutions and the rule of law in the US/developed world. That a transfer of power need not be bloody. That no matter what you think of our political leader ship over the past 8 years, 16 years, 40 years--we are lucky that our ability to live freely or safely is not at the whim of a maniacal despot. But, like I said, that's easy.

Perhaps the real pull of the story, especially in March, was the hope, the realization, that a country could kick out a tyrant, that it could overcome its obstacles and choose a better path, that there was hope. And that's what makes the past 6 weeks a shame--that the possibility of a better future that was so close is still far off in the horizon.