Matt Zeitlin: Impetuous Young Whippersnapper

Jamie Kirchick’s WSJ column makes the argument that since Robert Mugabe has a long history of ignoring election results, killing opposition leaders and terrorizing his people, he can’t be trusted in any power sharing agreement, and that outside countries shouldn’t try to negotiate one with him. Kirchick is right about one thing: Mugabe is a dictatorial, murderous asshole. But the big problem with this type of moral grandstanding, which denounces those parties who are actively trying to make a difference by doing more than withholding aid (which hasn’t exactly weakened Mugabe’s hold on power), is that it doesn’t exactly provide a way forward for resolving the crisis. What exactly does Kirchick recommend we? Regime change in Zimbabwe? Because, after reading his take on how perfidious Mugabe and ZANU-PF really are, that seems to be the only solution.

All Kirchick suggests is that “The U.S. can bypass Mr. Mbeki and work with true allies of Zimbabwean democracy like Botswana and Zambia to help end Mugabe’s rule. Mr. Bush should officially welcome Mr. Tsvanigirai in a Rose Garden ceremony as the duly elected president of Zimbabwe, and recognize his MDC as a government in exile.” That would be nice, but how would it lead to the peaceful removing of Mugabe, who seemingly doesn’t really care about international recognition or legitimacy. The fact is, Mugabe has a very strong constituency both among the population, and most importantly, all over the government. Considering that fact, it seems like the only way to actually lead Zimbabwe out of its 25 year horror is to coax Mugabe into giving up some power, and then hoping that others in the ZANU-PF will abandon him. Otherwise, he will simply thrive on isolation and confrontation, while his people continue to suffer.