Thursday, July 17, 2008

Frontline series on Zimbabwe

The PBS news magazine show Frontline has been noticing Zim...the links are summarized below. And if you go to the links, they have videos of the show.

Enemies of the State.
Discusses the murder of journalist Edward Chikomba and the restrictions on news in Zim...

Mugabe's Do or Die Campaign to stay in power
Discusses the intimidation and violence in rural areas.
Excerpt:
Our journey is constantly interrupted by one roadblock after another. We pass through three in a single 30-mile stretch. The roadblocks have been set up to stop any opposition members who might try to campaign or any media who might try to report what's going on here. Mugabe has also banned all NGOs from this area until after the election. The police who stop us say they are looking for weapons. I giggle to myself wondering which one of the old and poor people could possibly have arms.

The third roadblock isn't so funny. We are stopped by the so-called "war veterans," young men in their 20s and 30s who claim to have fought in Zimbabwe's war for independence -- a war that took place largely before they were born.

We are ordered off the bus and stand in the morning cold being "interviewed" about where we are going. When my turn comes, I say I am attending a cousin's funeral in a nearby village. In the end, we are lucky. We are only made to chant slogans and dance to a wartime song Mugabe ndibaba (Mugabe is our father). Two young men refuse to sing. They are dragged into the bushes while the rest of us are ordered back onto the bus. I am uneasy for the rest of the journey, wondering what has become of them....

and the atrocities reported get worse...

Shopping for Survival


Describes a bus trip from Harare to Botswana to buy groceries...

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