Mugabe sells bankrupt Zim's assets to China

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"We will never be a colony again!" This has been the catch-cry of Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe throughout his 25-year reign.

But while he rails against perceived imperialist, colonial agendas and denounces anything white-skinned or Western, Mr Mugabe has spent this week in China signing over his bankrupt country's resources to the Asian economic superpower.

UMM...in both the US and in the Philippines, a country's assets belong to their people, not the government...

Analysts claim the Chinese are forging a "colonial extractive relationship" with Zimbabwe, which has sold forward more than a year's worth of gold and tobacco production in exchange for Chinese military hardware and diplomatic support.

"We will never be a colony again!"

Zimbabwe is the world's fastest shrinking economy and as it looks east for a saviour, China has a keen eye on the southern African nation's rich platinum deposits...

..............While Mr Mugabe was coy about the exact nature of his deals with the Chinese, Zimbabwean economist Eddy Cross claimed yesterday the Zimbabwean Government had forward-sold precious gold and tobacco to "pay" for Chinese-made military consignments that included 12 jet fighters, three 60-seat turboprop planes and 700 troop carriers.....

Ah, priorities. Not enough money for food for the starving, so let's buy jet fighters and troop carriers...must have priorities straight...

Yet while the booming informal trading sector has been razed and goods either confiscated or destroyed, every Zimbabwean city is awash with cheap Chinese goods, from glassware to clothing and trinkets.

Government contracts are awarded to Chinese businesses for major works such as hospitals and bridges.

Mr Cross claims Chinese interests have also been given farms, from which some white Zimbabwean farmers were evicted allegedly on the basis of redistribution to landless blacks.

"The Chinese have been granted the rights to develop 100,000 hectares of irrigation land in the Mwenzi area, about 450 kilometres south of Harare," he said.

"Also, they have been looking at a set of farms in the Banket-Raffingora area and these are farms on the Hanyani River and they constitute some of the largest farms in the Mashonaland area.

"Settlers (newly established black residents) are being removed from those properties right now. Apparently this is what was agreed in Beijing, that the Chinese are going to take these properties over — and Chinese State farming organisations are actually going to run them."

So much for land reform...

Zimbabwe, increasingly isolated internationally, is also expecting China to use its veto to block any censure at the UN Security Council.

Translation: Yes, the Chinese will be my new colonial masters, but they will veto any attempt by evil Blair/bush to dethrone me...