Comments on Interview: Robert Mugabe

Here is a selection of comments sent to us in response to the interview.

Mugabe condemned the US and Britain for the Iraq invasion

He’s 100% right about the West, although he’s also a crook like our leaders in the Arab world.
Mohamed Al Maghrabi, The Netherlands

Africa needs more leaders like Mugabe, who fight the neocolonialists domestically and imperialists abroad – and win.
Joseph Nasser, USA

Hassan from Somalia must dig deep for more background information on the Zimbabwean situation before lashing out at our president. It is one thing being African and another thing being Somalian. … Remember, politics is a dirty game.
Tendai Muzhongo, Dallas, USA

I can’t believe how biased your reporting is on the Zimbabwean conflicts. You’re just allowing Mugabe a platform to make the Zanu-PF and his cronies look innocent. When in those early farmer displacment months, he threatened death to those who would not co-operate. Mugabe is ridiculous and your reporting is biased.
Horatio

America invaded Iraq to bring democracy and save the Iraqis from a despot. Mugabe makes Saddam look like an angel. But America does nothing to save the people from this evil despot because their is no oil to be plundered. They turn a blind eye to their suffering.
Grahame Perkins, Germany

Mugabe is better in whose language? Great Britain and the US are magnets, attracting millions and millions of people, no matter what race or religion or political persuasion or country of origin. That is all the evidence anyone needs to indicate the truth now. Not the tired propaganda of a hundred failed regimes. And not the incessant chants that spring from decades of closed-mindedness and apologising for dictators. The facts speak clearly even when no one else does. Sorry.
John Tiller, Canada

Mugabe is a hero and black America applauds his decision to put the land back into the hands of its original owners. Whites stole the land and America and Britain now want to destroy the country because the Mugabe has the guts to do the right thing.

If we look at what’s happening in the Middle East, one can say that America and Britian want to control Iraq’s oil reserves.

They care nothing about human rights. Mugabe may not be an angel, but he is doing the right thing by taking back the land.
Todd Kidd, Louisiana, USA

Mugabe’s rhetoric is distant from reality. Zanu-PF fosters cronyism and inequity. His rule has seen a steady degradation of Zimbabwae from a proud, liberated land, to one ruled by a corrupt, dangerous elite who will collaborate with Westeners willing to turn a blind eye to their ugly actions.

Hypocrisy is not limited to George Bush or Tony Blair. Other African regimes might commend Mugabe but ask the disabled, the urban poor, trade unionists, journalists etc … . Bloodshed might be unavoidable before a better future is visible on the horizon for real Zimbabweans.
Derek, UK

The comments by the president clearly illustrate his ignorance concerning a human-rights debate. This man has stolen 35 million acres from white farmers in his own country, which completely crippled the economy of Zimbabwe. Today, almost one million people now face hunger and starvation in Zimbabwe. To entertain any thought made by this man concerning human rights is a waste of time.
Dillon Donnelly, USA

Can I ask the question, what’s wrong with indigenous people reclaiming the land that was stolen from them by the Europeans? 
Carlos Crockett, USA

Yes, while many points that Mugabe raises about American violations of human rights are true, he cannot prevent dissidents from practising their rights of political participation.

There is no difference between a human-rights violator in a “Western democracy” or in a “Third World country”, because a violation of a human is a crime and needs to be retaliated as such.

In fact, I would argue that he should work internally to bring a consensus between his people, and listen to the demands of the opposition.

Nevertheless, I cannot agree more that resolutions begin within a country. But this means those in power need to honestly be committed to the advancement of their nation (economic, democratic, and ethical).

With this being said, please continue generating articles on human rights, particularly on the current genocide in North Uganda – very little coverage is available, and people do not know.
Nancy Corrine Chavez, USA

The Zimbabwe government did the right thing by expropriating land in the interest of the public and for the distribution of millions of landless blacks.

This was an effective political action when the land reform was moving at snail’s pace and reached a cul-de-suc. The implementation is that is being questioned.
Fluksman Samuehl, Namibia

Sad to see Zimbabwe sink even deeper into poverty. Mugabe has run out of excuses for his bizarre “land distribution” programmes. Now the breadbasket of Africa is scorched and its people suffer and starve.

When Mugabe dies, who would be willing to take over this once beautiful nation? Another dictatorship? Or should we anticipate a civil war?
S Ford, USA

Mugabe is the worst type of African dictator and he wants to blame all his misconduct on the West.

As an African I have no trouble with the West but rather dictators such as Mugabe who looted, raped, and destroyed our continent.
Hassan, USA/Somalia

It is the West’s imperialist ideologies and policies that Mugabe is fighting against. Back in the early 1980s he once was their darling of southern Africa, but as soon as he corrected that historical inequity of land redistribution, he became a despot.

It is well known in Zimbabwe that, from the onset of white settlers, our ancestors fought tirelessly and fearlessly to repel the invaders. So Zanu-PF will always be the answer to Zimbabwe’s problems provided there is no meddling in local affairs by the imperialists.
Tendai Muzhongo, Dallas, USA

I think the world has been over-dependent on the Western press which, most of it and most of the times, only advances Western imperialist prejudices.

Iraq, Palestine and Zimbabwe are examples of how world events are distorted and manipulated by imperialists and corporate interests to the detriment of world peace – whoever acts as an obstacle to the West’s imperial and manipulative manoeuvres is put in the line of fire.

At last, Zimbabwe has seen the light and is reclaiming its heritage.
Umuntu

Mugabe has stood up to the racist and imperialistic forces of the UK and her cohorts. Some of our fellow Third World friends should take a leaf out of this sacrifice he has made. Of course the easy option was to continue to let the UK dominate and humilate us in our own blood-soaked land.

This land of ours was won through the sacrifice of the sons and daughters of Zimbabwe. To simply hand it to the kith and kin of Tony Blair is criminal.

Economic sanctions declared or undeclared will not force us to change our course. Zimbabwe will never be a colony again. Linus Nkomo, UK

America is in no position of judging Mugabe.
Kafia Husayn, Canada

The fact of the matter is, nobody talks about what President Mugabe has mentioned. Once again comments are written that reflect Mugabe as being a criminal and/or evil person without ever mentioning the social and economic factors in the response of Zimbabwe’s current condition.

If we are to say that “it is all his fault”, then we must ask the question, what led Mugabe to this particular position? What has given rise to the removal of certain people living in Zimbabwe as compared to others there? Have colonial rule and thought ever been the reason for such occurences?
Ather Masood, USA

Nothing in the US is comparable to Mugabe.
A Adam, USA

We need more African leaders of his type, who are not agents of the West but real leaders of their people.
Kayo

I believe Mugabe and can say that America and Britain have always been the troublemakers in trying to gain and profit by controlling the people’s land.

The land belongs to all people, and government should be the enterprise that helps decide what the land is used for to support the people.
DJermano, China

Aljazeera never intended to give an impartial view of Mugabe. South Africa and the OAU said that the Zimbabwean elections were fair and acceptable but Aljazeera refused to mention  this.
Davy de Verteuil, Trinidad

It is better to have Mugabe in control than have Zimbabwe descend into chaos and murder. He cannot live forever. When he dies, his survivors will fight like a pack of hyenas for control.
Alfonso DeMaio, North America

This despot has reduced a once-thriving country to a basket case. Zimbabweans are poorer today than they were five decades ago. The economy is in meltdown.
Farai Mukanya, Belgium

I was very surprised at listening to the interview with Robert Mugabe and reading the article, at the lack of objectivity or balancing of statements by giving the other side of the arguement. 

I admire your idea of interviewing him, and it is right that he should be given opportunities for putting his case, but I feel very surprised that you have allowed him to use this as a propoganda opportunity. 

I have spoken to many black Zimbabweans who would paint a very different picture of their country and government than the one he painted.  I feel that for an article like this to be treated as a mature, trustworthy piece of news it should have had some of his statements balanced by statements from opposition politicians within the country.
Fiona, Scotland

Source: Al Jazeera