Mugabe, Kennedy extol Trump

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Defiant Mugabe Refuses To Step Down...

Defiant Mugabe Refuses To Step Down As Zimbabwe's President
November 17, 2017 • The 93-year-old ruler, who has been under house arrest since the military staged a takeover on Wednesday, is insisting that he be allowed to serve out his term until elections next year.

Zimbabwe's sidelined President Robert Mugabe, who has been under house arrest since a military takeover earlier this week, is refusing to step down, creating a potential crisis over his succession. The military staged what it insists was not a coup, but rather a "bloodless correction," on Wednesday, saying its aim was not to target Mugabe himself, but the "criminals around him who are committing crimes." Several senior officials have been detained in the wake of the army's move, according to the BBC. Even so, negotiations are underway to get Mugabe, who has ruled the former British colony since it gained independence 37 years ago, to voluntarily resign. At 93, he is insisting that he be allowed to serve out his term until elections next year.

Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe attends the second session of the South Africa-Zimbabwe Bi-national Commission last month.

But in an indication of how much things have changed in recent days, NPR's Ofeibea Quist-Arcton reports that the ruling ZANU-PF party, long viewed as Mugabe's personal fiefdom, is meeting Friday to work on a draft resolution that could lead to his impeachment next week. Journalist Jeffrey Barbee tells Morning Edition that in the past few days, Zimbabwe has been "surviving on rumors." "There's almost no security on the streets. Everything is quiet," he says. Since his government was toppled, Mugabe has been holed up with his wife, Grace, in his "Blue Roof" compound in the capital, Harare.

Despite his house arrest, Mugabe's motorcade on Thursday was seen leaving his home and proceeding to State House, where he was photographed meeting with military chief Constantino Chiwenga — the man who staged Wednesday's takeover — as well as South African ministers sent to help mediate the crisis. Later, Mugabe arrived at a university graduation ceremony in Harare to deliver a speech, his first public appearance since the takeover. The army's takeover came a week after Mugabe sacked Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa to make room for his wife to assume leadership of the ruling party and the country's presidency. After his removal, Mnangagwa, 75, who had been locked in an intraparty factional feud with Mugabe, fled to South Africa, where he vowed to challenge the president's authority.

https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-...bwes-president

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Zimbabwe `bout to get eaten by The Crocodile...

Ruling party says Mugabe impeachment to go ahead
19 Nov.`17 — The Latest on Zimbabwe’s political turmoil (all times local):

11:15 p.m.

The chief whip of Zimbabwe’s ruling party says “I don’t see us failing to proceed with the impeachment” of President Robert Mugabe. Told by the party’s Central Committee to step down by midday Monday or face impeachment, Mugabe baffled the country Sunday night with an address on state-run television that did not announce his resignation. Lovemore Matuke with the ruling ZANU-PF party tells The Associated Press: “The Central Committee decision stands until I am advised otherwise.” Matuke adds that “the speech was just surprising. It is not in line with what we expected. We had understood that his resignation was coming to avoid the embarrassment of impeachment. The army is taking its own route, and as politicians we are taking our own route, but the ultimate goal is to make sure he goes, which he should have done tonight.”

10:55 p.m.

Zimbabwe’s state-run broadcaster says President Robert Mugabe “has not resigned,” confirming the baffled reactions of a nation that watched his mumbling address on TV. Many Zimbabweans are outraged. “This dictator has absolutely no right to play ping pong with our people,” former Zimbabwe finance minister and activist Tendai Biti says on Twitter. “Mugabe’s non resignation speech. Masterpiece or mayhem? It’s either choreographed or completely out of control,” says Piers Pigou, southern Africa expert for the International Crisis Group. He adds on Twitter: “It beggars belief the generals did not know what was in Mugabe’s speech. ” The army commander who put Mugabe under house arrest just days ago sat beside the president during his speech, at times helping him turn the pages. Some Zimbabweans were in tears afterward, shocked that a man fired by his own ruling party as its leader and told to resign or face impeachment was showing defiance.

10:20 p.m.

Zimbabweans who gathered at a bar in the capital to celebrate longtime President Robert Mugabe’s expected announcement of his resignation say they are frustrated. One named Nyasha says: “I would be happy for him despite everything he has done to leave with dignity and just walk away. ... He is so stubborn.” The ruling party’s Central Committee has told the world’s oldest head of state to resign by noon Monday or face impeachment. His speech on national television was expected to announce he would step down. Another Zimbabwean named Shengi says: “Mugabe is a dictator and he’ll always be a dictator.”

10:05 p.m.

Zimbabweans say they feel profoundly disappointed that longtime President Robert Mugabe is resisting pressure to step aside. Victor Matemadanda, secretary general of the country’s war veterans association, tells The Associated Press he feels betrayed. Matemadanda says: “He is playing games with the people of Zimbabwe. He agrees to go and then plays games with us like that at the last minute.” Mugabe’s address to the nation said he would preside over the ruling party’s congress next month, even though its Central Committee has recalled him as its leader and told him to resign as president by midday Monday or face impeachment. Matemadanda says the war veterans will again rally the people to protest, and “this time the army will let him face the people. ... The army will now choose between shooting the people or protecting Mugabe.”

9:45 p.m.

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Figure known as ‘Crocodile’ could replace Zimbabwe president
[i[19 Nov.`17 — Emmerson Mnangagwa, elected Sunday as the new leader of Zimbabwe’s ruling political party and positioned to take over as the country’s leader, has engineered a remarkable comeback using skills he no doubt learned from his longtime mentor, President Robert Mugabe.[/i]

Mnangagwa served for decades as Mugabe’s enforcer — a role that gave him a reputation for being astute, ruthless and effective at manipulating the levers of power. Among the population, he is more feared than popular, but he has strategically fostered a loyal support base within the military and security forces. A leading government figure since Zimbabwe’s independence in 1980, he became vice president in 2014 and is so widely known as the “Crocodile” that his supporters are called Team Lacoste for the brand’s crocodile logo. The 75-year-old “is smart and skillful, but will he be a panacea for Zimbabwe’s problems? Will he bring good governance and economic management? We’ll have to watch this space,” said Piers Pigou, southern Africa expert for the International Crisis Group.

Mugabe unwittingly set in motion the events that led to his own downfall, firing his vice president on Nov. 6. Mnangagwa fled the country to avoid arrest while issuing a ringing statement saying he would return to lead Zimbabwe. “Let us bury our differences and rebuild a new and prosperous Zimbabwe, a country that is tolerant to divergent views, a country that respects opinions of others, a country that does note isolate itself from the rest of the world because of one stubborn individual who believes he is entitled to rule this country until death,” he said in the Nov. 8 statement. He has not been seen in public but is believed to be back in Zimbabwe.

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For weeks, Mnangagwa had been publicly demonized by Mugabe and his wife. Grace, so he had time to prepare his strategy. Within days of the vice president’s dismissal, his supporters in the military put Mugabe and his wife under house arrest. When Mugabe refused to resign, a massive demonstration Saturday brought thousands of people into the streets of the capital, Harare. It was not a spontaneous uprising. Thousands of professionally produced posters praising Mnangagwa and the military had been printed ahead of time. “It was not a last-minute operation,” Pigou said. “The demonstration was orchestrated.”

At the same time, Mnangagwa’s allies in the ruling ZANU-PF party lobbied for the removal of Mugabe as the party leader. At a Central Committee meeting Sunday, Mnangagwa was voted in as the new leader of the party, which had been led by Mugabe since 1977. In an interview with The Associated Press years ago, Mnangagwa was terse and stone-faced, backing up his reputation for saying little but acting decisively. Party insiders say that he can be charming and has friends of all colors. Mnangagwa joined the fight against white minority rule in Rhodesia while still a teen in the 1960s. In 1963, he received military training in Egypt and China. As one of the earliest guerrilla fighters against Ian Smith’s Rhodesian regime, he was captured, tortured and convicted of blowing up a locomotive in 1965.

Sentenced to death by hanging, he was found to be under 21, and his punishment was commuted to 10 years in prison. He was jailed with other prominent nationalists including Mugabe. While imprisoned, Mnangagwa studied through a correspondence school. After his release in 1975, he went to Zambia, where he completed a law degree and started practicing. Soon he went to newly independent Marxist Mozambique, where he became Mugabe’s assistant and bodyguard. In 1979, he accompanied Mugabe to the Lancaster House talks in London that led to the end of Rhodesia and the birth of Zimbabwe. “Our relationship has over the years blossomed beyond that of master and servant to father and son,” Mnangagwa wrote this month of his relationship with Mugabe.

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Mugabe steps down...


Zimbabwe Awaits New President
November 22, 2017 - Zimbabwe could have a new president as early as Wednesday following the resignation of longtime leader Robert Mugabe.

Top officials in the ruling ZANU-PF party said former Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa will be sworn in either Wednesday or Thursday. Mnangagwa abruptly fled the country November 6 after Mugabe fired him, but he was expected to return Wednesday. Car horns blared as people danced, cheered and waved in the capital, Harare, to celebrate the news of Mugabe's departure, which he announced Tuesday in a letter read out by the speaker of parliament. One man told VOA's Zimbabwe service: "This is a breakthrough...We are super excited as Zimbabweans and we want to thank God. Our prayers have been answered. We have suffered a lot for 37 years."

Speaker Jacob Mudenda read out the resignation letter soon after lawmakers began proceedings to impeach Mugabe, who had been in power for 37 years. The letter said in part, "I, Robert Gabriel Mugabe, in terms of Section 96 of the constitution of Zimbabwe, hereby formally tender my resignation...with immediate effect." There has been no confirmation of the letter from the president or his office -- but no denial, either. The 93-year-old Mugabe had ruled Zimbabwe since the country won independence from Britain in 1980.

History of rights violations

The president was often criticized for human rights abuses that included the beatings, torture and killings of his political opponents. Western countries imposed sanctions on Mugabe and his allies after his supporters began seizing white-owned farmland in 2000. Zimbabwe's farm output and economy plummeted when the land was given to blacks with little experience in large-scale farming. Criticism intensified in 2008, after inflation reached 231 million percent and Zimbabwe was forced to abandon its currency, the Zimbabwean dollar. The country experienced new economic problems in recent years, as corruption and Mugabe's heavy-handed economic policies scared away investors. The U.S. embassy in Zimbabwe called Tuesday a historic moment for Zimbabwe and said the country must move toward free elections in which Zimbabweans choose their own leaders. The U.S. State Department echoed the sentiment. "The resignation of Robert Mugabe is a historic opportunity, and historic moment for the people of Zimbabwe. The people of Zimbabwe have firmly voiced their desire for a new era to bring an end to Zimbabwe's isolation and allow the country to rejoin the international community,"

State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert said. British Prime Minister Theresa May released a statement that said Mugabe's resignation gives Zimbabwe the opportunity to pursue a path free of oppression. Rights group Amnesty International said the next generation of leaders in Zimbabwe must abide by the constitution and treat the population with respect. Mugabe had faced growing pressure to resign since last week, when the military took over state institutions and put him and his wife Grace under house arrest. The military took action after the president fired the vice president, Mnangagwa, a hero of Zimbabwe's liberation war, and hinted he would replace Mnangagwa with Grace Mugabe. The first lady and former vice president were locked in a political battle over who would succeed the aging president, and led competing factions in the ruling party.

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Zimbabwe's Mugabe resigns, ending four decades of rule
November 20, 2017 - Robert Mugabe, Zimbabwe’s longstanding authoritarian president, agreed to step down on Tuesday, according to the speaker of the nation’s parliament.

The announcement comes a little less than a week after the country’s military seized power, setting in motion an end to the 37-year rule of the world’s oldest serving president. Impeachment proceedings against Mugabe had already begun early Tuesday, but the speaker of parliament read a letter to lawmakers later in the day that he said came from the president and offered a formal resignation. “I, Robert Gabriel Mugabe, in terms of section 96 of the constitution of Zimbabwe, hereby formally tender my resignation,” the speaker said, reading from what he said was Mugabe’s letter.

Mugabe has yet to appear or speak publicly since the letter was read, and it marks a reversal from a long-winded speech he gave on Sunday when he refused to address the push for his resignation. Zimbabwe’s ruling ZANU-PF party had fired Mugabe as its leader earlier that day and expelled his politically powerful wife, Grace, from its ranks. Crowds of Zimbabweans gathered at Unity Square in the capital of Harare following the announcement of Mugabe’s resignation, cheering his ouster and waving signs.

Protesters hold signs during a gathering in Zimbabwe's capital of Harare on Nov. 21, 2017, calling for Mugabe to step down.

Once a celebrated freedom fighter, Mugabe has been accused of orchestrating human rights abuses against impoverished black Zimbabweans, white farmers and thousands of LGBTQ people while amassing vast wealth as the nation spiraled into poverty. His resignation is the culmination of a military action that began last week, when Zimbabwe’s armed forces seized control of state television, surrounded government buildings and detained the president in his home on Wednesday.

Military officials denied at the time that they were attempting to depose the 93-year-old president, arguing that they were only targeting “criminals” around him. But as time went on and Mugabe kept silent, it became increasingly clear the leader’s days in power were numbered. Zimbabwe’s state-run newspaper released photos on Thursday purporting to show negotiations between military officials and the president. Tension and uncertainty dominated the days that followed, as Mugabe officially remained president but the military was effectively in control. Mugabe further confused observers when he made a public appearance last Friday, attending a graduation ceremony for Zimbabwe Open University.

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Zimbabwe's Mugabe resigns, ending four decades of rule
November 20, 2017 - Robert Mugabe resigned as Zimbabwe’s president on Tuesday, a week after the army and his former political allies moved to end four decades of rule by a man once feted as an independence hero who became feared as a despot.

His former vice president, Emmerson Mnangagwa, whose sacking this month prompted the military takeover that forced Mugabe out, will be sworn in as president on Wednesday or Thursday, Patrick Chinamasa, legal secretary of the ruling ZANU-PF party, told Reuters. The 93-year-old Mugabe had clung on for a week after an army takeover, with ZANU-PF urging him to go. He finally resigned moments after parliament began an impeachment process seen as the only legal way to force him out. Wild celebrations broke out at a joint sitting of parliament when Speaker Jacob Mudenda read out Mugabe’s brief resignation letter. Mugabe, confined to his Harare residence, did not appear. People danced in the streets of Harare and car horns blared at the news that the era of Mugabe -- who had led Zimbabwe since independence in 1980 -- was finally over. Some brandished posters of Mnangagwa and army chief General Constantino Chiwenga.

Workers turned the Christmas lights on early in Africa Unity Square and people climbed aboard armored vehicles to pose for photographs with soldiers. Despite the public outpouring of joy, Mugabe’s downfall was as much the result of in-fighting among the political elite as a popular uprising, although thousands of people rallied against him in the days after the army intervened last week. The army seized power after Mugabe sacked Mnangagwa, ZANU-PF’s favorite to succeed him, in a bid to smooth a path to the presidency for his wife Grace, 52, known to her critics as “Gucci Grace” for her reputed fondness for luxury shopping. Since the crisis began, Mugabe has been mainly confined to his “Blue Roof” mansion in the capital where Grace is also believed to be. ZANU-PF chief whip Lovemore Matuke told Reuters that Mnangagwa would be sworn in within 48 hours and serve the remainder of Mugabe’s term until the next election, which must be held by September 2018.

“DIGNITY AND JUSTICE”

“I am very happy with what has happened,” said Maria Sabawu, a supporter of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), outside the hotel where the impeachment process was happening. “I have suffered a lot at the hands of Mugabe’s government,” she said, showing her hand with a missing finger that she said was lost in violence during a presidential run-off election between Mugabe and opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai in 2008. Mugabe had led Zimbabwe since a guerrilla struggle ended white-minority rule in the country formerly known as Rhodesia. He took the once-rich nation to economic ruin, presiding over the forced takeover of white-owned farms at the end of the century, which devastated agricultural foreign exchange earnings and led to hyperinflation.

But brandishing his anti-colonial credentials and styling himself the Grand Old Man of African politics, Mugabe retained the admiration of many people across the continent. Amnesty International said that under Mugabe tens of thousands of people were tortured, forcibly disappeared or killed in a culture of impunity that allowed “grotesque crimes to thrive”. “The people of Zimbabwe deserve better. The next generation of leaders must commit itself to upholding the constitution, living up to Zimbabwe’s international human rights obligations and treating its people with dignity and justice,” the rights group said in a statement.

DECADES OF ISOLATION

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Granny says, "Dat's right - new boss same as the old boss...

Mugabe’s Presumptive Successor, Emmerson Mnangagwa, is Called ‘the Crocodile’
November 21, 2017 — For 37 years, Emmerson Mnangagwa was Robert Mugabe’s right-hand man and one of his staunchest defenders.

“Zanu-PF is a sacred party,” he told a crowd at a ZANU-PF rally earlier this year in central Zimbabwe. “It will rule and rule. Those barking will continue doing that while Zanu-PF remains in power. Forward with Mr Mugabe. Forward with Zanu-PF.” What a difference a few months make.

Message loud and clear: MPs must work fast to remove Mugabe

This month, deposed Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa — nicknamed “the Crocodile” for his cunning guerrilla tactics in Zimbabwe’s independence war — led the effort to oust the longtime president and is expected to be sworn in as president Wednesday or Thursday following Mugabe's resignation. “I told the President that the current political and constitutional crisis in the country is not a matter between him and myself but between the people of Zimbabwe and President Mugabe,” he said in a statement sent to journalists Tuesday. “The people of Zimbabwe have clearly spoken on this matter. To me the voice of the people is the voice of God and their lack of trust and confidence in the leadership of President Mugabe has been expressed.”

Demonstrators says Mugabe has nothing for Zimbabwe

Last week, the military put Mugabe under house arrest, demanding Mnangagwa’s reinstatement and Mugabe’s resignation. The catalyst for that drastic move came earlier in the move, when Mugabe fired Mnangagwa — who is well-liked by the military — accusing him of treachery. The move was widely seen as an chance for Mugabe to fill the position with his unpopular, 52-year-old wife. But Mnangagwa is no young buck. Since 1980, he’s served in a handful of cabinet positions, including as intelligence chief, and was made vice president in 2014 after Mugabe fell out with his predecessor, Joice Mujuru, now also a bitter Mugabe critic.

Thokozani Khupe is the vicThokozani Khupe is the vice president of the main opposition party, the Movement for Democratic Change talking to reporters at Parliament. She says her party is happy that it has finally dawned on ZANU-PF that this is the hour that has dawned that Mugabe must go

Mnangagwa’s investiture, in fact, would settle a bitter generational power struggle within the ruling party. One faction, of liberation-era fighters turned politicians, is led by Mnangagwa, who earned his nickname in 1965, the year Grace Mugabe was born. The other, the G40 faction, of younger Zimbabweans, was led by Grace and enjoyed privileged access to Mugabe. Chris Mutsvangwa, head of the influential war veterans’ association, said they are supporting Mnangagwa. He blamed the nation’s spiraling economy on the poor leadership of the younger faction. “They have no idea of how to run a modern state, so they’ve run a scorched-earth policy on the economy,” he said. “...But what we have done with my leadership of the war veterans … is to give back the people of Zimbabwe their conscience, because they look to the people who fought and liberated them for guidance. And when we then said there’s something wrong with this man and his wife, the team, the cabal called the G40.”

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