Why All Three South-African Presidents Supported Robert Mugabe
On November 21, after 37 years in power, Zimbabwe’s dictator, Robert Mugabe, resigned in infamy. By contrast, the late South African leader, Nelson Mandela, was revered in the West. His successor, Thabo Mbeki, was well-respected. Yet over the decades, both Mandela and Mbeki lent their unqualified support to Mugabe. When the baton was passed from Mbeki to the populist polygamist Jacob Zuma, the current leader of South Africa’s dominant-party state, little changed in the country’s relationship with Zimbabwe. Why? And what is the significance of the support Zuma and his predecessors, Mandela and Mbeki, have lent the Zimbabwean dictator over… Keep Reading