Africa

Tuesday July 22, 2008

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, Editorial Cartoonist, The Hamilton Spectator – Tuesday July 22, 2008

Zimbabwe leaders sign deal on power-sharing talks

Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe signed an agreement to hold power-sharing talks with his opposition on Monday, a diplomatic breakthrough following almost three months of political instability.

A grim-looking Mugabe and smiling opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai signed the document in Harare, Zimbabwe’s capital, at about 3 p.m. local time. The agreement maps out conditions for talks that will lead to a unity government between the longtime president and the popularly supported opposition leader.

It was the first time in more than a decade that the bitter foes have met face to face.

The signing is “a positive step forward in the ongoing dialogue” to resolve the political and economic crisis that has plagued Zimbabwe for months, said South African foreign affairs spokesman Ronnie Mamoepa.

South African president Thabo Mbeki presided over the signing. His country has led the African Union’s effort to help Zimbabwe come to a peaceful resolution to the standoff, which began in March following highly contested elections.

Tsvangirai earned the most votes but pulled out of a widely contested June runoff vote following a rash of state-sponsored violence against his supporters

According to the opposition, post-election violence has left 120 people dead, thousands injured. They say rioting and property damage has put tens of thousands of Zimbabwe residents on the streets. (Source: CTV News) 

 

Wednesday June 26, 2008

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, Editorial Cartoonist, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday June 26, 2008

Mugabe believes he’s `appointed by God’

As African and Western countries struggle to find a plan to remove Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe – before he declares himself winner of an uncontested election Friday – the aging strongman is turning on his people with renewed ferocity.

Observers are calling it the last thrash of a regime that has beaten, starved and murdered Zimbabweans for years. And observers say the violence may continue even if he is ousted.

Mugabe, 84 and reportedly in poor health, considers himself “appointed by God,” and says he will never give up power. But he is under increasing pressure from his neighbours to step down.

Before a meeting of the United Nations Security Council yesterday, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged Mugabe to abandon the runoff election, after opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai withdrew his name and took shelter in the Netherlands embassy in Harare, saying he wanted to avoid deadly reprisals against his supporters.

“There has been too much violence and too much intimidation,” Ban told reporters. “A vote held in these conditions would lack all legitimacy.”

A draft statement tabled by Britain asked the council to give “full support” to Tsvangirai, in the absence of a legitimate runoff. In the first round of voting in March, his Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) won a parliamentary victory, but the electoral commission said he had too few votes to win the presidency outright. (Source: Toronto Star) 

Commentary by Graeme MacKay, June 27, 2008

Summer is the time for international cartoons, among other subjects I’ve written about on this blog. Here and here and here, too. Throughout the year I tend to draw on local and national events before I’ll consider drawing on other stuff going on in the world. There are regions of the world where I deliberately stay away from commenting on because the complexity of certain situations simply baffles me. The situation around Israel is a prime example. Perhaps when I was newer at cartooning I’d attempt to do something on the whatever peace process was being negotiated upon between Israel and the Palestinians. Now, however, I’ve joined others who may be fatigued by it all and wondering why such a tiny piece of the planet gets so much attention.

By comparison, the political situation in Zimbabwe is so uncomplex it makes it so easy to comment on. Having a despot control any country in the 21st century makes for an easy target for editorial cartoonists. The degree to which they cling to power makes it even easier.

In Mugabe’s case, it’s not just how he clings to power that is so outrageous, it’s the fact that he clings to the one noble ideal that energized him to rally the black majority of Rhodesia … 40 years ago, when Zimbabwe was controlled by a white minority of British colonialists (before reforms brought in by Ian Smith). He courageously fought against minority rule, and spent time in jail for his outspokeness, much like Nelson Mandela in South Africa. Consequently, he became a hero and rose to become leader of a new nation in the horn of Africa in 1980.

It sounds like the foundation of what could have been the rise of a great African hero, doesn’t it? But from the start to the conclusion of the 2008 election of Mugabe’s reign over Zimbabwe tactics of violent intimidation have been so blatantly used to keep him in power. The expropriation of white owned farms, disasterious economic policies leading to unbelieveable inflation, food shortages, oil shortages, internal displacement and starvation are all part of Mugabe’s Zimbabwe. The best he can do to deal with these problems is to harken back to the one ideal he started with 40 years ago — that it’s the colonists fault and now the west is only fueling the problems.

That’s Mugabe’s 28 year reign in a nutshell. Pretty straightforward stuff.

But even now the blaming of Zimbabwe’s problems on colonials, the west, and generally the “white man”, Mugabe has gone to new lengths of legitimizing his power as a God given right. A modern day absolute monarch – the exact same people who sent colonials around to settle far off lands and oppress the people in the name of a king ruling by divine right. Another easy international cartoon, and yet so outrageous it’s actually going on before our eyes.

 

Wednesday June 4, 2008

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, Editorial Cartoonist, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday June 4, 2008

Food summit delegates enjoy banquet dinner

After a day spent debating the world food crisis, the 40 heads of government taking part in the UN food summit were rewarded with a banquet at a palazzo designed by Raphael.

The leaders sat down to dinner in the frescoed halls of the Villa Madama, a sprawling palace on the lower slopes of Monte Mario in Rome.

Robert Mugabe was not invited to the banquet, which was hosted by Silvio Berlusconi and Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary general.

The Zimbabwean leader brought his own cadre of chefs and waiters with him to Rome, and installed them in the kitchen of the five-star Hotel Ambasciatori Palace, where he has a suite.

A source at the hotel said the Zimbabwean delegation had brought “crates” of African food with them and were dining in their rooms.

Earlier, the heads of government sat down to a decidedly more modest lunch than the one served at the 2005 food summit in Rome.

Delegates were served vol au vents with sweetcorn and mozzarella, paté of crevettes and pumpkin, veal with cherry tomatoes, spinach and then a fruit salad. (Source: Telegraph) 

 

Tuesday December 4, 2007

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, Editorial Cartoonist, The Hamilton Spectator – Tuesday December 4, 2007

Aus eager to ratify Kyoto protocol

About 180 nations are in Bali seeking a breakthrough for a new global pact to fight climate change by 2009 and they’re facing all the same old problems.

An ovation for Australia at the UN conference on Climate Change after the country’s new government agreed to immediately ratify the Kyoto Protocol ending Australia’s long-held opposition to the global climate agreement.

Now, the United States is isolated as the only developed nation, which has not agreed to the pact.

However, some say even Australia been too late in agreeing and whatever it will do now will be too little.

Under the Kyoto treaty developing nations have no fixed targets, but the US has been asking India and China to cut their emissions down to binding targets.

Something the two countries, along with other emerging economies like Brazil and South Africa say is unfair and unrealistic.

So, as the two week conference progresses in Bali much of what happens behind closed doors will revolve around nuances, with debates over words like ”commitment” and ”mandatory.” (Source: Toronto Sun) 

 

Thursday August 2, 2007

August 2, 2007

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, Editorial Cartoonist, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday August 2, 2007

U.N. Authorizes Peacekeeping Troops for Darfur

The U.N. Security Council voted unanimously Tuesday to authorize a force of about 26,000 U.N. peacekeepers to help end more than four years of violence in the Darfur region of Sudan, which has left hundreds of thousands dead and forced millions from their homes.

The U.N. mission, one of the largest in the organization’s history, would assume authority by Dec. 31 over a force of about 7,000 African Union peacekeepers who have struggled to protect civilians. But U.N. officials said that it could be several more months beyond the deadline before the full force is deployed and that stemming the violence will be impossible without a political settlement between the government in Khartoum and numerous rebel factions.

The Security Council resolution grants the peacekeeping mission authority to use military force to protect its personnel, guarantee the safe travel of aid workers and provide protection for civilians. Hours before the text was adopted, the House voted to pass a bill that would shield investors and state and local governments in the United States from lawsuits if they divest funds invested in companies doing business in Sudan or Iran. (Source: Washington Post)

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