Mugabe’s just a pawn in a game The US and Britain have criticised Zimbabwe’s President Robert Mugabe attending the global food summit in Rome by describing his presence as “obscene”, and accusing him of “profound misrule”, causing 4-million of his people to be reliant on food aid. Yet the immense suffering of Zimbabweans cannot be entirely the fault of Mugabe.
The World Bank’s Development Report reveals the gap between affluent and deprived nations in the global economy is so great that the GNP of the 50 Least Developed Countries (LDC) does not exceed half of the per capita income of any developed country. In many of the developing countries in Asia and Africa almost 50% of the population live below the poverty line of less than a $1 a day. In most countries, including South Africa, the richest 20% control over 60% of the national wealth.
This divide between rich and poor countries does not stem solely from political misrule, but also from the structural distortions and policies by the developed capitalist nations. Protectionism and tariff measures to block imports from LDCs ensure the continued exploitation by the elitist rich countries.
It is this unjust, unequal and rapacious capitalist system controlled by the Western world that devours the developing world’s enormous resources, creating starvation, exploitation, instability, oppression and misery.
Leaders such as Mugabe are mere pawns in a vicious game.
Dr Firoz Osman
Tshwane
Published on the web by Star on June 4, 2008. ——————————————————————————–© Star 2008. All rights reserved.
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