Robert Mugabe humiliated as Zimbabwe parliament opens
The Telegraph
By Peta T*****croft In Harare
26 Aug 2008
The event, supposedly a grand occasion, opened with Mr Mugabe arriving
at parliament in a gleaming Rolls Royce, once used by Lord Soames, the
last Governor of Rhodesia.
Two dozen mounted soldiers rode alongside him and traditional chiefs,
clad in pith helmets, waited to greet him along with judges in wigs and
red gowns.
But MPs from the opposition Movement for Democratic Change snubbed Mr
Mugabe by staying firmly in their seats when he walked into the
chamber. They soon broke into song, denouncing his Zanu-PF party as
"rotten".
This was probably the first time that Mr Mugabe, who is ****elded from
public criticism, has ever faced an openly hostile audience.
He was jeered when he talked of the negotiations with the opposition,
mediated by President Thabo Mbeki of South Africa, which are now
stalled without agreement.
"Landmark agreements have been concluded, with every expectation that
everyone will sign up," he said, expressing his increasingly unlikely
hope that the MDC will sign up to deal.
The anger on the opposition benches rose to a crescendo as Mr Mugabe
launched into one of his characteristic denunciations of the West and
the supposed sanctions that he claims have reduced Zimbabwe to penury,
rather than his own mismanagement.
The volume reached its peak when Mr Mugabe referred to the carnage
inflicted by thugs loyal to him following the first round of the
presidential election in March, which saw the MDC leader Morgan
Tsvangirai pull out of a run-off.
"Happily, all political parties in the country have acknowledged
culpability in this violence," said Mr Mugabe.
"Zanu is rotten," sang the opposition MPs.
At times Mr Mugabe was drowned out by the heckling, having to raise his
voice to be heard, and with his humiliation broadcast live on
Zimbabwean state television for the entire nation to watch.
With MDC backbenchers drumming their hands on the seats in front of
them, Mr Mugabe displayed his characteristic ability to see events his
own way.
He told the house: “I wish to pay tribute to all Zimbabweans for having
exercised their democratic right in our recent election (jeers) in a
peaceful manner, notwithstanding the regrettable and isolated cases of
political violence (…inaudible through the heckling…) in the run-up to
the presidential election run-off.
“Happily all political parties in the country (jeers) have acknowledged
culpability in this violence, itself an im****tant step towards putting
behind us the odious habit of election-related violence,” he added, to
more heckling.
Over and over again, the MDC MPs chanted in harmony: “Zanu is rotten,
MDC is for the people.” Nonetheless Mr Mugabe is a past master at
hiding his emotions, and his features remained impassive. But Eldred
Masunungure, professor of political science at the University of
Zimbabwe, said: “He won’t take kindly to that. He is not used to that
sort of behaviour.
“It is happening in what is supposed to be an august house by august
MPs. Going by his track record he is likely to respond in quite a
vindictive manner.”
Mr Tsvangirai's party has been emboldened by its success in choosing
one of its own MPs, Lovemore Moyo, as Speaker of parliament. Instead of
boycotting the state opening, the MDC attended in order to allow Mr
Moyo to preside over the event.
"The pur****ted opening by Mugabe, the illegitimate usurper of the
people's will, is illegal and of no force and effect," said its
spokesman Nelson Chamisa.
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