| Make It Stick |
22 September 2003
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Zimbabwe Judge Orders Paper Re-Opened
Not even judges are wrong all the time, but one needs to visit Zimbabwe to see them actually doing the right thing in the right way. The tinpot dictator who has been running the country down, Mr. Robert Mugabe, closed The Daily News , a local newspaper, for being, well, critical. Zimbabwe's high court ordered the government to let the paper publish.
The one thing that a jackbooted thug like Mr. Mugabe cannot permit is criticism. Not in print, not in speech, not even whispered in the privacy of one's home. It is a short step from criticizing policy, to proposing changes, and if that happens, changing the name of the president is at the top of the list. Mr. Mugabe hasn't been president for decades by letting that sort of thing get started.
So, the government (which controls the nation's two other newspapers and its radio station and TV outlet) sent in the police, and they took about 120 computers away. The court said they have to return the equipment as well as let the journalists do what they do.
The next move is likely to be ugly. Mr. Mugabe can arrest the high court, change the laws on journalists and try again, or perhaps, some other person whose patriotism cannot be denied may just burn the paper's offices and plant to the ground. Forecasting the details is hard, but the immediate future is clear. Mr. Mugabe has wrecked his country, and it is obvious to everyone. His overthrow will follow if there is any ability for communication between centers of resistance. He must, therefore, prevent this.
If the judges are faced with prison, fines or other sanction, they may wish to go into exile. The judiciary of the US could use a few sound minds, and jobs on the Federal bench await.
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