Malema visit shows ANC an ally of Mugabe
By Denford Magora
South African ANC Youth League leader, Julius Malema, who has been in Zimbabwe visiting ZANU PF and Robert Mugabe says he will not stop singing the song “Kill The Boer”(Boer being a generic term for white people in South Africa).
Malema was responding to reports from South Africa that the killing of Eugene Tereblanche, of the South African White Supremacist organisation AWB, was linked to his singing of the song. “We will continue to sing that song, “he said.
For good measure, Malema also insulted the MDC-T of Morgan Tsvangirai, saying “they started it” by “calling a press conference in Sandton” (Johannesburg).
“I am visiting my friends,”Malema told local media, adding that the MDC-T can not “force me to visit you.”
The ANC Youth leader also attended a rally in Mbare, a poor township in Harare, over the Easter holidays, where he sang the song that is causing so much grief for him back home. He says those who want to assassinate him will find him “ready”.
During his meeting with Mugabe, Malema was told by the Zimbabwean president that he must not allow “imperialists”to ride roughshod over him and was praised for his stance of calling for the nationalisation of mines in South Africa.
Malema is a key ally of South African president Jacob Zuma, which gives the lie to the wishful thinking in Zimbabwe and elsewhere that Zuma is going to act tough against Mugabe any time soon.
The truth of the matter, as I have often pointed out, is that Mugabe’s ally in South Africa is the ANC. It does not matter who is leading the ANC, the organisation remains tied with an umbilical cord to Mugabe and ZANU PF, as a fellow liberation movement.
Previously, when Mbeki was president, there were suggestions, including from analysts based in South Africa (such as Glen, whom I participated with in an interview on SW Radio), who insisted that Zuma would be harder on Mugabe than Mbeki was seen to be. I have always disputed this, and pointed to the fact that Zuma, before becoming president, told an audience in America that the “quiet diplomacy”policy was not a policy of Thabo Mbeki, but a policy of the ANC.
It is unthinkable that the situation is going to change any time soon, no matter what anybody tells you. Zuma is now being even more vocal in calling for the lifting of sanctions against Mugabe than Mbeki ever was.
But of course, telling Zimbabweans any of this is a waste of time. They take their wishes and make them horses, these Zimbabweans and will argue with you until they are blue in the face on a matter that is crystal clear, such as this one.
But time always proves some of us right.
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Finally, as you can tell, I am back, after some time off to take care of business.
I am, of course, very moved by the genuine interest expressed by so many of you in not only my welfare, but also the future of this blog. Messages were left on my Facebook wall, emails sent to me and even phone calls placed from London, Gaborone and Cape Town to check up on me!!
Like I said, all is well and I have been offline for two reasons, the first being what I have just mentioned above: taking care of some business. Secondly, I have been completely without internet access for some time now (since about the beginning of February). But that has now all been resolved and I hope to continue updating all those who had started to get withdrawal symptoms!
Till next time.
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