Chinese arms/repression in Zimbabwe

In this post, and more recently in a comment here, I was optimistic about the capacity of the South African proletariat to act in solidarity with the dissenters in Zimbabwe, and in this post I was critical of the South African regimes complicity in bolstering Mugabe.

Today, I read this at Freeborn John:

South African newspaper The Weekender reported on Saturday that:

the Zimbabwean government confirmed that three million rounds of assault rifle ammunition, 3 000 mortar rounds and 1 500 rocket-propelled grenades - ordered from the Chinese government - had arrived in Harare.[...]
SAS Drakensberg is a South African Navy ship, so it's hard to see how Mbeki isn't complicit, even if he didn't directly order the refuelling.

Read the rest, including the British connection, via Avient, "controversial business, run by a former British army officer, Andrew Smith. They have been accused of bombing civilians in the Congo in 2006" and may or may not be linked to the transportation of arms into Zimbabwe.

Comments

Martin Meenagh said…
oh no. I shared your feelings about this Bob. What a shame. Alongside the racist necklacing and rioting in SA over the past week this is very depressing, but it should be given greater currency.
Glad to see you back after the post-election hiatus by the way. At least that's a good thing.

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