"Despotic Rulers Can't Live Forever"

President Robert Mugabe refused Tuesday to give into pressure from Africa and the West, saying the world can "shout as loud as they like" but he would not cancel this week's runoff election even though his opponent quit the race.

South Africa's ruling party issued a toughly worded statement calling on Mugabe's government to stop "riding roughshod" over the opposition headed by Morgan Tsvangirai, who quit the presidential contest and sought shelter in the Dutch Embassy.

The African National Congress also warned against international intervention following a report in the Times of London that Britain has drawn up contingency plans for deploying troops in Zimbabwe to resolve a humanitarian crisis and to evacuate British nationals and their dependents.

"A lasting solution has to be led by the Zimbabweans and any attempts by outside players to impose regime change will merely deepen the crisis," the ANC said.

It singled out Britain, the colonial power when Zimbabwe was still Rhodesia, saying it had not followed through on pledges to help fund efforts to put more land in the hands of black Zimbabweans. Britain has cited concerns about corruption.

Campaigning Tuesday, Mugabe was defiant a day after the U.N. Security Council voted unanimously to issue a strongly worded statement condemning violence against the opposition and saying it made a fair poll impossible. The statement won support from South Africa, China and Russia, which have previously blocked such moves.

Mugabe, a vigorous 84, kicked a soccer ball before thousands of cheering supporters and declared he would not back down.

"We will proceed with our election, the verdict is our verdict. Other people can say what they want, but the elections are ours. We are a sovereign state, and that is it," Mugabe said.

"Those who will want to recognize us on the basis of objectivity will do so. Those who don't, keep your judgment to yourselves. Our people are going to vote, and that vote will decide whether we have won or lost."

In pulling out of the race Sunday, Tsvangirai said an onslaught of state-sponsored violence against his Democratic Movement for Change made competing in the runoff impossible.

Tsvangirai told the Dutch national broadcaster NOS radio Tuesday that the Dutch ambassador had spoken to the Zimbabwean government and received assurances there was no threat. Tsvangirai said he might leave the embassy Tuesday or Wednesday.

But the U.S. ambassador to Zimbabwe, James McGee, said Tsvangirai should be wary of government assurances and that violence was escalating against the opposition as election day approaches.

"There's really nothing that we can do in the international community to stop these elections," McGee told reporters, adding that the embassy expected Mugabe militants to force voters to go to the polls Friday, and to attack anyone who does not.

McGee said the Southern African Development Community, and South Africa as a leading member of that bloc, should speak out with words as "firm and as hard-hitting" as Monday's U.N. Security Council statement.

Zimbabwe's neighbors may have more influence than the U.N., McGee said, adding that Zimbabwe is a landlocked country and vulnerable to actions such as border closings.

"Regional bodies have tremendous influence," McGee said. "There are so many things that could be brought to bear, that could have a tremendous, immediate impact on the government of Zimbabwe."

     Thirty years ago Zimbabwe, then Rhodesia, could blame British colonialism for the suffering of native black Zimbabweans. Today Zimbabweans can blame one man, the thirty year despotic President and former revolutionary, Robert Mugabe. True to the paradigm of all revolutionary leaders that become Presidents, the country these leaders served so well as revolutionaries is now corrupted and bankrupt by the nationalism and egos of leaders like Robert Mugabe, Fidel Castro, Hugo Chavez and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. As painful as it is to see the people of Zimbabwe suffer under Mugabe's rule, it is not in either America's or Zimbabwe's best interests for America to interfere in the affairs of that troubled African nation. In my opinion, America should work through UN and regional African nations condemnations, sanctions or peace keeping efforts and just wait to this eighty four year old despot dies. A new day is coming for Zimbabwe, if we keep the Faith. Despotic rulers can't live forever.

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