[A-List] only five?

[James Daly]

Zimbabwe angrily rejects Bush's remarks
Thu 2 February 2006

HARARE - The Zimbabwe government sounded defiant yesterday after being 
listed by United States (US) President George W Bush among governments 
oppressing their people, with State Security Minister Didymus Mutasa 
labelling the US president a bully and a warmonger.

In his annual State of the Union address delivered on Tuesday, Bush 
cited Zimbabwe among five countries that denied their people freedom 
and said the demands of justice and world peace required that the US 
and the rest of the free world not forget the plight of those living 
under dictatorship.

The other countries that Bush said did not have democracy are Syria, 
Burma, North Korea, and Iran.

DIDYMUS Mutasa . . . we are not moved by Bush's statement



"At the start of 2006, more than half the people of our world live in 
democratic nations. And we do not forget the other half - in places 
like Syria, Burma, Zimbabwe, North Korea, and Iran - because the 
demands of justice, and the peace of this world, require their freedom 
as well," the world's most powerful President said.

But Mutasa, one of the most powerful and closest confidantes of 
Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe, said Harare was unmoved by Bush's 
comments and accused the US leader of behaving like a bully.

Mutasa said: "We should not and cannot allow warmongers like Bush to 
tarnish the image of paragons of peace and democracy like President 
Mugabe. We are not moved by his statements. If anything, we are proud 
that we are not an ally of the neo-colonialist Bush, whom I can only 
describe as a bully."

The Harare government opposed Bush's war against terror and often 
tries to portray itself as a victim of the US the same way Saddam 
Hussein's Baghdad administration was victimised over weapons of mass 
destruction which turned out it did not have.

On the other hand, Washington has strongly criticised Mugabe and his 
ruling ZANU PF party for their failure to uphold the rule of law, 
human rights and democracy.

The US has led Western nations in imposing travel and economic 
sanctions against Mugabe and his top officials as punishment for their 
poor human rights record. Washington has also cut all non-humanitarian 
aid to Harare. - ZimOnline