HARARE (Reuters) - President Robert Mugabe warned critics on Tuesday that Zimbabwe's army stood ready to "pull the trigger" against anyone seeking to topple him as a mounting political and economic crisis raises fears of unrest. | Never doubted it for a moment, Bob |
Opposition leaders this year called for street protests to end Mugabe's long rule, which they say has reduced a country once seen one of the most promising in Africa to an economic basket-case. But the protests have yet to begin -- leaving political observers wondering if Zimbabweans are simply too cowed to take their grievances to the street.
Mugabe, speaking at a rally to mark the annual Defense Forces day, indicated those fears might be justified. "We want to remind those who might harbor any plans of turning against the government: be warned, we have armed men and women who can pull the trigger," the 82-year-old leader said, departing from his prepared text to deliver his warning in the local Shona language.
Zimbabwe suffers from the world's highest inflation rate of around 1,000 percent, unemployment above 70 percent and shortages of fuel, food and foreign exchange -- leaving most ordinary Zimbabweans reeling and the economy in freefall. But the main opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), which has come closest to unseating Mugabe, has been weakened by internal squabbles and a split last October over participation in Senate elections.
Mugabe has sent police and security troops to crush previous mass protests, most recently in 2003. |