Mugabe's Ominous Threat

Nothing stands between Robert Mugabe and his tight grip on the nation of Zimbabwe. He's doing everything imaginable to hold on to power, despite evidence showing that he lost elections earlier this year to the opposition party led by Morgan Tsvangirai.

Mugabe's thugs have murdered those in the opposition, including the wife of one of Tsvangirai's deputies. They've attacked US and British diplomats.

They threaten the opposition on a daily basis claiming that the opposition is engaging in treason.

Now, Mugabe is getting a boost from his military, by sweeping across the country and the intimidation is sure to cast yet more doubt on the outcome of elections scheduled for June 27.

STATE security forces reportedly deployed countrywide on a military-style campaign to rescue beleaguered President Robert Mugabe ahead of the critical presidential election run-off have taken an increasingly active role in a bid to block opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai from succeeding as the next president of Zimbabwe.

This has poisoned the campaign environment and dramatically tilted the playing field ahead of the run-off in two weeks' time. There is now a pervasive climate of fear surrounding the poll as the wave of terror rippling through the rural areas rises.

He's also on the record saying that the opposition will never rule Zimbabwe. That should be a tipoff to anyone interested in human rights, election fraud, and democracy in Africa that Mugabe is engaging in nothing less than a dictatorship. Let's be absolutely clear, what Mugabe is doing is nothing less than declaring a war to keep the opposition from power despite holding elections that showed him and his political party losing.

He's arrested Tsvangirai for the third time this week.

Zimbabwe's neighbors haven't exactly been helpful in prodding Mugabe to give up - South Africa continues to stand behind Mugabe despite all the evidence showing that Mugabe is up to no good.

While Mugabe claims that the opposition is engaging in treason, the real criminal here is Mugabe, who is intent on holding a coup to retain power indefinitely.

It is to South Africa's eternal shame that their leadership supports this dictator instead of stopping this crisis in its tracks by pushing for Mugabe to exit peacefully. Instead, the likelihood of violence only increases with each passing day.