"Namibia silent"

on the violence in Zimbabwe

says the paper today, featuring an alarming picture of a smashed-up leader of Zimbabwe's opposition.

Yes indeed. What would you expect of a place which maintains diplomatic and/or friendly relations with :

• Cuba
• Venezuela
• Algeria
• Libya
• Iran
• North Korea

That's about it (the latest Westerm ambassador to ship out being that of Sweden) - but of course including Zimbabwe, whose President was feted in the country a scant two weeks ago. All countries whose representatives are unlikely to be invited to President Bush's birthday party.

Even South Africa and Zambia have made some mild demurrings.

So what is the matter with for instance the US military. Instead of getting bogged down for years in Iraq, they could have made themselves an easy job - a Zimbabwean regime change (from their well-equipped bases in Botswana?). Everything could have been finished by morning coffee-time and President Mugabe could have met an unfortunate mishap by accidentally jumping out of a 6th floor window. What about continuing their flight to rubble-ise the new State House, which is of course a site and a front for the North Koreans to continue their nuclear research ( > ).

Will never happen of course. Zim has no oil.