For the cause of Zimbabwe

One can but wait. The situation in Zimbabwe has the feel of something dramatic about to happen, but it is otherwise difficult, from afar, to form any reliable expectation. The Guardian reports as fact a decision by Mugabe's security cabinet to block and reverse the opposition's electoral victory, citing '[d]iplomatic and Zimbabwean sources who heard first-hand accounts' of the meeting. The Times gives the same thing and from the same sources. A report from South Africa has Zanu-PF spokesperson Nathan Shamuyarira telling the press 'that the 84-year-old leader [Mugabe] is "optimistic, ready to rule, and preparing for his victory speech"'; while there are also rumours in Zimbabwe that Mugabe is preparing to flee the country.

It may be worth noting, meanwhile, that the Guardian of British liberalism does know how to indicate its solidarity when it wants to. Not only that. It's urging courage and resolution upon others, who may already know more about this than the leader-writer does:

If and when the moment comes to call for mass demonstrations, the MDC must be sure it can get people out on to the streets. Forever labelled passive, the long-suffering people of Zimbabwe have to take their country's fate into their hands. This will require considerable bravery because everyone knows how bodies like the JOC [Joint Operations Command] will react. If Zimbabweans have already shown their faith in the democratic process by trying to vote out a despotic regime, they have to stick to their cause in the coming weeks, and not abandon it.