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Thursday, March 31, 2005

# Posted 12:15 AM by Ariel David Adesnik  

NOW RETURN THE FAVOR: There was a time when the West imposed sanctions on South Africa because it was a racial dictatorship. The United States resisted at first, but it eventually went along with the effort, which helped transform the apartheid state into one of Africa's flagship democracies.

So why is Thabo Mbeki, who never could have become president of South Africa if not for an international commitment to democracy and justice, unable to criticize Robert Mugabe, the thug in charge of neighboring Zimbabwe? Now, Mbeki may turn out to be right that Thursday's parliamentary election in Zimbabwe will be relatively fair. But Mugabe will still be president regardless of the outcome, so Mbeki will have plenty of chances to show that doesn't just care about democracy when he is its beneficiary.
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