LinkEmmerson Mnangagwa Former Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa congratulated Zimbabweans after former President Robert Mugabe resigned on Tuesday evening as pressure mounted for him to step down. Mnangagwa said that he is on his way back to Zimbabwe after going into self-imposed exile following his dismissal on 6 November. Said Mnangagwa:
I want to congratulate the people of Zimbabwe on reaching this historic moment. Together we will ensure a peaceful transition to the consolidation of our democracy, and bring in a fresh start for all Zimbabweans and foster peace and unity. As I make my way back home, I look forward together with you the people of Zimbabwe to tackle the political and economic challenges facing our beloved country Zimbabwe. God bless Zimbabwe.
Recall my mention of Mnangagwa being in South Africa? Flashback: What did South Africa Know About the Zimbabwe Coup?
"She said Mnangagwa was allowed to enter South Africa after he was fired and was then allowed to return to Zimbabwe after the military made its move on Tuesday, suggesting that South Africa had some knowledge of the developments"
Clearly South Africa's government was aware that a coup was going to take place, giving shelter and protection to Mnangagwa.What other nations shared that awareness?Flashback : Mugabe under "house arrest" Emmerson Mnangawa, Man of the HourIn this post I touched on the gold, diamonds and platinum resources of Zimbabwe Let's talk diamonds.From an older article, but, I've little reason to doubt the very big problem of an over abundance of diamonds in Zimbabwe had been appropriately dealt with under Mugabe.Aljazeera 2011-
Zimbabwe's $800bn Marange diamond fields may collapse the market if not soon brought within official channels. Supa Mandiwanzira, a representative of Zimbabwe's Diamond Consortium, stated that "we have the potential to destroy the whole industry" by flooding the markets. This was echoed by Zimbabwean Mines Minister Obert Mpofu, who catalysed a "walkout" by NGOs like PAC from the KP in June when he stated that diamonds would be sold with or without KP certification.
So, while for Western governments Zimbabwe presents a political problem, for the diamond industry (and diamond-producing nations) Zimbabwe presents a dangerous economic crisis in the making.
There's been talk that diamond interests were behind the coup.. quite possible.South Africa is also a diamond 'producing' nation- the shared interest in controlling the diamond market could see them playing a role in the coup- I cannot accept the idea that there were no outsiders involved in the overthrow of Mugabe.