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Was Zimbabwe better off becoming a “democracy”

Posted on 5/15/25 at 8:06 am
Posted by burger bearcat
Member since Oct 2020
9994 posts
Posted on 5/15/25 at 8:06 am
Rhodesia was a colonial state that didn’t grant full democracy to all the people that lived there. The US and UK forced Rhodesia to giving full democracy to black population. Shortly after Mugabe took over the country went into turmoil, with the military slaughtering innocent people and the country descending into financial collapse and hyper inflation.

I volunteer and work with a charity that provides support to disabled people in 3rd world countries. When they go into Zimbabwe, they have to go in covertly because if the government knows they are giving aid, supplies, or anything they confiscate it. If they build homes or buildings, the government confiscates it. So there are disabled children that have to live in the landfill just so they can eat.

Would the good hearted liberals be willing to acknowledge that they were better off under the white-minority rule of Rhodesia?
This post was edited on 5/15/25 at 8:22 am
Posted by AU86
Member since Aug 2009
24628 posts
Posted on 5/15/25 at 8:09 am to
Rhodesia was once known as the Gem of Africa. Agriculture there was very productive.

Mugabe was a communist.

The government in South Africa helped sell them out to try to save themselves. Rhodesia was sacrificed.
This post was edited on 5/15/25 at 8:12 am
Posted by TrueTiger
Chicken's most valuable
Member since Sep 2004
76966 posts
Posted on 5/15/25 at 8:09 am to

Westernized dictatorship v. Tribal warlord system.


Hmmm.
Posted by BarberitosDawg
Lee County Florida across causeway
Member since Oct 2013
12077 posts
Posted on 5/15/25 at 8:10 am to
quote:

Rhodesia was a colonial state that didn’t grant full democracy to all the people that lived there.


Stopped reading right there.
Posted by TheHarahanian
Actually not Harahan as of 6/2023
Member since May 2017
21687 posts
Posted on 5/15/25 at 8:11 am to
Sounds like there were forces within Zimbabwe that saw an opportunity for themselves, and didn’t care about democracy at all.

Might makes right.
This post was edited on 5/15/25 at 8:14 am
Posted by Seldom Seen
Member since Feb 2016
46907 posts
Posted on 5/15/25 at 8:14 am to
Posted by KiwiHead
Auckland, NZ
Member since Jul 2014
33125 posts
Posted on 5/15/25 at 8:14 am to
In fairness to Mugabe, he fought a civil war in the bush so he kinda earned it....sort of . Smith's government of whites along with moderate blacks, although winning were strangled by the US and UK to an extent that winning was not going to be enough. Plus after 1975 it was going to be tough to manage the Civil War as pressure ramped up and Mozambique next door gained its independence from Portugal and the weapons pouring in began to increase....as well as safe havens for Mugabe's people.
Posted by BlueFalcon
Aberdeen Scotland
Member since Dec 2011
3000 posts
Posted on 5/15/25 at 8:17 am to
quote:

Would the good hearted liberals be willing to acknowledge that they were better off under the white-minority rule of Rhodesia?


No, the Left will double down and simply blame White People even while Africans themselves say they were better off
Posted by Vacherie Saint
Member since Aug 2015
43877 posts
Posted on 5/15/25 at 8:27 am to
Everyone should read this book about what went down in Rhodesia

Posted by CleverUserName
Member since Oct 2016
14593 posts
Posted on 5/15/25 at 8:29 am to
quote:

Rhodesia was a colonial state that didn’t grant full democracy to all the people that lived there. The US and UK forced Rhodesia to giving full democracy to black population. Shortly after Mugabe took over the country went into turmoil, with the military slaughtering innocent people and the country descending into financial collapse and hyper inflation.



This the history of Rhodesia or Jackson, MS? Sounds like an identical situation
Posted by VOR
Member since Apr 2009
65772 posts
Posted on 5/15/25 at 8:31 am to
In the long term, yes, democracy is better…
Posted by Powerman
Member since Jan 2004
165414 posts
Posted on 5/15/25 at 8:33 am to
quote:

In the long term, yes, democracy is better…

Not really a ton of examples of effective democracies
Posted by VOR
Member since Apr 2009
65772 posts
Posted on 5/15/25 at 8:35 am to
The U.S. has been until very recently, but we’ll endure. And yes, the U.S. is a democratic republic.
Posted by LemmyLives
Texas
Member since Mar 2019
10340 posts
Posted on 5/15/25 at 8:51 am to
quote:

The US and UK forced Rhodesia to giving full democracy to black population

To be fair, most of the Western world was on this train, even when locals would warn the colonial governments that the locals weren't ready yet, and needed another decade of the rule of law, etc.

The Last Imperialist by Gilley was also great.
Posted by Aubie Spr96
lolwut?
Member since Dec 2009
43307 posts
Posted on 5/15/25 at 8:51 am to
Best book recommendation. I love this book and it gives a personal account of how Rhodesia collapsed.
Posted by Tantal
Member since Sep 2012
17735 posts
Posted on 5/15/25 at 8:52 am to
quote:

Rhodesia was a colonial state that didn’t grant full democracy to all the people that lived there.


Stopped reading right there.

Why? It's exactly correct.

The Rhodesian government wanted to integrate blacks politically, but they were attempting to do it more slowly than Western powers were comfortable with. Their reasoning was that democracy is a white Western concept that the Africans don't understand. They were attempting to educate the blacks before giving them political power. Unfortunately, the U.S. and U.K. wanted it done immediately, which gave them Mugabe.
Posted by Powerman
Member since Jan 2004
165414 posts
Posted on 5/15/25 at 8:53 am to
quote:

The U.S. has been until very recently

We're a constitutional republic, not a democratic republic. We do have a democratic process but it has limited power and for good fricking reason.
Posted by Crimson Wraith
Member since Jan 2014
27765 posts
Posted on 5/15/25 at 8:54 am to
How are things in the Dem Rep of the Congo?
Posted by Jack Ruby
Member since Apr 2014
25405 posts
Posted on 5/15/25 at 9:09 am to
Just because:

Posted by TROLA
BATON ROUGE
Member since Apr 2004
13937 posts
Posted on 5/15/25 at 9:11 am to
The lessons throughout history have repeatedly shown that for democracy to work, it need to be organic. As crazy as it sounds to most of us, some people can’t grasp the sacrifices democracy demands for it to establish the roots to grow.. I feel very blessed to have been born in a place and time that only requires maintenance of democracy not creation..
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