Mbeki tells Bush to 'butt out'

2008-05-29 14:45

Cape Town - President Thabo Mbeki has accused US President George W Bush of interfering in Zimbabwe, telling the US to "butt out, that Africa belongs to him", according to a US official.

Mbeki reportedly sent the four-page letter to Bush in late April, following the Zimbabwean elections, criticising Bush for taking sides against Robert Mugabe's government and disrespecting the views of the Zimbabwean people, according to Washington Post columnist Michael Gerson.

In his column, Gerson quoted a US official who said Mbeki had written that "it was not our business", and another official as saying that "Mbeki lost it; it was outrageous".

"Rather than co-ordinating strategy to end Zimbabwe's nightmare, Mbeki criticised the United States in a text packed with exclamation points," Gerson wrote.

White House working on a response

A US embassy official in Pretoria confirmed to News24 on Thursday that the White House had received the four-page letter, and that President Bush's office was working on a response to it.

The official said she hadn't seen the letter and could not comment on its contents personally, but said she understood the White House disagreed with certain points, and felt that the US could play an important role in the region and in Zimbabwe.

Repeated attempts to get comment from the Presidency failed, as Mbeki and his spokesperson, Mukoni Ratshitanga, are out of the country, but the Star reported that Ratshitanga said he had no knowledge of the letter.

SA a 'rogue democracy'

In his column, Gerson also said South Africa has actively blocked United Nations discussions on human rights abuses in Zimbabwe - as well as in other countries such as Belarus, Cuba, North Korea and Uzbekistan. South Africa was the only democracy to vote against a resolution over Myanmar, he added.

South Africa is increasingly becoming a rogue democracy, and along with China and Russia, makes the United Nations impotent, and sides with despots, Gerson wrote.

"South Africa remains an example of freedom - while devaluing and undermining the freedom of others. It is the product of a conscience it does not display," Gerson said.

- News24