cover photo by Reuters/Mike Hutchings
Zimbabwe (MNN) ― Zimbabwe's president Robert Mugabe wasted no time being sworn into his sixth term Sunday. He took his oath of office following what the international community called a "sham" election.
This week, he's attending an African Union Summit in hopes that he will boost his regime's legitimacy. The AU, meanwhile, is quietly moving forward, hoping to find a resolution to the situation without more bloodshed.
One consideration is a power-sharing government between Mugabe and his opponent, Morgan Tsvangirai. Sanctions are also being considered.
Charles Debter with Global Aid Network, or GaiN USA, spoke to a ministry partner in Zimbabwe in the resounding silence following Friday's vote. "Groups of youth were roaming the streets. If a person was stopped by them and couldn't recite a particular political slogan or sing a political song, they may be put in jail."
The threat of violence was great enough that Tsvangirai dropped out of the run-off after a campaign of state-sponsored violence against his supporters.
However, simply because there's been an inauguration doesn't mean things have totally settled down. The hint of turmoil lurks just beneath the surface. It has prompted Global Aid's partner to ask prayer for his team's safety and wisdom.
In the days following the one-man "election," the streets are still seeing far less traffic than normal. The political problem didn't just clear the streets. It also hampered the work of GAiN's ministry team.
Debter says, "There have been ministry volunteers who have been jailed because they were not able to recite those slogans. So we really need to pray for those believers who were working there, who want to be lights of Christ, but for whatever reasons might be stopped and harassed."
The political instability means short-term mission trips are on hold. Relief and encouragement that would be brought to the field workers waits, for now. In the meantime, as if the scarcity of goods wasn't difficult enough, inflation continues to skyrocket. Debter says $40USD is roughly exchanged for a trillion Zimbabwean dollars--and that won't even buy a pack of gum.
Click here if you can help support the team.
