The treatment of disease is obviously more important than deadly violence… in Zimbabwe, at least.

I was disgusted to read that UNICEF and Mugabe’s ‘government’ have launched an awareness campaign about cholera in Zimbabwe, now that 120 people have died from that disease.

I have no objection to the health organisations and humanitarian bodies looking to prevent further deaths, but what angers me is that we have all of these bodies responding to these deaths - all avoidable if Mugabe had reset his priorities – but what reaction did we have to the political violence earlier this year when somewhere in the region of 130 MDC supporters and activists lost their lives?

I will never criticise any body for looking at educating a population about a killer disease, but find the whole thing lacking when the free world did virtually nothing to stop the violence and killings earlier in the year.

My late father was a consultant in tropical diseases - including leprosy, tuberculosis and cholera. In the late 1970’s, some of you may remember the cholera outbreak in the Sabi area in the Lowveld in Rhodesia. It was my father that oversaw the eradication of the disease at that time.

From my limited understanding, cholera is a terrible disease and an equally terrible death. My heart goes out to the families of those that have died.

But my heart also goes out to those who lost members of their families in the political violence orchestrated by Mugabe-ites earlier this year.

It angers me that international bodies are prepared to look at a preventative programme for the disease of cholera, while the cause for the 130 deaths remains ever-present and in office.

Does the watching world not have a conscience?

Are the activities of Mugabe and his ZANU PF party acceptable to the watching world?

And therein lies the problem - the world SITS and WATCHES…

Robb WJ Ellis
The Bearded Man