New York Times
Before Zimbabwe's parliamentary elections last year, government thugs terrorized opposition activists for months, killing dozens. Now Zimbabwe is due to go to the polls again, possible as early as February, to elect a president. Robert Mugabe, the country's ruler for 21 years, is once again inciting violence and distorting the election laws.
Mr. Mugabe, Zimbabwe's independence leader, has become erratic, tyrannical and indifferent to the problems of ordinary people. Because of hyperinflation and soaring unemployment, many Zimbabweans now can afford to eat only one meal a day. Mr. Mugabe has tried to recapture public support by demonizing white farmers, encouraging the violent takeover of hundreds of their farms. Not surprisingly, food production has faltered.
In large part because of Zimbabwe's economic troubles, recent polls show Mr. Mugabe losing his presidency to Morgan Tsvangirai, leader of the Movement for Democratic Change, a respected umbrella opposition group. A panicked government has proposed laws banning foreign and domestic election observers, obstructing the ability of likely opposition supporters to vote, barring foreigners from working as correspondents and restricting domestic journalists.
In a recent speech, Mr. Mugabe called the opposition party and white farmers "terrorists," using the word at least 20 times. Many worry it is a signal that he is preparing to ban the opposition, or step up the violence. This month in Zimbabwe's second-largest city, Bulawayo, thugs burned down the opposition headquarters while police watched. Police arrested 14 opposition members on trumped-up murder charges. Two activists have asserted that the police tortured them to make them confess. ...
Zimbabwe's political and economic woes have discouraged investment in South Africa and threaten to overwhelm the region with refugees. But while leaders of Malawi and Mozambique have spoken out against Mr. Mugabe's policies, South Africa's president, Thabo Mbeki, has only recently begun to criticize Mr. Mugabe in public. This is welcome, as South Africa's quiet diplomacy has failed. Last March, Zimbabwe, along with its neighbors, signed a pledge to hold free and fair elections. Those neighbors, led by Mr. Mbeki, must now hold Mr. Mugabe to this promise.
Chicago Tribune
Despite some intricate footwork in the past few days by Argentina's economic minister Domingo Cavallo, the country appears headed for a default on its $132 billion debt -- one of the largest in history.
Argentines are in for pain. If they're lucky, this donnybrook will finally force government officials to tackle the country's core economic problems rather than tinker around the edges.
Argentina's economic plight has worsened inexorably during the past 18 months, as debt payments loom that the government can't pay. In the past few weeks, Cavallo offered to renegotiate the debt, but skeptical lenders hardly jumped at a package backed mostly by future tax collections. The unraveling situation then triggered a rush to withdraw dollar deposits last week, as rank-and-file Argentines panicked. ...
So far, the International Monetary Fund, the United States and other lenders have ignored Argentina's bleating for another bailout. That is as it should be. Argentina's economic woes are way beyond fine-tuning or additional bailouts. Just a year ago, Argentina received a $40 billion loan package from the IMF that only delayed facing up to the country's fundamental problems.
One problem is that the government spends far more than it takes in. ...
In the short term, Argentina's choices include a default, abandoning the dollar-parity system and devaluating the peso, or even adopting the dollar as the official currency as Ecuador and El Salvador have done.
Those are options, each with serious economic and political repercussions. But until Argentina fixes its fundamental problems, they will only be stopgap measures waiting for real reforms.
Honolulu Star-Bulletin
Efforts to keep track of foreign visitors have been so lax that U.S. immigration officials have no idea how many are in this country illegally. The Sept. 11 attack on America revealed the dangerous consequences of such a lapse, and the Bush administration has tightened immigration policies since then. However, legislation is needed to provide more safeguards without building a wall around the country.
Sens. Diane Feinstein, D-Calif.; Edward Kennedy, D-Mass.; and John Kyl, R-Ariz., last week introduced what is likely to be the legislative vehicle for closing loopholes in the immigration laws. The 19 terrorists who carried out the attack entered the United States on temporary visas; at least two entered the country as students but violated the terms of their visas.
Attorney General John Ashcroft has issued rules barring the entry of foreigners belonging to groups that endorse terror and is requiring more biographical and other information from visa applicants. However, the main problem is tracking the visitors after they enter the country. The proposed bill would provide for an interagency database of aliens with more detailed information and accessibility to all law-enforcement officials. ...
The bill would prohibit routine issuance of visas to students from countries that the Department of State regards as sponsors of terrorism -- Cuba, Iran, Iraq, Libya, North Korea, Sudan and Syria. However, the bill would allow exemptions for individuals who are not considered threats to the United States, a provision that David Ward, president of the American Council on Education, calls "a good compromise."
Similar compromises may be needed in constructing a comprehensive reform of the nation's immigration laws to deal with the new threat of terrorism.
Washington Times
Russian President Vladimir Putin couldn't be doing better. For the past three months, he has basked in the revitalized relationship with the United States as Russia has increased cooperation with America on fighting terrorism. Now British Prime Minister Tony Blair is proposing to create a Russia-North Atlantic Council in which Russia would be granted many of the rights of a NATO member without having to meet the preconditions for being one. As the NATO foreign ministers meet today in Brussels, both they and the Bush administration should make clear their skepticism toward the proposal. Russia's expanded role would not only be a recipe for bringing disunity into the alliance, but would cause NATO to compromise its objectives.
While Moscow should be commended for its support of the United States since September 11, rewarding Russia with virtual NATO membership is not appropriate. First, there is little need to create a new council. In 1997, the NATO-Russia Permanent Joint Council was created, setting up the perimeters for joint action and increased cooperation between NATO and Russia. That council already allows for consultation on issues from security, to conflict prevention, to arms-control and exchange of information -- the same subjects that Mr. Blair's new council would address. ...
Russia is not ready for the Russian-North Atlantic Council, and its expanded role at this time would harm NATO's role as a consensus-builder within Europe. The Bush administration must not compromise the democratic and security values of the alliance in a quick-fix political move to please Russia.
New Orleans Times-Picayune
The House of Representatives is scheduled to vote (Thursday) on whether to give President Bush fast-track authority to negotiate trade treaties, but free-trade advocates are still scrambling for the votes needed to pass the measure.
It shouldn't be this hard. Fast-track authority, also known as trade promotion authority, allows the president to submit trade treaties to Congress for a single up-or-down vote, and it is the only way to guarantee that trade talks will go forward. Such talks are crucial because free trade is good for the American economy and is a force for modernization around the world.
The fast-track bill deserves unanimous support from the Louisiana delegation. ...
Labor unions and other anti-globalization groups are trying to depict free trade as an issue that pits workers against businesses and rich countries against poor ones. This is nonsense. The world economy is not a zero-sum game. In a state that is home to some of the nation's most important ports, there's no denying the benefits of international trade.
(Compiled by United Press International.)
