As we celebrate women and their accomplishments this month, let us also remember those who are not as fortunate as we.
“Parade” news magazine (March 22), ranks President Robert Mugabe No. 1 on the list of the world’s 10 worst dictators. Mugabe, 85, has been in power since 1980 in Zimbabwe.
Under his rule, inflation in Zimbabwe has skyrocketed, the unemployment rate has risen to more than 85 percent, health conditions have reached crisis levels, more than 5,000 people have been beaten and tortured, and thousands more women and girls have been brutally raped.
According to the article, the Zimbabwe women are usually the ones who sustain their communities through farming, trading, cooking and child-rearing.
Members of the Movement for Democratic Change (www.mdczimbabwe.org) — the main labor-based opposition to the Mugabe regime — have been trying to collect testimony from victims to bring Mugabe to justice. However, the women assaulted by Mugabe supporters are slow to speak out, if at all. The victims do not want to be humiliated or bring dishonor to their families. And without their crucial testimonies, Mugabe will continue to thrive.
“The bad guys, from the Congo to Zimbabwe to everywhere, have figured out that if you can’t afford guns and bullets, and you have a political or military objective, the most effective, efficient strategy to employ is sexual violence,” states Paula Donovan, a member of the MDC.
Women’s History Month will end after today, but we must create awareness and understanding of the struggles of women worldwide. We live in a politically stable country and are able to provide for our families, yet women in other parts of the world are suffering trying to do the same thing.
It’s a humbling thought.
The Parade rankings for the world’s 10 worst dictators are based on dictators’ human-rights violations, the suffering their leadership has caused and the amount of absolute power they wield. The sources of information include the U.S. State Department, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International and Reporters Without Borders.