Daily news from Zimbabwe continues to alarm the rest of the world as the country’s inflation skyrockets and the government struggles to keep everything under its control.

In the last week of June, Zimbabwe's Industry Minister Obert Mpofu ordered all businesses to lower their prices by 50 % in order to return the quickly deteriorating economy to the level of June 18th [1]. Within days, those who agreed to lower prices lost most or all of their business. Stores were emptied of goods as people took advantage of the lower prices. Business owners were forced to sell their products for little or no profit at all; some had to sell for less than they had paid themselves. Over 1,300 business owners were arrested because they refused to comply with the orders [2].

Official inflation in Zimbabwe is now 4,500 % but the number is unlikely to reflect reality. Prices now rise every few hours and the banks have lost the ability to regulate the economy. Instead of saving part of their paycheck, people try to use all of it at once since its value will depreciate by the following day. Unofficial inflation estimates spin between 7,000 and 11,000 %. US Ambassador Christopher Dell predicts that inflation will climb to the exorbitant number of 1.5 million % by the year’s end [3].

The recent World Bank Governance Indicators make public the deteriorating condition of Zimbabwe. The country ranked in the bottom 10 % for all indicators (voice and accountability, political stability, government effectiveness, regulatory quality, and rule of law), and as one of the bottom five countries in the world in controlling corruption [4].

The foremost opponent of President Robert Mugabe’s government, Roman Catholic Archbishop Pius Ncube issued a report through the Solidarity Peace Trust begging Mugabe to step down. He condones foreign intervention to complete this task if need be, and states that as Zimbabwe’s former colonial ruler, the United Kingdom has the right to “invade” and to remove Mugabe from power. Ncube compares the situation in Zimbabwe to the depredation of former Yugoslavian territories by Slobodan Milosevic [5]. The same report found that of the 414 interviewed individuals 30 % reported torture between March and May 2007 [6].

Political matters, or rather their consequences, touch the daily lives of Zimbabweans as the government continues to regulate the use of water and electricity in the cities. The country lacks funds to upkeep the infrastructure and provide basic necessities such as water purification. The shocking consequences of this were seen in the mining town of Kadoma were 34 people (29 of them children) died of a rampant diarrhea outbreak. Urban residents, such as those in Kadoma, have been forced to use water from open streams, the same that carry raw sewage forward. The World Health Organization predicts many more widespread epidemics, including that of cholera [7]. The water in Bulawayo, the second largest city, is now turned on for only seven hours every two days. People are advised to fill their containers on those days and to cover them. "The city council is aware that water cuts may result in the outbreak of diseases and we wish to advise members of the public to take preventive measures”, city spokesman Pathisa Nyathi said on July 17th [8].

Hope for change in Zimbabwe has certainly not been strengthened by the Mbeki mediation talks. The Southern African Development Community (SADC) assigned the South African President to mediate talks between Zimbabwe’s ruling party Zanu-PF and the opposition party MDC in March. The parties have so far failed to come face to face with each other as the ruling party has had “prior commitments”, suggesting Mbekis’ initiative is rather insignificant to them. Some commentators say that Zanu-PF’s repeated failure to come to meetings proves that the current government is not interested in cooperation; neither is it willing to accept any change. One of the demands the opposition has is for a new constitution. According to President Mugabe, “the current constitution serves the nation well and there is no reason to change it”. The next meeting will take place in Zambia on August 12th. It is likely that South African President Mbeki will have nothing much to report at the meeting. Any progress that has taken place has certainly been hidden well [9].

The IIJD strongly condemns the recent actions of the Zimbabwean government and continues to call for change in the country. We support the opposition party’s demand for a new constitution that would set the way for a free, fair, and democratic government committed to human rights, steady economic policy, and the rule of law.