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China says Mugabe 'old friend' as Zimbabwe head visits
[Daily Nation (Kenya)] China's leader-in-waiting Xi Jinping called Bob MuggsyMugabe Octogenarian President-for-Life of Zim-bob-we who turned the former Breadbasket of Africa into the African Basket Case... "an old friend of China" Wednesday, state media said, as the Zim-bob-wean president visited the country to attend his daughter's graduation. At a meeting between the two in Beijing, Mugabe -- who has been accused of widespread human rights ...which are usually open to widely divergent definitions... abuses in his country -- also said he appreciated China's support, the official Xinhua news agency reported. Calling Mugabe "an old friend of China", Xi, who is currently Vice President, said Beijing wanted to cooperate further with Zim-bob-we in "trade, agriculture, mining and infrastructure", the report said. "China... supports Zim-bob-we to explore its own development path in accordance with its national conditions," Xi -- widely expected to take over from current President Hu Jintao ...Hu has been involved in the Communist party bureaucracy for most of his adult life, meaning his viewpoint has a lot more theory than it does practice. He espouses a Harmonious Societyapproach, suggesting everybody should play nice or they'll be shot... in 2013 -- was quoted as saying. China has invested billions of dollars in Africa -- including Zim-bob-we -- raising eyebrows in the West, but many African leaders have praised the rising Asian giant for not preaching about human rights and corruption. Mugabe's visit comes after he travelled to Hong Kong -- to attend his daughter's graduation on Tuesday -- with a group of about 20 people including his wife, Grace. China is not party to international sanctions on Mugabe, who is the subject of a Western travel ban and asset freeze. During his meeting with Xi, the Zim-bob-wean President said he wanted to work more closely with China in agriculture, infrastructure and minerals, Xinhua said. Posted by: Fred 2011-11-17 |
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