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WORLD NEWS Saturday 4 auguSt 2018

Zimbabwe's 'Crocodile' faces tough challenges as president

By ANDREW MELDRUM Mnangagwa's links to the
JOHANNESBURG (AP) — military and ruling party go
He's known as "the Croco- back decades. He joined
dile," named after a small the fight against white-
band of guerrillas battling minority rule while still a
white minority rule in the teenager in the 1960s, re-
land once known as Rho- ceiving military training in
desia. Egypt and China. He was
Now the 75-year-old Em- captured, tortured and
merson Mnangagwa has convicted of blowing up a
another big challenge as locomotive in 1965.
the new president of Zim- Sentenced to death by
babwe: reviving its formerly hanging, he was found
prosperous economy, rein- to be under 21, and so his
ing in the military and bridg- punishment was commut-
ing the country's deep po- ed to 10 years in prison. He
litical divide resulting from a was jailed with other promi-
disputed election. nent nationalists, including
Like the reptile that stalks Mugabe.
the rivers in this southern While imprisoned, Mnan-
African country, Mnan- gagwa took correspon-
gagwa is more feared than dence courses. After his
popular. release in 1975, he went
But he has strategically to Zambia, where he com-
fostered a base of loyal- pleted a law degree and
ists within the military and Zimbabwean President elect Emmerson Mnangagwa prepares to address a press conference in started practicing. Later, in
security forces and has Harare ,Friday, Aug, 3, 2018. newly independent Marxist
honed political skills that he Associated Press Mozambique, he became
learned from his longtime Mugabe's assistant and
mentor Robert Mugabe, tion to campaign safely lice should not have taken an authoritarian streak bodyguard. In 1979, he ac-
who served as president of throughout the country, in such action, but by then reminiscent of the 94-year- companied Mugabe to
Zimbabwe for 37 years. both urban and rural ar- the media had broadcast old Mugabe. the talks in London that led
For decades, Mnangagwa eas. International observers around the world the men- "Can a Crocodile change to the birth of Zimbabwe.
was Mugabe's enforcer, were invited after an ab- acing actions by the secu- his scales? It's unlikely, but "Our relationship has over
earning a reputation for ef- sence of 18 years. rity forces. we will see how he reach- the years blossomed be-
fectively manipulating the But the peaceful balloting During the campaign, es out to the nation, how yond that of master and
levers of power. has turned messy and vio- Mnangagwa has worked magnanimous he is in his servant to father and son,"
A leading Cabinet member lent: Opposition leader Nel- to develop a friendly image acceptance and inaugu- Mnangagwa wrote last
since Zimbabwe's indepen- son Chamisa has alleged and appear more youth- ration speeches," said Piers year of his relationship with
dence in 1980, he became there was vote fraud, pro- ful by dyeing his once-gray Pigou, southern Africa ex- Mugabe. When Zimbabwe
vice president in 2014. He testers filled the streets of hair. He has adopted as his pert for the International achieved independence
was fired by Mugabe in Harare on Wednesday, and trademark a striking scarf in Crisis Group. "He is mak- in 1980, Mnangagwa was
November 2017 and im- a violent crackdown by the Zimbabwe's reggae colors. ing all the right noises. But appointed security minis-
mediately left the coun- military and police resulted More substantively, Mnan- the specter of the military ter. He directed the merger
try, claiming his life was in in at least six deaths. gagwa says he will run a shooting protesters in Ha- of the Rhodesian army with
danger. The army then put When the result was an- business-friendly govern- rare shows that it will be Mugabe's guerrilla forces
Mugabe under house ar- nounced more than three ment focused on rebuild- difficult for him to operate and the forces of rival na-
rest, and within two weeks, days after the election, the ing the economy. Yet the independently from the tionalist leader Joshua
Mnangagwa was back in Electoral Commission said military violence showed army." Nkomo.q
Zimbabwe, where the ZA- Mnangagwa got 50.8 per-
NU-PF party and then par- cent of the vote to Chami-
liament voted to make him sa's 44.3 percent.
president. On Friday, Mnangagwa's
On Monday, Zimbabwe government had to pull
held its first general elec- back three truckloads of
tion without Mugabe on riot police who were try-
the ballot, and Mnangag- ing to prevent a news
wa ran a campaign that conference by Chamisa
was considerably more challenging the outcome.
free than previous ones. His Mnangagwa quickly issued
party allowed the opposi- a statement saying the po-