After 37 years in power, Mugabe appears to be out
HARARE, Zimbabwe — Zimbabwe’s military was in control of the capital and the state broadcaster Wednesday and was holding President Robert Mugabe and his wife under house arrest in what appeared to be a coup against the 93-year-old Mr. Mugabe, the world’s oldest head of state.
The military was at pains, however, to emphasize it had not staged a military takeover, but was instead starting a process to restore Zimbabwe’s democracy.
Still, the military appeared to have brought an end to Mr. Mugabe’s 37-year reign in what the army’s supporters praised as a “bloodless correction.” South Africa and other neighboring countries were sending in leaders to negotiate with Mr. Mugabe and the generals to encourage the transition.
Citizens in Zimbabwe’s tidy capital, Harare, contributed to the feeling of a smooth transition by carrying on with their daily lives, walking past the army’s armored personnel carriers to go to work and to shops. Many who have never known any leader but Mr. Mugabe waited in long lines at banks to draw limited amounts of cash, a result of this once-prosperous country’s plummeting economy.
Felix Tsanganyiso, who sells mobile airtime vouchers in Harare, said he was following the developments on WhatsApp.
“But I am still in the dark about what is happening,” he said. “So far so good. We are going about our business without harassment. My plea is that whoever takes over should sort out the economy. We are tired of living like this.”
The series of events followed Mr. Mugabe’s firing last week of his deputy, which appeared to position the first lady, Grace Mugabe, to replace Emmerson Mnangagwa as one of the country’s two vice presidents at a party conferencenext month.
But the 52-year-old first lady is unpopular among many Zimbabweans for her lavish spending on mansions, cars and jewels. Last month she went to court to sue a diamond dealer for not supplying her with a 100carat diamond that she said she had paid for.
Ms. Mugabe has been known as the leader of the G40, a group of Cabinet ministers and officials in their 40s and 50s who are too young to have fought in Zimbabwe’s war to end white-minority rule in Rhodesia. When Mr. Mnangagwa was fired, the generals and war veterans felt they were being sidelined and took action to stop that, analysts say.
Mr. Mnangagwa’s whereabouts were not clear Wednesday. He fled the country last week, citing threats to himself and his family.
Critics of the government urged Mr. Mugabe to go quietly. “The old man should be allowed to rest,” former Zimbabwe finance minister and activist Tendai Biti told South African broadcast er eNCA.
On Monday, the army commander made an unprecedented statement criticizing Mr. Mugabe for pushing aside veterans of the liberation war. The following day, the ruling party condemned the army leader for “treasonable conduct.”