Oh, goody, more savings

Zimbabwe, according to the New York Times, has halted all aid operations. The reasons are, as usual, unclear, but seem to center on the issue of CARE siding with the opposition during their recent elections. (As if...) The social welfare minister, acting unsocially, has expanded the ban to all NGOs. Relief agencies estimate this move will deprive two million people of food aid and other basic assistance... As news of the government’s decision leaked out Thursday, the police detained American and British diplomats investigating political violence north of the capital and released them only after a harrowing ordeal that included a six-mile car chase and threats to burn the diplomats alive in their vehicle, American officials said... At an emergency meeting on Thursday in Harare, the capital, United Nations agencies and aid groups agreed to protest the suspension and issue a statement about its humanitarian implications, according to the minutes of the meeting. The nongovernmental organizations there worried about the safety of their field staff once the prohibition order reaches local administrators across the country... The detention of the American diplomats, and four British officials who arrived at the roadblock a couple of hours later, came a day after the police in another province, Matabeleland, detained the opposition presidential candidate, Morgan Tsvangirai, for nine hours and seized the armored vehicle his party says is necessary for his security. Mr. Tsvangirai was viciously beaten by the police in a crackdown last year. Party officials said the police accused Mr. Tsvangirai on Wednesday of addressing a rally without their permission. Mr. Tsvangirai resumed campaigning on Thursday.

Rico says when, oh, when are we going to get it that some countries just need to go to hell on their own, and we should stand aside, keep our money, and let them get to it...