As if 80% unemployment and 100,000% inflation wasn't enough to kill hope in the afflicted land of Zimbabwe, now comes the Mugabe crackdown on the opposition - savage beatings by the dictator's bullyboys that is driving many citizens out of the country:

When a shallow, glassy river and a few coils of razor wire are the only things separating one of Africa’s most developed countries from one of its most miserable, the inevitable result is millions of illegal border jumpers. But South African and Zimbabwean human rights groups say that the flow of people into South Africa has been surging in the three weeks since Zimbabwe’s disputed election and during the violent crackdown that followed. One Zimbabwean named Washington, who goes back and forth across the border ferrying Super Sure cake flour and Blazing Beef potato snacks, said the government was now using food as a weapon and channeling much of the United Nations-donated grain to supporters of the ruling party.

“As we speak,” he said, “people are starving.” He seemed more defeated than anything else. “People hate the government,” he said. “But they are too scared to fight it.”

Commercials are now running on Zimbabwean TV showing grainy images of captives from the liberation war in the 1970s and reminding citizens not to disobey their leaders, recent arrivals said.