LONDON -- The situation in Zimbabwe goes from bad to worse. Sunday's presidential election approaches amid a crescendo of violence and intimidation, with the army, the state police and the thugs of the ruling Zanu-PF political party rampaging through every region of this enormous and once-rich Central African country.
It seems that the incumbent ruler, President Robert Mugabe, will stop at nothing in his determination to cling on to power and plunder, to protect his cronies and their wealth and to destroy all political opposition.
Yet even at this 11th hour there are some questions worth asking. First, will he succeed? Incredibly, it is just possible that the opposition -- the Movement for Democratic Change under the outstanding political leadership of Morgan Tsvangirai -- may yet be able to garner enough votes to defeat Mugabe, despite seeing its political rallies broken up, its associates murdered and its supporters endlessly harassed.