A report out of Zimbabwe published in the New York Times claims that ranking officials within the ZANU-PF party, the party of President Robert Mugabe, are using blackmail and violence to gain amnesty from prosecution for human rights abuses. Now that Zimbabwe has a power sharing government and the Movement for Democratic Change (M.D.C.) has established itself as a major player in the country, senior Mugabe aides are concerned that they will be tried for the atrocities they committed to solidify Mr. Mugabe’s hold on power. According to sources inside the ZANU-PF party, senior officials are even attempting to implicate opposition leaders in plots to overthrow Mugabe and use it as blackmail to get them to quit or as leverage in negotiations. The current Justice Minister, Patrick Chinamasa, allegedly said before the new government took office that “his party wanted amnesty” in order for the power-sharing agreement to work. Of course, when official talks are given and questions are raised about abductions or death threats, the ZANU-PF leaders play coy, thereby staying non-committal. In turn, the leaders of the M.D.C. have responded by saying that “[they’d] rather rot in hell than agree to anything like that.”

In Peru, former president Alberto Fujimori was sentenced to twenty-five years in prison for his role in human rights abuses committed during his ten-year rule. The most public event of these abuses was the murder of twenty-five civilians by a military death squad in 1992. Mr. Fujimori was president during Peru’s costly war with the Maoist Shining Path rebels. The judges have said that they are pleased with the verdict and about half of the country agrees. Fujimori still holds significant support and was even planning a return to power in 2005 before he was extradited to Chile. Similarly, his daughter is a presidential candidate in the upcoming election and has said that if she wins the presidency, her father will be pardoned. In 2000, Fujimori was sentenced to six years in prison for order an illegal search, which caused him to flee to Japan and effectively ended his hold on power. Throughout the trails, Mr. Fujimori has maintained his innocence and blames the charges on the fact that he governed during a civil war. He also is set to stand trial for two corruption charges and will appeal his sentence.

In Cambodia, it seems that the long awaited trials of the most senior Khmer Rouge officials will be put on hold again. On Wednesday, U.N. officials failed to reach an agreement with Cambodian officials over investigating internal corruption and the United Nations Development Program, which is funding the trial, will withhold the money until the problem is solved. Questions have arisen concerning corruption of the tribunal staff responsible for the trials. According to the article, it also appears that the trials have a certain aura of government manipulation that has displeased the United Nations. The U.N. cites the fact that two senior Cambodian officials, one of them the Prime Minister, are unwilling to expand the number of defendants tried as evidence of government control. It seems that that the U.N, and Cambodian officials have not developed a sense of trust with one another, so the money will be withheld until it is clear that Cambodian officials have made a sincere effort to address the allegations of corruption.

The reports from Zimbabwe and Cambodia are particularly disturbing to me because of the great advances both countries have made in recent times. For the first time since 1985, the opposition in Zimbabwe has had some voice in the government, but that power it is threatened by the corrupt leaders of the ZANU-PF. The opposition may not be easily broken, but when their families are threatened or they are tortured, that could readily change. Mr. Mugabe’s administration is adept and experienced at eliminating opposition, and that is what seriously concerns me. No amount of external pressure on Mugabe will do any good if the opposition is too afraid to pursue change.

Furthermore, it is disappointing to see such an important trial in Cambodia go awry because of internal corruption. Thirty years ago, Cambodians were tortured and murdered by a fanatical government, and its leaders must be tried. One would think that the Cambodian government wants this trial to happen as much as any other nation. The government needs to do everything in its power to allow these trials to continue.

Lastly, the sentencing of Alberto Fujimori can be taken two ways: as either a great victory or outrageous loss. The population of Peru is so divided on the issue that it could cause unrest, especially with his daughter running for president and guaranteeing him a pardon. I don’t think that there will be protests against his imprisonment, but there almost certainly will be against a pardon. The future could be bleak for the country. However, Fujimori deserves his punishment. The judges have made it known that Peru will not continue to tolerate human rights abuse. No instance, whether it be civil war or rebel attacks, should allow for the atrocities committed by Fujimori’s administration.