MUGABE EMERGES AU CHAIRMAN
Zimbabwean president, Robert Mugabe, took
over the post of African Union chairman on Friday, replacing Mauritania’s
president Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz.
Mugabe, Africa’s
oldest president, aged 90, shook hands with Abel Aziz in front of fellow
leaders to applause at the AU summit in the Ethiopian capital.
“By electing me to
preside over this august body, with full knowledge of the onerous
responsibility that lies ahead, I humbly accept your collective decision,” he
said.
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| Robert Mugabe |
Mugabe, a former
liberation war hero who is Africa’s third-longest serving leader, is viewed
with deep respect by many on the continent.
But he is also
subject to travel bans from both the United States and European Union in
protest of political violence and intimidation by his government.
Mugabe, a former
guerrilla leader who has ruled Zimbabwe since independence in 1980, is accused
of crushing opponents to ensure his ZANU-PF party won every election for more
than three decades.
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