Robert Mugabe: accused of being a genocidal dicator and praised by the BBC for his abortion support

Sometimes you just can't make it up.

That's the only way to react to this bizarre article from the BBC, which praises Robert Mugabe for his support of abortion policies and even goes so far as to call him a 'feminist'.

Yes, we are talking about the same President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe (formerly Rhodesia), the man implicated in the ethnic cleansing of over 20,000 people in just 4 years.

Gukurahundi genocide

But there's no mention of that in this piece by journalist Farai Sevenzo. In fact, from reading it you would have no idea that Robert Mugabe, the 91-year-old president who has ruled Zimbabwe for nearly three decades, is strongly suspected to have ordered the killing of more than 20,000 members of the Ndebele ethnic minority in Zimbabwe in the early 1980s.

The genocide is known as the Gukurahundi, meaning "the early rain which washes away the chaff before the spring rains." While Mugabe was widely believed to have orchestrated the mass killings, it was only recently that reports were released appearing to confirm he gave the deadly special troops tasked with the genocide explicit orders to act it out.

But you'd have thought the BBC would have been quick to pick up on racist statements made by Mr Mugabe in the past. Not a syllable. Mugabe is on record as saying, "The only white man you can trust is a dead white man" and "Our party must continue to strike fear in the heart of the white man, our real enemy!"

2008 election

Nor do the BBC find the space to mention that Zimbabwe’s 2008 election – where Mr Mugabe narrowly lost in the first round of voting, before his opponent dropped out in the second – led to international condemnation and accusations of human rights abuse. Instead, they praise his "eloquence", "inimitable style" and say:

On this, Mr Mugabe got it right - "We men are not women"

Clearly, the fact that Mugabe supports the killing of unborn children is enough to make the BBC forget all about the other kinds of killing he is implicated in.

The sad fact is the BBC has a long and chequered history of biased reporting when it comes to abortion, euthanasia and other life issues.

BBC bias

In 2003, pro-lifers were outraged by a Panorama programme that shamelessly attacked the Catholic Church for its long-standing and principled defence of the right to life worldwide. The real risks of abortion, and the pro-life alternatives that the Church (and other organisations) offer - such as pregnancy counselling and practical help for mothers - were completely glossed over.

Instead, all viewers got was a lazy hack-job designed to dress up propaganda as journalism. SPUC produced an extensive critique at the time titled Bias and the BBC, which you can download below.

And just last week, my colleague Anthony wrote about the voyeurism of the BBC's latest 'documentary' on assisted suicide, which puts vulnerable people at risk. Nor is this the first time the BBC has been caught in the act promoting euthanasia regardless of the consequences for suicidal people.

Act now

Expose the BBC's hypocrisy by sharing this article with your friends and making a complaint here.

The BBC is also responsible for relentlessly promoting 'charities' which have funded anti-life practices, such as Children in Need and Comic Relief (and its new project Sport Relief). Go to our Charities Bulletin to learn more about which charities you can donate to without supporting abortion and other anti-life practices.