A couple months ago I asked the question, "Is Zimbabwe a safe place to visit?" At the time I concluded that the major tourist towns were still fairly safe, but I recommended taking a tour rather than going it alone. A reader recently wrote in and asked why visit Zimbabwe at all when you can see the Victoria Falls from Zambia (for a lot less money), and there are great game parks in nearby Botswana. As he put it, "Going to Zimbabwe now is like to going to Romania under communism – great if you don’t mind the high prices lining the pockets of a corrupt government that brutalizes its people (starving them for political gain), creating instability in the region and thumbing its nose at democratic and human rights norms."

In the past two weeks President Mugabe ordered the demolition of street markets and shack dwellings in several Zimbabwean towns including the capital Harare. The BBC reports that over 200,000 people are homeless and police have arrested over 30,000 people. In the light of this latest travesty committed by Mugabe, do you think it is still ok to visit Zimbabwe? Or will the total collapse of the tourist industry increase the economic misery for those who rely on tourist dollars for a living? What do you think?.

And if you are interested in following political events in Zimbabwe, a Web site I would recommend is Zimbabwe Situation.