I'm well aware that could be a nyceve diary title; it's true in many ways, in all too many places. But this diary is about Zimbabwe.

Many here read DHinMI's story applauding the refusal of the Durban dockworkers to unload a shipload of Chinese arms for transshipment to Zimbabwe at the height of that country's election crisis, when its ruling regime is cracking down on the opposition with violence.

Last week, news outlets were celebrating that China had said it would recall the arms, and that China's and Zimbabwe's friend Angola (where the ship headed next) had said the arms would not be unloaded. The press declared victory, celebrated people/union power, turned off the mikes, and went home.

But guess what? Arms dealers lie.

Weapons will always find a way to those who want them, at least when public vigilance slackens, even for a minute.

Please tell the media to get back on the job. More information below, or at Sokwanele.

On Thursday, Archbishop Desmond Tutu warned

Zimbabwe is staring into the abyss. Violence is growing and the people are suffering greatly as a result.

The Mugabe regime's violent suppression of its opposition is spiraling out of all bounds. The opposition has warned the situation is becoming a state of war. Reports of torture camps are becoming widespread.

Now, the ship An Yue Jiang, with its cargo of arms for Mugabe, which China claimed was returning home undelivered, is about to dock (or by now may have docked) in Luanda, Angola. Whether the arms will be unloaded there is still in question.

Meanwhile, Mugabe has moved more strongly still against the opposition MDC, raiding the MDC party headquarters.

Go to sokwanele to keep abreast of the situation.

The opening scene of the movie Lord of War is a quick life-history of an AK-47 bullet, from the bullet's point of view, taking us from the machine stamping out the brass casings in Eastern Europe, to a guerrilla street battle in some anonymous African country, into the skull of a young boy soldier. As you watch it, you realize soon what is coming, and want to stop it.

Right now, there's a shipment of arms, including three million of those AK-47 bullets, on its way to help Robert Mugabe put down the opposition movement in Zimbabwe. He couldn't even win a rigged election, so the next step was guns.

We, people around the world, are working on doing just that, right now, with one particular shipment of arms, and we may be succeeding. If so, it'll be a small victory, but an important one, and the way this has come together is inspiring. But even this small victory is still not certain, and more daylight, and more international pressure, is needed. This means you.

Please read on for more information, or go to this site to help take action.

Right now, there is a ship loaded with small arms trying to deliver to Zimbabwe, to the tyrannical regime of Robert Mugabe. It is likely he's ready to put down the opposition with violence, after his election turned out not to be sufficiently well rigged to let him win. Mugabe is already quite capable of brutal repression of his opposition. Several tons of armaments may  turn the situation into a civil war, or a series of massacres.

Many of you will have read DHinMI's frontpage story about this yesterday, or even my diary from late Friday night, highlighting the principled stand of the dockworkers in Durban who refused to unload the ship. However, that has only delayed the delivery. They'll try again. But maybe we can help stop them at the next port, and maybe save lives.

Go to this page for up-to-date information on the ship as people find it, and for discussion of how to take action - and links.

Edited by request to put the important stuff first.

Right now there's a ship with a cargo of armaments, trying to deliver them to Zimbabwe, pretty clearly with the intent of helping Mugabe put down the opposition after the elections he apparently couldn't win by hook or by crook. They've been turned away in South Africa, but they'll try again by way of Mozambique or elsewhere. I'd intended to hold off posting this till tomorrow morning, but the situation is dire and progressing, and action may help, so I'm posting it now.

UPDATE: The New York Times just posted a more thorough article on this even than the BBC's report. (Thanks to The Distillery for noticing it.)

UPDATE Saturday morning: The ship may be on its way to Angola now. See the end of the diary for more information and a link to the story.

More below the fold...

My first diary here:

I live in the San Francisco Bay Area and am on Barbara Boxer's e-mailing list. She just sent out an announcement regretting that Al Gore wouldn't be coming to a concert they've been hyping in SF tomorrow, because, she says:

I just got a call from Vice President Al Gore. He told me that he needs to travel abroad tomorrow for an exciting and urgent mission that could result in a major breakthrough in the fight against global warming.

I posted this over on LucyMO's sig-counting diary, wondering what might be up.

She said it had to be the peace prize.

According to the Nobel Prize website that announcement will come at 9am GMT on Friday.

I think we have a winner. And not just of the Nobel Prize, IMHO. Now let's get a Nobel Peace Prize winner into the White House.

UPDATED below the fold. There's this Belgrade conference on the environment...