US embassy cable - 00HARARE4987

Disclaimer: This site has been first put up 15 years ago. Since then I would probably do a couple things differently, but because I've noticed this site had been linked from news outlets, PhD theses and peer rewieved papers and because I really hate the concept of "digital dark age" I've decided to put it back up. There's no chance it can produce any harm now.

Identifier:	00HARARE4987
Wikileaks:	View 00HARARE4987 at Wikileaks.org
Origin:	Embassy Harare
Created:	2000-09-08 09:45:00
Classification:	CONFIDENTIAL
Tags:	PREL PINR ZI
Redacted:	This cable was not redacted by Wikileaks.

C O N F I D E N T I A L HARARE 004987 
 
SIPDIS 
 
FROM AMBASSADOR MCDONALD FOR AF/S DIRECTOR RENDER 
NSC FOR SENIOR AFRICA DIRECTOR GAYLE SMITH 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/07/10 
TAGS: PREL, PINR, ZI 
SUBJECT: PRESIDENT MUGABE'S HEALTH 
 
CLASSIFIED BY AMBASSADOR MCDONALD.  REASONS: 1.5 (B) AND 
(D). 
 
REF: STATE 171074 
                       CONFIDENTIAL 
 
PAGE 02        HARARE  04987  080946Z 
 
1.  (U) WE HAVE HEARD RECENT RUMORS CIRCULATING IN HARARE 
THAT PRESIDENT MUGABE COLLAPSED -- IN PRIVATE -- THREE 
TIMES OVER THE PAST SEVERAL WEEKS -- ONCE IN MAPUTO AND 
TWICE MORE IN TRIPOLI WHILE EN ROUTE TO NEW YORK FOR THE 
MILLENIUM SUMMIT.  PRESS REPORTS, CITING ANONYMOUS SOURCES 
IN THE PRESIDENT'S OFFICE, HAVE SPECULATED THAT MUGABE 
SUFFERED A HEART ATTACK, A STROKE, OR A SUICIDE ATTEMPT. 
PRESIDENTIAL SPOKESMAN GEORGE CHARAMBA DISMISSED THE 
SPECULATION, ATTRIBUTING IT TO "APRIL FOOLS," AND 
PRONOUNCED MUGABE "FIT AS A FIDDLE." 
 
2.  (C) WE CANNOT CONFIRM WHETHER MUGABE DID IN FACT 
COLLAPSE, BUT WE DO NOT RULE OUT THE POSSIBILITY THAT HE 
COULD BE SUFFERING FROM FATIGUE OR EXHAUSTION.  HE HAS HAD 
A FULL TRAVEL SCHEDULE DURING THE PAST SEVERAL WEEKS, WITH 
VISITS TO MAPUTO, TRIPOLI, PARIS, AND NEW YORK.  WE NOTE 
THAT, FROM OUR DISTANT PERSPECTIVE, THE PRESIDENT DID NOT 
APPEAR TO HAVE ANY SERIOUS PHYSICAL AILMENT DURING HIS BUSY 
SCHEDULE OF PUBLIC APPEARANCES WHILE ON HIS CURRENT VISIT 
TO NEW YORK. 
 
3.  (C) RUMORS ABOUT MUGABE'S HEALTH SURFACE REGULARLY 
HERE.  WE, HOWEVER, HAVE SEEN OR HEARD NOTHING TO SUGGEST 
THAT THE 76 YEAR-OLD PRESIDENT IS SUFFERING FROM 
DEBILITATING HEALTH PROBLEMS OR A DETERIORATION IN MENTAL 
ACUITY (HE DID HAVE SURGERY FOR THROAT PROBLEMS IN 1996 AND 
RECEIVED TREATMENT FOR A URINARY TRACT DISORDER IN 1994). 
HE REMAINS PHYSICALLY ACTIVE, DOING DAILY EARLY MORNING 
SIT-UPS, AND APPEARS AS PHYSICALLY VIGOROUS AND AS MENTALLY 
SHARP AS EVER IN HIS PUBLIC APPEARANCES HERE. 
                       CONFIDENTIAL 
 
PAGE 03        HARARE  04987  080946Z 
 
MCDONALD 
 
                       CONFIDENTIAL 
 
>