A South African analyst, who knows Zimbabwe, via IISS adds his viewpoint written before Mugabe's resignation:
  • Robert Mugabe is likely to be in a state of shock, and may not know what's happening around him.
  • Figures from the Zanu PF old guard have taken power. The party's younger generation were power hungry, but have nothing to offer the country.
  • Zimbabweans have no great trust in the military. Its officers helped Mugabe rig elections.
  • People will not expect great changes. Mugabe's likely replacement, Emerson Mnangagwa, has been running the secret police who have been terrorising the country for years. He is "Mugabe Mark Two".
  • Zimbabwe's economy is in bad shape. But with the country's vast natural wealth, it shouldn't take long to resuscitate.
  • Mugabe combined liberation with repression in a way no-one else in the region could. He was evil, but also rebuilt his country in the 1980s.

Link:http://www.iiss.org/en/iiss%20voices...we-crisis-513d