As the economic and political power in the region, South Africa might have been expected to intervene and force Mr Mugabe to clean up his act. The difficulty for President Mbeki is that the crisis in Zimbabwe puts him in a tight spot. Mr Mbeki is still a relatively young head of state, and it would be seen as disrespectful for him to publicly criticise an elder statesmen, and former liberation leader such as President Mugabe. There is still an unstated pecking order amongst the leaders of southern Africa, based on age, experience, and the role each played in liberating their countries from colonial rule. President Mbeki is also aware that any political attack on President Mugabe would not go down well among the rank and file of his supporters in the African National Congress.
Land reform is a popular issue among the poorer, mainly black section of society in South Africa.
As these people make up the backbone of support for the African National Congress, Mr Mbeki has to be very careful not to criticise a leader in a neighbouring country who appears to be doing more to help the rural black poor. As in Zimbabwe, the vast majority of fertile agricultural land in South Africa is owned by white people. The South African Government has set up a legal framework to address the equitable redistribution of land but the process is slow and many black South Africans are growing frustrated. The polarisation of politics in Zimbabwe into a black and white issue, where government policy appears to be aimed at wresting economic control away from the white minority, has widespread appeal in South Africa. Most supporters of the African National Congress sympathise with Zimbabwe's problems and the government's attempts to iron out historical imbalances in access to wealth.