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Life expectancy in Zimbabwe under President Robert Mugabe fell from 62 years in 1990 to 36 in 2006. And, as described in a recent report by Physicians for Human Rights, this man-made catastrophe has only gotten worse in the last two years. Although the opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai lamented a deadlock Monday in power-sharing talks with Mugabe, a peaceful transfer of power is still the best hope for Zimbabwe’s rehabilitation. But even if Mugabe cedes power after 28 years, the international community will still confront a haunting question: How can Mugabe be held accountable for the catastrophe they created?

The rights group is calling for the UN to pass a resolution instructing the International Criminal Court in the Hague to investigate Mugabe and his cronies. The group argues that Mugabe’s depredations meet the requirements for an ICC prosecution for crimes against humanity.

The need for judgment is the same as it has always been: to prevent the next despotic regime from doing to another people what Mugabe has done. At present, comparable crimes are being committed by the military junta in Burma and the genocidal regime in Sudan. The best hope to save lives in the killing fields of Darfur or the forests and rice paddies of Burma may be to make an example of Mugabe. — International Herald Tribune