Zimbabwe`s president Robert Mugabe has travelled to the Swiss city of Geneva to attend the World Summit on Information Society (WSIS) only two days after withdrawing his country from the Commonwealth.
According to the BBC, it is not known whether he will address the meeting, but his presence is a calculated act of defiance after the Commonwealth, that consists of about 40 nations, most of them ex-British colonies, decided to extend sanctions against his country indefinitely.
The WSIS will discuss how developments such as the Internet have affected the world and will propose a Declaration of Principles, some of which are based on the United Nations Charter and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Mugabe is under sanctions from the European Union and the United States but is free to travel to Switzerland. These sanctions are in direct retaliation for his programme of appropriating land from white, mainly commercial farmers and distributing it to landless black people, and for allegations of undemocratic activities including rigging of election results.
Southern African countries, including Mozambique and South Africa, have protested the Commonwealth`s actions against Zimbabwe.
The BBC also reports that in Zimbabwe, 14 people were recently charged after sending e-mails calling for mass protests against Mugabe`s government. Zimbabwe`s secret services have been trying for several years to acquire high-technology equipment to monitor online communications.
A senior official from a Zimbabwean Internet service provider (ISP) told BBC News Online that he did not believe the authorities had yet obtained this equipment.
The government controls all local radio and television stations and recently closed down the only privately owned daily newspaper.
BBC correspondents say this leaves the Internet as one of the only ways for the opposition to spread its message, although only a small number of people have access to computers.
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