The week ahead

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Sep 14th 2008
From The Economist print edition

A big contemporary art auction, and the balance of power shifts in Zimbabwe, Malaysia and Israel

AFP
• DAMIEN HIRST, a leading light among Britain’s conceptual artists, is set to find out how much his fans still love him. Bypassing the art dealers and galleries that usually take a handsome cut, Mr Hirst is putting up for sale a large collection of new work at Sotheby’s auction house in London starting on Monday September 15th. The 223 lots include such favourites as animals pickled in formaldehyde, and spin and spot paintings. The sale could raise as much as $120m if changing tastes and a biting recession don’t dampen the bidding.

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For background, see article

• ROBERT MUGABE, Zimbabwe's president, is expected to form a government of national unity on Monday September 15th with Morgan Tsvangirai, leader of the Movement for Democratic Change, the country's main opposition party. After long negotiations the pair reached a deal late last week to share power following elections that both claimed to have won. It remains to be seen how successful the arrangements are between Mr Tsvangirai and Mr Mugabe, who is not a man to relinquish his grip on power lightly.

For background, see article

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• MALAYSIA'S opposition leader, Anwar Ibrahim, hopes to deliver a death-blow to Malaysia’s coalition government on Tuesday September 16th, the country’s national day. Mr Ibrahim recently won a parliamentary seat with a crushing by-election victory—a ban on his holding political office after conviction on corruption charges expired in April. He now reckons that he can prise away enough government supporters to win a no-confidence vote but it may well prove a tall order to convince enough to join him to form a stable government.

For background, see article


• KADIMA, the party that runs Israel’s governing coalition, holds elections for a new leader on Wednesday September 17th. Tzipi Livni, Israel’s foreign minister, is favourite to win the primary ahead of Shaul Mofaz, a more conservative rival. The winner will replace Ehud Olmert, the present prime minister. He is mired in corruption charges and has promised to resign once Kadima chooses its new leader. But it could prove hard for his replacement to forge a workable ruling coalition, dealing another blow to stuttering peace negotiations with the Palestinians.

For background, see article


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