Zanzibar: African Cuba?

All the rage on Zanzibar these days is the "packing party." While one team of British civil servants busily crates furniture, clothing and household effects, another helps polish off the leftover gin and lime. Then the two teams switch roles, muttering ritual phrases such as "Bloody Babu" or "Hanga be hanged." The game has gained popularity for the best—or worst—of reasons. By order of the young nation's autocratic, 30-man Revolutionary Council, the 108 British civil servants and families who remain on Zanzibar have until April 30 to clear out; and, thanks to the Communist-run Carpenter's Union, household servants are...

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