Zimbabwean watchdog bodies have accused the Southern African Development Community (SADC) of being an 'old boys club' that gangs together to protect each other's dictatorial rule. Speaking at this week's "using democracy to destroy democracy" meeting in the capital city Harare, political activists said SADC countries, particularly South Africa, had fallen prey to President Robert Mugabe's gimmicks. "Mugabe's regime is hiding behind tailored but defective concepts of colonialism and Pan-Africanism to garner SADC's support to authenticate its rule," said a University of Zimbabwe political commentator, Brain Raftopolous.