On 18 April 2022 Zimbabweans should have been celebrating
the country’s 42 years of independence. For the overwhelming majority, there
was really no cause to celebrate, and many did not bother. The penny has
finally dropped that they were short changed.
The fight for independence was a fight for freedom, liberty
and human dignity; fight to be masters of ones’ own destiny. The white colonial
ethos was about denying the indigenous population their freedom liberty and
human dignity for the sole purposed to subjugation and exploitation.
During the white colonial rule of Prime Minister Ian Smith,
the late John Robertson, a renowned Zimbabwe Economist, reportedly gave Ian
Smith a detailed plan to give blacks property rights including title deed for
the rural peasant. The plan, if adopted, would be increased economic growth,
and reduced the problem of land degradation by motivated the rural peasants to take
better care of the land.
Ian Smith rejected the plan to economically empower the blacks
for two reasons.
a)
An economically impoverished black population was
easily subjugated and exploited for the purposed of white economic prosperity
than an economically empowered population.
b)
It would just be a matter of time before the economically
empowered black population demand political empowerment, a meaningful say in
the governance of the country.
Interestingly, John Robertson gave the same economic plan to
Robert Mugabe, Prime Minister of Independent Zimbabwe. Mugabe also rejected the
plan for the same reasons.
Whilst the whites had the common sense to follow some sound
economic policies that allowed the national economy to thrive or be it the primary
benefit of the white; Mugabe and company had no such common sense. Thus, before
independence the country produced enough food to feed its own people with
plenty leftover to be the breadbasket of the region, for example. Twenty years
after independence, Mugabe seized the white owned farms and gave them to his
cronies; destroying the agricultural sector and with it the economy.
42 years of gross mismanagement and rampant corruption have
left the country’s robust pre-independence economy in ruins. Basic services
such as education and health care have all but collapsed. 50% of the population
now live in abject poverty. Life expectancy has plummeted from 68 years in 1980
to 34 years today!
On the political front, the whites denied the blacks a vote,
period.
If Mugabe and his Zanu PF cronies had been allowed to have
their wish, they would have imposed a de jure one-party state. They too had subscribed
to the “One man, one vote!” as the rallying call for blacks before independence
but would have discarded it without a second thought.
Zanu PF was forced to accept a multiparty democratic Lancaster
House constitution. The party had a plan B to ensure electoral victory.
Contrary to the Lancaster House agreement, not only did Zanu
PF fail to send many its freedom fighters to assembly points they remained
active throughout the election campaigning period. The party’s campaign message
was simple enough; if the party does not win, the bush war would continue.
Of course, the people voted to end the bush war!
Zanu PF used the 1983 to 1987 Gukurahundi massacre coerce it
main political rivalry, PF Zapu, led by the late Dr Joshua Nkomo, to disband,
sign the 1987 Unity Accord and join Zanu PF to create the de facto one-party
state.
Whilst it is true that Zimbabwe has held regular elections,
unlike other one-party states like China or North Korea which have completely dispensed
with such niceties as elections. However, Zimbabwe has never ever held free, fair,
and credible elections. The party has reduced the electorate into powerless medieval
serfs beholden to overbearing Zanu PF landlords, especially the hapless rural
povo.
Lest we forget, povo have played their part in the fight to
end white colonial rule. And 42 years after independence all they ever got was
the removal of the white oppressors only to be replaced by the black
oppressors. What is there for them to celebrate?
The primary objective of the fight for independence was to
deliver freedom, justice, and human dignity for all. Zanu PF narrative has the removal
of the white colonialists from power as the sole purpose to hide the party’s
failure to deliver the set objectives. And to justify its own tyrannical rule,
Zanu PF has the former colonialists using the opposition to threaten the
country’s independence and sovereignty.
It is unforgivable that 42 years after independence, in this
day and age, millions of our people are still having to fight for such basic
rights as property rights and the right to a meaningful vote. The very fact
that some people are still celebrating the removal of the white colonialists as
the great achievement of the fight for independence shows the lack of ambition
and imagination.
7 comments:
Property rights, “One man, one vote!”, etc. these are the rights Zimbabweans have fought for and many died for. Those who argue that Zimbabweans should be celebrating the removal of the white oppressors but failed to see the black oppressors who replaced them are simpletons easily fooled by the Zanu PF propaganda. I totally agree, we, Zimbabweans, should be ashamed that millions of our fellow nationals should continued to be denied such basic and fundamental rights as the right to property and a meaningful say in the governance of one’s country.
We should be up in arms demanding an end to this corrupt and tyrannical Zanu PF dictatorship and not waste time listening to the thugs pontificating about their liberation antics when they have become the nation’s new oppressors! Zanu PF has frog marched our people to attend rallies and vote for the thugs; is that what the liberated people do?
OPPOSITION Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) party says attending national events such as Monday's Independence Day celebrations was meant to help shake off the "sellout" tag that was coined by Zanu-PF to label all those in the opposition.
Binga North legislator Prince Dubeko Sibanda said opposition parties had been labelled "unpatriotic and puppets" hence the need to change approach on national institutions and events.
"New party, new approach. We are solving something by attending. Remember the tag of being foreign funded and unpatriotic," Sibanda said.
But Zanu-PF director for information Tafadzwa Mugwadi said CCC overtures would not stop the ruling party from seeing them as puppets of the West.
"They can't undo it because sellouts and puppets have an indelible tag, a permanent tattoo on their forehead. They rejected the liberation struggle and continue to say we are not free, we are not independent and heaping praises to (Ian) Smith's racist colonial establishment," Mugwadi said.
The real reason MDC/CCC leaders are sell outs is because they have failed to implement even one democratic reform in their 22 years on the political stage, 5 of which in the GNU. And ever since the GNU they have participated in flawed elections to give Zanu PF legitimacy and get a few gravy train seats as their reward.
The fight for independence was a fight for freedom, liberty and human dignity. All Zimbabwe’s 1980 independence has achieved is remove the white colonial oppressor only to replace them with black oppressors who have denied the ordinary Zimbabwean freedom and basic human rights like a meaningful vote and even the right to life!
Basic services such as education and health care have all but collapsed. 50% and counting of the population now live in abject poverty. The ordinary people are desperate for meaning political and economic change because they are living in hell-on-earth. When you live in hell, you are preoccupied with getting out and have nothing to celebrate being there!
It is no surprise that CCC leaders are joining Zanu PF in celebrating this hell-on-earth, they are now part of the country’s ruling elite who are oppressing the masses for their own selfish gain. They sold out the masses years ago and now they are as keen as mustard to please their new Zanu PF masters.
"No one stops them from coming to national events because we fought for all, the puruvheyas, the auxiliaries, the back watchers, the sellouts, the puppets we fought for them all and gave them freedom."
Did Zanu PF liberate the millions out there now living in grinding poverty whom the party has denied the right to own even 10 m2 of land, denied the vote and are no better than medieval serfs beholden to the overbearing Zanu PF ruling elite and their proxies?
Zimbabwe is a failed state, a pariah state, ruling by corrupt and murderous thugs who are holding the whole nation to ransom thanks to the help they are getting from the opposition sell outs. Zanu PF would not still be in power today if MDC leaders had not sold out and implemented the reforms during the 2008 to 2013 GNU.
“We fought for them all and gave them freedom!” Yeah right!
CITIZENS Coalition for Change (CCC) deputy leader, Tendai Biti, has condemned the attempted abduction of party activist Makomborero Haruzivishe.
Biti denounced the Monday night attack saying President Emmerson Mnangagwa's administration does not respect human rights.
"The latest attempt to kidnap Makomborero Haruzivishe is proof beyond reasonable doubt that the Mnangagwa regime is an incorrigible regime with no respect of human rights.
This is just political posturing and frankly it is now nauseating to hear it! If Tendai Biti and his MDC/CCC fiends had implemented the democratic reforms especially during the 2008 to 2013 GNU when they had the golden opportunity to do so; the Zanu PF dictatorship would have been dismantled. Worse still, by insisting on participating in these flawed elections, MDC/CCC are giving Zanu PF legitimacy.
Of course, it is idiotic to complain about Zanu PF being incurable when you are the one keeping the regime in power for thirty pieces of silver, for a few gravy train seats.
As long as Zanu PF gives out a few gravy train seats the likes of Tendai Biti, Fadzayi Mahere, Nelson Chamisa, etc. will participate in the 2023 elections; Zanu PF knows that hence the reason the party will continue to ignore calls for reforms and free elections. Why indeed would Zanu PF risk losing elections by implementing reforms when they know they will get legitimacy guaranteed for a few gravy train seats!
Independence Day, 18 April 1980 was supposed to mark the day every Zimbabwean would enjoy freedom, liberty and human dignity. Back in 1980 and for a decade thereafter, many believed every Zimbabwean was enjoying all the freedoms and human rights annunciated in the UN Human Rights Declaration.
However it soon became clear that we were deluding ourselves. Zanu PF had denying the people such rights as a meaningful vote from the word go. Zanu PF made no secret that the bust war would continue if the party lost the 1980 elections and, once in power, the party has consolidated its iron grip on power by making sure had carte blanche powers to rig elections.
Instead of sharing the nation's wealth fairly, the party has taken it all destroying the country's once promising economy. Millions are now living in abject poverty. The people are desperate for change and to expect them to celebrate their oppression is but an insult!
@ Leonard Koni
“It really pains me when I look at what my country has become today four decades into independence. We have regressed so much.
I couldn't think that one day I would board a plane to a war torn country like Somalia but I did in 2008 December and lived there for a year in a shanty town called Galckayo about 750km from Mogadishu.
That was the year I left the police force because of poor salaries and remunerations.”
One of the favourite tricks tyrannical regimes uses on their subjects is brainwash them so they see nothing, hear nothing and do nothing. Talk of an elephant in the room; brainwashed subjects will habitually the mouse and monkey in the room and yet say nothing about the bull elephant in the room.
Zimbabwe’s independence was a still birth because the people were denied the basic freedoms and rights from the word go. The first elections to usher independence were not free and fair because Zanu PF told the voters if the party lost, the bush war would continue. Three years after independence Zanu PF started the Gukurahundi massacre whose sole purpose was to force PF Zapu to join Zanu PF and clear the way for the imposition of the de facto one-party, Zanu PF, dictatorship that has remained to this day.
Zimbabweans were brainwashed into believe the 1980 independence had delivered the freedom, liberty and justice the nation had been fighting for; the reality on the ground told a different story. All that was achieved in 1980 was to remove the white colonial oppressors but only to replace them with the black oppressors.
Indeed, Zimbabweans never even tasted such rights as the right to a meaningful vote; Zanu PF made no secret that if the party lost the 1980 elections the bush war would continue.
It is shocking that for the best part of the last 42 years have Zimbabweans complained endless about trivial matters whilst doing little to end omnipresent oppressive and destructive Zanu PF dictatorship. The people have risked life and limb to elect MDC leaders to end the Zanu PF dictatorship.
Sadly, the late Morgan Tsvangirai and his MDC friend turned out to be corrupt and breathtakingly incompetent; they failed to implement even one reform in 22 years, 5 of which in the GNU. Since the GNU MDC/CCC have participated in flawed elections to give Zanu PF legitimacy for a share of the spoils of power.
The tragedy for Zimbabwe is that it has taken 42 years and counting for many Zimbabweans to finally realised that Zanu PF conned them into the 1980 independence delivered freedom, liberty and human dignity. Even when the people realised the need for democratic change to end the Zanu PF dictatorship the people were soon conned by MDC leaders into believing the party was fighting for change long after Tsvangirai and company had sold out on implementing reforms. We are stuck!
“Zidera requires Zimbabwe to hold an election ‘widely accepted as free and fair by independent international monitors,' and to sufficiently improve the pre-election environment to be consistent with international standards." It is all very well for Americans to be reminding Zanu PF what the 2001 ZIDERA demands are but after 22 years the Americans themselves must ask themselves why is Zanu PF not listening?
One reason Zanu PF is not listening is because the party knows that as long as the opposition continue to participate in these flawed elections and thus give the process some modicum of credibility the party will have political legitimacy.
Indeed, why would Zanu PF want a level playing field and risk losing power when it can get legitimacy for the small price of giving away a few gravy train seats to entice the opposition to participate in the flawed elections.
It is not just Zanu PF that is resisting reforms to ensure free, fair and credible elections in Zimbabwe; the country’s corrupt and incompetent opposition opportunists are equally to blame. It takes two to tango!
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