M.I.N News The Zimbabwe Situation: A case of pursuing self determination

The Zimbabwe Situation:

A case of Pursuing Self Determination

By Kuthula Matshazi

June 4, 2004

What is wrong in Zimbabwe? Has the government stayed for too long in power and run of ideas? Yes and No. Yes because 24 years is a relatively long time but on the other hand 24 years is nothing considering the agenda that was pending. Personally I think that the government of President Robert Mugabe is entrenched in power so that it could implement that long-term agenda – to attain sovereignty, social justice as well as share and reclaim our wealth that was stolen from us. These are the very reasons that we went to the liberation struggle for and had our brothers and sisters killed.

But that was never going to be an easy thing to do because it meant drastically altering the status quo where a few privileged people would be forced to share the national cake with the rest and that would tantamount to equating the white settlers with indigenous blacks. This is not racism but a fact.

Imagine Black people taking up Canada's wealth on the scale of 85 percent against 15 percent for the indigenous population. Surely there would be mayhem. This has been the case in Zimbabwe, but the difference is that the rightful owners of the land were the ones mayhem was directed at. Why? Are Zimbabweans not entitled to pursue their own goals as a nation and duly implement them?

Before the land reform program, 70 percent of cultivatable land was owned by 1 percent of the whites population and the rest of the 30 percent of the unproductive land by the indigenous people. The latest Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries, the business representative body, found out that the indigenous people owned 15percent of the Zimbabwe economic activity while the rest 85 percent was foreign owned, especially by British nationals.

When we embarked on the land reform, the core of our problems in Zimbabwe, our critics told us that we would not be able to utilize the land. That is not only a lie but an insult as well to us as a people. Where has it been documented that Blacks are unable to farm? How have we been farming all along in the arid and unproductive land that the white settlers dumped us on?

It is obvious that production would decline as a result of the process of redistributing land. And indeed the production declined. However, there were two main reasons. First there was a devastating drought in Southern African region and then the process of acquisition led to the decline in output. However 2 years after completing the land reform, we are having a good harvest this year and the government has since indicated that they would not be needing any food assistance from the international community.

Why did it take the government so long for the government to start attending to the land reform. They did not take long. The Lancaster House agreement of 1979 which brought independence to Zimbabwe stipulated that we refrain from engaging in land reform exercise for the first 10 years of our independence. After 10 years the government started embarking on the program but did not get any assistance from the US and UK who had an obligation to assist fund the program as per the Lancaster House agreement.

The British government of John Major had agreed to fund the land reform program but then they were defeated in the 1997 general elections that brought Tony Blair into power. That was the period that changed all the progress. Blair and his International Development Secretary, Claire Short refused to recognize UK's obligation to the land reform. They refused to constructively engage the Zimbabwean government instead they sought to use their hegemony to short circuit the land reform by engaging in a smear campaign against the government.

The smear campaign was based on causing crises in Zimbabwe as well as portraying the government as that of thugs and unable to govern. The British have used every propaganda instrument available at their disposal to paint a bad picture of the Zimbabwean government. By so doing they hoped to cause disenchantment within the people of Zimbabwe and build an international coalition against Zimbabwe.

They managed to a great extent. And in Zimbabwe they formed a trade union backed party the Movement for Democratic Change. The MDC immediately called for sanctions against Zimbabwe while inside the country they embarked on a series of mass action programs in the form of stayaways and mass protests. The aim of these ill thought activities was to alienate the government from the people as well as destroy the economy. They thought that this would ultimately eject the government from power. Also, they intended to make people suffer so that they would ultimately rise against the government. For a while people shared this MDC agenda but they have since come to realize the misguided rationale of such policies. How can a party hope to get into power by destroying the economy of those very people they say they want to serve?

Strangely, those people that are sponsoring the MDC to destroy the country do not do such things in their own countries. Interestingly, the MDC cultivated good and close relations with the west and totally ignored the regional and African countries. Apparently, this position has exposed the MDC - it is falling out of favour with people because of its connection to the western countries. One white farmer whose farm was acquired by government wrote in the Zimbabwe press questioning the rationale of maintaining the MDC if they were not going to give them back their land or reverse the entire land reform program. This was after MDC President, Morgan Tsvangirai had changed their position on land. He had said his party would now consider not giving back the acquired land to those farmers who had since left Zimbabwe.

Despite the vicious campaign by Britain and its western allies Zimbabwe has finally managed to ride the rough tide. The African, Caribbean and other Third World countries stood by Zimbabwe. Most of the output by the western media has been nothing but mere propaganda.

The private sector in Zimbabwe had widely criticized the government of being corrupt and unable to manage the economy. However, the government has since embarked on an extensive anti-corruption drive and we have sadly found that those private sector players who were claiming the government is corrupt are themselves more corrupt. President Mugabe declared that since he had defeated Britain he was now turning to deal with local economic saboteurs. He said he would be leaving no stone unturned in uprooting corruption and that no one would be spared in the corruption drive regardless of status in society. Since then, several big wigs have been netted accused of externalizing hundreds of billion of dollars out of Zimbabwe. Part of the big wigs arrested include the Minister of Finance, Economic Planning and Development.

Also, several banks had been making super profits by fuelling the foreign currency black market. As a result of a new tight monetary policy introduced in December last year, several major banks were placed under curator ship because of clandestine and illegal conduct. Several banks and companies had abandoned their core businesses to concentrate on foreign currency dealing and currency speculation. As a result, at one time, Zimbabwe experienced a crippling foreign currency shortage although it was in abundance in the black market.

Despite all these challenges, Zimbabwe's economy is now on a slow recovery. It has witnessed the worst. Fortunately, the saboteurs have been defeated. The land reform has been successful and we are heading for a good harvest. Destiny is now in our hands.

In our difficult journey we are not forgetting the South Africans and especially President Thabo Mbeki who stood firm with Zimbabwe. He even refused to partake in a coup de tart that Britain and United States wanted to undertake to effect their infamous 'regime change' policy.

Zimbabwe, South Africa and Guinea have recently coordinated to thwart a possible coup plot by some white-led mercenaries. This is an example of African solidarity that both Presidents Mbeki and Mugabe profoundly believe in. As Africans we need to unite and fight enemies that seek to dominate us eternally as well as destroy our nations.

What shall we do then as Africans? We have no option other than unite. But uniting to challenge the status quo is very difficult as past events have shown. There are those even among us who will want to work against our objectives or sell their souls. But our wealth are not the millions of dollars but the knowledge that we have united our continent; that we have developed our brothers and sisters. Let's be resolute. Let's not sway no matter how great a force we encounter. It is through a purpose of unity that we will build a strong united Africa - together.