By Farai Muvuti
A Happy Independence Day to all fellow Zimbabweans. This day
signifies a journey of continued courage as exemplified by the generation that
carried the gun and thwarted the Rhodesian forces. On this very day, we
celebrate with pride that very victory that gave birth to this great nation.
However, like any journey we have had our fair share of ups and downs and still
have an uphill road to struggle with as a nation. But it is important to judge
these ups and downs by understanding them through the lens of this day by
asking ourselves important questions. Such as, "what did it take for us to
get to where we are and why it occurred in the manner that it did?" Perhaps wrestling with these questions will
grant us a holistic comprehension of our journey so far.
The struggle for this great land was not only waged in the
bushes of the Frontline States and Zimbabwe but also within the corridors of
the American Congress and British parliament - there was no consensus on the
issue of our liberation. It is important to note this in order for us to
interrogate our current relations with the countries in question. For instance,
The Carter administration faced a lot of opposition within congress regarding
the issue of our independence, some senators even proposed the lifting of
Rhodesian sanctions which were in part leverage for the Patriotic Front. It is
no secret that one of the characters that vehemently opposed our independence
was the late Senator Jesse Helms. This Senator is important to remember as this
article will further explain the character's importance later on.
In Britain, the conservatives also faced internal opposition
and took progressive forces within government and the British people.
Nonetheless, the need to safeguard British interests was echoed and further
pursued in the tenets prescribed to our liberators within the Lancaster House
Agreement. You may be wondering why this is of any importance and how it presses
on today's issues.Well, gentle reader, it is important to look at our history
not from a prism of the past but as an evolution of interconnected events. To
put it simply, we must not only see what is in black and white but also analyse
the intangibles that led to the crafting of the Lancaster House Agreement which
subsequently led to our independence.
The culmination of the events we have witnessed in the last
two decades was introduced by the agreement at Lancaster House. One would argue
that land remained an issue because of the constraints placed on our leadership
by the 1979agreement. Its agenda was to end white rule in former Rhodesia, and
Britain's betrayal of the promises it made to ensure a settlement. From the
beginning, Nkomo said that returning the land to the majority was central to
their cause: "What will be the future of the people's land?" he asked
the British.
It is common knowledge that Margaret Thatcher's government
was largely interested in protecting the property rights of the white minority.
Her foreign secretary, Lord Carrington, insisted Zimbabwe's new constitution
include a 10-year bar on the forcible redistribution of the farms. Our
leadership rigorously rejected that principle but were dissuaded by a promise
from the UK to raise hundreds of millions of pounds for long-term land reform. As
history has it, the Brits reneged on the agreement violating an international
treaty they had vowed to honour. Our
government responded with the fast track land reform that has since seen over
300 000 families resettled (J. and Smart, T. 2012)
The first land reform of its kind in Africa that has opened
the eyes of many on the continent. Our country overturned what many perceived
to be impossible and restored the dignity of its people.
The current reality is that Agriculture is returning to its
former output levels. A reality that is developing despite the absence of government
subsidies and the hardships presented by climate change issues that the White
farmers could contend with through having the private financial infrastructure
to do so. However, it can also be argued that the lack of property rights
policies have made the new farmers unbankable. Which may be a good point if one
ignores the fact that the same land can be re-mortgaged which would lead to a
slow reversal of land reform as was the case in Brazil. So our government was wise to come up with a
solution that would still provide the necessary security to the new black
farmers while ensuring that the land remains in the hands of its rightful
owners.
The interconnectedness of these events is fundamental for
study and research especially for the youth in order to ensure that the gains
made so far are protected. In addition,
unveiling the machinations that were crafted to dislodge our liberation victory
will help us understand why a landlocked country with only a population of 14
million people is perceived to be “an unusual and
extraordinary threat to the foreign policy of the United States"- Obama
2016. It is important for us to not take such a comment lightly considering
that it came from a leader of a superpower. We should ask ourselves how that is
possible considering our country’s size,
geographical location and military spending which is nothing compared to the
US.
Let us try to unpack this conundrum by assessing a few
historical factors that when compounded with present day events a level of
comprehension may arise. Earlier on in this article Senator Jesse Helms was
mentioned as one of the conservative voices that fought for this day we
celebrate not to come. It is no secret that Ian Smith was very close to Helms and
that his aide John Carbaugh was accused by British diplomats of encouraging
Smith to "hang on" and take a harder line, implying that there was
enough support in the US Senate to lift sanctions without a settlement. Helms
also went on to introduce legislation that demanded the immediate lifting of
the sanctions against the Rhodesians as negotiations progressed. It is also
reported that Helms support for lifting sanctions on Zimbabwe Rhodesia may have
been grounded in North Carolina's tobacco traders. These traders would have
been the main group benefiting from unilaterally lifting sanctions on
tobacco-exporting Zimbabwe Rhodesia. However, Helms efforts were futile and our
day of independence did come.
Furthermore, Helms yet again emerges in our country’s continuing story in 2001 by sponsoring the Zimbabwe
Democracy and Economic Recovery Act of 2001 the very bill responsible for
destabilising the Zimbabwean economy. In fact, the former U.S Assistant
Secretary of State, Chester Crocker said it best when he said: “To separate the Zimbabwean people from ZANU we are going to
have to make their economy scream and I hope you Senators have the stomach for
what you have to do.”
Another equally important point to mention is the involvement of the
current candidate for the Democratic nomination for President of the United
States in the 2016 election Hillary Clinton and the current Vice President Jo
Biden who were both co-sponsors of the bill together with Helm. One would argue
that Obama’s failure to revoke this bill is in
part to do with the relationship he has with the sponsors but that’s an issue for another day.
The two characters introduced above namely Clinton and Biden
are also important to critically assess. This is due to their involvement in
the intensified militarisation of Africa. This took place when Clinton was
Secretary of State and the only place where the US has no military presence in
Africa is South Sudan and Zimbabwe. Our country has maintained the fight
against imperialism and understood that the aim of AFRICOM was to be used to
further US interests in the continent which are not limited to economic and
cultural interests. In addition, Zimbabwe has over the last decade led the debate on the need to
reform the UN Security Council, an argument that led to Zimbabwe’s reengagement of
relations with Japan. Our country continues to lead Africa, be it through the
Look East Policy or the recent Agenda 2063 that focuses on Value Addition and
Beneficiation. A policy crafted by the current government.
Although the challenges have had a negative bearing on us and
have created conditions that have led to extreme poverty, corruption (both
political and corporate), the Elinor drought which has also affected us
immensely and global commodity prices are at an all-time low. It is safe to say
our challenges are great and it is a struggle for the brave of which we are.
This article outlines a number of challenges we have had to endure to get to
this very day. A day that created a nation that has continuously led the
continent of Africa to reclaim its Pan-African spirit. A country that has big
enemies because it chose the hard road of self-determination. This country is Zimbabwe,
a land of the brave hearted whose story will be told to generations of Africans
in and outside of the continent. The land that did not run away from its
Goliath instead chose to face him head on with the armour of principle.Indeed
we are proud to call this land our home. It is this very heritage and history
that leads one to conclude, "So far so good!".
Happy Birthday, Zimbabwe.
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Farai Muvuti is a Human Sciences Student at
Hertfordshire University and is the ZANU PF UK Youth League Political Commissar
