Tag: violence

My people are Afraid 

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Hello everyone! It’s been almost four months since you’ve heard from me! I am sorry about that; things have been rather crazy for me. The reason I do not like to write posts when I am busy is that these posts take me a long time to think up and articulate. When I do not have the time to sort my thoughts, I can barely pick a topic to write on, let alone research it and present clear content to you all. Luckily, I have finished my master’s now so, I have a lot more time to dedicate to this blog. 

I am currently in Zimbabwe (yay!). I will be back in The Netherlands soon though to continue at my new job! I have been here for six days and I have already seen and heard so many things about what is happening in Zimbabwe that have left me utterly gobsmacked. You know when you look at a situation and think: well things surely cannot get any worse? Well, Zimbabwe is a constant reminder that things can always get worse. I said this exact sentence to myself last year and the year before around this time and even wrote a blog post about it. I looked at the situation in Zimbabwe and thought ‘well, this is it, things cannot possibly get worse…people are going to do something about how things currently are.’  And yet, I find myself looking at an even more desperate situation and even more desperate people.

I’d like to take you back to a post I wrote two years ago, on the 27th of July 2020. If you have the time, I implore you to reread it at: (https://unsungperspective.com/2020/07/27/july-31st/). If you do not have the time, that’s all right, I will give you a brief recap. In August 2018, with an equal mix of skepticism and jubilation, Zimbabwe swore in a new president. Unfortunately, four years later, we have seen the country fall faster than we ever thought possible. Already by 2020 (the time I wrote the post), people had seen that the government was running the country into the ground. People were starving, dying, and being driven to dangerous measures just to stay alive. All of this anger and frustration led to a buzz around July 31st (2020). It was believed that there would be a huge protest against the government in Harare on July 31st. I wrote with excitement and anticipation about what this protest would bring about. Sadly, two years later, I have to say that the July 31st protest did not even make a dent in Zimbabwean history.

Unfortunately, our inability to do anything two years ago ushered in this period of even worse circumstances. It is two years later, and things have only gotten worse. We are now experiencing a devastating economic crisis, with an inflation rate of around 600%. A loaf of bread in Zimbabwe is RTGS$600. I have no clue what the average salary is but it is definitely not keeping up with the inflation rate. I heard from one person that they are earning USD$30 per month and she seemed to believe that majority of Zimbabweans (lucky enough to have a job), are earning around the same amount. Healthcare has failed and education is failing. The youth of Zimbabwe are out of school, out of jobs, and out of options…

When I wrote in 2020, something despicable had also just happened which was leading people to saying enough is enough. Ironically, I am going to tell you guys about something eerily similar to what happened then. In 2020, female activists Joana Mamombe, Cecilia Chimbiri, and Netsai Marova had been abducted and tortured for speaking out against the government and highlighting the issues the country was facing. On the 24th of May 2022, Moreblessing Ali was gruesomely murdered for her activism against the current government. Moreblessing was a member of the Citizens of Coalition for Change (CCC) and after speaking out against the government just like Joana, Cecilia and Netsai, she was targeted and found to be a victim of extreme violence. The family of Moreblessing has spoken out about their devastation regarding the incident and CCC members and supporters have taken to the street to protest her murder. Unsurprisingly, the current governing party has denied all allegations of their involvement in this incident, just as they did with the 2020 one. They even further exacerbated the situation by arresting Moreblessing’s lawyer, Job Sikhala on the grounds of “inciting violence.” Which is their most famous go-to allegation when they want to arrest someone. There is always a systematic pattern of torture that occurs when the current party is under threat.  So, while this story is devastating, it came as no surprise to anyone in Zimbabwe. The CCC has come out though (at the beginning of this week) stating that they are tired, and they will fight back against the violence this time. With the 2023 elections quickly approaching, I would say, once again, Zimbabwe is a volcano on the verge of erupting. I once again find myself plagued with the same feelings I felt two years ago. Feelings of anxiety, excitement, dread, and anticipation. 

I was quite annoyed when I realized that there was not even a morsel of change the last time I felt these feelings about the future of my country. However, looking at the violence and intimidation that has already started a year ahead of the elections, I understand why. I was actually afraid to post this post while I am still in Zimbabwe because it is a scary place to be outspoken. In addition to this, while I am politically outspoken and despise the way Zimbabwe is currently being run, I actually have no political affiliation in Zimbabwe. I do not support any party, but I simply support the betterment of the country. I (like many Zimbabweans) distrust all political parties because none of them seem to really be rooting for the people of Zimbabwe. Therefore, while change seems to be looming, I am terrified of what that might even mean. All I know is that if things remain the way they currently are, more of us are going to die. Whether it is by the hands of those who want to stay in power or by starvation, Zimbabweans will continue to die if we do not seize the feeling in the country right now. Despite it all, for now, we still remain a happy and peaceful people and it is up to us to protect this and to look towards building a country that we can be proud of. 

So, I hope this upcoming year is the year that Zimbabweans are able to stand up for themselves. Politics aside, Zimbabweans standing up for themselves is now a matter of survival rather than political affiliation or gain. I want those who are standing up for themselves and their communities, like the brave women mentioned above, to know that I support you. We all support you in creating a better Zimbabwe, even if we are afraid to show it. There is light at the end of the tunnel for Zimbabwe.

The Marred history of Land Reform

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Welcome back everyone! I would like to thank you for coming back to read even though my content has been very inconsistent. I really only like to write when I have the time to dedicate to writing a whole piece in one go – and yes, I have not had that much free time in the last 2 months! Regardless, you are here reading so, thank you. ❤️

Today I would like to do a historical piece on something that I said I did not want to talk about in the past but alas, here we are. When I had asked, on Instagram, what topics people would like to read about next, this one came up and my response was “I would not touch that topic with a ten-foot pole.” Nonetheless, I wrote it down and now I have decided that I will try and write about it as best I can. I did not want to talk about land reform for a number of reason. The first being that it is an extremely complicated historical event which cannot really be explained in one blog post. Secondly, I am not sure how I feel about land re-acquisition. On the one hand, I personally know white people who were violently ripped away from their homes as a result of the Land Reform Act. On the other hand, I understand why such an act may have been seen as necessary. Execution and corruption aside, giving the black majority an opportunity to own their own land again makes a lot of sense to me. Lastly, this is still a sensitive topic for many Zimbabweans so it needs to be spoken about with a certain amount out sensitivity.

Quick history lesson:

I am well aware that a large number of my readers are not from Zimbabwe so, I will give a quick history lesson on the Land Reform Programme. Under colonial rule, a 1930s land apportionment act was passed which made it illegal for all black Africans to own land, except for 22% of the least arable land in Zimbabwe. The rest of the arable land went to white settlers. In order for white people to settle on some of these lands, many black families were displaced and moved to less desirable locations. – This is the first injustice of the ping-pong game between the black and white communities in Zimbabwe. Being primarily agricultural people, giving black Africans only the least arable land was a huge injustice which began the cycle of poverty for generations of black Zimbabweans to come. Fortunately, there was an attempt for redress upon signing the Lancaster House Agreement and achieving independence. It was decided that there needed to be efforts to distribute land to native Zimbabweans from white settlers who were given land simply because they were white. However, Britain did not follow through to aid Zimbabwe in re-distributing the land (both economically and technically). The British promised to fund the program and compensate white farmers who would loose their land but along came Tony Blair and the rest was history. So, not much was done in the years following independence. Which angered a lot of Zimbabweans because what was the point of independence if they did not get their land and livelihoods back? So, the British left Zimbabwe in an incredibly tough position because after 90 years (from 1890) of colonialism the black majority deserved to have control over their own land. However, without the resources and knowhow of the new Zimbabwean government, what happens to white farmers?

Zimbabwe Independent (Dunn, 2020)

That brings us to the early 2000s when everything went wrong and an injustice was fixed with another. After many failed land reform programs during the 1990s, there was the decision to “fast-track” land reform which resulted in a chaotic and violent mess. Then president, Robert Mugabe, organised troops to march onto white owned farms and “reclaim” them. Many families had to leave immediately to avoid the violence and leave their belongings behind. Alone, this is problematic to say the last, but to make the situation even worse, the land that got re-claimed was used as an aid to political corruption rather than redress colonial wrongs. Therefore, white farmers were not forced off their land for the good of Zimbabwe but to line the pockets of Zimbabwe’s political elite. Land was “gifted” to various party members and their families who had no agricultural abilities. This entire program exacerbated the economic problems in Zimbabwe and left many people homeless and jobless. The economy was hit incredibly hard because not only was agriculture the largest part of the Zimbabwean economy but, it was also Zimbabwe’s main export. Thus, when the people gifted land took over the farms, they did not know how to run them and productivity dropped drastically.

“You can’t imagine how many people come up to me and said, ‘We didn’t agree with you back then. We thought you were too rigid and inflexible. But now we see you were right. You were so right: they were not fit to govern.'”

– Ian Smith

The land grab of the 2000s plummeted Zimbabwe and made many white (ex-)colonisers turn around and make statements like the one above. It became proof that ‘the black majority is unfit to govern.’ Which of course is not true, but I have to admit that the way the land situation was handled does not bode well for anyone in Zimbabwe.

I spoke a lot about how I did not want to talk about this topic so you might be asking why I ended up doing so in the end? Well, I was doing some research unrelated to this topic and an article popped up from September 2020. Apparently in September 2020, the Zimbabwean government promised to give white farmers their land back. It has been a year since then and I am not sure if any of this has actually solidified – I tried to find some information but there is none up to date. Nevertheless, the thought sparked a lot of interest for me because is giving the land back to ex white farmers really the answer to right all of the wrongs that have been committed on both sides? Honestly, what happened (in the 2000s) was extremely cruel but I do not think returning land will make anything better, if anything I think it will lead to thicker resentment. So, for once, I actually have no idea what the best way to deal with this situation is. Educating farmers? But who educates them, who pays for it and eventually we still have to decide who the land goes to… I firmly believe that this long and complicated story was the anchor in Zimbabwe’s decline and because we have never tried to deal with any of the injustices committed, we are perpetually suffering for them. But, I would definitely love to hear from other people what they think about this topic. Seeing as I have no solution in mind, I would love to hear what everyone else thinks: where we went wrong and how we can (if we can), fix it?

P.S. I hate that I quoted Ian Smith – it was simply for illustrative purposes, I despise the man.