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NewsDay

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Zimbabwe’s long, winding road to peace, reconciliation

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“Since her death, life has been a nightmare for me. I have looked for comfort from anything you can imagine — from alcohol to church. I sometimes go to church where the gospel of forgiveness and letting go is preached.”  _________________________
“Since her death, life has been a nightmare for me. I have looked for comfort from anything you can imagine — from alcohol to church. I sometimes go to church where the gospel of forgiveness and letting go is preached.” 

_________________________

1-IMG_20150208_144007564BY TAPIWA ZIVIRA  ONLINE  REPORTER

The year 2008 holds the most painful memories for Chinhoyi resident Tendai Mawire (not his real name), a 38-year-old widower and father of two.

“What haunts me most is not that my wife died to injuries related to the political violence she suffered an the hands of Zanu PF youths in the run up to the June 2008 presidential run-off elections.What eats my soul every day is watching her killers walk free with no hope of responsible authorities doing anything to bring justice,” he says, close to tears.

Like any grieving person, Mawire – who says he still cannot narrate his ordeal without breaking down – pronounces that he has been so disturbed that he has become an emotional wreck.

According to him, his wife was tortured after being accused of not voting for President Robert Mugabe in 2008 and suffered burn and tissue injuries that she succumbed to a year later.

“Since her death, life has been a nightmare for me. I have looked for comfort from anything you can imagine — from alcohol to church. I sometimes go to church where the gospel of forgiveness and letting go is preached.”

“But then, at times I get so angry that I think of revenge murder and suicide. I have gone through long nights of hallucinations and insomnia and I have developed heart and blood pressure problems.”

“It is only when I think of my two children who now look up to me for everything that I restrain myself from doing any harm and resort to crying and reading the Bible.”

Mawire’s story is not his alone as there are thousands of Zimbabweans who have been left traumatised by the recurring politically motivated violence and conflict which dates back to the country’s liberation struggle.

Zimbabwe's history of violence dates back to the liberation struggle. In this file picture, soldier tortures Rhodesian villagers by forcing them to maintain a push-up stance for several minutes, warning them that the first one to go down would be taken away.
Zimbabwe’s history of violence dates back to the liberation struggle. In this file picture, soldier tortures Rhodesian villagers by forcing them to maintain a push-up stance for several minutes, warning them that the first one to go down would be taken away.

Statistics show that over 50 000 people died in the 1966 to 1979 struggle for Zimbabwe’s independence from British rule.

During the Gukurahundi massacres in Matabeleland and the Midlands in the 1980s more than 20 000 people were reportedly killed by a North-Korean trained 5 Brigade under Mugabe’s tenure as prime minister of independent Zimbabwe.

As political violence, polarisation and government crackdown on opposition continued into the 1990s and 2000s estimates are that over 300 people were killed and thousands displaced in 2008 alone when Mugabe lost a first round election to opposition MDC-T leader Morgan Tsvangirai.

Yet no peace and reconciliation process has taken place as what happened in South Africa and Rwanda.

Within about 100 days in 1994 over 800 000 Rwandans were killed in an ethnic-driven genocide, but the country carried out a transitional justice process that led to co-existence and national development.

 

Skulls of victims on display at a church where they had sought refuge during the genocide. The site now serves as the Ntarama Genocide Memorial, Ntarama, Rwanda.Once the genocide was over, the country faced years of reconciliation and recovery. Trying those who were thought responsible for genocidal acts was a primary focus, as was promoting national unity and rebuilding the country’s economy.
Skulls of victims on display at a church where they had sought refuge during the genocide. The site now serves as the Ntarama Genocide Memorial, Ntarama, Rwanda.Once the genocide was over, the country faced years of reconciliation and recovery. Trying those who were thought responsible for genocidal acts was a primary focus, as was promoting national unity and rebuilding the country’s economy.

The post-apartheid government in South Africa also carried out a nearly similar transitional justice process.

With such examples in sight, Zimbabwe moved towards that stage in 2008 when regional bloc, Sadc’s facilitation led Mugabe into a unity government under which a new Constitution was produced, to — among other aims — ensure transitional justice.

A key element of the new constitution is Chapter 12, which provides for the establishment of independent commissions, among them the National Peace and Reconciliation Commission (NPRC) whose tasks are to “ensure post-conflict justice, healing and reconciliation” among other functions that foster national unity and cohesion.

While this came as good news for traumatised people like Mawire, deliverance is yet to come as the commission is yet to be functional, two years into its 10 year lifespan.

Government has continued to dither in realignment of several laws affected by the new Constitution and this has delayed the full implementation of several provisions and liberties provided by the new supreme law.

Last year, the then deputy Justice minister Fortune Chasi said the ministry was experiencing shortages of drafters.

In addition, the appointment of NPRC commissioners which has not been made public was done in what was described by human rights researcher and transition justice expert Dzikamai Bere as “a private affair”.

According to Bere, Parliament did not follow the requisite procedures, among them the adequate publication in all the 16 official languages of the call for the nominations of people to sit in the commissions.

“It is very clear from this attitude that Parliament has decided to disregard the citizens and move on with establishing a private commission with total disregard whatsoever of the views of the citizens,” said Bere in his column in the weekly newspaper, The Standard.

Civic society organisations have accused government of “showing little political will in setting up crucial commissions that should provide post-conflict justice, healing and reconciliation.”

Glimmer of hope?

While all looks gloomy, a glimmer of hope remains as non-governmental organisations (NGOs) like the Centre for Community Development in Zimbabwe (CCDZ), Heal Zimbabwe Trust (HZT) and Human Rights NGO Forum, Zimbabwe Civic Education Trust (Zimcet), among others are in a countrywide drive to raise community awareness on the role of the NPRC as well as push for the functionalisation of the commission.

 

Some of the participants at a CCDZ workshop in Marondera Picture by Tapiwa Zivira
Some of the participants at a CCDZ workshop in Marondera Picture by Tapiwa Zivira

According to the CCDZ senior programmes officer Vellim Nyama, his organisation is working with other community based NGOs to “create a platform for civil society and other non-State actors to hold the responsible duty bearers to account for fulfilling their obligations as provided for in the new Constitution.” Nyama said the full establishment of the NPRC “will help to promote peace and social harmony which is an important foundation for any national economic development blueprint to work”.

Youths show the message on their T-shirts Picture by Adele Mcilo
Youths show the message on their T-shirts Picture by Adele Mcilo

Government has formulated an ambitious economic policy, the Zimbabwe Agenda for Socio Economic Transformation (ZimAsset) which has not fully taken off as the country continues to stall in political turmoil characterised by inter- and intra-party conflict and general polarisation since the 2013 harmonised election.

“Nation-building and State-making can only be enhanced through strengthening independent and inclusive state and non-State institutions that play a pro-active role in supporting democracy,” said Nyama.

Checks and balances still needed

WHILE the hope of eventual justice flickers like a candle in the wind for victims of political conflict, there are changes that have to be implemented to make the NPRC effective.

Programmes manager for HZT Sitabile Dewa feels that “in the event that it is established, the limited funding of the NPRC as is currently evident with other established Chapter 12 Commissions will compromise its effectiveness”.

According to Dewa, the delay in setting up NPRC “has compromised community trust, coexistence, perpetuating a culture of impunity because there is no guarantee of non-recurrence of violations because the infrastructure of violence is still intact”.

Zimbabwe’s post-independence violence, while largely perpetrated at political party level, has also seen the hand of the state security agents playing a role, a situation that requires the dismantling or rehabilitation of such institutions to build public confidence and ensure non-recurrence.

Zimbabwe’s post-independence violence, while largely perpetrated at political party level, has also seen the hand of the state security agents playing a role,
Zimbabwe’s post-independence violence, while largely perpetrated at political party level, has also seen the hand of the state security agents playing a role,

This was done in South Africa when the country set up a Truth and Justice Commission at the end of the apartheid era and institutions like the police and army were reformed.

Dewa said for a transitional justice in Zimbabwe to be effective, the process should be crafted in a way that “allows for open truth telling, with victims openly and freely narrating their ordeals.”

“National healing and reconciliation starts with the community with hence the NPRC’s functions should be decentralised to the lowest community level and in a professional and transparent manner in order to restore trust.”

For Mawire and many other traumatised political conflict victims, every new day without justice being delivered brings more fatigue, tears and misery in a way that makes justice appear unachievable.

“But if I look up there and see the calm, peaceful skies, I know justice will prevail someday,” Mawire said as he walked away, wiping tears from his face.