April 18, 1980, as the new Zimbabwe flag was being hoisted for the first time at Rufaro Stadium, the whole country was in a whirlwind of celebration and euphoria.
BY THE ZIMBABWE PEACE PROJECT
It was a new dawn, and in the people’s mind, colonialism and suppression of basic rights was to be a thing of the past.
Taking over a country that had endured 16 years of armed conflict, a young Robert Mugabe, beaming with confidence, urged his compatriots to join him in his pledge to “trample upon racialism, tribalism, and regionalism, and work to reconstruct and rehabilitate the Zimbabwean society”
Forty years later, the Zimbabwean society resembles little of the vision he spoke of in his 1980 speech.
Unlike April 18, 1980, April 18, 2020 is not a momentous occasion and the euphoria that was there 40 years ago has been replaced with anger, misery, despair and hopelessness as the country navigates through a longstanding social, political and economic turmoil that appears to not be coming to an end soon.
Citizens continue to grapple with an economic meltdown, a disintegrated health sector, natural disasters, a water crisis that may pave way for another Cholera outbreak and state-orchestrated violence, among many others.
Currently, the country is teetering on the edge, failing to effectively deal with the COVID-19 outbreak that has shaken the entire globe.
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Zimbabwe is now, by any measure, a shadow of its former self, plunging deeper into political and economic turmoil.
A HUMANITARIAN CASE
A country that was a breadbasket of the region, producing millions of tonnes of grain for export, Zimbabwe has become a shell, and in 2020 alone, close to eight million people in both urban and rural areas are in dire need of food aid. The country is facing its worst food crisis in a decade, and is ranked amongst the worst humanitarian crises in the world.
According to the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), chronic malnutrition remains a major challenge and CARE has found out that five million are under nourished; a figure that the organisation says has been constant since the early 2000s.
Despite spending millions on agricultural programmes, including the most recent Command Agriculture programme, government has not achieved the required food security owing to nepotism, corruption and policy inconsistencies.
So, as the country turns 40, food security remains a key issue that needs resolving as it is a Constitutional obligation of the government to provide the necessary social welfare to its citizens.
ZPP continues to call on government to institute policies that ensure high agricultural productivity as this not only ensures everyone is fed and secure, but also boosts the economy through exports. A REPRESSIVE STATE
The promise of a democratic Zimbabwe has continued to elude the country in its forty years of independence.
Images of police beating up people, soldiers shooting down unarmed citizens, abductions, mass killings, and political violence have dominated the story of independent Zimbabwe
With the State being the architect of these human rights violations, perpetrators have gone unpunished, and in some cases have been rewarded.
The same perpetrators continue to walk scot-free in the same communities where they have committed heinous acts in the name of safeguarding a political party.
Since inception, ZPP has documented human rights violations and it is only prudent that government takes a serious turn and institute proper redress to these violations.
A BLEEDING, POLITICISED ECONOMY
Economically, the country is bleeding as inflation skyrockets, the new local currency loses value by the day and corruption continues to embed itself in every facet of state institutions. The consequences of the economic collapse are far reaching – particularly for the overwhelming majority who live below the poverty line.
The politicisation of food and other aid during distribution remains a mainstay of the country’s economy, with some citizens being denied food, harassed, and attacked due to their political or perceived political affiliation. In urban areas, basic commodities are far beyond the reach of many.
Endless queues for fuel and water have become the order of the day, compounded by 20-hour power outages which have forced citizens to adapt to new ways of living.
The health system in the country has borne the brunt of the economic crisis and is in near collapse.
Health workers have consistently downed tools, citing incapacitation and hospitals are now considered death traps that have not been equipped with the basic requirements.
On a daily basis, across Zimbabwe’s hospitals, people are dying of preventable diseases as a result of limited equipment and lack of basic medication.
The water crisis that has rocked the nation for years is now threatening to give rise to another Cholera outbreak which left over 4,300 dead in 2008.
As Zimbabwe turns 40, it is faced with the battle of all battles; the highly infectious global pandemic Coronavirus disease (COVID-19), that is wiping out hundreds by the day across the globe.
IMPACT OF THE ECONOMIC CRISIS ON WOMEN & GIRLS
Women and girls have borne the brunt of the economic crisis for decades, with reports of women being sexually exploited in exchange for goods, and girls married off at young ages in order to escape poverty.
Further, for women and girls across the country, sexual reproductive health rights are compromised as access to contraceptive pills is limited and they are sold at exorbitant prices; although Zimbabwe has one of the highest rates of contraceptive use in Africa. Feminine hygiene products are largely inaccessible in remote areas and are highly priced and out of reach for many.
INTROSPECTION REQUIRED
With all this, there is no doubt that what Zimbabwe needs is a new culture, an inclusive and tolerance driven culture where people are at the centre of decision making and where there is self-determination and respect for each other, regardless of political affiliation. Political will by government is critical if Zimbabwe is to become great again.
Zimbabwe has missed many chances to heal itself and if the current COVID-19 is anything to go by, it should act as a starting point for the political authority to unite the nation.
The Zimbabwe Peace Project believes that only inclusivity, healing and reconciliation can get Zimbabwe moving into the future towards justice, prosperity and peace for all, all for the sake of future generations.
