Gukurahundi’s place in  Zimbabwe’s 2023 elections

Calvin Manika

Voter registration and political party activities are all gaining steam in Zimbabwe, which is now in election mode. The electorate will be guided by a number of variables while making decisions. Gukurahundi continues to be a contentious topic in the southern region of the nation, notably the Matabeleland region, and may influence voting patterns.

However, it should be noted that the ruling Zanu PF perfomed well in Matabeleland in 2018, winning most seats, an outcome that the opposition attributed to alleged votebuying as villagers were recepients of agricultural inputs from the ruling party.

People in Matabeleland claim  dread got the better of them during the Robert Mugabe-led ZANU-PF regime, thus it is not unexpected that the party still holds power in areas like Nkayi, Lupane, and Tsholotsho where thousands of people were massacred.

Gukurahundi’s two-fold effects which include hatred and fear have been witnessed across the Matabeleland region especially among the Ndebele tribe, which are the most affected. Unlike Bulawayo province where ZANU-PF has been consistently voted against, fear of the atrocities still grips the  Matabeleland rural provinces.

The majority of rural constituencies are under ZANU-PF, a factor analysts say, rural Matabeleland marginalization has subjected people to only depend on government’s handouts.

The current President is completing his full five-year term this year. He has made a number of promises to address this problem along the way.

“We need a government that resolves this problem. We have given the second republic a chance; perhaps in the ensuing three months, they will accomplish something miraculously concrete that will win our hearts. As we head to the polls, the Gukurahundi issue is at the top of our list of concerns,” said Champion Ngwenya, an Insuza resident.

Some of the issues raised by victims are the need for proper reburials and granting of birth certificates to those who were orphaned by the atrocites.

 Due to economic harships, the majority of men who are of working age have emigrated to neighbouring South Africa and Botswana to find employment. An unreconciled past makes individuals feel like second-class citizens and will continue to be relevant until there is a real truth and reconciliation process, and an explanation, according to retired civil official Kelvin Sibindi.

“Technically,  pro-government activists claim that since 1980, there have been two governments. But they cannot dispute the reality that it has always included the same political party and individuals. It implies that the recollections are still unbearably fresh. People have been prevented from speaking out against Gukurahundi even in the second republic, as evidenced by the arrests and plaque demolitions. The recollections feel like it happened yesterday for the thousands of families who lost loved ones,” said Sibindi.

Possibilities for a peaceful country were high when Zimbabwe gained independence from colonial forces in 1980, particularly in light of the promise made by the newly elected prime minister in his victory address. Although Isaiah 2:4 was used as a peace metaphor, the years that followed did not go as planned.

“He will judge between the nations and will settle disputes for many peoples. They will beat their swords into ploughshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore,” said  Robert Mugabe as he quoted the Bible.

“I urge you, whether you are black or white, to join me in a new pledge to forget our grim past, forgive others and forget, join hands in a new amity, and together as Zimbabweans, trample upon racism and regionalism, join hands in a new amity, and together we will work hard to reconstruct and rehabilitate our society as we reinvigorate our economic machinery,” he said after the text.

People in Matabeleland have  seen very little of the hope and promises of that speech. According to Isheanesu Gusha, a political researcher at the University of Pretoria, the Gukurahundi crisis in the Midlands and Matabeleland was the worst stage of the cycle of violence left over from colonial rule. 

“The state-approved violence (genocide) claimed almost 20 000 lives. The dark period in our history is this one. But if the leaders are dedicated, there is always hope. Unfortunately, nobody wants to own the fault or prescribe the reconciliation process,” Gusha lamented.

President Emmerson Mnangagwa began a dialogue with chiefs of Matabeleland, a move that other political figures have criticized as grandstanding, vote-buying, and a waste of public funds. 

The administration made it known that the discussions with the chiefs were intended to find solutions to one of the country’s worst moments in history. President Mnangagwa has met with traditional leaders on numerous occasions and has also held church services in Bulawayo under the auspices of National Prayer Day.

The State House in Bulawayo, where civic society representatives were also invited, has been the location of the President’s talks with the chiefs. The government of Zimbabwe takes care of the welfare of the chiefs. Traditional leaders receive a variety of advantages, including residences, automobiles, fuel, and monthly allowances. Political analysts claim that this structure has been exploited and utilized to promote the ruling party. On the other hand, because the PVO bill is awaiting the president’s approval, the future of civic society is unknown.

When contacted for comment, political analyst Effie Ncube claimed that the administration had made no commitments and made no genuine attempts to end the conflict.

“The second republic enjoys discussing this subject but there is little real action being taken to address urgent problems impacting those who were directly or indirectly touched by the genocide. Speeches are not important; initiating the processes and making offenders accountable are.”

Ncube asserted that only an impartial body could address the complex problem.

“We need an independent organization to lead the process. Initially, the truth must be said, followed by apologies, reconciliation, and then healing. It is a process, and complete dedication is necessary,” said Ncube.

Documentation (Birth, National IDs, and Death Certificates), underdevelopment and marginalization of Matabeleland region, are still unresolved issues in Matabeleland 43 years after independence.

According to Pamela Moyo,* who requested anonymity, it has been clear for the past 40 years that the government has no answers for the Gukurahundi crisis. In the next elections, she hopes that voters would exercise their right to peacefully express their preferences while also making their voices heard.

“This year, we have another chance to pick leaders in accordance with the constitution. We want legislators who will include Gukurahundi in the legislative process. In the interim, we shall make use of our limited power to choose responsible officials in the hope that someday the people of this region can be healed,” said Moyo.

The Matabeleland Collective Consortium, a platform of President Mnangagwa and Matabeleland chiefs, solicits input on each chief’s level of readiness to address issues that fall under his or her purview. Exhumations and reburials are reportedly handled individually, as the relevant chief provides advice. The question of social security benefits will also be dealt with on a case-by-case basis.

This is despite the existence of the National Peace and Reconciliation Commission (NPRC) which is tasked by the country’s constitution to spearhead all reconciliatory processes and make sure there is post-conflict justice, healing, reconciliation; develop and implement such programmes to promote national healing, unity and cohesion in Zimbabwe among other initiatives of peaceful resolution of disputes. The NPRC has also been involved in exhumations and reburials.

Chiefs have been tasked to carry out consultations in their jurisdictions. However, a villager in Lupane, one of the areas most impacted by Gukurahundi, claimed that he has never witnessed a Chief consulting the community about the problem.

“It is concerning that we keep losing faith in our leaders when it comes to crucial topics like these. The possibility that, even if they contact us, they might distort our worries on that platform raises worries,” Gideon Sigwaxa said.