via Bulawayo24 NEWS | Robert Mugabe – A man and president Zimbabwe never needed! by Stella Msebele 17 January 2014
Plainly, Robert Mugabe was the wrong man and the wrong president for a post-colonial State to succeed Rhodesia, by whatever name that post-colonial would be known. As readers can clearly tell, I disown the name ‘Zimbabwe’, not for itself, but for every evil it has represented and every good it has not been. It should also become clear shortly why I think that now, more than ever be before, that the name ‘Zimbabwe’ must be discarded altogether.
But for contemporaneity, Mugabe is exiting his Zimbabwe just as he began it, mocking the Ndebele people with his new wave of ‘Joshua Mqabulo Nkomo’ and ‘Umdala wethu’ love songs which augment his tuneless ‘pasi naNkomo’ chorus of the 1980s. Because this new wave of fawned fondness is all mockery, it is all characteristically imposed, rehearsed, square and tasteless. Mugabe will never be cleansed of his sins against the Ndebele people by wearing the facial mask of Joshua Nkomo. This is all uninvited pantomime of self-deception.
If he wishes to before he dies Mugabe must own up to the Ndebele people as Mugabe about Gukurahundi, not as a Nkomo-like face or Nkomo-like shape, otherwise if he will not, as clearly he has no intention to, then to hell with his unsolicited pantomimes. At the very most, he should just keep quiet. A short digression, though.
I hear many times over people of all sorts claiming that it is not in ‘our’ culture to talk about someone’s impending death while they still breathe. Thixo! Which culture is that? From where?
The cultures I know, and certainly of those peoples who make up present-day Zimbabwe, as the inevitable becomes clear, the elders will gather the family, especially sons of the departing elder, to make them accept the unfolding inevitability and prepare them for the post event. The cultures I know therefore talk about impending death openly, and as culture. And for how long have we known about Nelson Mandela’s grave at Qunu? But back to Mugabe.
I tap from my article I wrote a few days ago about lying (Tendai Biti – Please mourn privately!). Because it’s Mugabe’s impending death we now face, suddenly everybody, including self-respecting White men, now feel a compulsion to be untruthful, commonly known as lying, and to use culture to validate or mask their untruths. Again, as I said in that article, all this is equalization of Zimbabwe and lies. Tellingly, though, that Zimbabwe equals lies is the only self-applying truth about Zimbabwe. People lie because lying is expected in Zimbabwe and lying is Zimbabwean. From false boasts about the quality of Zimbabwe’s education system to false claims of superiority over other peoples and nations, to superiority of the Shona over the Ndebele Zimbabwe has lied and continues to lie.
The simple, plain and raw truth is that Mugabe is going to die, and perhaps pretty soon too, and no one needs waste valuable time proving or disproving the rumour mill in Harare.
And for many, Mugabe’s demise will be cause for celebration, and rightfully so. The end of any evil is cause for celebration. There will be few families Ndebele or Shona who in some way have not been affected by Mugabe’s evil, either as surviving relatives of killed or disappeared victims, maimed victims themselves, or living victims of families tone apart by Mugabe’s evil and bad policies. It is only in Zimbabwe where even in ‘peace-time’ exile is a far better than home. Of course, Zanu-PF will do everything it can to choreograph Mugabe’s death, but the more sober-minded faction of Zanu-PF will know very well what a bad idea it will be for them as individuals and the country as a whole to deify Mugabe upon his death. They understand that this is simply the wrong age for celebrating what many see as a monster! They know that their political fortunes may well depend on how they handle Mugabe’s death. And more importantly they now know that post-dictatorship criminal tribunals are now being created innovatively and to suit each particular circumstance. It may not have with Gukurahundi, but once they touched the White man son and daughter in 2000, the game has completely changed.
Mugabe’s death is therefore for them a time for sobriety, not recklessness. We will be watching ….
Robert Mugabe has simply been a man and president Zimbabwe never needed.
After Smith’s Rhodesia, post-colonial Rhodesia needed a Nelson Mandela, perhaps a Kenneth Kaunda, but certainly not a Julius Nyerere. A man full of love, not hate. A unifier, not a destroyer. A man of truth and not a man who manufactures truth. In short, a national father-figure to whom respect and affection would have been freely given, and not a monster that extracts allegiance.
Mugabe apparently learnt his macabre trade from Nyerere. Rumour has it that Julius Nyerere and the Tanzanian army were used as a cover by the British to kick Idi Amin out of Uganda. With Zimbabwe’s independence coming, Nyerere advanced his blue-eyed boy, Mugabe, for the presidency of the new Zimbabwe, and the British returned the 1977 favour. Many will recall that Mugabe pre-announced the results of the 1980 elections after he, Nyerere, Samora Machel, Commander of the Rhodesian Army, General Peter Walls, and South African Army Commander, General Magnus Malan, secretly met in Maputo early 1980 ahead of the results of the 1980 elections.
Post-1980, many Ndebeles will recall that they said that most Gukurahundi were so ‘dark’ and didn’t look ‘Zimbabwean’ or speak Shona and were probably foreign. Many Ndebeles suspected these elements to be Tanzanian. This was not a fanciful idea, given the well-documented massacres of Zipra forces by Zanla at Morogoro and Mgagao in Tanzania at the apparent instigation of or the the connivance of Julius Nyerere. Nyerere absolutely hated Nkomo.
With Robert Mugabe forming the first post-colonial government, the ‘Zimbabwe’ everybody had hoped for became a still-birth. It was a conspiratorial Zimbabwe based on lies and fanned by tribal hatred.
As Mugabe prepares to exit, Zimbabwe remains behind as this empire of crumbling dominos. Mugabe’s Zimbabwe re-made the Ndebele State and Mashonaland State. Perhaps in its own strange way, Mugabe’s assumption of power is a positive that created this unfolding political dynamic of two independent states of Matebeleland and Mashonaland, past his sorry rule.
No one needed a Robert Mugabe in 1980, and no one needs a Robert Mugabe in 2014, or after. And here, I am talking about the institutional Robert Mugabe. His self and his institutional reality have to have coincided. You have to have it inside you to do or to be the public face of the many evil things his Zimbabwe has done to many people, of whatever tribe or colour. And Mugabe has never been his own man throughout his sad rule. Many believe even today that those who put him in power in the first place have a vested interest in protecting him and easing him into a Pandora’s grave.
Robert Mugabe’s demise must certainly be welcome, and celebrated by those who will choose to. There is nothing sinister or unpleasant about saying this. His friend, Margaret Thatcher, invoked the same reaction in Britain when she died in April 2013. A big part of Britain celebrated her death, openly. And there are many people in the public and private spheres who deaths are and can only be celebrated! Indeed, good riddance to old evil!
Those who may think that what I have said here about Mugabe are un-sayables will simply have to deal with it, but I will not lose sleep or agonise on their behalf.
Certainly, it is the right thing that before he departs, Mugabe knows that the people know him for who and what he is: a short, dark angry man who abused entrusted public power and brought untold misery to millions of innocent people merely and solely because he was president. And a short, dark angry man who has cloned equally evil and bad people who continue to man the State machinery of present-day Zimbabwe, people who even today, insult, mock, scandalize, and seek to harm others merely and solely because they control the institution of the State. These clones, together with their leader, Robert Mugabe, must be demystified now just before Mugabe dies, otherwise if we don’t they are the new breed of Robert Mugabes that no one needs and no one has ever needed, about to terrorise us all over again.
It is also worth remembering that each one of these Mugabe clones – and we know them all by name – has their own crimes to hide post-Mugabe. Mugabe’s impending death has them wetting their pants, justifiably so.
My culture obliges me to acknowledge Mugabe’s impending death and plan for the future. And I do.
Two scenarios are possible after Mugabe’s demise (after the constitutional transitional arrangements). The first is another Zanu-PF dictatorship that will come in soaked in various wordy disguises. Already we see some of those disguises in some laughable things Zanu-PF presently calls ZimAsset and Indigenization. The second scenario, is an MDC-T plastic democracy which also takes a whole country for a Spiderman toy. Both scenarios scare me; both are totally undesirable.
But what are the immediate challenges facing us immediately after Mugabe’s death?
First, Zanu-PF and MDC-T regard themselves, separately, as heir apparents, though from different political standpoints. Second, both Zanu-PF and MDC-T are likely to collude and connive on a second GNU, under whatever guise.
For those who haven’t seen it, MDC-T’s hand-handlers are still at it, withholding lines of credit to the ‘new’ Zanu-PF government in the hope that a second economic collapse will force another GNU. However, as the four years of the so-called GNU showed, the MDC formations and Zanu-PF are totally incapable or able to resolve the political and economic ‘crisis’ in today’s Zimbabwe.
Third, there could be another version of a GNU, this one made up of the MDC formations, Zanu-PF, the tantrum-throwing Zapu, the power-chasing NCA and a few patronage-coating individuals hand-picked from the Civic Society political movement (in Zimbabwe civil society is a political animal in disguise). This is the worst of all scenarios. However, this is what all these ‘politicians’ want and what this political stampede we now see is all about. With minor exceptions, therefore, all these are predatory politicians always prepared and ready to ambush and kill freedom in the name of expediency. But this time we must say we want freedom, not democracy!
So what should be done, post-Mugabe?
Firstly, we must clearly define what we want. As I see it, the underlying purpose must be the creation of a completely new political order. That new order must be founded on freedom, not democracy, and that freedom must be defined by processes, not ends.
Secondly, in the immediate to mid-term, we must stop the supposed automaticity of either a Zanu-PF, MDC-T or GNU government, post-Mugabe.
In terms of post-Mugabe institutional processes, the following must be done:
Firstly, the immediate commissioning of a Transitional Government made up of civic leaders who will not participate in future elections. No political party must be part of the Transitional Government.
Secondly, the Transitional Government to commission a Constitutional Conference. Thirdly, the Transitional Government must commission the writing of a New Constitution, but only at the end of a Constitutional Conference. And at the Constitutional Conference, everything must be on the table and open for discussion, from the name of the country or countries, the constitutional re-construction of that or those countries, right down to gender and sexuality issues. The people must accept and reject issues, freely, and as informed citizens.
But how is such a Transitional Government to come about?
There are two options. One is a popular uprising modelled on the Arab Spring. There will have been lessons by now about not allowing such a popular uprising in today’s Zimbabwe turn into an Islamic Winter such as it has in Libya, and more so, in Egypt. The second is a civic-led coalition underwritten by the possibility of a popular uprising which should petition SADC, AU and the international community for such a Transitional Government.
There is a third option, and this consists of the Ndebele State (or the Shona State) violently seceding. Only fools dismiss or wish this possibility away. In fact the chorus of dismissive political imbeciles is loudest. That is both regrettable and irresponsible. However, all of the present and future challenges of present-day Zimbabwe can be resolved through constitutional means.
This is the Zimbabwe that this departing Mugabe is bequeathing, a Zimbabwe built as a fool’s paradise in which one tribe thinks and convinces itself that it can in this day and age subjugate another tribe by a genocide and then label that genocide ‘unity’, and further fool itself that by repeating the word ‘unity’ ad nauseum that triumphalist tribe has a created a truth. What a shame! But an even greater failure that is worse than Mugabe’s evil will be this generation’s failure or inability to see through Mugabe’s deeply flawed and broken Zimbabwe, and corrected it. Now!
It therefore has to said clearly that this Zimbabwe Mugabe is leaving behind, nobody ever needed. Therefore, this Zimbabwe, as both a name and a polity must expire with Mugabe. But it is also not just Mugabe’s evil that we want rid of, though very worryingly, some of that evil has somehow migrated to MDC-T. It is also Morgan Tsvangirai and MDC-T’s playfulness about serious matters of State that we want rescued from.
I am sure I speak for many when I say Mugabe’s end cannot surely come about sooner! We never needed Robert Mugabe as Prime Minister or President, and don’t need him today as President. Even with all our imperfections too as human beings, Mugabe deserves to be told truthfully about how he has been to others when he wielded power against them. Indeed, a classical rebel who never understood the true meaning of power in governance.
COMMENTS
I AM A ZIMBABWEAN WHO DESPISE TRIBALISM BUT REGARD THE WRITER OF THIS ARTICLE AN IDIOT GOING BY THE EMPHASIS GIVEN TO THE SHONA AND NDEBELE TRIBES. THIS RECKLESS AND IRRESPONSIBLE TALK ULTIMATELY VINDICATES MUGABE. THERE IS NO TRIBE WHICH DID NOT SUFFER AS A RESULT OF MUGABE’S ACTIONS. IN ANY CASE THE SHONA PEOPLE BEING THE MAJORITY WILL EVENTUALLY DECIDE THE LEADER. PAMBERI NEKUBATANA FOR A PROSPEROUS ZIMBABWE
Uridofo. If someone makes a contribution, atova leadership material. Wake up
Try and be cyber-polite and NOT wrtite in capitals – number one.
Number Two, EVERY word this writer wrote in gospel, truth and not the lies you would have us trade that for – go laugh at Mugabe’s lying in decomposing-State!
what animal is a Shona that decides leadership? You are the reason why some are opting for the secession route.
A Shona is that animal which is ruling Zim with or without the approval of ndebeles who used to raid us in our own land
Very well written by an intelligent woman. Stella for President, you have my vote.
Excellent analysis.
The unvarnished truth! Excellent!
the baTonga pple r among e tribes who were tormented n tortured coz they supported Nkomo
We have all seen what havoc tribalism is bringing to the people of Africa… DRC, Rwanda, CAR,South Sudan, Mali,
The author is completely blinded with tribalism with a prescription that would make Mugabe appear a hero of the Shona, a card which he has used to hold on to power, dividing our people.
We remain Zimbabweans…Ndebele, Zezuru, Suthu, Ndaus,Kalangas,Xhosa, Venda,Karangas,Manyikas, Tongas etc. Why divide us? Are you CIO trying to fuel tribal battles to create another Gukurahundi in the name of fighting dissidents and separatists hence Mugabe justify his kills and hold onto power.
We have all suffered under the arm of this Matibili, that’s why we all scattered all over the world running away from Herod.
Stella is definitely an intelligent woman but it seems the ghost of tribalism refuses to leave the African, no matter how intelligent. I don’t see the smaller tribes being given the faintest thought in her article. True nations will only arise out of Africa with the demise of tribalism. Stella you are brilliant but do something about your tribal views.
Stop the tribal war and because of that we rally behind Bob and your article is full of trash anyway.
Rally behing Babo, you’re the Iiot, or is it Ostrich.Are you serious or were you educated in those awful South African schoold. Certainly not in a Zimbabwean school.
Go mourn at Mugarbage lyingin decomposing-State!
How many countries can we create out of Zimbabwe? Mugabe will have won if we split into tribal countries. Federalism yes but disintergration- well no. If we walk the tribal route, we will never come back to sanity. The ensuing civil insanity will make Gukurahundi look like child’s play. Zimbabweans will have to learn to exist within the polity of of Zimbabwe. Reconcilliation, respect and co-existence will have to occur within the embodiment of Zimbabwe. That is the only honourable thing to do, in fact that is the only way to go. Seperation is not the answer and will never be the answer. Federalism has a chance.
I think my sister your points have been overcome by anger, whether, its tribal or hate, i do not know. I am sure a lot of what you stressed is factual, but also lets not be temperamental, when we want progress. What i foresee is disaster when this Nyasaranda kicks the bucket because as long as the CIO is existent they will make sure they distort every progressive move. Check how they have confused these guys in gvt. The gvt should disband this wing, period.
There is a saying in Shona that goes,”Chinokangamwa idemo asi chitsiga hachikangamwi”.I dont mean to be tribalistic but for identity purposes allow me to use Ndebeles and Shonas which i am and proud to be.The Ndebeles like any other civilised Zimbabwean are very aggrieved by the Gukurahundi massacres and believe it wasnt justified at all.All Ndebeles think the Shonas we are just one,no we are too many different tribes and cultures and to gether we make up zimbabwe the ndebeles too included.
Putting politics aside,i mean the zanu,zapu zum mdcs,history tells us you ndebeles were not such a nice people when you crossed the limpopo or was it the shangani river.But if we are to live in the past then who can move us forward and how?Stella like most Ndebele artcle writers you make the mistake of wanting to make yourselves seem hollier than though.Alot of born frees reading your artcles today on Gukurahundi are less informed about this post independance distuburnce because its less publicised.Its very complex indeed especialy when our grandparents also taught us about the massacres of the ndebele raids which always resulted in yhe death of Shona men and forced or rape cases of our poor mothers and sisters who ended up being abducted to the ndebeles.Some will see it as revenge cause no one tells them the truth.
I condemn both generations or should i say leaders who believe in killing as a means to an end or vise versa.We need national leaders today that can advance the interest of the nation first and for most.A bit of tribalism in any contribution will magnify the other underlying past sins of the past.Such contributions will kill the zeal for national appeal.I am not saying the bad past of whoever and whatever position in society should not be exposed and scrutinised,our past should and must righttly shape our futute.
What we need is true national leadership not just for the presidency but in all spheres of govrnance and its a mammoyh task to get that,otherwise more Stellas will write an article like this and we respond like i did but this is not enough ,its a step in the right direction though.
Dzatsa
Your alluding to past tribal wars as a counter argument against contemporary politics in Mthwakazi simply doesnt wash. Modernity and Primitivity can not be compared. Besides, who in Mthwakazi should account for trubal wars of 1890s? Which court will listen to that nonsense. Your claims are the same as Mthwakazi people demanding that Bona, Robert and Chatunga account for Gukurahundi. This is utter nonsense. It is not a lie that some Shonas were responsible for aiding and abating Mugabe’s evil designs against the Mthwakazi people. Its also true that gukurahundis spoke Shona. The word gukurahundi is Shona.
Your argument is very lame Mthwakazi. White people colonised Zimbabwe in 1896 but we fought to push them out. Afrikaners arrived in South Africa in 1652, but black South Africans and Africa fought against them until majority rule was achieved in 1994. Because the Ndebeles took the Shonas land and resources forcibly, it becomes nothing but tribal wars???????? No, we cannot shift goal posts like that Mthwakazi. I beg to differ with you and I do so strongly. Colonisation is still colonisation regardless of who does it. Let us be comfortable to discuss the Ndebele raids into MAshonaland in as much as we would be comfortable to discuss Gukurahundi. The line of divide between the two is so small. Let me be frank with you Mthwakazi. The Ndebele raids into Mashonaland is an issue that aggrieved and still aggrieves the Shonas and we will talk about it and want it addressedjust like Gukurahundi. Your reference to modern courts will not help to sweep this issue under the carpet. If not openly discussed, it will continue to rear its ugly head just like Gukurahundi. Dindingwe rinonaka richakweva rimwe, rikange rokwebwa roti marava angu azara ivhu. Aah kwete Mthwakazi. There are Shonas like me who will fight to make sure that this issue sees lime light as well, just like Gukurahundi. Ndine maronda inini. My ancestors were butchered, rapped, robbed and dispossessed.
Mukanya, nobody has ever said you should not discuss tribal wars. Go ahead discuss them, but who do you want to account? Who is Ndebele? Is Jonathan Moyo accountable as well? Right from the word go, you have a problem of defining who a Ndebele is.
Your logic of comparing Colonialism, whites and Ndebele people is twisted. Whites had to be foght because they were not only innpower unfairly but because they came from outside Africa. The Ndebele people are not in power and moved from one place to the other within their African continent, just like you Shonas did when you moved from the North. Shonas have one big problem; you want to creat the impression that the Ndebele/Shona wars were an exception. There is nothing special about you people, these wars were common all over Africa. You are no exception, neither were you innocent. You not only raided San land in Southern Africa, but you continued fighting each other grabbing land that was never yours in the first place.
Are you saying the Ndebele people should demand that Bona, Chatunga and Robert account or pay for Gukurawundi? I asked you this question and you ducked and dived and avoided answering it. Please answer, should these innocent children pay for gukurahundi?
Enos Nkala and Jabulani Sibanda are not SHONAS YOU IDIOT. wake up you idiot
My country people an opinion was made by the writer and what has been said is what most of us know. Politics is not for the faint hearted and Robert fits that bill. For far too long we have suffered under this man and most of us cant wait to see the back of him . Despite the deals made to empower the devil himself we must stand as one and rid us of this evil as no one else will. Let us unite and rid ourselves of our HITLER.
Respect lady. You nailed Mugabe with perfect accuracy. Your prognostications – not so good.
If MUGABE is still capable of reading, One can only hope that the CIO member who undoubtably monitors this web site, extracts the above article and includes it in the daily briefing! A little light after dinner entertainment! What a legacy.
This dyed-in-the-wool tribalist rambles on like Tafataona Mahoso.
A truly brilliant article. may the Lord Himself raise up a leader after His own heart to rule this nation. Nothing more! Nothing less! We must look for that. A new dispensation coming!
An excellent article. Mugabe’s evil well defined in terms of its pervasiveness and toll. A 33 year reign of bringing untold misery to many. I am glad she dismissed the cultural myth that we cannot discuss someone’s death while they’re still alive. That never rang true and as Mugabe himself certainly discussed many peoples death while they were still alive, I think it only fitting and appropriate. The writers point about Zimbabwe needing true freedom not democracy is an important point. What she prescribes is worth considering by way of transition. More elections without truth will see Zimbabwe continue limping along and never realising its true potential.
Well u spoke from the heart maam but still an idiotic article I say
Have we really been suffering for 34 years?Or is it 14?
Mugabe’s relevance will be land distribution.
The writer has serious tribal myopia
Very stupid long, rubish and baseless article.
Please stop writing and tell us your personal views of Zimbabwe and Mugabe.
Hip of rubbish idiot
Please be respective of being an author and not a substitute to the extent that you have taken the liberty to write rubbish and propaganda.
Please stop stop you must be a bitter white imperialist.
Go to hell with your stupid and long article about Mugabe.
Remember after Mugabe I come and I will be worse off
Mugabe took time to do what he did and that was his biggest problem and down full.
They was no need to wait 20 years after winning and kicking those imperialist in war they lost and still negotiated with the imperialist.
Did Ian Smith even or ever apologise for the riot killings of Zimbabweans.
Emerson must take over and you see a true Zimbabwe after Mugabe.
Mugabe has been to kind a to much talk
The things Mugabe is doing now should have been done from day one and now his trying to fast track Things after being fooled by the very same people like this idiot writer posting nostalgic rubbish.
Well written article even though some people want to pretend that there is no tribalism in Zimbabwe caused by the ruling party.What makes a person to spend 30+years in Mat without making an effort to learn local language? Just visit government institutions and observe which language is being used in Byo.Those who deny that there is no tribalism are liars and are living with their misguided practices.On many occasions I have reminded these public workers that they should not expect me to use Shona in Mat,which annoys them a lot.Why? Because they think its their right but they forget that its my right to protect my mother language from going extinct.When I visit Harare I quickly switch over to Shona because its the right thing to do to be heard properly by the local people.There is no language which is better than another language my friends.Only fools think otherwise.
ZANU PF is a party of the past living in the past with a captive audience who have neither the wit , wisdom nor motivation to change it which is one of the reasons there is no viable alternative , and will not be for at least another generation . Changing a name will not change any fundamentals and would be purely cosmetic. All the “isms” will eventually become irrelevant and those yet unborn will rescue this wonderful land , whatever they decide to name it. Sadly for most of us it will be too late
Stella might be intelligent, but I am skeptical to call her a leader. True leaders tower above tribalism and unite the people they lead. The African leader who fits this description squarely is Nelson Mandela. He united all South Africans be they Zulu, Xhosa, Afrikaner, Sotho, Tswana, Pedi, Tsonga or Venda. For a very long time, Zulus and Xhosas hated each other and fought countless battles. The situation came to a head in the few years leading to political independence in 1994. However, Mandela, being the charismatic and concerned leader he was, managed to knock sense into these two tribes and today they talk peace and cohabit. Mandela had a vision for a truly democratic, peaceful and prosperous South Africa. He laid a foundation for South Africans to view issues from a non-racial and non-tribalist perspective. It will only take the people that are coming after him to reverse the gains that the country has made.
The qualities that Mandela displayed as a leader are diametrically opposed to the qualities that Stella displays through her article. I see her as someone who is soaked in tribalism. She projects extreme anger which can supersede the anger of a man she passionately criticizes and wishes dead. By wishing Robert Mugabe dead, it means she is unforgiving. By doing this, she falls into the same trap as the man she criticizes. In my opinion, she disqualifies herself for leadership. Regardless of how aggrieved he/she might be, a leader is expected to rise above the emotions of the majority and facilitate reconciliation among people that are at war. As a Xhosa, obviously Mandela was aware of the generational differences among the Zulus and his tribe. But he did not sink low to speak the inflammatory language of the ordinary Xhosas and Zulus, for to do so would not distinguish him as a leader. He would be just a statistic.
By peddling inflammatory tribalist sentiments, Stella is reducing herself to a statistic. She is an epitome of me in the seventies when my late grandparents used to narrate to us stories of Ndebele raids. I would feel intense anger and a burning desire to revenge. That feeling is a preserve for non-leadership material for it is an expression of intense emotions and a desire to destroy rather than build.
Granted, Ndebeles are aggrieved by Gukurahundi. However, the Shonas have a sad story to tell as well. By saying this I am not trying to condone Gukurahundi. It is an unfortunate development in our history, one that we must avoid at all costs. As I said before, my late grandparents used to tell us stories of Ndebele raids. Men and boys were killed. Women were rapped or taken as wives. Shonas were robbed of their cattle, goats, sheep and grain. The men and boys were forced to carry the loot to Matebeleland. Upon arrival, they were killed. The lucky ones were integrated into the Ndebele culture. These are the ones who today use their totems as surnames. For a long time, they were treated like slaves, more or less like black Americans before abolition of slavery. I am reliably informed that it was difficult for them to marry “pure” Ndebeles. They were described as amaholes and unholy.
The evidence of the Ndebele raids still exists in the Shona-speaking areas of Zimbabwe. For example, in the heart of Buhera district there is a Ndebele chief who took a rich part of that area during the raids. We have Shona names whose origins can be traced to Ndebele. For example, Chikoshana which sounds related to Skhosana, Chirau which sounds connected to Slai, Gijima, Mutimukuru, Makaya and so on. In Shona these names are not very meaningful, save for a few.
Dwelling on the past will not help us at all. The Ndebeles who raided Mashonaland are long gone. As Stella rightly says, Robert Mugabe will be gone one day. Some of the soldiers who took part in Gukurahundi departed a long time ago. But Zimbabwe will always be there. Our efforts should be directed towards national healing and building the Zimbabwe we want rather than further tear it apart. Let us build it for future generations. We cannot afford to be selfish like our predecessors. All Zimbabweans are victims of wrong political and economic decisions of either Mzilikazi or the Zimbabwean government before 1987. I ma saying the Zimbabwean government because Robert Mugabe had a cabinet that helped him in decision-making. Enos Nkala was the defense minister by then. He vowed to exterminate the Ndebele people. Funny enough, he is rarely condemned for his role in Gukurahundi. There were Gukurahundi perpetrators of Ndebele origin although they were outnumbered by Shonas for obvious reasons. Everything can be laid bare if as a country we institute a Truth and Reconciliation Commission. A TRC would reveal the people who sanctioned Gukurahundi. I do not think Robert Mugabe decided alone. A lot of questions need answers. For example, what motivated the government to do this? What were the underlying currents? Answers to all these questions can lead us to national healing. We want an open debate that allows people to express all their emotions. Yes, old wounds may be opened, but as of now it shows that they are septic. There is no genuine healing. The TRC can extend to the Ndebele raids of the 1890s. The Shonas also need healing. In South Africa the TRC covered epochs and we need that in Zimbabwe.
A person who dwells on the past has no time to enjoy the present and build the future. Zimbabwe needs all of its people, regardless of where they came from and however their ancestors wronged each other. The best way to correct a mistake it to find a solution, not to make more mistakes. Certain people and events come into our lives as lessons. They teach us what not to do and not what to do.
May God bless Zimbabwe.
Mukanya
Which Ndebele raided your people? Since you were born, have you ever met one?
On the other hand, Mugab, Mnangagwa and Shiri gukurahundied our Mthwakazi people, we know this and we have met them.
So if you believe you have a case, good for you. Lets persue our cases separately with the courts and lets see which cases the courts will listen to.
Mthwakazi you read my article with emotions to the extent that you missed a part which says in Buhera district, Manicaland, we have a Ndebele chief who grabbed a part of that area during the era of Ndebele raids. He is chief Gwebu. That name is not Shona. It is Zulu/Ndebele. In that part of Buhera, they speak Ndebele and I developed a good understanding of the language from them. As a young boy in the seventies, I used to look after cattle with Ndebele children from that area. They knew perfectly well how Ndebele ended up living in a Shona area.
It is not your fault Mthwakazi. After independence our leaders concentrated on teaching us white colonial history and did not want to entertain African on African colonisation for reasons best known to themselves. I could guess and say maybe they wanted to maintain national unity, but you will not accept that because, in your opinion, the Shonas, amagundwani, would never want unity with Ndebeles. Mthwakazi my late grandparents experienced Ndebele raids in the 1890s and they told us that history. They both died when they were almost 100 years in the 1980s. My estimates therefore show me that they were born around 1880. By the 1890s they were old enough to remember events pretty well.
Despite all this, unlike you, I want a united Zimbabwe, a country that has opportunities for all children whether they be Ndebele, Shona, Kalanga, Sotho, Nambia, Tswana, Venda or Tonga. That is why I propose a TRC. You and people of your kind just want to fan a debate of tribalism and secession which will not benefit our children. Let us debate issues that confront our country without insinuating on tribalism. Do not be uncomfortable to talk about Ndebele raids into Mashonaland. Let us freely debate that issue. Sweeping it under the carpet or pretending that it did not happen will not help. Let us open all wounds and facilitate proper healing. Above all, let us argue responsibly. Fanning hatred will trigger an inferno that will be very very difficult to extinguish. Zimbabwe has been through a lot and we need nothing else except national healing and prosperity.
Mukanya think mani. You Shonas also raided the San and took thier land. Why do you pretend Shonas are innocent? Did Shona people just drop down from the heavens above and found themselves in thiscland between the two rivers you now call Zimbabwe?
Well narrated Mukanya. I think the people from Matabeleland should also accept that there was terror also perpetrated by their ancestors on the Shona people. Remember also these people initially had a unified force against the Smith regime, which was operating from Zambia. Why did they split? Was it not because there was a tribal element that contributed to this. We need people to carry out thorough investigations into these issues who should report back to the people of Zimbabwe without fear or favour, let alone political influence.
People are not aware that ZANU PF is capitalising on these differences because they know for sure that support from the Ndebeles is very much limited as long as there is a Shona pausing any motions on the government’s misdeeds. Who does agree to it that Gukurahundi was not good. Even the perpetrator himself has accepted, but if you still think that its the only basis for the Ndebeles to rise against ZANU PF then it does not hold much needed water. Lets all unite to remove the monster party together and then we discuss these atrocities later. Who does not want to address these issues. It is also unfortunate that in Zimbabwe we do not look at what type of canditate do we need for a leader, that is why baba Chatunga outsmarts you. The people from Matebeleland should know that by virtue of their number as compared to Shonas they will not win any election as long as their leaders preach tribes. It was only Joshua Nkomo who missed the train because he had the potential and charisma to rule this country. But also remember why was there a split in Zambia.
Look at the way Bulawayo City Council is being run. There would rather accommodate or employ a Nyirenda, Phiri or Maseko than a Tapera, Chinamasa or Chisvo. Even in allocation of Stands, whether business or residential. With all this, we are doomed to fail, whilst ZANU PF holds on to power. We need total mindset changes if we are to progress.
Thanks Smart Talk for that dimension. People from Matebeleland should not think that Shonas are not aggrieved by the injustices perpetrated against their ancestors. Quietness should not be equated to contentment. It is wrong to view all Shonas as perpetrators. We are also victims. Not all Ndebeles are clean as you rightly insinuate. Let us be comfortable to discuss all retrogressive events in the history of our country. We cannot be selective.
smart talk, as a Mthwakazi, I will never accept responsibility over your imaginary tribal raids, which you cannot vouch for. Not unless you expect me to demand that Bona, Chatunga and Robert jnr accept responsibility over gukurahundi.
A good article and well written.
Sadly, so many factors make up Zimbabwe’s demise, but I hope and pray that Mugabe death will bring a time of peace. That God will have mercy on such a beautiful country and her people. Raise up a leader who will bring unity and the stability everyone longs for! Surely this is not asking for too much!!
the holocaust happened because hitler was a demented evil genius who chose to do harm on a massive scale,but he didnt cause it alone .hitler was one man,it happened because thousands of others could be persuaded to join him in his madness .coming back to the mugabe story,indeed he is the man we had both learnt to hate over the years for varrying reasons,but the million dollar qn,is how much we had contributed as individuals to this state of affairs,and the daily evils that goes with it.ours is a collective failure,and regrettably we pray for his departure,which will never come in the near future believe me.icondenm every evil,and there is no justification to it,bt to single out an individual is morally and interllectualy dishonest.its tru zim is divided on tribal lines,and advocating for well pronounced tribal conduct,is a political miscalculation which dates back to nkomo.mashona constitute 80% of the ppltn and ndebeles 20%,if nkomo cld have realised that back then we cldnt be having this debate.the writer need no reminder that,ndebeles we assume power in thousands years to come,just as whites will.they might contest for the sake of history,but they will never assume power,even the electorate knows that,hence the dismall performance of ncube and dabengwa in their own backyards despite trying to use the tribal cards.lets foster unity and confront the devil.its indeed motherland,unity,unity,unity.
tafadzwa, people dont want unity with Mashonaland. Cant you just get it?
Mthwakazi which people are against uniting with Mashonaland? You are displaying your preconceived tribalist agenda. Before you try to drag the people and impose your agenda on them, conduct an opinion survey. Only after that can you argue with authority.
The first step is to get rid of the name Zimbabwe. You are right, I also hate it. Naming a country of so many ethnic groups in one ethnic groups language is wrong. This is why Shonas are so arrogant. Next is to institute real devolution as is the case in South Africa, with provincial governments and provincial legislatures, or federalism. Failure of this the option is secession leading to two different and separate countries.
And Mthwakazi you conveniently forget that even among the Shonas we have so many ethnic groups. Because you are drugged with tribalism, you want us to believe that the ethnic groups in Zimbabwe are Shonas and Ndebeles only. For your own information, I work with a Sotho. She complains that the “smaller” tribes in Matebeleland are forced to learn Ndebele against their will. I gather these tribes passionately hate Ndebeles because of their over-bearing behaviour, something that you accuse the Shonas of doing. Because of the similarities between Ndebele and Xhosa langauges, the other langauge has lost its originality and those who speak it are battling to prevent its extinction. Xhosas in Zimbabwe number around 110000 and that is a very big number to allow extinction of their langauge. In as much as you want your language and culture preserved, you must also allow other langauges to thrive. Do not give an impression that all people in MAtebeleland speak Ndebele because they do not. My advise to you is that you should develop a solid understanding of Zimbabwean history so that you will argue from a more informed stand point rather than just waffle. Be more informed Mthwakazi if you want to remaim in the lime light and be taken seriously by the people around you.
mukanya, you imagin too much. Who said I want everybody to speak Ndebele? Besides, where do you get this thing that I am Ndebele and I speak Ndebele? The Ndebele language was made the official language alongside Shona at the Lacaster House conference by Mugabe and Nkomo, a Khalanga. Ian Smith and the white missionaries promoted bothe Ndebele and Shona, they were not Ndebele. Missionaries came up with standard Shona, which was just Zezuru in another name. So stop blaming innocent for this language predicament, Ndebele people were not responsible. It is actually Welshman Ncube, a Ndebele speaking person who with his MDC came up with the official recognition of many other languages spoken in Mthwakazi. All the Shonas wanted, particularly those in ZANU P was the retaintion of just Shona and Ndebele!
Mthwakazi
Mtwakaazi you are day dreaming. Even Nkomo named his party Zimbabwe African People’s Union. The name Zimbabwe is not Shona or Ndebele. You obsessed with tribalism. You are going nowhere as long as you want to divide Zimbabwe on tribal lines. Even the majority of the Ndebeles will no support cessation.
papson, we all know your kind. Those who say things you dont like are always dreaming, according to you. The name Zimbabwe makes Shona people arrogant, it should be changed. Nkomo and others never knew that choosing this name was going to lead to Shona arrogance and tribalism, because in thise days, Shonas were not tribalistic. That is why they even supported Nkomo and called him Chobwechiteza. Ever since Mugabe came to power, Shonas have become tribalistic and arrogant. The name has to be changed. Mugabe is not going to last forever. It is him and the army that are keeeping Zim together, the time of reckoning is still coming!pa
I can already see a South Sudan. What is wrong with Africa? Are we in control of ourselves or are we driven from outside.
When I add up all the comments including the above article,I may be forgiven for believing that Mugabe needed to do what he did to bring us here. The opposite could have left us worse off.
But lets face it, Robert Mugabe is a visionless dictator. He sees himself in the mould of Mao Zedong of China. The only thing is, we will never be like China when he dies. He has advanced the culture of wealth accumulation by corrupt, lazy and unproductive people. China is built on the foundation of productivity. They choose their leaders from those who are most promising in the delivery of a first economy Chinese giant. That is far from what Zanu PF is about. They have remained a primitive guerilla group who kill at random taliban style even for flimsy accusations of sellout and witch, with no rule of guenuine law. In China, corrupt people are executed. In Zimbabwe, they are promoted to high office.
The strong tribal connotations in this article suggest that Zimbabwe is for Shonas and Ndebeles only. What about Manyikas? What about Ndaus, Zezurus, Bujas, Korekores, Vitoris etc? South Sudan did it to Sudan and look now. They are killing each other. No compelling vision, no progress. A president of the future Zimbabwe should not be another Mugabe, but a visionary capable of sharing in full colour, what this country must be in 10, 20 50 100 200 1000years from now. We should all do our part to deliver that Zimbabwe or whatever other name we may choose, because – yes – the word Zimbabwe is to me, no longer a sellable brand. So, there are some useful arguments from the writer. Lets think about it and remove the tribal angle.
Godobori ende hausi godobori. What is Shona? Research m friend kana usingazivi tsvanga bhuku rinonzi Rurimi rwaamai it will explain to you zvakazara. I do not know about Ndebeles, maybe ndiko kwaunganyatsove neruzivo. Usarasike shasha mamwe marudzi akatobatana zvakasimba. Research Brooroo
Godobori usadaroba hama yangu kuratidza kusaziva kwakadaro! Shona inovakwa nemarudzi ese awadoma ayo kunze kweNdebele. Aunotaura anonzi madialects pachirungu. We can then extend the argument/analysis and say they become sub-ethnic groups of Shona. That is why they have their own differences in terms of pronunciations, culture and even tolerating each other. Your lambasting of Zanu Pf and Robert Mugabe on the economic front is out of step. Your argument must be holistic because the issues here are very broad. Sekutaura kwaita Smart Talk, I suggest uverenge and understand history yeZimbabwe.
Godobori, Shona tribalism is the cause for calls of secession. Why were there no calls for seccession before independence? It is Shona people who are at fault here and no one else.. There is no need of scapegoating outsiders like Mugabe loves to do. The problem is internal!
At the end of the day all these arguments will come to nought because your children are beyond your command. They are going to school together. They are playing sports together. But some of you old tribalists and racist still continue to bicker whilst your children want education, jobs and so forth. Debating is one thing. But what the Rabbit has witnessed on this topic is hate. Your children will intermarry. You will hate it but they won’t care. God won’t care either because he is a god of love. You will die as miserable old fools because that is what you are. Bob Marley said As long as you a black man you’re an African. He was trying to unite Blacks. Now I say because Zimbabwe has white and mixed race people AS LONG AS YOU’RE A ZIMBABWEAN YOU ARE AN AFRICAN.
Jack the Rabbit it’s a bit harsh what you say but when I see the likes of Charlie C and rubbing his hands in glee involved then you make a good point.
Hutu my point is that whoever thought you would see a Ndebele play for Dynamos or a Shona play for Highlanders. They used to do so in the junior stage and then go to Caps or Saints in their senior years. This young group don’t care. They play for the team they know. If there are any born frees white, black or brown that come on this forum I urge you not to look at the hatred spread by these dinosaurs of politics. You guys are our future.
To a certain extent Jack you are right. Evolution was supposed to lead us to a gradual extermination of tribalist thinking and its resultant behaviours. Unfortunately there are elements among us the dinosaurs who will continue to ride on old events. Invariably that will rub on the born-frees. Some of them may not be able to control their anger and we get back to square one. An open discussion of the issues may therefore be the way forward. Kana tanyarara ngatinyarare nekusingaperi. Kana tada zvekutaura, ngatitaure nyaya dzese kwete kuva selective.
Mukayana my brother.Let us start right here right now . We two Dinosaurs. I am Ndebele which I think you already know. I have nephews and nieces born and bred in Murewa. I have looked beyond history because I love my family. These born frees come to my area to visit Seguru and Miguru (excuse my spelling might be wrong). When they converse with their cousins they use English.I DON’T CARE because they are blood. Same with you I don’t care. You are not the one that shot my friends father and make his children bury him. You are MUKUYANA a man from a Shona back round trying to do the best you can for you country and family. So Mukuyana I salute you.
Mukanya, Gukurahundi is not an old event. Tribal wars are old events and its you who is bringing them up. Gukurahundi offenders are alive; tribal war offenders are dead. What more evidence do you want?Muk
Jack the Rabbit, the Gukurahundi issue would never be a Ndebele vs Shona issue, as long as the Shona people dont bring up the Shona Ndebele tribal wars of the 1890s, each time gukurahundi is disccussed. Shonas always tribalise gukurahundi, yet its not their problem. Gukurahundi is the problem of Mugabe, Shiri, Nkala, and Mnangagwa. But just why they always talk about tribal wars is beyond me. The two events are not the same and are not linked at all!!
Anyone who knows what triggered the unfortunate evil events leading to gukurahundi will know that it is the barbaric mindset of pple like Mthwakazi who refused to have a Shona as president of a united Zim or if they could not have a Ndebele,then Matebeleland should be a separate state. And to suggest that events of the 1890s where the Ndebele used their supremacy in warfare to raid the Shonas of their resources including their women and the Gukurahundi events are by no means the same is delusional. “We must not hate pple who done us wrong. For as soon as we begin to hate them, we become like them, PATHETIC,BITTER & UNTRUE!”-Shakespeare
Tats, we are told gukurahundi was because of dissidents isnt it? How is that the same as tribal wars of 1890s?
@Mukanya-Why is it so hard for a Shona person to learn local Ndebele language, but so easy for Ndebele person to learn Shona? Do not tell me that one language is easier than the other,because its not true.The problem is the other person’s mindset and attitude. We totally refuse to accept any moves which are intended to kill our mother language.I am totally against any tribalism in any form,thus why I encourage people to learn as many local languages as possible.This why in S.AFRICA they have at least 12 official languages.
You hit the nail on the head Mixed Race. It is attitude. And that is what any good leader should work to change. Changing mindsets is not easy my brother, hence the need for good leadership. I liberated myself from tribalism a long time ago. I learnt top speak Ndebele from Ndebele speakers in my area which is predominantly Shona. I did not learn to read it at school, but I taught myself to do so. My children speak Shona, Zulu/Ndebele, Tswana and English. I impressed upon them to learn all these languages because it is the right thing to do. I have a dream that one day every Zimbabwean child shall speak, read and write every Zimbabwean language because it is one powerful strategy of uniting the country.
Recently I have tried to avoid commenting to much. The reason is I wanted to read and here what others have to say on this forum. I have listened and I hear the voices of people trying to move on. I am appealing to any people that have any influence in the set up that exists,listen to these angry voices. Listen to these people. You have the power to make a change. NBS continue putting the word of God into this because you talk a lot of sense and you tell it as it is written. I am Doctor Do little and I ACKNOWLEDGE YOU ALL.
Article well penned, the number and quality of comments says it all.
It provokes some of the things that i have heard and doubted, that the victor always tell the history hence zanu finds it difficult to retell the gukurahundi issue as they deny being the victors. The more than a century old Ndebele-Shona raids were told by the white victors hence its likely distortions for the benefit of the victor.
My story, once i stayed in S.A, was forced to identify as either Zulu or Mukwerekwere, mukwerekwere as i am was forced back across the Limpopo river where i am politely asked to identify as either Ndebele or Shona. Heads first i choose Shona. No end to my misery i was either Zezuru,Korekore, karanga, muvitori, i opted to be a Manyika without knowing that i sholud be a pure Manyika or Ndau. Ndau i chose, only to hear that is either i am muBhosha or muJintu, in an effort to stretch it further i chose muBhosha which ment i was either muNdanda or muBarwe, still in that quagmire, over my shoulder someone whispers, ‘usapuritirane chaanoronza uyu mu Dingidwayo’. Such is the challenge of writing history when the victor and the victim still exist and threaten to claim equal stake from the unsuspecting followers.
We may debate in retrospect, the fact remains, the victims and perpetrators of the gukurahundi era are still among us.
Mukanya(the writer above) has the right thinking. If most people in Africa thought that way, especially it’s leaders, then our development would have been in leaps and bounds. Unfortunately, he is one of the very few; and such minds are rarely given a chance to implement their philosophies; it is the hooligans and the barbaric majority who often get to the top(and almost always using violence, thuggery and deceipt).
Despite Africa having some of the best brains and obviously an abundance in natural resources, it is struggling to compete globally coz it trashes it’s own human resources, sells off its natural resources for a song coz of corruption etc etc.
At last. Proper discussion. Jack you are a genius.
Whilst I totally agree w e writer on all points raised, I don’t subscribe to e idea of partitioning Zim into different states. I also don’t agree w the view that shonas butchered ndebeles rather its mugabe’s army. We shonas too hate mugabe w a passion cos his policies have never benefited us. The crises in our country has negatively affected everu1 not ndebeles only. Murambatsvina and 2008 crises did not spare any tribe in Zim. The truth of e matter is mugabe n zpf must go. Its not a secret mugabe tried to liquidate zapu bt he also did e same to zum, forum n zud succefully. He only failed on MDC bt he is not tiring. Count how many times they tried to take MT’s life since his days at zctu. Mugabe n zpf don’t look at 1’s tribe if they feel threatened. Creating new stated doesn’t solve e prblm we ar faced w. By now we should draw some important lessons from S.Sudan. For years they were fighting to b an independent state bt 2 years down e line after gaining that indepence have turned eir guns each other. The idea of an uprising is equally bad also. Lessons must be learnt from e wars of liberations across e whole Africa and how they ended up giving rise to new armed conflict. We ar an example too, so is Moza, Angola etc. Other lessons can be drawn from other uprising in independent states like DRC, Egypt, Syria, Yemen and Libyia which after ousting repressing gvts e security situation deteriorated further. Instead let’s avoid e temptation of an uprising. Let’s hope the death of mugabe, tho its slow in coming, will bring better times to Zim just like e death of Sani Abacha did to Nigeria
Abbu, there are two choices going into the future. Secession into two separate states or Change the name of the country and ensure a fully devolved united country with provincial governments and legislatures, as it is in South Africa. This will stop arrogance of one tribe against the others. We are sick and tired of the “we are the majority” mantras. Human rights have nothing to do with being majority or minority!!Abb
As Zimbabweans we all need a moral volteface. The level of immorality, corruption, lawlessness, decadence, injustice and all area appalling. Even God is not happy with how brother treats brother in Zimbabwe. My people it is no longer about Shona or Ndebele it is now neighbour against neighbour, brother against brother because people have become so desperate that they can sell their mothers. Things have to return to normal if there was ever a “normal” situation. There is no government in Zimbabwe in the true sense of the word!! This is serious. Everyone knows it. HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA MY PEOPLE!!
ALL ZIMBOS ARE SUFFERING. iTS NOT RIGHT FOR THE NDEBELE TO THINK ALL SHONAS ARE AGAINST THEM. THERE IS NO TRIBAL DIVISION BUT MISGOVERNANCE AND CORRUPTION.
johnson, the truth is that many Shonas hate the Ndebele. Its not debatable, the evidence is all there to see. The use of languages is one area, political leadership of parties and the country is another. The constant harping about tribal raids, etc, etc. Except for a few cases, Shonas are the problem for most Mthwakazi people. The pretend not to like Mugabe, but only when they are suffering from his rule, but if Mugabe is being tribalistic against uMthwakazi, they dont have a problem. Infact they support him. This is why they always support him over gukurahundi by coming up with the counter argument of the 1980s tribal raids!!
I prayed for Mugabe’s death way back in 1997; then I was a mere upper sixth form student. So for a long time a sizable number of people have been in agreement about Mugabe. I take exception on a number of statements the author makes. The most worrying aspects being the author’s thinking that there has been any tribal subjugation of Ndebeles by Shonas. Mugabe does indeed come from the Shona side of Zimbabwe but that is all there is to it. Shonas and Ndebeles never at any point post the impis faught. The worst there has been is just bad blood. Mugabe’s ruthlessness sees no tribes, it just sees enemis and tribal talk was really elitist and not a grass roots issue. Mugabe is simply a bad manager; period. His incompetence destroyed the whole country and most places around the country lagged behind on development hence the adage “Harare yakakura ngetsvete”. It is incorrect to ascribe malice to that which can be fully explained by incompetence.
Morris, then why do you talk about tribal raids each time we call upon Mugabe to address the gukurahundi issue?
Jack unfortunately Mukanya does not salute you….?????
Tribalism is another way of divid and rule
Shona or Nebelele to me makes no difference.
All I see is Zimbabweans
Allowing your great minds to drift into this stupid war of tribalism will only give the imperialist an chance back into Zimbabwe.
That stupid fool that is saying that the name Zimbabwe must go it such an amazing foolish idiot.
Zimbabwe will always be Zimbabwe period.
The name Zimbabwe comes from the historic and spiritual guidance of the great forefathers of Zimbabwe, has totally nothing to do with Shona or Nebelele.
Oh rubish article dude.
Colleen, hell no, there is Mthwakazi and Zimbabwe. The only difference is that currently, the whole country is officially known as Zimbabwe and Mthwakazi are the people who make up the people of the two provinces of Matebeleland and parts of the Midlands in the west.
I have tried and am still trying Ndebele but heyi ithata. I love people!!! Thanks Mkanya for bringing sanity to the discussion. But they don’t so many Shona guys who speak Ndebele, my Shona wife included.
The Zimbabwean govt is essentially a Shona govt. The President and his deputy are both Shona. Morgan Tswangirayi, his strongest opponent is also Shona. So who is stopping them from discussing or calling on a truth and reconciliation commission to investigate the Ndebele/Shona tribal wars?
I say bring it on. Lets deal with Gukurahundi, lets deal with those tribal wars. We want to see who will prove anything against the other in all this, bring it on!
Mthwakazi, one day I hope to shake your hand and drink utshwala with you in a Zimbabwe where it will be inconsequential to be either Ndebele, Xhosa, Kalanga, Shona or Sotho. Believe it or not, ngiyabathanda abantu bam bonke regardless ukhuti baphumepi. Wabona ukhuti ngiyaikhuluma ilanguage yakho? And ngifunde ngedwa ukubhala???? Uma sihlangane, mina nawe sizokhuluma kuphela, not kutaura. KKKKK.