{"id":3152,"date":"2013-08-15T08:59:28","date_gmt":"2013-08-15T08:59:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/africaresearchinstitute.org\/wordpress\/?p=3152"},"modified":"2022-03-15T16:01:46","modified_gmt":"2022-03-15T16:01:46","slug":"on-why-people-support-mugabe-and-zanu-pf-in-zimbabwe-by-jonathan-bhalla","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/africaresearchinstitute.org\/wordpress\/on-why-people-support-mugabe-and-zanu-pf-in-zimbabwe-by-jonathan-bhalla\/","title":{"rendered":"On why people support Mugabe and ZANU-PF in Zimbabwe"},"content":{"rendered":"

Since the July 29th  Zimbabwe elections, debate has raged about the conduct and outcomes of the vote. The notion that ordinary Zimbabweans \u2013 perhaps even the majority \u2013 actually voted for Robert Mugabe and his Zimbabwe National African Union-Patriot Front (ZANU-PF) party is perplexing for many; for some inconceivable. Asking why many Zimbabweans decided to vote for ZANU-PF might be uncomfortable for some, but it is certainly necessary if we are to understand the country\u2019s future political trajectory.<\/p>\n

In 2010, Blessing-Miles Tendi authored \u201cHow intellectuals made history in Zimbabwe<\/a>\u201d for Africa Research Institute\u2019s Counterpoints<\/a><\/em> series. This insightful piece, based on years of research, goes some way to explaining how ZANU-PF maintains legitimacy and support in the context of severe institutional and economic decline. While much has undoubtedly changed over the past three years, a number of points made in this Counterpoint<\/a><\/em> resonate after the 2013 elections in Zimbabwe. Here are a few snippets I picked out.<\/p>\n

ON PATRIOTIC HISTORY\"Blessing-Miles<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cIt is a narrative which depicts ZANU-PF as sole champion, past and present, of the independence and sovereignty of a country under constant attack  from \u2018imperialist forces\u2019. Mugabe was the chief definer of the contours of this history, but professional academics gave it substance and credibility.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPatriotic history is a potent narrative that draws on real, not imagined, grievances. It taps into strong sentiments about colonialism and perceived western hypocrisy on human rights. Its proponents provide persuasive evidence for their assertions, which adds to the plausibility and strength of the narrative. The primary theme \u2013 inequality in land ownership \u2013 has an authentic history. The incorporation of powerful moral discourses makes patriotic history compelling, and difficult to challenge. Nationalist public intellectuals cite the land grievance as the main reason for their alignment with ZANU-PF.\u201d<\/p>\n

ON PATRIOTS AND SELLOUTS<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cZANU-PF history categorised Zimbabweans as \u2018patriots\u2019 or \u2018sell-outs\u2019. From the late 1950s this distinction was a continuous theme of liberation movement politics. But after 2000, a \u2018sell-out\u2019 was a \u2018saboteur\u2019 of liberation principles \u2013 someone who opposed land seizures and sought the extension of human rights in Zimbabwe. ZANU-PF supporters are by definition \u2018patriots\u2019 while the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) and civil society institutions were \u2018sell-outs\u2019 \u2013 and therefore \u2018legitimate\u2019 targets for political violence<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

ON SANCTIONS AND THE WEST<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cAfter 2003, western sanctions replaced whites as the leading cause of Zimbabwe\u2019s problems in patriotic history. ZANU-PF intellectuals declared that the West was punishing the country for having forcibly taken farms from their \u2018kith and kin\u2019, and redistributed them to landless blacks. In reality, sanctions were directed at leading members of ZANU-PF through the imposition of travel bans and freezing of their overseas financial assets. International events \u2013 the NATO-led Kosovo intervention in 1999, the Iraq invasion in 2003, the abuse of prisoners at Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay in 2004 \u2013 were routinely cited as further evidence of western malfeasance and hypocrisy.\u201d<\/p>\n

ON THE MEDIA<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cThe state-sponsored media was instrumental in disseminating patriotic history. From 2000 onwards, the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC) repeatedly broadcast liberation war documentaries that presented ZANU-PF as being solely responsible for securing independence, justified land seizures, highlighted colonial atrocities, and erased personalities and events from the historical record. State-run radio aired catchy jingles \u2013 many composed by Jonathan Moyo<\/a> \u2013 which reworked liberation war songs and celebrated ZANU-PF\u2019s achievements.\u201d<\/p>\n

ON THE OPPOSITION (MDC)<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cPublic intellectuals critical of the nationalist narrative failed to convey an alternative, more objective interpretation of their recent history to Zimbabweans. Masipula Sithole, Brian Raftopoulos, John Makumbe, Elphas Mukonoweshuro and Lovemore Madhuku published articles in independent daily and weekly newspapers in which they deconstructed the \u2018patriots\u2019 and \u2018sell-outs\u2019 distinction, and argued credibly that land was only one of many grievances behind the liberation struggle. In doing so, they showed immense courage. But their challenge to ZANU-PF\u2019s version of history was ineffectual.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPolitical na\u00efvety was equally important. Critical public intellectuals regularly made use of terms like \u2018international community\u2019 without appreciating the negative connotations with which these had become loaded by patriotic history. References to \u2018good\u2019 governance in foreign countries, implying \u2018bad\u2019 governance in Zimbabwe, added weight to allegations that they were western stooges.\u201d<\/p>\n

ON LAND REFORM<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cFor the MDC, land reform is a technocratic process. For ZANU-PF it was a populist event. The MDC considered production to be more important than hectares. It wanted methodical land reform, administered by an independent land commission. Joseph Made, twice ZANU-PF\u2019s agriculture minister, argued that \u201cthe land issue is more serious than institutions, what is needed now is land, not a [land] commission\u201d. MDC MP Priscilla Misihairabwi-Mushonga believes the party should have simplified its position: \u201cZANU-PF never talked about land in technical language. Its message was simple. We made a mistake by always talking process<\/a>.\u201d\u201d<\/p>\n

ON VALUES<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cThe primary fault line in Zimbabwean politics remains an irreconcilable gulf in political values. As the coherence of patriotic history has begun to unravel, so its utility as a means to identify political loyalties has been undermined. In coming years, proponents of patriotic history will require greater ingenuity to sustain their narrative. Yet the coalition government in Harare, even if it can succeed in mending the economy, is building on a fragile foundation. Should the economy recover without any attempt to revisit the crisis of values, then the recovery will have been built on quicksand. Technocratic intercession which fails to tackle this crisis of values may result in history repeating itself.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jonathan Bhalla<\/a> is the Research Manager at Africa Research Institute<\/p>\n

Click here<\/a> to read Blessing-Miles Tendi\u2019s most recent analysis of the 2013 Zimbabwe elections in the Guardian newspaper.<\/p>\n

Click here<\/a> to download \u201cHow intellectuals made history in Zimbabwe\u201d by Blessing-Miles Tendi.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Jonathan Bhalla seeks to understand why ZANU-PF remains broadly popular in Zimbabwe. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":880,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[184,325,116,180,117,324],"class_list":["post-3152","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog","tag-blessing-miles-tendi","tag-morgan-tsvangirai","tag-patriotic-history","tag-robert-mugabe","tag-zanu-pf","tag-zimbabwe-elections"],"aioseo_notices":[],"yoast_head":"\nZimbabwe elections: On why people support Mugabe and ZANU-PF in Zimbabwe<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Since the July 29th Zimbabwe elections, debate has raged about the conduct and outcomes of the vote. 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