A father covers the face of his daughter with a wet towel after she was teargassed by armed Zimbabwean police in Harare, Monday, July, 4, 2016. Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi / Press Association. All rights reserved.On Wednesday 6 July, while international mainstream media focused on
South African athlete Oscar Pistorius’ sentence for murder, Zimbabweans engaged
in the biggest and most peaceful anti-government protest in the last fifteen
years. A mass stay-away
was staged across Zimbabwean cities to protest against government’s failure to
manage the economy and the repression of dissenting voices. Zimbabweans stayed
at home, and most businesses in the capital Harare were closed in solidarity
with the protesters. Much of the anger was directed at President Robert Mugabe,
who is 92-years-old, and rules the country with his party Zanu-PF since
independence in 1980.
The shutdown was called by an alliance of various movements: the
spontaneous protest movement #ThisFlag that has gained
momentum since April, and found a voice in Pastor Evan Mawarire; #Tajamuka (“we
refuse” in Shona), a militant youth-based movement calling for change, formed
at the end of May; and the public sector workers unions, channelling the voices
of exasperated civil servants who have gone without pay for more than a month.
The government’s immediate response to the protest was to shut down the popular
communication tool WhatsApp for a few hours.
The 6 July actions have been preceded by months of unrest. Government
repression of activists continues, with mass arrests and reports of
abductions. Journalists too have been targeted, with many of them
detained by police. Despite constant harassment and brutal repression, one by
one all sectors of society are expressing their discontent publicly.
Days before taxi and minibus operators in Harare had gone on
strike to protest against police harassment. They complained that the
police impose hefty fines on them as a way to raise funds. The protest was
marred by violence, with riot police clashing with protesters. On 1 July, violent protests
erupted in Beitbridge, a town near the border with South Africa. People were
angry at newly imposed import bans covering a wide range of products, from
bottled water and crisps to building materials. In June, churches staged
protests against the newly introduced national pledge. A directive
of the Primary and Secondary Education Ministry requires children in schools to
recite a daily pledge to the nation, replacing the routine Christian prayer.
Zimbabwe is a powder keg. Frustration, fear and hopelessness are
palpable on the streets: people have had enough. Widespread unemployment and
failing businesses are now the norm. Depositors struggle to access their
savings, and the economy is running out of cash. The Zimbabwean dollar was
ditched in 2009 after hyperinflation. Since then, a number of foreign
currencies are legally used, but US dollars are undoubtedly the most popular.
To counter cash shortages, the government is trying to push the introduction of
bond notes,
backed by an obscure loan from the African Export and Import Bank. The news has
caused turmoil and bank runs, as people fear that this is a ploy to bring back
the much despised Zimbabwean dollar.
What next then? The leader of #ThisFlag, Pastor Mawarire, has called for
a new two-day national shut down on Wednesday 13 and
Thursday 14 July, inviting people to stay home and reminding
protesters to avoid violence and destruction of property.
The streets are quiet now, but it is a deceptive calm. The issues behind
the revolt have not been addressed. My interviews with Zimbabweans from various
walks of life show that the majority feel that the government has forgotten
them. Feelings of disenfranchisement are widespread.
The ruling party has gone into campaign mode with Mugabe and his
controversial wife Grace holding rallies across the country. The issue of
presidential succession is tearing the party apart. Mugabe has never
allowed open discussions about it. Analysts have tipped Grace to be his
preferred successor, but this has not gone down well with other party
heavyweights.
Another issue that is causing popular discontent is widespread
corruption in the government ranks. In the last two years, the media has
revealed a number of high profile corruption cases involving government
ministers and Mugabe’s family members. A series of recent scandals
exposed public tenders for power generation projects allegedly inflated by
hundreds of millions of dollars. There are serious allegations that senior
government officials, and even the Minister of Energy, are involved. In this
and other cases, nothing has been done. Earlier this year, Mugabe admitted that billions of
dollars produced by diamond mining are going unaccounted for, with no returns
for government.
This lack of action makes Zimbabweans question the effectiveness, and
even the mental health, of President Mugabe. These figures are floated when
there are 4 million people
in need of food aid, due to the devastating drought that further aggravated the
crisis. The government has argued that it is in the process of procuring enough
grain to feed the population, but the situation on the ground tells a different
story. One has to travel only a few kilometres out of Harare to see droves of
villagers going hungry.
These are the issues that fuel support for movements like #ThisFlag and
#Tajamuka and protracted collective action against the government. Mugabe and
his elites have lost touch with their people. It is not surprising that they would
like the world to believe that these protests are a storm in a teacup.
This piece originally appeared on the Human Economy Blog, reproduced here with the author's permission.
