Zimbabwe needs to move past grievances
One reason why Britons have paid close attention to events in Zimbabwe is that our countries’ histories are so entwined. The penultimate governor of colonial Rhodesia, Sir Humphrey Gibbs, refused to recognise the white minority’s unilateral declaration of independence in 1965; he sat marooned in his mansion for four years, with the water, electricity and telephone cut off. White Zimbabweans eventually accepted multiracial democracy, and when Sir Humphrey’s biography was published in the late Nineties, the foreword was written by the then president, Robert Mugabe.
This week, Mr Mugabe resigned after decades of corrupt and brutal dictatorship, and the question on everyone’s mind is: “Will things change?” That he could rule for so long, despite violence and economic chaos (some estimates say 90 per cent of Zimbabweans are unemployed), has convinced many that only cosmetic changes will follow and that his successor, Emmerson Mnangagwa, is more of the same. Mr Mnangagwa, aka “The Crocodile”, is accused of complicity in ethnic massacres in the Eighties, which he denies. The land grabs will continue, he said at his inauguration, albeit with compensation.
If there is cause for hope, it is to be found on the streets. Zimbabweans have rediscovered their voice and are using it to challenge not just Mr Mugabe but corruption and authoritarianism. They have demonstrated peacefully; this putsch has been notable for its lack of bloodshed. In fact, the cautious handling of Mr Mugabe, whether he deserves it or not, is typical of the fate of many bosses of the African “liberation” era. Kenneth Kaunda and Julius Nyerere wrecked Zambia and Tanzania between them, but both were allowed to retire as private citizens.
Zimbabweans say they want to move on. That must mean abandoning historical grievances, tribal and racial. The cruel war on white landowners has undermined Zimbabwean agriculture and distracted the nation from its real problems. Inflation has to be tamed, jobs created and a new relationship – of mutual respect – built with China. The experience of so many former colonies is that democracy is instrumental to development. Freedom of speech, the ability to criticise the government and, crucially, to sack bad leaders will be essential to Zimbabwe’s success – just as it has been to Britain’s.