Silencing guardians of the democratic Shrine in Colonial and Post-Colonial Zimbabwe: student activism, Zimbabwean Nationalism and the Third Chimurenga (1960-2005)

Abstract

Student activism at the University of Zimbabwe has a long history in colonial and post-colonial Zimbabwe. Student activism and activists have been dismissed, demonized, scandalized and rubbished in both pre and post-colonial Zimbabwe. During the decolonization process, the student movement and nationalists were allies in their quest to end colonialism, colonial injustices and unfair land distribution. The colonial regime branded them as terrorists because they supported the Liberation struggle. It needs to be underlined that student activists were blinded by nationalist rhetoric as the Zimbabwean nationalists were masquerading as liberators driven by the propensity and passion to deliver the Zimbabwean people to the “Promised Land”. The honeymoon was short-lived soon after the attainment of independence as myths of decolonization and illusions of freedom became a nightmare. The independence euphoria vanished as student activists realized that the democratic shrine had been abandoned by the adoption of authoritarian and dictatorial tendencies by the Zimbabwean nationalist government. Draconian and biting pieces of legislation were enacted to politically castrate and silence critical voices in order to maken them “null and void”. The Third Chimurenga in our view had several purposes and functions. It was a political gimmick to serve political ends, a regime survival technique of ZANU-PF, an agenda to finish the unfinished decolonization process, an extension of the silencing of opponents and rewarding of political cronies and supporters.