A woman kneels in prayer during Mass at the cathedral in Harare, Zimbabwe. Zimbabwean Catholic bishops are calling for restraint, and patience in wake of the resignation of Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe. Photo: CNS The priority now has to be improving human rights and lifting millions of people out of extreme poverty, writes Seán Farrell
Zimbabwe always struck me as a country struggling with how its past influenced the present. So many of my conversations in my two years working for Trócaire in the country revolved around the terrible legacy of apartheid Rhodesia, the independence and creation of Zimbabwe, the need of one man and one party to maintain power no matter the cost and the awful price that ordinary Zimbabweans had to pay as a result.
I have never worked in a country with so much poverty and human rights abuses sitting alongside so much potential. This potential is everywhere – in an educated and creative population, in some of the best farming land on the continent of Africa and in the abundant resources, both natural and human that the country holds.
And now we sit at a moment of real change. For the first time in 37 years a whole country can think about what a post-Mugabe era might look like. The scenes of jubilation and dancing and rejoicing are amazing to see and the release of the fear and intimidation that held so many Zimbabweans captive has been incredible. I spent last week speaking to friends in Harare, on the streets, celebrating a changing of the guard. “Welcome to the new Zimbabwe,” people chanted in a spectacle of free expression that would have been impossible just weeks ago.
These times are particularly poignant for those I worked with fighting for human rights and whose lives were drastically changed through torture, murder and intimidation by the restrictive and brutal state apparatus that maintained Mugabe’s power. My experience of living and working there was always richer from seeing the courage, determination and commitment of so many of the people who stood for what was right and just despite the enormous costs.
And for them, it’s a time of hope. That is something that I did not see in my time in Zimbabwe. The breaking of this culture of fear and intimidation is in itself worth rejoicing.
Of course, the future ahead is uncertain. We know the past deeds of the new President, Emmerson Mnangagwa, are chequered to say the least. He himself has served at Mugabe’s side as the targeting and killing of political opponents became commonplace, as the country went through the violence of civil unrest and farm invasions, as the collapse of the economy led to unemployment rates of 90% and as Zimbabwe became an example of a failing state.
Economic wrongs
So, we do not know where the road ahead will lead. Mnangagwa’s initial steps seem to indicate a real interest in righting some of the economic wrongs and some Zimbabwean opposition figures have appeared willing to have dialogue in order to move the country forward. His first address spoke of “witnessing the beginning of a new and unfolding democracy”. I suspect that many on the streets of Harare are waiting to see what exactly this might look like.
Whatever change emerges from the current process, the priority has to be on improving human rights and lifting millions of people out of extreme poverty. Ordinary people in Zimbabwe have paid a heavy price for the abuses of the Mugabe era going back decades. People now are hopeful that with change there will come economic reforms and human rights reforms that will lead to a brighter future. That hope must be turned into reality.
The Catholic Church in Zimbabwe along with other Churches under an ecumenical alliance issued incredibly strong statements and a pastoral letter in the past week calling not just for peace but for change. This is fundamental to delivering the hope that all Zimbabweans now feel.
Trócaire has been working in Zimbabwe for over thirty years. Much of our work in the country is focused on defending people’s human rights and on tackling the deep poverty in rural parts of the country. And despite the change seen in leadership last week, as Zimbabweans wake up this morning, the poverty they experience will still be the same.
The millions who marched are certainly aware of the potential challenges that lie ahead. The army were central and pivotal in recent events. Much of Mugabe’s legacy may be maintained and used to further new cycles of oppression.
But one fundamental thing has changed. People for the first time in 37 years felt a collective empowerment in removing Mugabe from power.
My hope is that this outpouring of collective action that was so immensely powerful may be lasting.
Another Mugabe may not be able to hold a whole country to ransom again.
Whatever happens, Trócaire will be there to see it. And our work with local organisations to shape and challenge what the future brings will be important and necessary.
Zimbabwe has seen a new dawn. Now it’s time to create the day.
Seán Farrell is Director of the International Division with Trócaire and previously worked in Zimbabwe.