Amid Zimbabwe’s political crisis, hope and frustration brew

Harare,
Zimbabwe
– On
a
sunny
April
afternoon,
41-year-old
Tawanda
Zvamaida
sat
with
four
friends
at
an
outdoor
bar.
They
were
discussing
recent
antigovernment
protests
where
police
arrested
about
half
of
the
200
protesters.

On
March
31,
protesters
gathered
following
a
call
for
demonstrations
by
a
former
member
of
Zimbabwean
President
Emmerson
Mnangagwa’s
party.

Zvamaida
lives
in
Chitungwiza,
a
town
about
25km
from
the
capital,
Harare,
and
a
stronghold
for
the
opposition
party,
the
Citizens
Coalition
for
Change
(CCC).
Many
residents
there
supported
the
protests
but
did
not
attend.
The
country
was
brought
to
a
standstill
that
day
–
the
streets
were
quiet
as
businesses
and
schools
shut
and
Zimbabweans
like
Zvamaida,
a
shop
assistant
at
a
clothing
store
in
central
Harare,
stayed
home.
Despite
police
assurances
that
the
situation
was
“peaceful”,
many
feared
violence.

The
protesters
called
for
Mnangagwa,
who
came
to
power
in
2017
after
the
army
overthrew
former
President
Robert
Mugabe,
to
step
down,
decrying
what
they
insist
is
a
corrupt
political
elite
and
a
struggling
economy.
Those
arrested
were
accused
of throwing
stones at
the
police
and
have
since
faced
charges
of
“participating
in
a
gathering
with
intent
to
promote
public
violence”.

“Personally,
I
would
love
to
participate
in
protests,
but
there
was
no
clear
plan
of
coordination,”
Zvamaida
explained.
Without
this,
he
thinks
“fear
gripped
people”
who
wanted
to
protest,
and
that
the
arrests
show
that
the
police
won’t
tolerate
any
form
of
dissent.

Moment
of
hope

An
internal
split
has
roiled
the
ruling ZANU-PF
party,
which
has
been
in
power
since
independence
in
1980.
It
has
pitted
supporters
of
Mnangagwa,
who
want
him
to
rule
until
2030
–
despite
a
two-term
constitutional
limit
that
would
see
his
term
end
in
2028
–
and
those
opposed
to
this.

Blessed
“Bombshell”
Geza,
a
veteran
of
Zimbabwe’s
war
of
liberation
from
Britain,
called
for
the
mass
demonstrations.
He
was
expelled
from
ZANU-PF
on
March
6
after
calling
on
the
president
to
go
and
is
now
wanted
by
the
police
for
charges
including
undermining
the
president’s
authority.

He
has
accused
the
government
of
corruption
and
jailing
dissenting
voices
without
trial,
and
argued
that
Mnangagwa, who
promised
jobs
and
democracy when
he
came
to
power,
is
surrounded
by
“criminals”.

For
many
Zimbabweans,
the
recent
protests
offered
a
moment
of
hope
as
they
continue
their
push
for
economic
and
democratic
reforms.

Cassandra*,
a
37-year-old
fruit
and
vegetable
seller
with
a
roadside
stall
in
Chitungwiza
says
since
the
emergence
of
a
strong
opposition
in
the
late
1990s,
elections
have
had
no
use
in
Zimbabwe.

Polls
have
been
marred
by
violence,
repression
and torture of
opposition
members,
and
election
rigging.
“Our
vote
for
a
democratic
change
has
been
stolen,”
she
said.

Under
Mnangagwa, opposition
party
activists have
been
jailed
for
gathering
together.

Meanwhile,
for
nearly
three
decades,
Zimbabwe
has
faced
an
economic
crisis
characterised
by
high
food
prices,
loss
of
currency
value
and
low
wages.

Cassandra
says
many
of
her
friends
have
left
Zimbabwe
for
neighbouring
countries
and
Europe
due
to
the
lack
of
employment
opportunities.

She
believes
Zimbabwe
needs
a
new
leader,
but
does
not
think
Mnangagwa,
who
is
82,
would
resign
voluntarily,
nor
does
she
believe
it
would
be
possible
to
have
a
leader
outside
of
the
ZANU-PF.

“The
government
is
repressive.
We
cannot
tolerate
that.
But,
only
a
few
can
come
out
openly
because,
on
the
other
hand,
such
persecution
instils
fear
in
the
majority,”
explained
Cassandra.

‘We
are
suffering’

In
the
Chitungwiza
neighbourhood
of
Manyame
Park,
residents
say
that
they
have
lived
without
running
water
for
more
than
20
years
and
must
buy
drinking
and
bathing
water
from
mobile
storage
tank
providers.

Wealthy
residents
in
Harare’s
leafy
suburbs
have
cushioned
themselves
from
the
water
shortages
by
drilling
private
boreholes,
a
costly
endeavour
that
people
in
Chitungwiza
and
low-income
suburbs
in
Harare
cannot
afford.

Across
the
country,
most
people
have
lost
a
stable
income
as
the
economic
crisis
is
forcing
businesses
to
close.
People
largely
work
in
the
informal
economy
as
vendors,
“pirate
taxi”
drivers
(operating
private
cars
without
a
business
registration),
waiters
in
back
yard
food
courts
and
as
security
guards.

“We
are
suffering
in
this
country,
yet
the
elite
are
looting
and
enjoying.
We
don’t
have
any
hope
in
the
current
government,”
said
Takura
Makota,
a
38-year-old
pirate
taxi
driver
who
plies
the
Chitungwiza–Harare
route,
and
a
resident
of
Manyame
Park.

“Mnangagwa
is
running
our
country
like
a
family
business,
benefitting
his
family
and
friends,”
said
Zvamaida,
referring
to
so-called
“tenderpreneurs”
–
individuals
close
to
top
government
officials
who
many
believe
repeatedly
win
government
contracts
and
benefit
from
taxpayers’
money.

Last
March,
First
Lady
Auxillia
Mnangagwa
and
her
husband were
sanctioned
by
the
United
States for
their
alleged
involvement
in
illicit
gold
and
diamond
networks.
Upon
his
re-election
in
2023,
Mnangagwa
appointed
his
son,
David,
as
deputy
finance
minister
and
his
nephew
Tongai
as
the
deputy
tourism
minister.
Another
son, Emmerson
Jr,
is
also
sanctioned
by
the
US due
to
his
links
with
Kudakwashe
Tagwirei,
a
business
tycoon
accused
of
using
his
wealth
to
gain
state
contracts.
Another
wealthy
businessman,
ex-convict Wicknell
Chivayo,
who
has
close
government
ties
and
links
to
Mnangagwa,
is
known
for
his
flashy
lifestyle
–
driving
expensive
cars,
using
a
private
jet
and
wearing
expensive
jewellery.
He
was
awarded
a
Zimbabwe
Power
Company
(ZPC)
tender
to
construct
a
solar
project
in
2015
at
a
cost
of
$172m.
Ten
years
down
the
line,
the
project
has
not
seen
the
light
of
day.
A
court
cleared
him
of
wrongdoing
in
2023,
and
the
ZPC
was
ordered
to
pay
a
$25m
fine.

“You
see
all
the
people
surrounding
the
president
buying
helicopters
and
private
jets,
in
a
country
where
the
majority
are
unemployed,
roads
are
potholed
and
hospitals
don’t
have
cancer
[radiotherapy]
machines,”
Makota
said.

In
Chitungwiza,
Makota
says
dilapidated
infrastructure
is
a
constant
issue.
Roads
built
in
the
1990s
have
not
been
maintained,
bus
terminals
are
run
down
and
sewers
are
frequently
blocked,
posing
a
health
hazard.

“With
proper
coordination,
I’m
sure
that
soon
we
can
protest
again,
because
the
majority
are
hungry
and
are
not
happy,”
he
added.

‘It’s
quite
tense’

In
Epworth,
a
periurban
settlement
located
in
central
Harare,
where
both
ZANU-PF
and
CCC
command
support,
the
country’s
uncertain
political
situation
has
put
residents
on
edge.

Many
residents
came
to
Epworth
as
victims
of
“Operation
Murambatsvina”
(Clear
the
Filth)
executed
by
the
Mugabe
government
in
2005.
Police
burned,
bulldozed
and
destroyed
tens
of
thousands
of
properties,
leading
to
the
mass
eviction
of
people
from
their
homes
and
businesses
around
the
country.

Though
government
officials
said
the
operation
was
designed
to
target
urbanisation
and
criminal
activity,
activists,
lawyers
and
victims
told Human
Rights
Watch they
believed
the
destruction
was
designed
to
punish
people
who
voted
for
the
opposition
in
recent
elections
and
to
prevent
an
uprising
against
a
worsening
economic
situation.

As
Geza
and
his
supporters
decide
on
a
way
forward,
Lorraine
Mutasa,
a
resident
and
local
CCC
politician,
says
the
mood
in
Epworth
feels
particularly
tense.

Since
the
protests,
Mutasa
said
people
who
usually
conduct
business
there
are
avoiding
the
area.

Trymore*,
42,
a
carpenter
in
Epworth,
believes
that
people
are
afraid
to
speak
openly
about
economic
hardship
for
fear
of
being
denounced
by
pro-government
supporters.

“People
are
divided,
that’s
the
problem.
It’s
unfortunate
that
all
of
us
are
suffering
the
same
and
have
suffered
for
a
long
time,
but
…
some
fear
persecution
and
support
the
ruling
party.
It’s
sad
that
the
ruling
party
has
a
history
of
violence.
So
at
the
moment,
it’s
quite
tense,
because
people
don’t
know
what
to
say
or
to
whom
to
mobilise
one
another,”
he
explained.

Zvamaida,
the
shop
assistant
from
Chitungwiza,
believes
citizens
can
bring
about
change,
but
that
they
need
someone
to
unite
around
and
will
only
take
to
the
streets
if
there
is
a
guarantee
of
safety.
“People
are
already
angry,
but
it
is
those
elements
which
will
bring
them
to
the
streets,”
he
said.

The
government’s
official
spokesperson
and
information
minister,
Jenfan
Muswere,
did
not
respond
to
calls
from
Al
Jazeera.

*Name
has
been
changed