Anxiety has engulfed ruling parties of Southern Africa
by
Lovemore Mataire
An apparent anxiety has engulfed ruling parties of Southern Africa, most, of which attained power after a Bitter armed struggle. From South Africa, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Namibia and Tanzania, a wave of uncertainty is sweeping across the region as to fate of their country's future when their generation is no more.
The uncertainty is rooted in the awareness of a growing large number of the populace in most southern Africa nations comprising of a generation whose attachment to the liberation so remote to the extent of being indifferent basic principles that forced their fathers and mothers to fight for self rule.
This generation, of young people, mostly born after 1980 in Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Tanzania view the liberation struggle as just a historical event now in the dust bins of the archives.
They have an insatiable desire to define their own space, ethos and their general well-being according to the current social- economic trends. Reactionary, I am sure would be the most appropriate word to describe them.
It is therefore not a coincidence that in Zimbabwe for example, the majority of urbanized youths are the main backers of the main opposition party, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), which market itself as a modern party.
In fact, during Zimbabwe's 2000 parliamentary elections, the MDC had more than five Members of Parliament who were in their twenties, with the youngest being just over 24 years. Nothing but the need for change at whatever costs drives this young generation.
It is also not a coincidence that the slogan for example the MDC is "Chinja Maitiro- Change your ways," while that for the ruling party is "Pamberi nehondo- Forward with the Struggle."
The absence of revolutionary roots and lack of experience of the horrendous existence under colonialism makes this generation impressionable and gullible. Civic groups, Western NGOs and governments have found a fertile niche to market and peddle such loud sounding nothing words like democracy, transparency and respect for human rights.
It is the certainty of the death of the future in the present that is the cause of the anxiety among most revolutionary parties in this region. It is against this background that revolutionary parties like Zanu-PF of Zimbabwe, the ANC of South Africa, Frelimo of Mozambique and Chama Chamapinduzi of Tanzania have now decided to come together,exchange notes and dialogue on the need to keep the spirit of the revolution alive and safeguard the future of Africa's sovereignty.
The four parties recently met in South Africa where they agreed to constantly dialogue and monitor the movements of these reactionary forces which seem to have the full backing of most Western nations.
Call it re-colonization or any other such ism, but the threat to these countries' sovereignty and hard won independence is more than real than just a mere phantom.
The threat becomes even more real especially coming on the heels of recent utterances by the US assistant secretary of state for African Affairs, Walter Kansteiner, that his country was working with the private media, civic groups and the opposition to advocate for a regime change in Zimbabwe. But the most serious and dangerous development was the disclosure by the US deputy assistant secretary of State for African Affairs Mr. Mark Bellarmy that the world's superpower would in the next six months (since November 2002) is consider using "intrusive and interventionist measures that could challenge Zimbabwe's sovereignty." Bellarmy was quoted in the Washington Post as saying, "The dilemma in the next six months may bring us face to face with Zimbabwe's sovereignty." He gave no details of methods the US would use. Mr Bellarmy made the remarks at a meeting organized by the London-based Zimbabwe Democracy Trust and was sponsored by the Centre for International and Strategic Studies. He was responding to allegations made by three MDC activists, a former magistrate judge Johnson Mnkandla; Bulwayo (Zimbabwe's second largest city) resident association president Edward Siwela and Enesrt Mtunzi a UK resident that the Zanu-PF government had hatched a plan to exterminate the Ndebeles--the second biggest ethnic group in Zimbabwe. Notwithstanding the fact that the chairman of Zanu-PF is himself a Ndebele.
Although some might not take seriously the threat of an invasion by the US coming as they did from junior minister whose broader understanding of African politics is very narrow, most Zimbabweans are not taking them lightly.
The threats are not being taken lightly because they are a direct challenge to the universal norms of freedom that are not only cherished by Zimbabweans but by the entire free world. Coming barely a few months after the launch of the African Union, the American utterance that Africans are not worthy to stand as equals among nations of the world, is an insult to the people's of the continent as a whole.
Head of the Media and Information Commission of Zimbabwe Dr Tafataona Mahoso warned Zimbabweans not to take the threats from Mr. Bellarmy lightly for no country is too small for America's aggression. "For Zimbabweans wishing to help each other survive the Anglo-American onslaught, there are more things to learn from the past US aggression against other countries.
The first thing to learn is that US officials speak of humanitarian concerns and charity; they put on their most polite and charming behavior, at the very time that they are carrying out their most diabolical and devastating plots against you," Dr Mahoso said.
But it is not only Zimbabwe that is under threat. In South Africa, already two bomb explosions have occurred with the recent one ripping off a bridge in the country's southeast coast. A rightwing group calling itself "Warriors of the Boer Nation" claimed responsibility. The white supremacist group has not made it a secret that their agenda is to restore white rule.
So it is against this backdrop, that southern African countries are convinced that it is not only fundamental but a matter requiring urgency to map out ways to counter these counter-revolutionary maneuvers whose aim is to roll back the map of revolution.
But southern Africa canot carry out this counter-insurgency alone, they need the support and unity of other fellow African countries. And already signs are evident that African countries have now realized the folly of being disunited. The unity and purpose displayed by African, Caribbean and Pacific Nations at the aborted ACP-EU joint parliamentary session was refreshing and gives confidence that at least for now the threat of re-colonization is under check.
ACP countries resisted moves by European Union parliamentarians led by Mrs. Glenys Kinnock- a Briton whose disdain of Zimbabwe is unhidden to bar two Zimbabwean ministers, Mr. Paul Mangwana- the Minister of State Enterprises and Parastatals and Mr Christopher Mangwana-the Deputy Minister of Finance because they were subject to a travel ban imposed by the EU earlier this year on the Government of Zimbabwe and Zanu-PF officials.
Mrs. Kinnock even went further as to threaten withdrawal of aid from ACP countries that were supporting Zimbabwe. But this further infuriated the ACP delegation, which said that decision to bar the two Zimbabwean ministers had no legal basis.
A communiqué released after the meeting was called off because of the impasse between the ACP and EU parliamentarians over the two ministers said the decision by the EU was reached without prior consultations or an opinion of the joint organs of the joint parliamentary assembly, even though the two ministers were in possession of entry visas for Belgium.
They said the Cotonou Agreement confers privileges and immunities on members of the JPA. Mr Hegel Goutier, the Haitian-born ACP spokesman said: "The attitude of the European parliament was unacceptable," while South Africa's speaker of the national assembly Ms. Frene Ginwala said the deadlock reached in Brussels was not about Zimbabwe but the principle of the European parliamentary delegation deciding unilaterally about the attendance of certain members when decisions should be taken jointly by the ACP-EU assembly. "Its normal international practice that if you are hosting an international gathering of this kind you cannot cherry-pick who you want to be there," she said. "Next they will want to exclude Iraq from attending international gatherings."
But as for how long the unity shown in Brussels will continue to hold, nobody knows. Southern African countries are not leaving anything to chance. It's not that they don't want opposition political parties in their midst, they are concerned that most political opposition is not homegrown and have a strong financial backing directly by Western governments.
How would the Labor Party of Britain, for example, feel if today the AU decides to give all its material resources to the Conservative Party for the sole purpose of ousting Tony Blair? []
Lovemore Mataire,
Harare, Zimbabwe
