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‘How the Cold War tension between the Western World and Eastern European communist nations from soon after the second world war, (1947 to 1991), defined Zimbabwe’s doomed future from Gukurahundi genocide ‘
‘How the Cold War tension between the Western World and Eastern European communist nations from soon after the second world war, (1947 to 1991), defined Zimbabwe’s doomed future from Gukurahundi genocide ‘
The Cold War which extended from soon after the second world war, extended from 1947 to 1991, generally defined by lengthy periods of tension between the Western World and Eastern European communist nations.
This was effectively a conflict between the United states and its Nato allies versus the Soviet Union (USSR) and its Warsaw Pact allies. The Cold War conflict arose from the fact that there was a strong belief that governments would become either communists or capitalists all depending on which bloc would spread its influence on that government.
The United States and the Soviet Union were superpowers or the world’s strongest nations after the first world war but held clearly differing opinions about government.
The influence of the super powers was shaped by the two blocs, western-capitalist or Eastern -Socialist bloc. The Western-Capitalist bloc included Western Europe, New Zealand , Israel, South Korea, Thailand, Philippines, Japan, Iran, Pakistan, Malaysia, Australia, South Africa, Australia,New Zealand
and the Americas while the Eastern -Socialist bloc consisted of Eastern Europe, the Soviet Union, Angola, Ethiopia, Cuba ,Mongolia, North Korea, China and Vietnam.
To the ‘Discerning eyenewzimbabwevision’ this new political dispensation dictated the future of Zimbabwe before it was even born at Independance 37 years ago on 18 April 1980. The cold war conveniently afforded the deposed dictator former President Robert Mugabe and his ruthless generals and Zanu PF to crush Zapu in Zimbabwe and at the same time fight South Africa’s Umkhonto Wesizwe, the ANC military wing , thereby fulfilling Western ideology.
Western allies were in total fear that the Soviet Union , a member of the Eastern -Socialist bloc which had played a key role in arming and training Joshua Nkomo’s Zapu party’s military wing or liberation struggle fighters (Zipra) would spread its influence once the British colony Rhodesia once Ian Smith’s government fell from power.
The 18 April 1980 election, was a defining moment, for black Zimbabwe freedom wise but more important for the Eastern -Socialist bloc or the Western-Capitalist bloc to influence and spread of depending on which of the two ‘devils’ Robert Mugabe and his Zanu or Joshua Nkomo and his Zapu took over power from Ian Smith.
The Western world felt that Joshua Nkomo was a more flexible option than the hard liner Robert Mugabe, but they could not risk allowing Joshua Nkomo’s unchecked rise to power as Zimbabwe’s leader after Ian Smith after the collapse of Rhodesia because this literally meant the spread of the ‘disliked’ Eastern -Socialist bloc influence through Soviet influence over Joshua Nkomo and his Zapu party.
Robert Mugabe , eventually Sir Robert Mugabe, was the ‘Blue eyed boy ‘ of the West, definetly to the western World, a more acceptable option, the better of the two devils to the western world.
Sadly the only thing that the British did during Gukurahundi, was to bring the Fith Brigade commander Perrance Shiri reportedly for six months training at the Royal Airforce in Uk while his soldiers were butchering Zimbabweans, totalling over 20, 000 Ndebeles from Matebeleland and Midlands. This was a missed opportunity to actually arrest him for the genocide and hold him to account for the deaths of the people, but as people argue, Mugabe at that time was protecting their interests looking after white farmers and if people died, its life!
It is a common opinion that the 1980 Zimbabwe Independance elections were engineered by the western-Capitalist bloc , through Western powers, namely Britain and America to allow Robert Mugabe and his Zanu party to rise to victory and destroy Eastern -Socialist bloc influence or Soviet influence in the Southern African region region.
Lest we forget, Nelson Mandela at that time was still in prison, in 1980 and Umkhonto Wesizwe, the ANC military wing was wreaking havoc, in South Africa in the fight against white apartheid rule and oppression of the blacks in the country.
Umkhonto Wesizwe had strong ties with Joshua Nkomo’s Zapu which created a huge crisis for the western-Capitalist bloc as Joshua Nkomo’s rise would mean that, Umkhonto Wesizwe could establish stable operational bases in Zimbabwe for their attacks across South Africa, further spreading Soviet or Eastern -Socialist bloc Influence .
From Zimbabwe’s independance, the writing was on the wall,..the future of Zimbabwe was never going to be in the hands of the people, but rather, the puppet masters, or western-Capitalist bloc and today we still feel the implications of this as the issue of land brought most of these issues to light.
There were too many players or nations in with their own interests and set objectives, primarily to halt the spread Russia’s influence, at whatever cost to the people of Zimbabwe. 37 years later on, we are still paying for the effects of the ‘Cold war’ tensions.
‘Zimbabwe was doomed’ from the start which is why , soon after Independance on 18 April 1980 when Mugabe came to power, Mugabe unleashed the worst atrocities ever by a black leader against his own people in Zimbabwe, at a time of peace for that matter, killing at least 20 000 Ndebeles in Midlands and Matebeleland, imprisoning Dumiso Dabengwa, ‘killing’ the Zapu General Lookout Masuku, arresting all Zapu officials who had become senior military figures in the new Zimbabwe army, while persecuting and exiling Joshua Nkomo.
Mugabe’s actions through ‘gukurahundi’ not only shaped his ultimate one party state, dictatorship, destruction of Joshua Nkomo’s Zapu, and sabotaged Umkhonto Wesizwe influence but effectively destroyed Soviet influence in the Southern African region, courtesy of Western world influence, he did their dirty work for them and the people of Zimbabwe paid dearly for this, as the western-Capitalist bloc would never have accepted Russian influence in the region.
What happened in Zimbabwe from 18 /04 /1980 General election through to the 1987 Unity accord, was nothing more than fulfilling an expected political narrative, in destroying Soviet Influence as desired by western-Capitalist bloc, the script was never owned by the people of Zimbabwe, typically puppets in a game of politics, with only one beneficiary, the western world.
While the horrendous gukurahundi was unleashed by Robert Mugabe upon the Ndebele people, it cannot be a mistake that Britain and America were silent, took absolutely no interest or action, stood by and watched the unfolding horror which lasted until the 1987 Unity Accord or peace deal. Zimbabwe, you do the maths!
It is interesting that Robert Mugabe, then, the darling of the west , is the arch enemy of the West today, having used the Zanu PF war veterans, to forcibly evict white farmers in the murderous land grab exercise of the early 2000s.
These ruthless war veterans propped up an illegitimate Zanu PF government all along and arguably held a most privileged status in Zimbabwe because of the way they received health care and fees for their dependants amongst a whole host of benefits not accessible to other suffering Zimbabweans.
The war veterans backed Mugabe all along, but he shot himself in the foot by openly declaring war upon war vets warning that, ‘lest they forget, Dissidents will be snuffed out using the murderous gukurahundi like in the early 80s’.
Remember in 2000, Mugabe’s army was just withdrawing from the DRC war, ESAP was at its peak and Mugabe had lost all excuses for not paying up on promises to war veterans, hence he allowed them to lead the murderous land grab because he feared a backlash or outright revolt by a group who knew where it would hurt the most if they chose to deal with him and withdraw their support for the illegitimate , oppressive regime.
Robert Mugabe knew that he was growing increasingly unpopular with the war veterans, who openly demand that then Vice President , now Zimbabwe’s President Mnangagwa should succeed Mugabe now 93 in power right away as the despot was then too old at 92.
However Mugabe, ever the shrewd politician, swiftly, dropped the retirement age for serving military officers from 65 to 50. It is well known that the majority of those who were set to be culled by the new retirement age, were the disillusioned war veterans and the few that left by the purge would only be kept at the then President Mugabe’s prerogative , in other words, only chosen Stalwarts could survive the cull.
This way, Mugabe effectively pulled the carpet from right under Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s feet by destroying his support base and elevating his own wife First lady Grace Mugabe. However this turned out to be his own downfall with Mnangagwa’s poisoning, near death, dismissal from Zanu pf and as Zimbabwe’s Vice President and forced exile to South Africa as Grace Mugabe, had her eyes set on succeeding her husband as Zimbabwe’s next president.
That dream did not n materialise as army generals realised that Grace Mugabe had grown too big for her boots and this bedroom coup would cost them their future once she grabbed power and she had to be stopped at all cost. The generals and the military were aligned to Mnangagwa and unleashed the military in apeaceful way with the people of Zimbabwe and typically as in politics, used the people of Zimbabwe, to remove Mugabe, elevate General Chiwenga to Vice President and Minister of Defence for Zimbabwe,, Airforce General Perrance Shiri a.k.a. Samson Bigboy Chikerema to Minister of Lands and Agriculture, and Major General Sibusiso Busi Moyo to International Minister, after forcibly retiring deposed president Mugabe, dismissing Grace Mugabe from Zanu pf and stripping her of any political power.
Zimbabweans lets always remember to these people we are , disposable, and any losses are simply acceptable nothing but just collateral damage just like in the cold war issue I have highlighted to you all. To the ‘Discerning Eye, newzimbabwe vision’, the future of Zimbabwe, beyond the 2018 ballot, is less about your vote but rather about what the real powers want! By
More news to follow. DISCUSS! By Sibusiso Ngwenya
photo -President Robert Mugabe And the Late Zapu Leader Dr Joshua Nkomo.