IN the national twin commemoration of Heroes and Defence Forces Day(s) all Zimbabweans are reminded of our pilgrimage to freedom from colonialism.
Zimbabwe, having been born out of an armed struggle, cannot afford to turn a blind eye on those who died for our nation to be born. Without this sacrifice there would be no Zimbabwe to talk about.
Therefore, it would be remiss for any Zimbabwean to downplay the contribution of all who belonged to the nationalist movement which delivered the independence we enjoy today. Their mark of courage to dismantle the colonial state is best described in the words of the great African teacher Frantz Fanon. He says: “Each generation, must out of relative obscurity discover its mission, fulfil it, or betray it.”
The magnitude of colonial repression and injustice imposed on the African majority by the colonial minority was a prime motivation for the formation of this generational mandate. Consequently, they had the mission to dismantle the political power of the colonial state in the same way they had to liberate the economy from white capture.
This was an immeasurable undertaking considering that this was an initiative by peasants. Without any arms they made a collective resolute position to confront the well-oiled lethal might of the colonial state. They were driven by the clarity of their intentions to destroy Rhodesia.
The global direction which the nationalist cause later assumed is emphatic of the superiority of logic it presented in the fight against colonialism. The fast-paced internationalisation of our struggle is expressive of the diplomatic and military genius of our liberation forerunners.
The chain of international negotiation conferences convened at the behest of imperialist metropolitan capitals particularly in Geneva and Lancaster symbolised the empire’s strategic military retreats against the overwhelming force of nationalist military power.
The call for negotiations on the part of the West was a first sign of conformity to the military action which was mostly dominated by African teenagers who waged war against a trained colonial army.
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After proving their unparalleled mettle on the battlefront, this new crop of leaders formed the first government of independent Zimbabwe. Using organic innovation they formed the first administrative structures of our nation. Over and above, these are the same individuals who created the foundational premise of our national democracy.
While it is convenient to easily dismiss this generation due to a plethora of challenges currently confronting our nation, we are a generation with very relatively low comparative aptitude to follow the initiative capacity of this generation. Instead, we are a generation fixated on politics of hollow activism with no solutions to the prevailing socio-economic challenges of our people. We are a generation that is so loyal to money and self-comfort over national interest. This is why we find it easy to abdicate the burden to build our nation for diaspora greener pastures.
It was definitely going to be impossible for Zimbabwe to be free if those who were charged with the mandate to take up arms were motivated by money to do so. They refused to be surrogates to temporary comfort.
They choose temporary pain to produce permanent comfort for the black majority. Their vision for freedom was inclusive to a point of catering for some of us who were not born when they waged war against the settler regime. This is what makes them heroes!
My generation must begin curating a memory of the future in emulation of the exploits of our liberation greats. We have a new mandate to commit ourselves to the emerging needs of poverty eradication, infrastructure development. The framing of our national question must continue to be inspired by the values set out by the nationalist generation.
The template of morality set out by the nationalist founding fathers must assert the direction of our national democracy.
The life lessons from our heroes are enough to inform the model of our governance.
- Richard Runyararo Mahomva is director International Communication Services in the Information Publicity and Broadcasting Services ministry. This submission does not reflect the views of the Government of Zimbabwe.
