scholarly journals The motivations and dynamics of Zimbabwe’s 2017 military coup

2019 ◽  
Vol 119 (474) ◽  
pp. 39-67 ◽  
Author(s):  
Blessing-Miles Tendi
Keyword(s):  
Air Force ◽  
Military Coup ◽  
War Veterans ◽  
National Union ◽  
Military Action ◽  
Political Beliefs ◽  
Game Theoretic ◽  
Party Members ◽  
Liberation Struggle ◽  
Robert Mugabe

ABSTRACT Robert Mugabe resigned as Zimbabwe’s president in November 2017, following a military action called Operation Restore Legacy. This article examines the motivations and dynamics of Operation Restore Legacy, which it characterizes as a coup by military generals that had significant commonalities with historical coups in Africa. This characterization, which is informed by the accounts of coup participants and a reading of the literature, challenges interpretations of the coup as ‘a non-coup-coup’, ‘very Zimbabwean’, or ‘special’. The article argues that the coup was a vote of no confidence in Mugabe’s leadership, which succeeded because soldiers from Zimbabwe’s 1970s independence war subscribed to the coup’s stated ideal to restore liberation struggle principles in the ruling Zimbabwe African National Union Patriotic Front party as well as party members who had been sidelined. Liberation war veterans held decisive army and air force command posts when the coup occurred. The article’s emphasis on liberation struggle principles as a crucial determinant of the coup’s success is a counterpoint to game theoretic approaches to coup dynamics that disregard political beliefs as a consequential factor in the realization of coups. In respect of motivations, the article advances interrelating motives and contends that the coup’s catalyst was Mugabe’s refusal to meet his generals on 13 November 2017, for vital talks on widening differences between both parties. Sealing off dialogue catalyzed the coup.

scholarly journals ZIMBABWE: THE ETHNICISATION OF ZANU AND THE DOWNFALL OF NDABANINGI SITHOLE (1963-2000)

2021 ◽  
Vol 35 ◽  
pp. 37-50
Author(s):  
Owen MANGIZA ◽  
Ishmael MAZAMBANI
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Groups ◽  
Leadership Positions ◽  
Nationalist Movement ◽  
Political Interests ◽  
Party Members ◽  
Liberation Struggle ◽  
Robert Mugabe

"This article is an exposition of the transformation of ZANU from being, primarily, a nationalist movement into an ethnic oriented party. Since its formation in 1963, ZANU was gripped by ethnicity, resulting in factions and contestations developing among party members. These contestations developed into open conflicts along tribal lines. The paper argues that ethnicity was so acute among ZANU party members to an extent that divisions were clearly drawn along the Shona sub-ethnic groups of Manyika (easterners), Karanga (southerners), and Zezuru (northerners). The competition for leadership positions and the fighting among members of these ethnic groups resulted in the death of some members of the party and the expulsion of others from the party. It is argued in the article that the persecution of Ndabaningi Sithole and his fallout as the ZANU president was a result of the ethnicisation of ZANU and the liberation struggle. The removal of Sithole as the party president and his replacement by Robert Mugabe exhibits these contestations among the Zezuru, Karanga and Manyika ethnic groups. We argue that the deposition of Sithole from ZANU in 1975 and his castigation as a “sell-out” and “tribalist” was a ploy by Robert Mugabe and other ZANU leaders to get rid of him and to replace him along ethnic grounds. The ethnic card was deployed to serve selfish political interests. It is these ethnic contestations and fighting which also brewed conflict and enmity between Mugabe in particular and Ndabaningi Sithole, among other factors. This hatred was clearly displayed later in the struggle for supremacy between Sithole’s new party, ZANU-Ndonga and Robert Mugabe’s ZANU-PF. It is stressed in the article that this enmity also culminated in the denial of a hero status to Sithole when he died in 2000. We also argue that the deposition of Sithole from ZANU is one of the reasons why the Ndau people of Chipinge always voted for him and not Robert Mugabe in elections. Keywords: Zimbabwe, Ethnicisation, Downfall, Contestations, ZANU, Hero status."

Nationalism and Politics in Zimbabwe

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alois S. Mlambo
Keyword(s):  
Military Coup ◽  
National Union ◽  
Long Time ◽  
Robert Mugabe ◽  
Ruling Party

This chapter focuses on nationalism in past and present Zimbabwean politics. It first traces the history and nature of anti-colonial nationalism in Zimbabwe, after which it sets out continuities and discontinuities of anti-colonial nationalism in independent Zimbabwe. The chapter is principally interested in the post-2000 years, which witnessed the rise of a particular and influential authoritarian nationalism and its temporary decline in the period November 2017 to August 2018. The chapter maintains that after 2000, the governing Zimbabwe African National Union–Patriotic Front (ZANU–PF) party propagated an exceedingly parochial and divisive authoritarian nationalism, predicated on loyalty to the ruling party. This authoritarian nationalism was prompted by the entrance of a credible opposition challenger to ZANU–PF in elections and was undergirded by a discriminatory rendition of Zimbabwe’s independence struggle history. ZANU–PF’s authoritarian nationalism was hardly brand new, since it had long roots in Zimbabwe’s anti-colonial nationalism, but its vigour and methodical promulgation by ZANU–PF constituted substantial discrepancies with past variations. Finally, the chapter argues that the removal of long-time ZANU–PF leader Robert Mugabe in a military coup in 2017 resulted in only a brief hiatus in ZANU–PF’s authoritarian nationalism, underscoring the deeply embedded nature of the ruling party’s authoritarian nationalist politics.

Development in Zimbabwe: Strategy and Tactics

1981 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 447-475 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Bratton
Keyword(s):  
Development Strategy ◽  
Prime Minister ◽  
Private Capital ◽  
Colonial Rule ◽  
National Union ◽  
The Past ◽  
Economic Production ◽  
Social Inequities ◽  
Robert Mugabe ◽  
The Right

Events in independent Zimbabwe have confounded pundits on the left and the right who assumed that African resistance to settler colonial rule was more revolutionary than nationalistic. How can the rather unexpected direction of political and economic change in Zimbabwe since April 1980 be understood? The Zimbabwe African National Union (Patriotic Front) Government of Prime Minister Robert Mugabe has committed itself to redress the severe social inequities of the past, but has decided, at least at the outset, to reach its goals through a prudent rather than a doctrinaire approach. What factors explain the current development strategy? Does the apparent accommodation of Z.A.N.U. (P.F.) with private capital signal a dangerous divergence from the stated goal of building socialism? Or does it represent an awakening to the idea that economic production, even if organised on capitalist lines, is a prerequisite of development in Africa?

scholarly journals THE USE OF HEROISM IN THE ZIMBABWE AFRICAN NATIONAL UNION-PATRIOTIC FRONT (ZANU-PF) INTRA-PARTY FACTIONAL DYNAMICS

2020 ◽  
Vol 39 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tyanai Masiya ◽  
Godfrey Maringira
Keyword(s):  
Group Dynamics ◽  
National Union ◽  
Liberation Struggle ◽  
Party Group

Much of what we know about Zimbabwe's liberation war heroes and heroines is associated with the Zimbabwe African National Union- Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF)'s recognition of individuals who defended its hold on power. However, of late, an upsurge in factionalism in the party has resulted in increasing reference to heroism as a means to exert factional dominance. An understanding of how this has been done can be used to explain ZANU-PF factional dynamics. Current studies call for the study of factionalism to focus on intra-party group dynamics instead of the traditional organisation forms of factions. It is in this context that this study argues that survival or fall of factions within (ZANU-PF) is framed around issues of heroism that is around one's perceived contribution or non-contribution to the liberation struggle. This article demonstrates this growing phenomenon in ZANU-PF veteran leaders whose status has been reshaped by new political moments as factionalism intensified. Inlight of rising factionalism, we argue that, war hero/heroine status in ZANU-PF is not permanent, but is highly shaped by obtaining factional political moments.

scholarly journals Mocking the just God? A theological critique of President Mnangagwa’s use of the name of God to justify his rule in Zimbabwe

2021 ◽  
Vol 42 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Suspicion Mudzanire ◽  
Collium Banda
Keyword(s):  
Religion And Politics ◽  
Systematic Theology ◽  
Military Coup ◽  
Political Systems ◽  
The People ◽  
Attributes Of God ◽  
Robert Mugabe ◽  
Theological Critique ◽  
The Voice ◽  
The Church

Zimbabwe’s President Emmerson Mnangagwa justified his unconstitutional ascendency to power after a military coup that dethroned former President Robert Mugabe in 2017 by claiming that ‘the voice of the people is the voice of God’. He repeated the claim in 2018 when Nelson Chamisa refused to recognise him as the legitimately elected president of the country after accusing him of rigging the 2018 elections. Mnangagwa’s use of God’s name to authenticate his rule raises the question: as one of the foundational attributes of God is justice, what does it mean for political leaders openly claiming to be ordained into office by him? This leads to a further question: Has Mnangagwa’s rule satisfied the demands that come with claiming to be ordained by God to rule, and what should be the church’s response towards Mnangagwa’s rule in view of God’s justice? This article uses God’s attribute of justice to critically evaluate Mnangagwa’s claim that ‘the voice of the people is the voice of God’. The claim is described and placed within Mnangagwa’s claims and insinuations to be a Christian. His current rule, which is characterised by violent repression and corruption is examined and evaluated. God’s attribute of justice is presented and highlighted in how it challenges Mnangagwa to reform his rule to align it with God’s nature of justice.Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: The article combines insights from religion and politics, the mission of the church in a context of political oppression and systematic theology to highlight the need for the Zimbabwean churches to judge all political systems according to the adherence to God’s justice. It also provides some theological tools by which churches can protect themselves from being co-opted by unjust and oppressive regimes that violate God’s justice.

Pakistan in 2010

Asian Survey ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 51 (1) ◽  
pp. 97-110 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Christine Fair
Keyword(s):  
Economic Conditions ◽  
Military Coup ◽  
Exit Strategy ◽  
Personal Power ◽  
Military Action ◽  
Civil Military Relations ◽  
Military Relations ◽  
Civilian Leadership ◽  
The U.S

The 2010 floods exacerbated Pakistan's lingering domestic weaknesses including fraught civil-military relations, perilous economic conditions, and the ineptitude of the civilian government. While a military coup is unlikely anytime soon, army chief Ashfaq Pervez Kayani continues to consolidate his personal power, despite his cultivated democratic credentials, and that of the army, at the expense of the civilian leadership. The differences in the strategic interests of Pakistan and the U.S. seem stark, especially as the latter seeks to develop an exit strategy that would permit a cessation of its military action in Afghanistan.

scholarly journals A NEW MEASURE FOR PARTY COHERENCE: APPLYING A PHYSICS-BASED CONCEPT TO THE SWISS PARTY SYSTEM

2013 ◽  
Vol 16 (06) ◽  
pp. 1350011 ◽  
Author(s):  
MARKUS CHRISTEN ◽  
THOMAS OTT ◽  
DANIEL SCHWARZ
Keyword(s):  
Comparative Research ◽  
Party System ◽  
Systems Approach ◽  
Empirical Measure ◽  
Political Beliefs ◽  
General Elections ◽  
Measurement Concept ◽  
Party Members ◽  
New Perspective ◽  
Definition Of

The paper revives a theoretical definition of party coherence as being composed of two basic elements, cohesion and factionalism, to propose and apply a novel empirical measure based on spin physics. The simultaneous analysis of both components using a single measurement concept is applied to data representing the political beliefs of candidates in the Swiss general elections of 2003 and 2007, proposing a connection between the coherence of the beliefs party members hold and the assessment of parties being at risk of splitting. We also compare our measure with established polarization measures and demonstrate its advantage with respect to multi-dimensional data that lack clear structure. Furthermore, we outline how our analysis supports the distinction between bottom-up and top-down mechanisms of party splitting. In this way, we are able to turn the intuition of coherence into a defined quantitative concept that, additionally, offers a methodological basis for comparative research of party coherence. Our work serves as an example of how a complex systems approach allows to get a new perspective on a long-standing issue in political science.

Growing Opposition in Zimbabwe

1991 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 23-30
Author(s):  
Virginia Curtin Knight
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Foreign Investment ◽  
Employment Growth ◽  
Economic Interests ◽  
National Union ◽  
The Government ◽  
Robert Mugabe

A realignment of economic interests in Zimbabwe is fueling broad-based demands for an open, democratic, multiparty society. The shift in alignment comes as a result of the ruling party’s failure to meet the needs and expectations of the majority of Zimbabweans in the eleven years since independence. Under the leadership of the Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF), headed by President Robert Mugabe, the government adopted socialism guided by Marxist-Leninist principles as its ideological philosophy. The socialist agenda, coupled with cumbersome, centralized decision-making by a bloated bureaucracy, discouraged domestic and foreign investment and stymied employment growth.

scholarly journals Politics, Privileges, and Loyalty in the Zimbabwe National Army

2017 ◽  
Vol 60 (2) ◽  
pp. 93-113 ◽  
Author(s):  
Godfrey Maringira
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Political Party ◽  
Life Histories ◽  
War Veterans ◽  
Robert Mugabe ◽  
Postcolonial Africa ◽  
The Military

Abstract:In postcolonial Africa, the military has become an actor in politics, often in ways that can be described as unprofessional. This paper focuses on the manner in which the Zimbabwean National Army (ZNA) has become heavily politicized since independence, directly supporting the regime of President Robert Mugabe while denigrating the opposition political party. The military metamorphosed, to all intents, into an extension of President Mugabe’s political party, the ZANU-PF. I argue that even though the military is expected to subordinate itself to a civilian government, the ZNA is highly unprofessional, in- and outside the army barracks. The ways in which politics came to be mediated by army generals, as “war veterans” serving in the military, directly influenced not only how soldiers who joined the army in postindependence Zimbabwe were promoted and demoted, but how they lived their lives as soldiers in the army barracks. This article is based on fifty-eight life histories of army deserters living in exile in South Africa.

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