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| Thursday, 17 June 2004 |
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Zimbabwe - a nation paying the price for tolerance? by Sa'adi Thawfeeq in Zimbabwe The first impression you get of Zimbabwe, as the aircraft descends is the vast greenness of the country. It is no doubt a beautiful country with wide roads, many of which are straight as an arrow.
Never mind the current economic situation the country is presently undergoing, what is most significant when you walk the streets of Harare and Bulawayo is that no one begs for any money despite the hardship the people are going through. Even in the high density black populated area of Highfield, 20 kilometres from Harare there is not one beggar. There are people raggedly dressed whiling away their time on the pavements or under shades of trees either sleeping or watching people pass by but not one of them beg for money or food. That to me was the most striking feature of Zimbabwe. What Zimbabwe is undergoing today is a transition period where the black people under the regime of President Robert Mugabe are trying to re-establish themselves from the white minority rule. Their progress has been retarded to a great extent by economic sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe by white countries. They don't want Mugabe to show the world that his local farmers can be equally successful as the white farmers. The people have plenty of faith in Mugabe and know that one day their own people can improve this country's economy immensely. But for the present time a period of transition from white to black farm management they have to undergo several hardships because the white minority who had ruled them for so many years have started to leave because of Mugabe's land reform policy. The Zimbabwean president cannot be blamed for what is happening in his country today. If one is to delve briefly into the history of Zimbabwe or Southern Rhodesia, as it was known before independence, it was the white settlers who violently removed the Africans from their land between 1945 and 1960 driving them like herds to non-arid lands. The whites seized nearly all the arable lands from the blacks and when Rhodesia's white regime declared itself independent from Britain in 1965, most African independence movements had to take up arms against the colonial power.
Four years later when Rhodesia's constitution permanently ruled out black majority rule, Britain did nothing. This led to resistance to the racist regime of Ian Smith, then Prime Minister of Rhodesia. Many of these people are still alive today, remember this racist brutality, and retain the conviction of their rightful ownership of the alienated land. The scarred survivors of this terrible war, which Britain could and should have prevented, are of course the 'war veterans' whose role in Zimbabwean politics is so central today. The guerillas overcame the Rhodesian war machine in time and Smith had to negotiate. To bring an end to this warfare the Lancaster House (London) Conference took place in 1979 laying down British terms for the legal independence of Rhodesia. It was decided for Britain to fund the Rhodesian government to compensate the white farmers into surrendering their lands over a period of time. One of the more striking arguments promoted by some in the British media is that white farmers have an inalienable right to their land because they have all been there for such a long time. The destruction of Zimbabwe When British Prime Minister Tony Blair came to power he said that he was not bound by historical decisions and he was not prepared to honour his country's obligations under the Lancaster House agreement to provide funds for land reform. Independence of Zimbabwe in 1980 was followed by an overwhelming victory for Mugabe on the promise that these lands would be given back to his people. But when Blair turned his back on the Lancaster House agreement, Mugabe was forced to bring about legislation to reclaim the lands which was rightfully theirs and not as the whites termed as 'land grabbing'. There is no doubt that the United Kingdom is partly responsible for the destruction of Zimbabwe. For all his racist policies and the sufferings he inflicted on the blacks during his regime, Smith is still a free man and resides in a posh area in Zimbabwe. Such is the tolerance of the people of Zimbabwe that they even allow a man of Smith's calibre to still lead a free life there. For all the hardships they have suffered this nation's people are very tolerant. What one reads and hears from the western media that Zimbabwe is unsafe for tourists is just quite to the contrary. It is much safer to walk in Harare and Bulawayo in the night than in Johannesburg, where we were warned by the locals not to wear even a wristwatch or to pull out our purse and expose any money in public. The people in Zimbabwe are very friendly and if you make any eye contact with them while passing someone on the road he or she will greet you with either a "Good morning, how are you?" or "Hello". All the taxi drivers speak very good English and interestingly virtually all of them read an English newspaper. English I was told is the basic language in Zimbabwean schools although Shona, the local language is often spoken freely. The taxi drivers are not having it easy, as gasoline is in short supply. Because of the current economic situation in the country gasoline has become a luxury. Many of the filling stations have 'No Petrol' or 'No Diesel' signs displayed on boards. Whenever gasoline becomes available it is snapped up in next to no time. Potato is one of the essential foods in Zimbabwe. There is not one menu at any hotel that does not comprise a potato dish amongst its list. Beef and lamb is available in plenty and a favourite with everyone are steakhouses, which are almost always full (you have to wait for a seat on Fridays and Saturday nights if you are having a late dinner). Fish is not freely available because Zimbabwe is not surrounded by sea and the fish they get is from neighbouring Botswana, Zambia etc. Some locals advised us not to go for the fish because they come in frozen form and are not fresh. But fish caught in rivers are recommended. Chicken is also available freely in different forms with Nandos, a food chain outlet in African countries being a favourite for their spicy and hot sauces to go with the french fries. A few dollars more Indian restaurants are also greatly in demand by tourists. There are not many around in Bulawayo although in Harare, the capital there is a choice available. Because of the economic recession many have closed down but the ones that are still in existence cater some spicy foods, which one always yearns for when you are away from home. The present economic situation is such that hard currency like the US dollar is hard to come by. It took some time to adjust oneself to the local currency. The restaurant bills come to a thumping 100,000 Zimbabwe dollars. At first glance you are taken aback by the figures. You need some time to absorb the contents on the piece of paper placed in front of you by the waiter. If you go by the figures you might think that it is crazy to go out and eat a meal for that amount. But hold on. The value of the Zimbabwe dollar has skyrocketed in the past few years against the US dollar that the equivalent of one US dollar is approximately 5300 Zimbabwe dollars. So when you calculate the figure in US dollars we have actually eaten for only less than 20 US dollars! But certainly it took a while to get adjusted to the equation even when you are purchasing a small item like a cello tape which cost around 5000 Zimbabwe dollars (not even one US dollar). The US dollar is very much in demand and although the official exchange rate is 5300 Zimbabwe dollars to the US dollar it can go as high as even 7000 Zimbabwe dollars in the black market. But advised by some expatriate Sri Lankans in Harare and Bulawayo I was very wary in converting US dollars to the local currency because any excess local currency will not be reconverted back to US dollars when you are leaving the country. The officers at the immigration desk question whether you are carrying any excess Zimbabwe dollars with you and if you say 'yes' they ask you to leave them behind. Because of the country's unstable economy every dollar (US) counts. No tour to Zimbabwe is complete without a visit to the Victoria Falls, one of the largest waterfalls in the world. It is a six hour-drive from Bulawayo. Situated on the border between Zimbabwe and Zambia the waterfall, which is more than 1.6 kilometres (1 mile) wide plunges 110 metres (360 ft) into a whirlpool known as the Boiling Pot. The fall provides a magnificent spectacle to those fortunate enough to walk the length of it. Seeing is believing, they say. Don't get carried away by all the western media reports on Zimbabwe. The country is beautiful and the people are wonderful. You will experience it when you get there. |
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