The Sunday Mail
Researchers on Zimbabwe’s liberation struggle have been grappling over the years to come up with a coherent story on how the story unfolded.
The freedom fighters who fought in the war, soon after independence retreated into their shells – others because of anger, others because of neglect, others because of frustrations, others because they felt unappreciated and many because they felt Zimbabweans were an ungrateful lot.
There was justification, lots of justification in some instances because how does one explain the painful and yet very stupid statement by some misguided elements that said “idzoserei kwamakai sunungura, tinonoisunungura tega?”
The victors of the country’s liberation struggle felt unwanted and they kept their heroic stories to themselves.
Some people mistook the silence from the freedom fighters to mean they couldnt express themselves. Others concluded that these veterans of our country’s struggle had no story worth telling. The freedom fighters were mocked, they were treated with disdain – the disrespect was just too painful.
In the meantime, the Rhodesians who were defeated in the struggle have been telling their stories pilling up presssure on the researchers who wanted to write-back to the unrepentant Rhodies. Several books, some of them very compelling have been written by the Rhodies chronicling how they brutalised the country’s freedom fighters.
The victors looked in silence or sporadically one of them would get angry and speak back to the blatant lies, but still that wasnt enough.
The Sunday Mail started having interviews with some of the war veterans since 2012 but then opportunities would now and them present themselves as the real war veterans. We managed to track down some of the real freedom fighters and they told gripping stories that attracted lots of readership.
But still there was a problem. The narrative was not flowing smoothly. The Sunday Mail idea to interview the war veterans was brilliant, but then it got a bit confusing talking to one comrade who joined the liberation struggle in 1977 then next you have an interview with a comrade who joined the struggle in 1964. This led to some confusion as to where all this was starting and ending.
While all this was happening, the people of Zimbabwe both young and old were getting lost in the useless literature from the West, telling western stories that had no relevance to their being. Even the Zimbabwean story was being told from a distorted western perpective. Students at schools and colleges were the unfortunate victims.
I remember one day, the Minister of Primary and Secondary Education,
Dr Lazarus Dokora got fed up and gave me a call asking me to compile The Sunday Mail articles into a book. I advised him that that was in the pipeline but he insisted that I should compile the book. I wasnt really convinced, so I didnt follow his orders. I am sure he thinks I am one stubborn fellow, but soon he will understand.
The country’s freedom fighters have finally decided to tell their story and they are doing it in chronological order. Their gripping stories will change Zimbabwean history. Those who thought the freedom fighters cant tell their stories will be shocked with the clarity and sharp memory.
Those who thought the freedom fighters are “uneducated” are in for the biggest dissapointment of their lives.
The freedom fighters are shedding tears as they look back, some of them shiver when they remember their fellow comrades who passed on during the liberation struggle.
One of the comrades, Cde Chemist Ncube says he is like a potrait. A potrait may loose its original colour. A potrait sometimes falls from the walls. Someone will put it back on the walls.
Some people walk past the potrait without noticing it. Some mock the potrait while others appreciate the potrait.
After all this, the potrait remains on the walls – this is the story of the Zimbabwean war veterans – the real freedom fighters.
