The Sunday Mail
Professor Simbi Mubako
YOUNG people were an essential element in the Zimbabwe protest movement of the early 1960s.
Zapu offices in Harare and Bulawayo were always crowded with youths, most of them unemployed and ready to campaign or fight for their political parties.
After the Zapu/Zanu split, youths from each party continued to be the mobilising force to resist further domination at the hands of the colonial settlers. The youths were the storm troopers and body guards of the party bosses.
But there were youths who made their reputations as great organisers who effected progressive changes in the policies of their parties or who were good public speakers.
From Harare to Masvingo, the names of Dzikamai Danha, Patrick Nhariwa and Patrick Bvunzawabaya spring to mind. From Bulawayo to Gweru, Dumiso Dabengwa and Philemon Makonese were among prominent youth leaders.
As a school leaver in 1958, I was lucky to be employed by Mambo Press in Gweru and immediately attached to the African National Congress offices there, which were led by Phillip Foya.
At the offices, I spent most of my spare time drawing posters and banners for the party. On few occasions, Joshua Nkomo, the party President came to Gweru to address meetings and he would leave us fired up until the next such meeting.
For me, the political induction was cut short when I left for university studies in Lesotho, early 1959. The ANC leaders were detained and for some reason, a detention order was issued against me.
The police got to my village in Zaka and took my father for questioning.
I was already at a university in Lesotho and my parents sent a message informing me of the police visit before advising that I should not return home.
As a result, during the mid-term holidays in 1959, I did not go back to Rhodesia. I spent time doing voluntary community work in Lesotho and Swaziland under the aegis of the United Nations International Work Camps which were organised by a German, Frank Krawolitsky.
We built schools in Leribe (Lesotho) and Usuthu forests in Swaziland.
The camps were multi-racial, joined by South African youths who opposed apartheid.
The camps became hot-beds of political radicalism or communism by the standards of the South African government of the time.
We were in Swaziland when Harold Macmillan, British prime minister between 1957 and 1963, visited African countries in 1960 culminating with his famous “winds of change” speech in Cape Town.
He passed through Swaziland.
Our work camp closed down for the day to allow us to go to Mbabane to attend the British Prime Minister’s open air rally.
I was one of about 12 students who became the most vociferous hecklers at the otherwise passive gathering.
We were harshly suppressed by Swazi police, but leaders of the rather timid opposition parties and some trade unionists came to congratulate us.
Back at the university, I became embroiled in student politics at an early stage.
A group of students formed themselves into a ‘political party’ intending to capture the leadership of the Students Representative Council (SRC).
They were led by Nelson Samkange, who was a member of the Southern Rhodesia African National Congress from Salisbury, and one Joseph Nkolongwane, who claimed to be a member of the South African Youth League from Johannesburg.
Edson Zvobgo was their spokesperson and organising secretary.
The group openly bragged that they were seasoned politicians and would take all seats of the SRC.
I was roped into the opposing camp in support of Engelbert Marume, a friend of mine from Chishawasha seminary days, who was highly respected, but a political novice.
Our organising secretary was Henry Pote and spokesperson was Dennis Madide, a valuable and combative Zulu student.
As election day drew closer, opinion polls were clear that Engelbert Marume would win.
Interestingly, Zvobgo defected to our camp and publicly denounced his former group, divulging all their well-prepared manifestos.
As predicted, Marume’s team took all the seats and I became his right hand man.
The following year, Marume retired and I became the president of the SRC.
Apart from student politics, some Zimbabwe students formed a study group of our home politics.
I was elected chairman, but the leading spirit was Edson Zvobgo.
Other members were Henry Pote, Nicholas Chitsiga, Chris Mushonga, Christopher Mutambirwa and James Chitauro.
We followed closely African politics at home and once every month, we observed a day of meditation, silence and fasting.
We become very committed to African nationalism and pledged ourselves to join the liberation movement after our university studies.
There was little talk of ideological dialectics in the group.
Ironically, only Edson Zvobgo went straight into fulltime politics and remained a politician until his death.
Nicholas Chitsiga joined Zapu activism at home and later become a Government minister after independence.
I became a member of the Zanu PF Central Committee and Cabinet Minister as well as Member of Parliament for Zaka after independence.
While a student at Roma College in Lesotho, I also became Pan African in my politics.
Edson Zvobgo introduced me to the politics of the Basotholand Congress Party and we both became acquainted with its leaders like Ntsu Mokhehle and Joe Kodisang.
We attended their rallies, held their membership cards and organised meetings for them at the university.
I could not escape South African politics as I was attracted to the newly formed Pan African Congress.
I liked its radicalism approach and also because I had met Robert Sobukwe himself at Wits in Johannesburg.
I became the treasurer of the PAC branch at Roma and undertook errands for the party into South Africa. Don Tsolo was our chairman.
I had the opportunity to meet top PAC leaders like Leballo and Peter Raboroko when they fled to Lesotho after the Sharpeville massacre.
Raboroko escaped from South Africa to Rhodesia dressed as a woman.
I had given him my address in Bulawayo as 99 Pelandaba township.
When Raboroka presented himself at the door unexpectedly, my aunt Mrs Gwatidzo was shocked, but after explanation she admitted him into the house. He later managed to travel to Tanzania.
Roma College remained a breeding ground for Zimbabwean activism from 1960 until 1980.
When I returned there as a professor in 1979, the campus was a beehive of the Zimbabwe revolution attuned to the over expanding war at home.
Soon after my arrival Mike Munyati and another student abandoned their studies to join Zanu in Maputo.
After independence Dr Stan Mudenge and Dr Mashingaidze led other professors and students back home to support the newly established independent Government.
When I left Lesotho in 1961, I took up law studies in Dublin. There were no other Zimbabwean students in Ireland, but I had Zambian and Ugandan classmates.
We also had a few Malawians as well and we formed a Zimbabwe, Zambia, Malawi (ZIZAMA) association of which I was elected Chairman.
Our most memorable function was to receive the former Zambian President Kenneth Kaunda when he visited Dublin.
I chaired his meeting. We supported the nationalist parties in the three countries of the soon-to-break up federation.
My politics in Dublin did not end with public relations. I knew that Zimbabwe was not going to receive its freedom by constitutional means like Zambia and Malawi.
At the University College of Dublin, there was a student brigade of the Irish Army.
Any student could join and acquire military training.
My Ugandan friend, Justin Okot and I enlisted. We went for a few lessons which consisted of handling and assembling war weapons.
The British Embassy in Dublin got wind of our activities with the Irish Republican Army (IRA).
However, when I studied Irish history more closely I became deeply impressed by the Irish armed struggle spearheaded by the IRA.
During vacations, foreign students in Ireland crossed over to England to find temporary jobs, picking apples on farms or working in factories.
I generally stayed at the Zapu office Golders Green, London which was run by Enock Dumbutshena.
I assisted with odd jobs especially producing and distributing a bulletin called The Spear.
Dumbutshena seemed to appreciate my assistance. He had other assistants as well but these tended to be welfare cases for him to look after.
Later Mr Chirimbani arrived from home to become Dumbutshena’s deputy.
I then spent most of the time with Chirimbani as Dumbutshena devoted more of his time on studies at Grays Inn than political work in the office.
Dumbutshena was rather aloof from all the Zimbabweans in London.
With me, he sometimes discussed political issues, but never talked of legal matters although we were both studying law at the time.
Chirimbani was much more down to earth and more approachable. He took a special liking for me.
He selected me to attend conferences in Norway without Dumutsena’s approval. There was obvious friction between the two.
Thankfully, they did not remain together in the London office for long.
After the Zanu/Zapu split, Chirimbani went to Zanu and Dumbutshena remained in Zapu with Nkomo, Chikerema and Nyandoro whom he considered his peers.
Dumbutshena migrated to Zambia and practiced law there.
Politically, he drifted into FROLIZI and into Muzorewa’s internal settlement before independence.
After independence, I as Minister of Justice recommended him for appointment to the bench. He rose to be Chief Justice.
For some reasons the Golders Green office became a Zanu office.
Towards the end of my studies in Dublin, I had come to know many Zimbabwean students in England.
I joined the Zimbabwe Students Union then led by Simpson Mutambanengwe.
Members came from Bristol, Birmingham, Edinburgh, but mainly from London. I would travel from Dublin to London where the majority of students lived.
Continued next week…
Professor Simbi Mubako is a former Cabinet minister and diplomat who participated in various capacities during the liberation struggle. He was Zanu legal representative at the 1976 Geneva Conference as well as the Lancaster House Conference in London in 1979. He wrote the article for The Sunday Mail.
