IS NON VIOLENT MASS ACTION A VIABLE OPTION IN ZIMBABWE ?

By Dumisani O.Nkomo

A few weeks ago the Reserve Bank Governor controversially urged the business community in Bulawayo to engage in non violent protests if ever they wanted to access the Distressed Industries and Marginalized Areas Fund .It  is critical to  discuss the viability ,probability ,probity and effectiveness of non violent mass action as a tool of delivering economic and political democracy .In doing this i would like to submit that we as Zimbabweans have been reduced to passive spectators in the transformation agenda of the nation .We have delegated the responsibility of bringing about change to S.A.D.C ,Jacob Zuma ,the African Union and the international community .We seem to have invested a lot of energy and time on regional and international advocacy .This strategy has been effective to an extent although it is premised on the imperative of influencing the mediation process facilitated by Jacob Zuma and SADC .Our hopes seem to be pinned on Zuma ,SA.D.C ,the African Union and the international community .Is this hope and belief justified and should  we continue to place all our collective expectations on the shoulders of others without  pro actively exploring other  avenues of effecting democracy and social transformation .I would like to suggest that Zimbabweans need to start seriously exploring non violent mass mobilization as a strategy of advocating for political ,social and economic reform .In doing so the limitations ,advantages and disadvantages of this strategy need to be taken into cognisance .

I have argued previously that Zimbabweans are too fatigued  to engage in non violent mass action but then “no condition is permanent “ and different contexts require responses which are relevant  to the time and conditions prevailing at a particular period . Non violent  mass action cannot therefore be entirely dismissed in the Zimbabwean context .In actual fact the negotiators for the two M.D.C formations will be rendered useless without leverage as the general rule of negotiation is that one should have sufficient leverage to push for issues .In 1979 at the Lancaster House Talks P.F ZAPU and ZANU P.F were able to push their agenda because of the leverage they had in the form of their  respective armies namely the Zimbabwe People’s Revolutionary Army ZIPRA ,the ZAPU  armed wing and the Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army [Z.A.N.L.A] the ZANU P.F armed wing  . I am in no way advocating for an armed insurrection being a proponent of non violence but my point is that negotiations are useless as long as one does not have any leverage .What the two M.D.C’ have to offer at the moment are good arguments and nothing more  beyond this the M.D C formations are at the mercy of Z.A.N.U P.F .

Critical issues which  may require mass mobilization may be categorized into local and national level issues including reforms before elections ,devolution of power ,the speedy disbursement of D.I.M.A.F ,media reforms and poor service delivery

None violent mass action is an option that could be considered to deal with the government’s template of indifference to the plight of the people .However non violent mass action is a not an end in itself but a means to an end since it is really meant to build pressure and apply leverage in a negotiation process .Poorly conceived mass action can result in more chaos as we have witnessed in Egypt and Libya were the revolution has become a cycle of violence ,anarchy and confusion .Secondly it must be understood that non violent action as articulated by Dr Martin Luther King and Mahatma  Gandhi is a philosophy based on solid principles of transformation  .Non violent action seeks to free both the oppressor and the oppressed  .Thirdly non violent mass action should not be taken as the only viable action to bring change but as an action which supports and complements other actions such as advocacy ,negotiation ,mediation ,litigation and arbitration .

In the Zimbabwean context non violent mass action may have the following challenges :

1.The possibility of apathy and lack of popular support as evidenced in the failed stay away of 2008 .

2.Mass action can be hijacked by sinister political and or criminal elements .

3.This may play into the hands of military hawks who may declare a state of emergency ,suspend all rights ,dissolve the inclusive government and arrest leaders of opposition and civic leaders .At worst this may give opportunity for military hawks to take over under the guise of restoring order and the process could result in an effective end of civilian government .

4.Commercialization of activism which may result in people expecting or wanting to be paid for participating in mass action.

5.Contraction of the economy has resulted in the shrinking of the labour movement which traditionally has been at the forefront of positive direct action.

 6.Informalization of the economy may result in people not wanting to participate in activities that affect their  daily income .

7.Overdependence on donors and the international community .Civil society has come to believe that action is  impossible without donor funding .Whilst resources are critical these should support what people are already doing on the ground .

In spite of all these challenges ,risks and obstacles non violent direct action is still a viable option because of the following reasons :

1.It applies pressure directly on government and service providers

2.Makes ordinary people part of the solution

3.Takes the initiative from the state apparatus .

4.There are over 200 non violent non violent methods to choose from.

5.Non violent mass action multiplies has a contagion effect and multiplies people’s courage

6.Politicians no longer take lobbying meetings seriously .

Timing is however critical in the execution of non violent action as wrong timing ,poor planning and fear can result in total abysmal failure .

Dumisani O. Nkomo is a political analyst and Chief Executive Officer of Habakkuk Trust .he  writes here in his personal capacity .He can be contacted on dumisani.nkomo@gmail.com

Devolution of Power –Comparative Analysis ,Pros and Cons

By Dumisani O .Nkomo

President Robert Mugabe recently stirred the hornets nest when he indicated that he was opposed to devolution of power in the new constitution .He has not been alone in his crusade as local government Minister Dr Ignatius Chombo  penned a scholarly piece on the demerits of devolution of power .I will attempt to provide an objective analysis of the concept of devolution of power and it’s perceived demerits and its merits

I will start of  with a  common understanding and definition of what devolution of power is and how it differs from federalism ,secession and decentralization .Usually these terms are confused and confusing with some people using them interchangeably .

Just as Chombo stated and as defined in Wikipedia “Devolution of power is the “statutory granting of power to government at a sub national ,regional or local level “ .The nature ,scope and magnitude of such power is then defined by the constitutional and legislative framework of that particular governance model because although devolution maybe have a common legal proto type in terms of principle it differs in style ,architecture and design from country to country .A devolved system of governance can exist in a unitary or federal state .Examples of countries with devolved system of governance within a unitary state include France  which  has 27 regions , Italy which has 15 ,Papua New Guinea -18 provinces ,Peru 25 regions ,Spain -18 communities  and Kenya which has 47 county governments .

Federalism

A federal system of  governance on the other hand is defined as “a system of government where power is divided between a central authority and constituent political units “[Wikipedia] .In some cases individual states may have their own constitutions  depending on the design and architecture of the  particular federal governance model .Examples of countries with a federal system of governance include Mexico ,India Australia ,Canada ,the United States of America and Switzerland which has an elaborate system of a confederation of 26 cantons .

Secession

In his comments president Mugabe seemed to equate devolution with secession  but for the purpose of this debate it is then necessary to define what secession  is and then compare and contrast this with the definitions of devolution and federalism given above .Simply put secession is “the act of withdrawing from  a union ,a political or geographical entity “ .It is thus obvious from this definition that devolution is not secession  and neither is federalism secession .Solid examples of instances where secession  has taken place include South Sudan ,Croatia and Slovenia which seceded from Yogoslavia  .Abortive attempts at a secession  have taken place in Biafra [Nigeria and Katanga  D. R[Congo] .It is thus obvious that the issue of secession does not suffice in the context of the current constitution making process and any attempt to equate devolution with secession is therefore misplaced  and ill informed .

Decentralization

Decentralization which is the preferred ZANU P.F position is defined as  “distributing the administrative functions or powers of a central authority among several local authorities “.There is therefore quite  clearly a fundamental difference between the “statutory granting of powers from a central authority “which is devolution to  merely distributing of administrative power .First of all the granting of power under devolution is statutory  and secondly it is more profound in scope transcending beyond administrative power to legislative ,executive and it some  cases judicial power .

It is therefore abundantly clear that decentralization in the context of the current national discourse of equitable distribution of national resources ,increased decision making at provincial and local government level is inadequate and irrelevant .

Deficits of Devolution

Dr Ignatius Chombo and his acolytes argue and not without merit  that devolution may result in “devolution of corruption  and inefficiency .He argues that devolution would be catastrophic as evidenced by overwhelming corruption taking place currently in local authorities ,He also argues that devolution will remove the oversight role of central government and  may not contribute to national cohesion .Other critics of devolution also argue that Zimbabwe is too small to have such a system of governance .They claim that devolution will accentuate ethnic differences and divide the country on tribal lines .It  has also been argued that poorer regions with few resources will suffer a s a result of devolution .

Argument For Devolution

These arguments as i have said are not without merit but again they assume that devolution of power is a one size fits all model of governance ,which it is not .Devolution of power can differ from country to country  depending on the peculiar socio economic and political experiences of each country .Corruption and inefficiency can be curtailed through inbuilt mechanisms to ensure transparency and good governance .Basic standards can be set at a national level whilst region specific instruments can be put in place to address issues peculiar to geographic  and ethnic communities .Centralized governance has resulted in centralized corruption but devolution of power to provincial and local government authorities will significantly increase public scrutiny thus ensuring sound stewardship of resources .The oversight role of central government can still remain in place without disturbing the operations of provincial and local government operation s .An ideal devolved state has clear cut roles for central government ,provincial government and local government .It does not wish away central government necessarily but then neither does it curtail the powers of provincial and local governments .The key here is a well defined governance architecture with elected governors who have budgets and operate with an executive and provincial authority or government .The governor may be elected directly by the people or by a provincial assembly or legislature which would make laws at provincial level .

Perhaps it would be prudent to learn from the Kenyan Model which devolved power to 47 counties in a system which made provisions for equitable resource allocation and distribution through inbuilt public finance mechanisms which addressed issues of  “ transfer equalization ,grants from national government and resources derived from local economic activity .The Kenyan system also envisaged a devolved public service using national standards .

Devolution will lead to equitable distribution of resources throughout different regions and disadvantaged regions will benefit from equalization mechanisms through central government fiscal instruments  .National cohesion will actually be enhanced because Zimbabwe’s various ethnic groups including the Kalanga ,Ndau ,Suthu ,Tswana ,Xhosa ,Tonga ,Nambya ,Shona ,San ,Venda ,Shona and Ndebele will be promoted through the efforts of accessible and empowered  regional and local governments which are able to craft polices which are relevant to local conditions and experiences .Citizens will be able to influence and participate in decision making thus building strong local democracies which is the basis of a healthy  national participatory democracy .Devolution is a not a problem it is a part of the solution .Obviously it will not solve all the country’s problems but it will address most of them .This has to be done in tandem with a good ,democratic constitution ,strong institutions , a culture of democracy and harmonized subsidiary laws which facilitate devolution of power .A lot will depend on the design ,implementation and execution of the model of devolution that Zimbabwe  adopts .

Dumisani  is a political analyst and  C.EO OF Habakkuk Trust and he writes here in his personal capacity .he can be contacted on Dumisani .nkomo@gmail.com

Dumisani O Nkomo: Independence Day – A Betrayal of Lookout Masuku’s ...

Dumisani O Nkomo: Independence Day – A Betrayal of Lookout Masuku’s ...: By Dumisani O. Nkomo “We wanted to vote and choose our own destiny “was the comment the late Lieutenant General Lookout Masuku made in an in...

Dumisani O Nkomo: dumisani o nkomo: THE TEST OF AFRICAN DIPLOMACY AN...

Dumisani O Nkomo: dumisani o nkomo: THE TEST OF AFRICAN DIPLOMACY AN...: dumisani o nkomo: THE TEST OF AFRICAN DIPLOMACY AND REGIONAL LEADERS... : "The Test of African Diplomacy and Regional Leadership By Dumisani...

Independence Day – A Betrayal of Lookout Masuku’s Vision

By Dumisani O. Nkomo

“We wanted to vote and choose our own destiny “was the comment the late Lieutenant General Lookout Masuku made in an interview with Time magazine in 1980. A couple of weeks before the 32^nd anniversary of our Independence this dream is still elusive. Lookout Mafela Khalisabantu Vumindaba Masuku died on the 7^th of April 1986 two days after his birthday and eleven days before the country’s sixth anniversary of independence. He died after spending four years in prison even after the Supreme Court ruled in 1983 that he and Dumiso Dabengwa were innocent of charges of plotting to overthrow the government of Robert Mugabe. It would be most fitting to commemorate Zimbabwe’s 32 anniversary of Independence by celebrating the life of one of Zimbabwe’s finest soldiers and commander of ZAPU’s Zimbabwe People’s Revolutionary Army from 1978 to 1980. Masuku then become deputy commander of the Zimbabwean National Army at independence but died literally at the hands of a government he had helped to construct.

Masuku was released together with veteran ZAPU nationalist Vote Moyo in March 1986 when he was seriously ill and Judith Todd in her book Through The Darkness expressed doubts whether the “specialist who attended to him was “indeed a specialist or even  or even a registered doctor at all”. On April 7 he succumbed to cryptocococal meningitis at Parirenyatwa Hospital and this after the government had refused to grant him one of his dying wishes to see his comrade Dumiso Dabengwa who was still languishing in jail. General Lookout Masuku  will go down in history as the first martyr of post independent Zimbabwe.

Perhaps it would be critical to reflect on Masuku’s comments to Time Magazine when he told the publication just after independence that  “we have been fighting so people could express their will “.Yet 32 years after independence what Mafela  fought for is still a mirage.

Lookout Masuku was one of the first victims of ZANU P.F’s flagrant disregard of the rule of law and he paid the ultimate price and as such we should not be fooled to think trampling on and of the rule of law and impunity only began in 2000, it has been with us since independence and Lookout Masuku twenty six years later afterwards is a  sad reminder of an aborted revolution.

Joshua Nkomo summarized Masuku’s supreme contribution to the struggle on April 12 1986 at the funeral of the ZIPRA commander when he said “Mafela, Lookout after all his sacrifices, died a pauper in our own hands, we cannot blame colonialism and imperialism for this tragedy”. Up to today there is no major street or building in the country which is named after Masuku, what a betrayal!

Masuku’s life and death is a sharp rebuke of the very notion of independence when the country still boasts of an array of repressive legislation which infringe on fundamental liberties of speech, association ,assembly ,freedom of the press and expression. If Lookout Masuku, Jason Moyo, Nikita Mangena, Lazarus Nkala, Josiah Tongogara and Herbert Chitepo were to rise from the dead I am sure they would not be sure whether they were in Rhodesia or the Zimbabwe they fought so hard and long for.

Independence day this should not be a time of celebration but rather of moaning the betrayed liberation values of the likes of Lookout Masuku who literally died in chains in the same way that Steve Biko died in prison. Independence Day should remind us that we are yet to enjoy a new Zimbabwe were people can “vote “freely and choose their own destiny”. Our history syllabus at schools needs urgent revision  so that it captures the contribution of General Lookout Masuku  and his ZIPRA forces  as the current history being taught at schools reduces Nkomo, ZAPU, ZIPRA and Masuku to political Lilliputians who made an insignificant contribution to the  struggle for Zimbabwe.

As Nkomo said at Lookout’s funeral “Those who rule our country know inside themselves that Lookout played a very big part in winning our struggle and yet they let him die in prison …he is not being buried at heroes acre but they can’t take away his hero status, you don’t give hero status, you recognize it, yes he can be temporarily forgotten by the state, but young people who do research will one day unveil what Lookout was doing” [Judith Todd, Through the Darkness, Life in Zimbabwe].

As we tread cautiously towards Independence Day Commemorations it should be a time of reflection and indeed mourning for the betrayed ideals of the liberation struggle which Lookout Vumindaba Mafela Khalisabantu envisaged.

Dumisani is the Chief Executive Officer of Habakkuk Trust and political analyst. He can be contacted on Dumisani.nkomo@gmail.com

dumisani o nkomo: THE TEST OF AFRICAN DIPLOMACY AND REGIONAL LEADERS...

dumisani o nkomo: THE TEST OF AFRICAN DIPLOMACY AND REGIONAL LEADERS...: "The Test of African Diplomacy and Regional Leadership By Dumisani O. Nkomo The year 2011 has been epitomized by an unparalled wave of popu..."

THE TEST OF AFRICAN DIPLOMACY AND REGIONAL LEADERSHIP

The Test of African Diplomacy and Regional Leadership

By Dumisani O. Nkomo

The  year 2011 has been epitomized by an unparalled wave of popular “people’s” revolutions which have spread like a wild fire in North Africa and the Middle East .Critically the situation in Libya is of grave concern whilst the ouster of Laurent Gbabgo in the Ivory Coast is a stark reminder that Africa has to take leadership in issues that affect African countries .The season calls for Africa through institutions such as the African Union and  regional bodies such as the Economic Community for West African States [E.C.O.W.A.S ]  and the Southern African Development Community [S.A.D.C ]to take leadership in intra state conflict as this may have a bearing on regional security and the well being of the continent .

The North African/Middle East Contagion

The contagion effects of the popular uprisings or revolutions in Tunisia ,Egypt and Libya  in Africa and countries such as Yemen  and Bahrain are indicative of the manner in which “instability “or “revolution can be exported .Emerging empirical  evidence suggests that the rapid growth of the information super highway epitomized by the growth of social networking and global satellite media is contributing immensely to transnational stability or lack thereof .Dictators can no longer get away with wanton abuse of state institutions and suppression of the rights of their citizens .Thanks to satellite television and the internet the excesses of the Ugandan government  against the opposition ,the suppression of constitutional rights by the Swazi Monarchy and the rabid behavior of the Mugabe regime in Zimbabwe are within the watchful gaze of the global community .

Similarly the resilience and energy of oppressed people in Tunisia ignited the flame of liberation and revolution in Egypt ,Libya and the Middle East .The cumulative effects as well as ramifications of the “Jasmine Revolutions “have caused a fundamental shift in global politics ,international relations ,regional power dynamics and diplomacy .If the African Union and regional l bodies fail to take the lead in robustly tackling intra state conflicts these institutions will soon be rendered irrelevant .

Significantly the intervention of the United Nations ,N.A.T.O ,the United States of America and France in Libya ,the Ivory Coast in the past six months may be indicative of the impotence of the African Union and the importance of African leadership in resolving African problems  in a more pro active manner .Whilst the African Union and ECOWAS spoke decisively against Laurent Gbagbo’s attempts to steal the elections in the Ivory Coast ,these actions were largely too little too late .Subsequently the United Nations passed resolutions 1973 and 1975 to deal with the crises in Libya and the Ivory Coast .Importantly the worst losers were the people of Libya and the people of Ivory Coast as over 3,000 people have died in the Ivory Coast and thousands more continue to die in Libya .

Obstacles to A.U Action

There are a number of factors  intrinsic to the design ,operations ,values and political culture of the African Union and African regional bodies which have affected the efficacy of African diplomacy and regional as well as continental peace building .These include but are not limited to the following :

1,Lack of financial and technical capacity to actively intervene and moderate political crises .

2.Lack of political will to effectively deal with emerging crisis situations within nation which  is a big factor because for a long time Africa has tolerated autocratic regimes in Egypt ,Libya ,Tunisia ,Zimbabwe ,Swaziland amongst other countries and the motif “African solutions for African problems” has become a euphemism for accommodating rogue governments .

3.Compromising Democratic Processes at the feet of Sovereignty is a major facto limiting the effectiveness of the A.U .Whilst the constitutive act of the African Union enshrines the importance and pertinence of respecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of member states  at the same time it calls upon member states to respect human rights ,good governance and democratic processes .There seems to be a stalemate as  to which comes first and which is more important :sovereignty of member states or the respect of democratic processes and institutions by member states .The rogue regime in Zimbabwe continues to argue that no country should interfere in its internal affairs .This is akin to an abusive father who threatens his neighbours because they have no right to stop him from excruciatingly beating his wife and subjecting his children to cruel ,inhuman and degrading treatment .Surely at one point the interests of the wife and the children have to take precedence of the ego of the abusive man .It is in this context that I would like to argue that Southern Africa has  to reign in rogue elements before they become a threat to regional peace and security .

I propose that the following steps be taken in order to ensure that African diplomacy and mediation becomes more effective and meaningful :

1.The African Peer Review Mechanism[A.P.R.M] needs to be strengthened by making the process more binding and putting in place enforcement mechanisms .At the moment the A.P.R.M is purely voluntary and non enforceable and only a handful of countries have completed the process .

2.Minimum standards of good governance contained in the Declaration on Democracy ,Political ,Economic and Corporate Governance should be internalized in national legislation and policies of  A.U member states .

3.The African Union and its regional bodies such as SADC should strengthen implementation of instruments  on democratic processes such as elections .Such instruments include the SADC Principles and Guidelines Governing Democratic Elections and the A.U Declaration on the Principles Governing Democratic Elections in Africa .

4.Setting up of effective implementation ,enforcement and monitoring mechanisms to ensure that Africa countries adhere to the standards of good governance that they have committed themselves to .

It is possible to create an Africa free from dictatorship ,genocide ,corruption and violation of  human rights .

Dumisani O Nkomo is a Zimbabwean based political commentator and opinion leader