Heroes Day holiday

It is Heroes Day holiday,
To commemorate those
Who put their country first
And thought nothing of themselves.

It is Heroes Day holiday,
Beer-halls are packed to bursting,
Beer mugs and bottles are dancing in hands
As carousers drink beyond drinking.

It is Heroes Day holiday,
Some have already paired off illicitly,
The bush is on fire – some in dongas, others in cars
As they exchange STDs in the false name of love.

It is Heroes Day holiday,
The rich and powerful
Dance their intrigue games round braais
As they weave new plans for the next plunder.

It is Heroes Day holiday,
The whole nation is awash with joy,
Somewhere, worms are feeding on the heroes,
The heroes’ families are in deep mourning.

It is Heroes Day holiday, is it?

- Chirikure Chirikure

Written in 1989

This is Mugabe’s driveway said my colleague. And what a long driveway too. I guess many of you have noticed how the Borrowdale Road is being resurfaced? It was in brilliant shape next to the many other roads that are pot holed and falling apart. But of course Mugabe’s motorcade comes first and as we all know the Borrowdale Road leads to his mansion. We’re all saps was her next comment. Because if you think about it, the upgrading of the Borrowdale road stinks. And what are we doing about it? Sweet F A as my ma would’ve said.

Then we passed a Zimbabwe Independent newspaper advertising billboard that said that our PM is being probed about a $1.5 million fraud. With not much more of a headline to go on I jokingly said well how do you reckon he got the money to renovate his mansion on Kew Drive? Tsvangirai doesn’t have the money himself to live so large so who exactly is footing the bill? Zanu PF needs to keep him under their thumb, so there’s a thought. Or maybe there’s a foreign hand involved. Or maybe its just that big egos can’t live in modest houses, so fuck the povo.

Either which way, what is it with big men in power, and mansions. I know some of you are thinking about that joke about men needing to make up for size in different ways but we won’t go there.

And then we talked about the comments starting to roll in about the Big Brother contestants getting cash from Mugabe. Someone suggested that Mugabe may well be changing sides having given a pale face some dosh, Vimbai, whose mother is out of favour, a kiss, and congratulating Chamisa for being a “supersonic” minister. Hmmm. What’s up with all that.

PRESS RELEASE

A Temporary Inconvenience
By Andrew Mutandwa

Poignant poetry collection distils the lonely ache of displacement experienced by those forced to flee political turmoil in their homeland.

Andrew Mutandwa’s debut book of poetry charts the struggle to escape oppression and the difficulties the journey presents to those forced from their homes, lives and families by domestic troubles. This heart-wrenching volume initially draws on the harrowing experiences faced by those living in the iron grip of a brutal regime. Contracting the pain and suffering of oppressed faceless millions into the compelling testament of one man, the poems evoke the violence of life lived under a military dictatorship. Swinging from the loss of self at home to the loss of self abroad, the poetry brings to light the traumatic erosion of individual identity that confronts refugees who flee one type of violence only to be confronted with another deeper violence – the defacement of individual identity and the erosion of cultural expression amid the lonely diaspora. This powerfully moving collection lays bare the pain and pathos of politically displaced individuals, articulating the lifelong effects of what initially seems like a temporary inconvenience.

With striking realism Andrew Mutandwa portrays the emotional battle to carve out a new home for one’s family when ‘home’ becomes a hostile and dangerous place. Providing an insight into the erosion of freedom in Zimbabwe, Mutandwa offers a powerful testament to the bravery of individuals in the African diaspora and of displaced peoples around the world. Providing a much needed exposition of the cultural tensions that repeatedly rock Africa to the core, A Temporary Inconvenience is a must-read for anyone who wishes to understand why this rich land is failing its own progeny.

About the Author: Andrew Mutandwa is a former civil servant, diplomat and journalist who has specialised in international development, the HIV/AIDS epidemic and human rights issues. He was in the first group of journalists to be formally trained when Zimbabwe gained independence in 1980. He currently lives in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire.

The book is currently being sold on line through a number of distributors such as Amazon, WH Smith, Waterstones, Barnes & Noble, and Author House.

Will a stone or a poppy sprout between my shoulders, will the animals caged inside me escape, will I doze off and betray my limbs, will I make plugs out of dirt to stopper my lungs and lie on the black stone of obedience, will I anoint myself with engine oil and stuff my throat with yes, yes, no, no?
Adonis, from Desire Moving Through Maps of Matter

After being chosen to represent Zimbabwe on Big Brother Africa Wendall Parson did not enjoy a fair share of media publicity like his fellow housemate Vimbai Mutinhiri. Barely 2 months ago The Sunday Mail published an article entitled “Who is Wendall?” Instead of supporting our Zimbabwean representative the paper went on to publish a racially charged article questioning Wendall’s citizenship.

Despite the racist reporting, the people of Zimbabwe went on to prove that our country is made up of people of different backgrounds. Since Wendall is white the Sunday Mail reporter just assumed he is foreign only to be proved wrong with positive response and support Wendall got from fellow Zimbabweans. The smear campaign and bad journalism actually propelled Wendall Parson to victory much to the surprise of the reporter. We have so many Zimbabweans who are flying our flag high representing the country in various activities regardless of race, colour or creed.

I recently attended Joburg Radio Days, a conference which brings together radio practitioners from across the continent to share ideas and their work with each other. One of the issues under discussion was the prospect of broadcasting reform in Zimbabwe, while another session was devoted to community radio.

The Zimbabwean speakers described the legislative framework, which based on the guarantee to freedom of expression as enunciated in clause 20 and amendment 19 of the current constitution should allow for a multiplicity of voices on the airwaves. Zenzele Ndebele from Radio Dialogue was passionate in making his case for the need for community radio. State media, he said, did not allow space for Zimbabwe’s cultural diversity; neither did it represent the interests of small communities. Rather ZBC gave a platform to political interests and because of its limited capacity to broadcast to all Zimbabweans left much of the population without any access to information.

Having attended several conferences and workshops with this theme, I am a little weary of talking about it. The inclusive government of which ZANU PF has the lion’s share of power has reneged on amendment 19 of the constitution and has failed to implement broadcasting reform. This is undeniable.  There is still much work to be done in creating an environment that is conducive to the creation of a free and independent media. I feel that we should spend more time figuring out either alternative ways to get information to those without access, or finding middle ground with ZANU PF policy makers in order to make media freedom a reality.

Not that the policymakers themselves are much help. Confronted with questions about why media freedom was so slow in coming to Zimbabwe, the Zimbabwe Media Commissions representative to the Forum, Ambassador Chris Mutsvangwa could not give a definitive answer. Instead he gave us his war credentials and insisted he was a highly educated Constitutional lawyer.

His response is typical of the party line; where supposedly educated policy makers sidestep the issue at hand and foaming at the mouth reiterate that they freed us from colonialism and we are an ungrateful lot for daring to question our elders. We as a nation are unable to move forward because they as leaders are caught in a time trap of justifying an untenable grip on power. It’s all very well to have liberated the country from Western imperialists, but that revolution, the creation of a successful and proud Zimbabwean nation, is not over yet.