The State apparatus and Elections in Zimbabwe :Part 2 1985 Election
Zimbabwe has had 7 elections in the past 38 years of its independence and is scheduled to hold its 8th general election this year. To understand how parties navigate the murky waters and the rugged political terrain of electioneering in Zimbabwe is more than a want but a need. To gain an intuitive understanding of the election process it is prudent for one to understand the past 7 elections.This opinion piece in an earnest and honest attempt to achieve that end and a continuation of the first part.
The introduction to Zimbabwe of multiparty democracy with a universal franchise in 1980 offers an important opportunity to evaluate the operation of a system which has not enjoyed marked success in much of post-colonial Africa.
The 1985 general election assumes particular importance in the history of elections in Zimbabwe because it was the first to be conducted by black Zimbabweans themselves.The independence elections of 1980 were overseen by a slender British administration which was totally dependant on the Rhodesian State Apparatus.
The 1985 election allowed Zimbabweans to pass judgment on a government which they themselves had elected five years earlier.It also posed a crucial test for Joshua Nkomo’s Zimbabwe African People’s Union in its attempt to prove itself to be more than a regional party confined to Matabeleland, and a final chance for Nkomo himself to regain or share power.
Forces at play
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In the 1985 general election, both internal and external forces played a crucial role in the being and becoming of the election.
Internally, the nature of the electoral procedures, the election campaign, and the voting process, not only in terms of the issues raised but also in terms of the underlying attitude of the state to retain power at any cost influenced the cause and course of the election. Zanu-PF was determined to stay in power on the guise Of protecting the gains of the revolution.
To achieve its agenda of total dominance Zanu-pf rode on the wave of mass emotion and the general belief of the time which had it that the prime concern of the Zimbabwean electorate in 1980 was to end the war and kick out the imperialists.
This standpoint, set a precedent which has influenced future elections in Zimbabwe, as elections have been viewed as ending the war against the Rhodesians and not choosing leaders based on what they offer to the country.
Elections were and are thus more than about exercising a democratic right and choosing leaders but ending a war that ended in 1980 and protecting that victory and those who claim to have made sure that the victory in the war was certain.That 1980 general belief gave and has given Zanu-pf monopoly as the party seemed and still seems to be haunted by founding leader syndrome and stockholder mentality.During the 1985 election, the heavy hand of the state and its apparatus was felt once again based on the archaic war mentality assumption.
Externally the election was inevitably watched for indications of the political and economic direction in which Zimbabwe was going to move.Cold war politics were at their climax and the proxy wars between the United States of America and her capitalist allies and the United Soviet Socialist Republic and her communist allies contributed immensely to the trajectory of the 1985 election.
External Interest in this regard was not hinged on the democratic ethos of the election but was influenced by the capitalist v.s communist turf war in Africa. In a purported democracy where the power of the people by the people was supposed to choose its own leadership driven by its own agenda and guided by its own principles, the reality was different. Democracy was relegated to the back of the beyond as the voice and interests of the former taskmasters weighed supreme. On the surface, it was ZAPU vs ZANU but underneath it was communism V.s capitalism, it was not about Zimbabweans and this made the subtle elements of neocolonialism evident in the infancy of Zimbabwean democracy.
The Campaign Trail
The 1985 general elections represented the first major systematic litmus test of how effectively the post-independence government could conduct elections.
In its campaign, ZANU-PF dwelt upon its achievements in government in the spheres of development, education, medical care, housing, roads, Africanization, minimum wage legislation, equal pay for women, maternity benefits and foreign relations. It stressed its commitment to scientific socialism and unity based on a single party representing all Zimbabweans while also acknowledging the need for a pragmatism in engaging with the capitalist system. ZANU-PF’s significantly better resource base and access enabled it to mount large rallies and make extensive use of posters in constituencies. Allegations that it used government vehicles and property were made but not verified.
ZANU-PF, moreover, had re-organized and restructured itself at the cell, branch, district and provincial levels in a way that enabled it to mobilize electoral support much more effectively than its rivals. Its access to the media was also better. ZANU-PF, in its campaign, characterized PF-ZAPU as a party committed to destabilization and parochial.
ZAPU spoke of the need for nation-building, human rights and the rule of law, restoration of the role of chiefs, self-reliance, and development fuelled by external and internal conditions conducive to investment. It accused the government of corruption, human rights violations and the arrest and detentions of its supporters. It considered the government’s resettlement policies inadequate.
ZAPU had meanwhile become increasingly and predominantly beholden to its Ndebele support base. Its limited ability to use patronage and deliver eroded its support. On the other hand, a perception of government discrimination against non-Shona in the civil service; of repression against former Zimbabwe People’s Revolutionary Army combatants; and of favoring Mashonaland in resource distribution fuelled support for PF-ZAPU. In its campaign, it condemned victimization and the declared commitment of ZANU-PF to pursue the objective of a single party state
Ndabaningi Sithole ’s ZANU rejected moves toward one-partyism. It urged national reconciliation and a balanced and integrated economy with fuller employment and better health and other facilities. The private sector and external investors were to be mobilized, coaxed and directed in the national interest. The UANC urged national autonomy and unity, a mixed economy, attraction of external investors, concentration upon employment-creation, a ban upon ownership of unused land, and a more positive role for traditional leaders.
In the eastern Chipinge home of its leader where it won a seat, ZANU-Sithole was able to capitalize on the strategically inappropriate alienating stance of the ZANU-PF candidate towards the people of that region.
The CAZ’s performance was equally predictable. A tapering force politically it nevertheless continued to articulate the traditional conservative sentiments that had originally impelled it into power.
Violence
In late February 1985, pitched battles between supporters of ZANU-PF and PF-ZAPU caused three deaths in Bulawayo. On 2-3 March the city was sealed off as security forces searched for arms and dissidents. The involvement of the Fifth Brigade and members of the ZANU-PF youth league in alleged abductions augured poorly.
Yet the 1985 general elections themselves were characterized by relatively little violence and intimidation during their immediate duration. The little violence was as a result of the Ruling party’s perceived Zero tolerance to violence.The state of emergency that had been renewed on 7 May 1985 also helped to control the violence.Maurice Nyagumbo, minister of state for political affairs, who sent a disciplinary message to the party youth to restrain their behavior also helped to ease the violence.
It was, therefore, an unexpected sequel to the election when celebrating ZANU-PF supporters later went on a rampage in some urban areas. Three days of violence a week later were mainly concentrated in the black suburbs of Harare and left six dead and others injured.
Conclusion
The State under Zanu -PF reigned supreme in the 1985 election.It maintained its status as the perpetual teacher and vanguard of Zimbabwean independence.The electorate was again reduced to the perpetual pupil, a poor one for that matter who unless guided by the teacher (the State), the pupil (the electorate) would fail dismally in the exam called elections and freedom and its tenets of liberty, life and the pursuit of happiness.
Image Credit to The Chronicle.
