Books & arts

Never the Same Again: Zimbabwe's Growth Towards Democracy 1980 - 2000

2001-03-26, Issue 15

http://pambazuka.org/en/category/books/179

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We needed a short survey of Zimbabwean political development which is accessible to a wide range of people and this book answers that need. Starting with the premise that genuine democracy depends on the growth of civil society structures, it shows how these were systematicly stifled by ZANU PF in the 1980's. Then, in the 1990's, in response to the effects of structural adjustment, they gradually emerged, with the trade unions leading the way. Demands for a new constitution by the umbrella National Constitutional Assembly awakened the people to the possibilities of protest. The result was ZANU PF's first defeat in the constitutional referendum in February 2000 and the stiff challenge put up by the opposition Movement for Democratic Change in the June parliamentary elections.

We needed a short survey of Zimbabwean political development which is accessible to a wide range of people and this book answers that need. Starting with the premise that genuine democracy depends on the growth of civil society structures, it shows how these were systematicly stifled by ZANU PF in the 1980's. Then, in the 1990's, in response to the effects of structural adjustment, they gradually emerged, with the trade unions leading the way. Demands for a new constitution by the umbrella National Constitutional Assembly awakened the people to the possibilities of protest. The result was ZANU PF's first defeat in the constitutional referendum in February 2000 and the stiff challenge put up by the opposition Movement for Democratic Change in the June parliamentary elections.



Never the Same Again: Zimbabwe's Growth Towards Democracy 1980 - 2000
by Richard Saunders published by Edwina Spicer Productions Harare 2000


Review by Mary Ndlovu, Legal Resources Foundation, Bulawayo, Zimbabwe



Full review:



This book's hopeful title may appear over-optimistic to Zimbabweans currently despairing of further democratic development. In the six months since this book was written, the ZANU PF government has shown that its fits of violence are not mere episodes but a key tool that they intend to use to retain power. But even a cursory reading does show how far Zimbabwean political life has matured in the twenty years of independence. We have moved a long way from the belief that the simple "one man one vote" of nationalist politics would bring us prosperity and development. We have reached an understanding that prosperity depends on democracy and the building of democracy requires much more from civil society than voting. Furthermore, we have gone a long way toward achieving the organisation that will realise a far more participatory type of democracy.


The book consists of three sections, each with a special theme, but roughly following chronological development. First the non-democratic tendencies of indpendent Zimbabwe in the 1980's are outlined, culminating in the 1987 surrender of the opposition PF ZAPU to the ruling ZANU PF and preparations for a one-party state. During this phase, we see the ruling party trying to monopolise and control all forms of public expression and civic organisation. The next part follows the gradual development of organised civil society from the late 1980's and its blossoming under the economic hardships of structural adjustment in the 1990's. Finally, in the third part, civil society coalesces at the end of the 90's in the creation of the National Constitutional Assembly to push for a new constitution. This bears fruit in the rejection of government's attempt to impose its own constitution, the emergence at last of a significant opposition party, the Movement for Democratic Change, based on more democratic ideals. . Th
e catchy title refers to the impact the MDC had when it won more than 1/3 of the parliamentary seats in the June 2000 elections.


Saunders' small book was written to accompany the film of the same title, produced by Edwina Spicer. But while the thread is the same, and many of the key quotations in the book are borrowed from the film, the story is told in a more comprehensive way than the film could do. And it stands on its own for reading by those who have never seen the film. The book is a tonic for a beleaguered democratic movement which sometimes seems to have lost its way. The past 18 months have thrown a great deal of light on the behaviour of ZANU PF since 1980, and it was a good time for a small book like this to put the whole of our post-independence experience into perspective. What we see is a continuing theme of brutal suppression of any opposing voice, whether of trade unionists in 1981 or ZAPU from 1982 to 1987, of food rioters in 1998 or journalists in 1999. The difference is that civil society has now developed to the point where it can resist and its voice continues to be heard. The message of the book is a posit
ive one - we have reached a milestone, and we will not go back.


"Never the Same Again" is particularly welcome in that it addresses all of us in a style which is easily readable even though the analysis is sophisticated. The presentation, too, makes the book accessible to the majority of educated people - with headings and subheadings for easy reference, photographs, quotations from some of the players on the stage, and special topics and statistics presented in boxes.


Together with the film this book is not just of academic interest to historians and political scientisit. They were developed together as tools of civic education, and certainly they are destined to go a long way in helping Zimbabweans to understand the nature of participatory democracy, make sense of the events of the past two decades, and chart their way forward.


Given the usefulness ot this book in helping to move us forward on our path to democracy, it is unfortunate that the production is not of better quality. The sepia shade of print makes some of the photographs difficult to decipher. And for a book that cries out to be handed from reader to reader, one would have wanted a binding that holds the book together for more than one reading. There are also numerous typographical and editing errors. Where one knows the events the meaning is clear, but for those who do not, it can be very confusing.


Saunders covers a wide range of events, and deals with various civic groups as they emerged out from under the control of ZANU PF. While everything cannot be tackled in one slender volume, it would have been interesting to read a little more about the undemocratic tendencies within ZANU PF itself, and the struggle of some members to resist autocracy within the party. It may yet be that we are saved from further tyranny by forces within ZANU PF .


The tactics used by ZANU PF to quash any outside challengers could also have been explored more. Before the emergence of the NCA and the MDC at the end of the 90's, the opposition is portrayed as weak and lacking in direction, therefore still-born; little is said about the infanticide committed by ZANU PF using the Central Intelligence Organisation to infiltrate and create splits in all emerging opposition parties. It would have been interesting to see an explanation of why this didn't succeed with MDC.


However, that would doubtless be asking too much. The book is primarily narrative, within an analytic framework. It is inspiring, readable, and hopefully an instrument for the further development of Zimbabwean democracy.


Some books help us to understand our history, others help to influence the direction it takes. This small and unassuming volume has the potential to do both.

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