President Emmerson Mnangagwa has reiterated Zimbabwe’s status as a unitary state, saying the Gukurahundi episode serves as a stark reminder of the fragility of national unity and the devastating consequences of disunity.
Speaking at the launch of the Gukurahundi Community Engagement Outreach Programme in Bulawayo on Sunday, Mnangagwa acknowledged the critical role played by the late former President Robert Mugabe and Vice President Joshua Nkomo in forging national unity through the Unity Accord.
The Unity Accord was a political agreement signed in 1987 between the ruling ZANU party and the opposition ZAPU party, effectively ending the Gukurahundi massacres.
The Unity Accord merged ZANU and ZAPU into a single political party – the Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU PF).
The agreement also established a power-sharing arrangement, with Mugabe becoming the Executive President and Nkomo becoming one of the Vice Presidents. Said Mnangagwa:
<blockquote>
Behind us lies a past etched with both triumph and hardship. The echoes of the liberation struggle still evoke strong emotions and memories, a testament to the unwavering spirit that forged our nation.
Yet, within that history is a chapter which cannot be ignored – the post-independence conflict in this Region.
This chapter serves as a stark reminder of the fragility of unity and the devastating consequences of disunity.
We owe a debt of eternal gratitude to our nation’s founding fathers, the late President Robert Gabriel Mugabe and the late Father Zimbabwe Cde. Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo, for defying seemingly insurmountable obstacles and forging the Unity Accord of 1987.
This Unity Accord shall remain as the foundation of our unity and the emblem of our unitary State. Today, we are building on that foundation and cementing our unity, which we commit to guard jealously as our birthright in this sacred nation.
</blockquote>
Mnangagwa emphasized that the Gukurahundi Community Engagement Outreach Programme will be led by traditional leaders. He said:
<blockquote>
Today we are gathered to officially launch the Gukurahundi Community Outreach Programme. This exercise is not simply a mechanism for revisiting grievances but it is a transformative odyssey, a pilgrimage towards healing and national cohesion.
This initiative is a potent symbol of our collective will to bridge the divides that have separated us for too long. It places the onus of healing squarely on the shoulders of its most capable custodians – our esteemed Chiefs.
With their knowledge of tradition and wisdom, they will guide us through open dialogue, fostering empathy and understanding.
As we share our stories, the wounds of the past will begin to mend, thereby enabling national healing.
</blockquote>
President Mnangagwa accused the country’s former colonial rulers of sowing the seeds of disunity in Zimbabwe by pitting one ethnic group against another.
Mnangagwa’s remarks suggest that the colonial legacy and the divisive policies implemented during that era contributed to the underlying tensions and conflicts that ultimately led to the Gukurahundi atrocities.
This accusation places responsibility for the tragedy on external forces, rather than solely on the actions of the post-independence Zimbabwean government.
More: <a href="https://www.pindula.co.zw/">Pindula News</a>

Pindula News

Zimbabwe's President Mnangagwa says Gukurahundi serves as a reminder of the need for unity. In 1987, a pact between ZANU and ZAPU parties ended the killings. Traditional leaders will lead a healing program. Colonial rulers are blamed for causing division in Zimbabwe. Mnangagwa wants to heal the wounds of the past for national unity. The post-independence conflict is a sad chapter in Zimbabwe's history. The leaders of the past are praised for their efforts to unify the country. The program aims to mend the wounds of the past through dialogue and understanding.

Gukurahundi A Stark Reminder Of Fragility Of National Unity - Mnangagwa

Nelson Chamisa who leads the opposition Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) party has said there can never be true unity in Zimbabwe without true dialogue.
He made the remarks in commemoration of Unity Day celebrated annually on the 22nd of December.
In a Twitter post seen by Pindula News, Chamisa, a former Minister of ICT, Postal and Courier Services said Zimbabweans need each other. He said:
<blockquote>
<h2>MAKING ZIMBABWE A WINNING NATION..</h2>
We will unite all Zimbabweans across politics, race &amp;tribe. Unity wins peace &amp;prosperity for nations. Unity thrives nations. There can never be true unity without true dialogue &amp;love. We need each other. Unity is good for us all &amp;for a thriving economy.
</blockquote>
Unity Day is a holiday in Zimbabwe that is celebrated in Zimbabwe on 22 December to mark the anniversary of the <a href="https://www.pindula.co.zw/Unity_Accord" title="Unity Accord">Unity Accord</a>, an agreement signed between <a href="https://www.pindula.co.zw/index.php?title=Zanu&amp;action=edit&amp;redlink=1" title="Zanu (page does not exist)">ZANU</a> and <a href="https://www.pindula.co.zw/index.php?title=Zapu&amp;action=edit&amp;redlink=1" title="Zapu (page does not exist)">ZAPU</a> in 1987 to officially put an end to <a href="https://www.pindula.co.zw/Gukurahundi">Gukurahundi</a> in <a href="https://www.pindula.co.zw/Matabeleland" title="Matabeleland">Matabeleland</a> and Midlands.
Gukurahundi, as it is commonly known, was an operation that was allegedly carried out by Mugabe’s government to track down former ZIPRA combatants who deserted Zimbabwe’s integrated military with weapons in protest over lack of equal treatment with those who waged the war under Mugabe’s ZANLA.
It is estimated that 20 000 civilians died at the hands of the Zimbabwe military during the dark period.
Civic society groups and political parties Thursday criticised the government for failing to acknowledge post-independence atrocities such as Gukurahundi and election-related killings.
Since 2018, Chamisa has been refusing dialogue with president Emmerson Mnangagwa or to join the Political Actors Dialogue (POLAD) forum saying there was no genuine dialogue that would come out of the engagements.
Political analysts have been calling for dialogue saying it could help in the resolution of the economic, humanitarian and political crises in the southern African country.
<h2><a href="https://zero.pindula.co.zw/">More Pindula News</a></h2>

"There Can Never Be True Unity Without True Dialogue" - Chamisa

ZAPU has said Zanu PF spokesperson Simon Khaya Moyo’s utterances in Gwanda on Saturday confirms that the ruling party is aware that the Unity Accord is dead.
The Unity Accord was an agreement between ZANU and ZAPU that was signed on 22 December in 1987 to end the Gukurahundi massacres.
Moyo, who was in Gwanda for a Provincial Coordinating Committee (PCC), told state media that it was the wish of late Vice President Joshua Nkomo for the 1987 unity accord between the parties to remain intact.
He said this following reports that Zanu PF Matabeleland South province on Saturday welcomed 28 ZAPU members who defected to the ruling party.
But speaking to NewZimbabwe.com over the weekend, ZAPU director of marketing and communications Patrick Ndlovu accused Zanu PF of engaging in cheap propaganda. He said:
<blockquote>The only positive to note in the story is the admission by Moyo that the unity agreement is dead and that ZAPU is no longer part of that accord.
It should settle the doubting Thomases and reassure the fence-sitters that Zapu is truly distinct from Zanu PF.
We would also remind Moyo that he should not speak on issues that are beyond his mandate.
Moyo was an Aide De Camp to the late Joshua Nkomo. He was not in the political structures. As such, he is not qualified to speak on the wishes of Nkomo.
What Nkomo in fact did say was ‘ngenani liphume lingela daka (go in and come out without being soiled).</blockquote>
Ndlovu said Nkomo foretold that a time for ZAPU to pull out of the Unity Accord was going to come and reassured the structures of his support on that eventuality.
<h4>More: <a href="https://www.newzimbabwe.com/zapu-dismisses-zanu-pf-defection-claims/">NewZimbabwe.com</a></h4>

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