adminAugust has come and gone. This is now September The month of commemorating Zimbabwean war-heroes and heroines came and went. Like everyone else this writer would have wanted to forget too, until Heroes Holiday next year. Most of us, journalists and politicians alike, forget about both fallen heroes and living ones until August the following year. But not I, not when I am inundated with a plethora of feedback responses from readers on my August 2015 Heroes Commemoration stories.
You will recall I wrote purposefully about Cde Tendai Pfepferere who on August 5 1975 chose death to let Tsambe students live. I related the harrowing story of his heroic self sacrifice and Christ-like selflessness. I was clear by both example and perception that if such freedom fighters are not true heroes, none would be.
I laboured to explain why not all heroes and or heroines do not always become gallant and unforgettable because of what they did, but also because of what they did not do.
I want to sincerely thank all those who were touched by the feature story about Cde Tenda Tendai Pfepferere which.
I wrote during Heroes Month 2015, particularly former St Augustine’s students now studying and working or living in the Diaspora. Your responses were resounding, overwhelming to say the least. I was moved, touched, humbled by your responses and nostalgic memories of the great Tsambe of old. I do recall all of you especially those I took in my English and or Literature classes.
Every one of them wants to do something, to be involved one way or another, in the feature film project re-telling the drama of Tendai’s brave but painful demise on the dreadful night.
Many students especially in the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Canada and New Zealand expressed and are still expressing via Face Book a strong interest to support the project after learning about it.
What is the TSAMBE-PFEPFERERE FILM PROJECT? And what is the way forward?
This is a project aimed to achieve several outcomes. First, this project will serve to make sure that when the generation of freedom fighters of the Zimbabwean armed struggle – the Second Chimurenga, passes on, some of their sacred stories, most of them intriguingly harrowing and mind blasting, will not be buried with the heroes and heroines who lived them.
Second, the purpose of this film, THEY SHOT MY BROTHER, is to inspire those with whom we share this vision of telling war-stories through film and music to partner with us through donating time, money and wisdom to kick-start the project. Truly speaking, this project is chasing time against the lives of the heroes and heroines of the Zimbabwean armed struggle. If this is not done now, and done diligently and fast, our children and their own children’s children will not forgive us for forgetfulness and omissions of history.
Surely we cannot continue to remember, speak and eulogize without doing something tangibly commemorative. Here is what we have resolved to do: 1. Do all we can and must do to produce the film telling Tendai’s story. 2. Tell the story of the important role church played in the liberation war of Zimbabwe. 3. Tell the story of how Zimbabweans must never forget the freedom of this country was not free. 4. Erect a life-size statue at Tsambe to forever preserve the memory of a brave and thinking war of liberation hero and 6. Start a school of Film and Music at Tsambe to benefit St Augustines students who do not want or fail to go to university to further their academic careers and finally 7.to ask Ministry of Primary and Secondary education to commission a memorial holiday (August 5) to do activities that commemorate the war hero Tendai Pfepferere each year.
One critic or sceptic, a school teacher met me after my August Heroes Holiday stories in The Manica Post.
“What did Pfepferere want in a school Morris,” he asked. I knew what he was getting at. It is such people we want the film to educate and make real in thought. Many Zimbabweans think and perhaps thought freedom fighters were animals trained to fight to free them. They were human beings. They had brains, minds and souls. They were human like us and made mistakes like us.
Their needs were not different from ours except that had an extra yearning which was to free our mother land from the shackles of white domination and slavery. To ask ‘what did they want at a school is to be unthinking in the last degree. Of course they wanted everything that normal human beings want to sustain a normal human life.It is my hope, wish and aspiration that soon this Film Project gets the support it requires to achieve our goals and outcome. I appeal to interested parties to rally behind the cause and the story of those who fought or died in action or inaction for us be rightfully and honourably remembered forever and ever.With the response and support already coming from former students of this great school and mission, especially those in the Diaspora, to begin this great story and project,
I have confidence we have started what we cannot stop at all. I’m on face book and all who want to contribute some idea, some wisdom, some whatever, contact me as a matter of urgency. You can touch me on
Whatsapp 0773 883 293. Email me on [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> We have already started observing all necessary protocol in the implementation of this huge project. We are determined to do our best: God will do the rest.Next week I begin publishing feedback from fired-up readers who are in support of the Tsambe Film Project. Don’t miss the series. Watch the space!
Online Reporter