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Andile Tshuma
Belonging to Zimbabwe and being Zimbabwean is superior to, and comes first before any tribe, race, political party or civic group.
However, a recent street survey on the eve of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces and Heroes holidays gave some interesting findings. The majority of Zimbabwean youths is indifferent, not patriotic, and takes the history of the country rather lightly.
The matter of the country’s history and the birthing of nationhood is not a trivial matter and must be taken seriously by all, particularly young people who can go all out and be Zimbabwe’s ambassadors to the world. A country can only be as strong as its people believe in it.
A number of youths interviewed showed that they knew very little about struggle icons and the people behind the central business district’s street names. It is sad.
Teenagers and the youths between the ages of 16 and 25 were indifferent when quizzed about the country’s icons.
Asked about some South African icons, it was saddening to realise that they had more enthusiasm to showcase their knowledge of Nelson Mandela, Steve Biko, Winnie Mandela, Hector Peterson and others, while they knew less about the icons in their own backyard.
Less youths knew about Lookout Masuku, Benjamin Burombo, Josiah Tongogara, George Silundika and Herbert Chitepo.
B-Metro had a conversation with National Museums and Monuments of Zimbabwe director Dr Godfrey Mahachi who shared on the importance of identity, patriotism and recognising the contributions of fallen heroes to the country. After all, it is their sacrifices and their abilities to walk out of their comfort zones that led the country to emancipation.
Dr Mahachi said domestic tourism was one way which could help young people to have an appreciation of their past and an understanding of the conditions of their existence, which he said would help in fine-tuning their identity.
“We encounter challenges when we make efforts to reach out to the youths and in crafting programmes and projects that may appeal to them. As we count the gains of independence, it is saddening to note that most youths are becoming a lost generation and our icons are forgotten. Reminders of the people that birthed this nation are all around us for all to see. However, youths are choosing to iconise foreign figures and forgetting their own heroes,” he said.
He emphasised the importance of celebrating a people’s own heroes which helped the world to recognise the greatness in the icons.
“If we do not celebrate our own and celebrate heroes of another land, we may be seen as a people with no rich history and patriots worth celebrating and remembering. Local tourism with a focus on some of the country’s monuments and shrines that define who we are as a people will help us to rethink and regain our identity,” he added.
Dr Mahachi said funding hindered NMMZ from carrying out most of its projects. He reiterated the importance of visiting national monuments and researching on the country’s icons, which he said helped to shape a person’s identity.
He added that school-going youths were more keen to learn about the history of the country and uptake of what NMMZ had to offer was higher among their age group.
“We encourage young people to visit museums, monuments and other places of significance. We offer interesting lectures and seminars and other interactive activities that help young people to have an appreciation of our history, our heritage and our values. The heritage education programme for schools is quite an effective way of getting young people to treat heritage seriously and we are always impressed to see bus-loads of young schoolchildren visiting the country’s monuments and shrines. It instils values that underpin Zimbabwe’s nationhood. Zimbabwe has so much of this heritage and we sometimes struggle to choose on what to prioritise due to resource limitations,” said Dr Mahachi.
Over-celebration of foreign figures harms a people’s identity. Names of heroes and famous people from foreign lands, be it footballers, musicians, notorious criminals, celebrities are given to children who immediately become burdened by the indiscretions associated with the character. The only link with the owner of the foreign name is often a television production or a magazine or an internet post. The name is so remote such that it does not form a strong part of a child’s identity. The misguided and often spontaneous tendency by some Zimbabweans to adopt alien names represents one of the strongest indicators of colonised mentalities and an identity crisis.
We need more of our own native names celebrated and we need to export our own culture and desist from importing all. The names we give to our children and our places are a starting point.
Zimbabwe is rich with history and to foster a true Zimbabwe identity, it is high time young people started having an appreciation of the country’s history, heritage and icons, across all disciplines because we owe them the reality of our existence. There is so much an individual, especially the youth, can contribute towards the progress of Zimbabwe as a nation. It is the little things that count such as registering to vote, placing litter in bins, refusing to pay bribes, reporting criminal activities in communities, paying taxes and bills, helping the elderly and the vulnerable and improving work ethic.
Youths must rally behind the national flag, love their country with all its faults, and work to improve it with all their strength, defending it with all available resources.
Youths should work to hand it over to the coming generations better than what it was when we received it. Let us try to build a nation which our freedom fighters dreamt of. That will be the real tribute to Nehanda, Mkwati, Tongogara, Nikita Mangena, Ziyapapa Moyo, Lookout Masuku, Joseph Luke Culverwell and many others who risked their lives and limbs for Zimbabwe. We belong to this country and this country belongs to us. It is about time as youths that we start to accept that we are not here to destroy the culture or national heritage. In as much as we would love a change towards modern, international standards and practices we should retain or preserve the fundamental tenets of our society, in which our identity as Zimbabweans lies.
Online Reporter