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Prosper Ndlovu in Victoria Falls
AFRICA has not done enough to honour leaders who drove the fight to liberate it from colonial rule, President Mugabe said yesterday.
The new Sadc chairman told of his exasperation at the lack of recognition for independence struggle heroes, in particular Tanzania’s former President Mwalimu Julius Nyerere.
“Those who formed the Frontline States, we don’t have them now except KK (Dr Kenneth Kaunda). Nyerere of Tanzania is gone, Machel of Mozambique is gone, Neto of Angola is gone, Sir Seretse Khama of Botswana is gone,” President Mugabe said, speaking at the 34th Sadc summit in Victoria Falls yesterday.
“They are the ones who formed the Frontline States which formed Sadcc, with two “C”s. Sadcc was a coordinating body at that time, and a body on the strength of whose reckonings a lot happened, political freedoms came.”
With fellow Sadc leaders in attentive company, President Mugabe recounted the birth of the Organisation of African Union, now African Union, which in turn dictated that the liberation of the whole of Africa would be done through a body called the Liberation Committee hosted by Tanzania.
“All liberation movements were housed there, some divided as we had our own, Zanu and Zapu, Swapo and Swanu in Namibia and ANC in South Africa. And the results were of course resounding. Africa became free, Africa became free,” said President Mugabe.
“But we have not done much by way of paying tribute to our founding fathers. We forgot, perhaps because we are a new generation of leaders, that the greatest burden of freeing Africa was borne by one country, Tanzania.”
The President said while “something” had been done to honour pioneer nationalists such as the late Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana and South African icon Nelson Mandela at the African Union Headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Nyerere has not received any recognition despite his deserving contribution.
“That one. Not that he was the greatest, but Nyerere Mwalimu — no mention, no symbol to remember his part. I’m saying ‘No!’, we will do something. Help us, help me so that we respect Mwalimu at the AU somehow,” said President Mugabe to applause in a packed tent on the grounds of a Victoria Falls hotel.
He recalled how imperialists partitioned Africa with the British and its allies colonising most of Southern Africa with Cecil John Rhodes naming the colonies after himself.
Zimbabwe was named Southern Rhodesia while Zambia became Northern Rhodesia and the two were conjoined to Malawi to form what was known as the federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland.
“Once upon a time, this region was named after a man called Cecil Rhodes, Northern Rhodesia, Southern Rhodesia and not only were we christened in that way but even a whole federation was erected.
“He was not alone in this, but his presence embodied imperialism. We were glad Africa joined us in a fight that rid us of colonialism,” said President Mugabe.
He urged Sadc member states to keep the revolutionary bond kindled by founding fathers burning and ensure its ideals were preserved for generations to come.
Online Reporter