There are no winners in war

Dr Obert Moses Mpofu

I HAVE often wondered if there can be a thing called genuine friendship in the international arena. The world events in these past few days have demonstrated how delicate the world’s balance of power is.

Alliances have been put to the test, and ideologies have been stretched. We could be on the brink of World War Three, and it is perhaps important for us Africans to look at who our real friends are. With the threat of war looming because of the actions of Israel, supported by the United States, so much hangs in the balance.

Important questions will be raised as to how, with each passing day, there seems to be a rise in conflicts. It has become apparent that aggression to annihilate one another is now fashionable. There is now a sudden craze to show military might. It may seem mundane, but let us not for a second be mistaken. The world is facing an existential threat, and no one seems to care. People are only interested in making dangerous threats with the promise of military action. As Africans, we need to follow these events that are unfolding on the global stage with keen interest.

There is an off chance that, whether we like it or not, we may be dragged into this latest spate of wars that are mushrooming north of the continent. We may say that we are too far away from these conflicts as they unfold, but let us not be mistaken. Let us remember the impact that the conflict in Ukraine brought upon us.

We may be forced to accept some harsh realities, including how we were dependent on the European continent for basics such as wheat and fuel. This latest conflict in the Middle East will not be any different. Again, there is a chance that at the end of it, global geopolitics will have been shaped.

It is because of such events that some of us have always argued for Africa’s total self-sufficiency. Whether or not Africa is directly dragged into this latest conflict, we are likely to feel the impact due to the nature of the global architecture of international relations.

The world, over the past few years, has become increasingly intertwined, with events that occur in one part of the planet having ripple effects on the rest of us.

Not many people have had the misfortune of experiencing war first hand. For some of us who have, we are fully aware of the devastating effect that armed conflict of any nature has on everyone involved.

There are never any winners in any war, and the people are the ones who stand to lose the most.  Zimbabwe’s armed struggle was not an easy one, and it left most of our comrades scared, physically, emotionally and mentally.

It is now close to half a century since the end of the liberation struggle, but the scars are still fresh and we still suffer from the memories of that time when we were fighting for our lives, freedom and survival.

One would have thought that, with the advances we have made thus far, and having learnt from history, humans would desist from any form of armed conflict, but alas, it seems people are always too quick to forget.

War mongering by some countries from the West is detrimental to our progress as a species. It seems whatever gains we try to make, there is always someone all too eager to come at as an aggressor and disturb the peace.

Nations should, in my opinion, desist from interfering in the affairs of other countries. The planet Earth is enough for all of us and it boggles the mind why some individuals are all too eager to grab the territory of others.

There is no reason whatsoever to act aggressively against others in the international arena.

I am pleased with how the African continent has now stopped acting aggressively against one another. We may have our shortcomings as a people, but our sense of fraternity precludes us from harming each other. In that sense, we are each other’s keepers.

However, with these latest events unfolding, I hope that our people will not be enticed to partake in wars that have nothing to do with us.

We have enough battles to fight on the home front in terms of uplifting the lives of the African people. We certainly do not have the time or luxury to partake in wars that have zero benefit to us.

Let us use these conflicts as a lesson for our people that we need more unity on the continent and that we should never allow the enemy to come between us, for we risk undoing all the hard-fought gains of our liberation struggle.

Any war of any nature is always a loss for everybody. Those instigating attacks on other nations should come to their senses and realise that all of us will be left worse off.

We need to revisit history and learn that, for our civilisation to advance, there is a need to shun all forms of armed conflict, as no one wins; we all lose.

Dr Obert Moses Mpofu is an academic and the Secretary-General of ZANU PF.  He writes in his own capacity.