Online Reporter
Miriam Tose Majome, [email protected]
Two separate yet oddly connected events triggered me this week.
Both events involve some but not all Zimbabweans living abroad. They are in the minority, but their conduct, their reputation, and the uncomfortable consequences of how they carry themselves in foreign lands carry weight.
The first is the news from this year’s edition of Zimfest in the United Kingdom the previous weekend. Zimfest is an annual cultural festival celebrated for bringing the UK-based Zimbabwean community together in an explosion of music, dance, food, fashion and celebration of summer.
The positives from the event indubitably far outweigh the negatives, but bad news sells faster. This year’s event is trending for all the wrong reasons. Even people who had never heard of it now know about it.
The second seemingly unrelated event, which triggered me is the CoS (Certificate of Sponsorship) scandal. CoSs were the green card into the UK care work industry. It was an immigration loophole that turned into a breeding ground for exploitation and fraud of some Zimbabweans by fellow countrymen.
On the surface, these seem like two different stories: one about a festival marred by the excesses of some and the other about systemic fraud by greedy and ruthless individuals. However, at their core, the two incidents are mutually inclusive.
They are about the choices we make when we leave home and the ripple effects of those choices on how our country is perceived by other people and by ourselves.
Spectacle of self-disrespect
Zimfest was intended as a space to celebrate Zimbabwean culture in the diaspora, a reminder of home through music, food, and shared identity. Instead, this year’s edition became a lightning rod for controversy.
Social media was awash with viral images of many young women in attire so scant it sparked widespread criticism.
This was coupled with disturbing reports of drink-driving incidents and other anti-social acts. What should have been a joyful showcase of community turned into fodder for ridicule and judgment.
Of course, what people wear or how they behave is their personal choice. However, when people belong to a minority already viewed with suspicion, those choices often become public statements whether intended or not.
In spaces where people of a certain distinct grouping are few, the misbehaviour of one quickly becomes the story of all of them. One reckless act while abroad does not remain isolated; it mutates into a headline, a stereotype, a noose which hangs the entire community.
CoS scandal
When the UK relaxed visa requirements to fill care sector shortages, the policy was hailed as a lifeline for many Zimbabweans. But that lifeline became a snare. Rogue agents and opportunists, many of them our own, charged desperate job seekers between US$5 000 and US$15 000 for sponsorship certificates that were meant to be free.
Quite a number of people throughout the country sold property and emptied savings, only to be left with nothing but broken promises after promises failed to materialise.
The most chilling is that these fraudsters were Zimbabweans defrauding other Zimbabweans. While hundreds of cases were reported to Action Fraud, the UK’s official reporting body for fraud and scams, the response has been largely muted.
The message seems clear: when foreigners scam other foreigners in the UK, the government looks away. Out there, we are on our own when it is us against ourselves.
Weight of being African
What ties Zimfest and the CoS scandal is not just geography but symbolism. Both incidents reveal the precariousness of life abroad the way migration magnifies choices and tests values.
At Zimfest, the debate is about image and perception: how we present ourselves when the spotlight is on.
With CoSs, the issue cuts deeper: how we treat each other when survival is at stake. In both cases, the consequences go beyond the individual. They shape a narrative about who we are as a people when viewed from different angles.
Beyond blame
This is not about policing culture or romanticising morality. It is about recognising that our lives abroad do not exist in a vacuum.
Whether at a festival or in a job market, our actions ripple outward, shaping reputations and, ultimately, opportunities for those who come after us.
When systems fail and they often do, the only safety net we have is each other. If we tear that apart through greed or carelessness nothing remains.
Migration is never just about moving from one country to another.
It is about negotiating identity, ethics, and dignity under pressure. And while the flaws of British immigration policy deserve scrutiny, so too must our own choices.
It started with fake asylum seekers, who took advantage of faulty immigration policies, which evolved into the CoS’ migration loophole.
When migrants leave home, they carry more than just their passports and luggage. They carry their nation’s flags, names, histories, and the burden of representation. It is not a choice.
Miriam Tose Majome is a lawyer and a Commissioner with the Zimbabwe Media Commission. She writes in her personal capacity and can be contacted on [email protected].
