Chronicle Editor
Chido Manzini
SOUTHERN African states demonstrated beyond reasonable doubt that they are a symbol of resistance and strength in the liberation struggle against colonial imperialism which plagued the continent depriving the motherland of its freedom and glory that it had savored for centuries.
When the imperialism pestilence tore the lives of the natives and resulted in loss of life and deprivation of their heritage which was land, the African people had to take arms and repossess their forefather’s land. This led to the formation of liberation movements from where the regaining of the lost pride and independence of the black people were organised and executed. Zimbabwe, South Africa, Angola and Mozambique to name a few, were among those who partook in the fight to liberate their people. These countries worked hand in hand training and supporting the cause as they were all in the same quandary.
It is against this background that one would like to bring into the limelight the pivotal role that women played in the liberation struggle and recognising that without them it would be fair to say that freedom in Africa would have been elusive and probably taken longer than it did. Women in this context were the cornerstone in bringing freedom to the African continent and Southern Africa in particular as portrayed in the discussion below as their sacrifices and responsibilities during the liberation struggle are brought to the surface.
The Zimbabwean Second Chimurenga also known as the Rhodesian bush war stretched from 1964 to 1979 and during this period women infiltrated the liberation struggle as it was a necessity that mothers of the nation take matters into their own hands. This has therefore brought much attention to the local and international activists as their participation in the liberation struggle was a force to reckon with.
Zimbabwean women through the various armed wings such as the Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army (ZANLA), Zimbabwe People’s Revolutionary Army (ZPRA), participated in the war as combatants and at societal level the women also provided food and information to the guerillas and even rallied behind them as motivators. It would be prudent to say that it would have been difficult to sustain the war without the proper nourishment of the guerillas and hence women played a critical role in ensuring that they provided such from their hard labour.
Consequently, the contribution of the chimbwidos (female war collaborators) cannot be underestimated, as they played a critical role ensuring the nourishment of the guerillas. In addition, chimbwidos also provided vital information on the situation obtaining. These women sacrificed a lot to the liberation struggle including their human rights as some succumbed to sexual harassment as they were treated as objects. Such women are our silent heroines whose pain and suffering cannot be fathomed and justice never prevailed.
Some of the women who joined the camps as chimbwidos faced family alienation as their families would not consent with them joining these camps and hence they sacrificed their lineages for the greater cause and believed in the struggle’s ideology (Ranchod-nilsson et al., 2006). The war front was no longer meant for men only as women took up arms. Women became a symbol of resilience, strength and courage taking their rightful position amongst their male counterparts as inspired by Ambuya Nehanda (Manyeruke, 2018).
The formation of the ZANU Women’s league in 1977 was a symbol of the women’s determination in participating in the liberation struggle and freeing the children of Zimbabwe. The founding mothers were the prominent and influential liberators such as Joyce Mujuru, Oppah Muchinguri- Kashiri and Mavis Chidzonga.
Such bravery gave women the strength to join the liberation struggle and break barriers which had been set by cultural norms.
Through matrimonial association women such as Mama Mafuyana (Joshua Nkomo’s wife) and Sally Mugabe were also roped into the liberation struggle due to their spouses who were key catalysts in the liberation movement (Dhliwayo; 2019). Such women lived in constant terror as they were key targets of the colonial authorities but despite these forms of harassment and raids, they still stood their fort and supported their spouses.
This supports the notion that behind every successful man is a woman, therefore behind the success of the liberation struggle was the power of the women. This was also the case in our neighbouring country South Africa where women such as the late Winnie Madikizela Mandela held the fort during the liberation struggle in South African as she succumbed to police harassment and brutality from the Boers but still came out triumphant after 27 years. The Soweto Uprising movements which incorporated the youth of South Africa included even the young women in the education system who stood up against the apartheid system. Women could be said to have both been the backbone and the catalyst of these movements. Beistein (1995) postulated it should be acknowledged that women have been key towards the success of mass movements in Southern Africa.
In Mozambique the FRELIMO had an ideological commitment to the women’s rights and they acknowledged the participation of women in the liberation struggle, their participation was motivated by the ideologies and hence participation was intrinsic and encouraged. In Mozambique due to the mantra they adopted, it worked as a motivator in recruiting more male counterparts as they felt if women could do it, they too would not want to feel inferior. In Zimbabwe women’s participation in the struggle grew out of practicability rather than ideological considerations. The late former President, Robert Mugabe even praised the women for their unwavering participation in the armed struggle and noted that their involvement was significant in the emancipation of women.
A very important consequence of women participation in African anticolonialism resistance is that women bear arms, they explode many myths which frequently dictate how women should struggle (Journal and Tillinghast, 1991).
In Angola (1961-1975) the People’s Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) which was the movement against the Portuguese colonialism, recognised the need to incorporate women into the struggle as men and women fought side by side. Queen Ginga was one of the female liberation influencers who led the Angolan people to resist against the Portuguese for three decades. The Organisation of Angolan women (OMA) a wing of the MPLA served an immense role in ensuring that women were trained to be able to partake in the liberation struggle and also provided with the basic necessities.
The OMA which was led by women was seen as a major catalyst in the fight for freedom. Women members in the MPLA and OMA were critical executors of dissemination of information on the liberation struggle as they were able to reach out to the international community through various modes. Through their efforts they were able to source humanitarian funds to assist women and children who had succumbed to the trajectories of the armed struggle.
Conclusively it is clear that the contribution of women in the liberation struggles in Southern Africa should be greatly acknowledged as they were the bedrock of the struggle. The independence of Africa is greatly indebted to the sacrifices that women took be it as combatants or rural supporters. One author stated that “women were not merely the backbone of the struggle but where the struggle”. Thus, women have always demonstrated great potential in the public spheres of life since liberation struggles in Africa contrary to the patriarchal societies beliefs that they should be confined to the private domain.
The author is a social analyst and lecturer at Midlands State University she can be contacted on [email protected]
Bongani Ndlovu