07-22-2016, 09:57 PM
(This post was last modified: 07-23-2016, 05:06 AM by John J. Xenakis.)
*** 23-Jul-16 World View -- Christian pastor's '#ThisFlag' movement threatens Robert Mugabe in Zimbabwe
This morning's key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com
****
**** Christian pastor leads '#ThisFlag' demonstrations against Robert Mugabe in Zimbabwe
****
![[Image: g160722b.jpg]](http://www.GenerationalDynamics.com/ww2010/g160722b.jpg)
Grace Mugabe, the young wife of 92-year-old Robert Mugabe, who he wants to be his successor
Zimbabwe is being suddenly riven by anti-government demonstrations and
clashes with security forces that suddenly erupted into a major
political force almost spontaneously earlier this month, fed by social
media with the hash tag #ThisFlag.
Evan Mawarire, the 39-year-old pastor of the His Generation Church in
the capital city Harare, used social media to organize a nationwide
"stay-away," a shutdown of schools, businesses and shops around the
country. Since any sort of government protest can be punished
violently by the government of the 92-year-old president Robert
Mugabe, Mawarire chose the national flag as the symbol of protest,
along with the hash tag #ThisFlag. According to Mawarire, the
Zimbabwe flag used to be a symbol of national pride, but today it's a
symbol of endemic corruption, injustice, starvation, and poverty in
the country.
The July 6 national shutdown shut down much of the country, and
Mawarire was summoned by police for questioning, and was charged with
inciting public violence, disturbing the peace, and treason. Mawarire
might have been locked up for years, or even tortured and killed, as
is not uncommon in the Mugabe government. But court officials were
shocked when nearly 200 young lawyers flocked to Harare's Magistrate's
Court and volunteered to represent the pastor. The police were forced
to free Mawarire after only one night in custody, and drop the
charges.
After being freed, Mawarire posted on his Facebook page to his
followers:
[indent]<QUOTE>"You did so well. There was no violence. No one was
fighting. No one was throwing stones. Zimbabweans are peaceful
people and we can do this very well with peace. ... Continue to
pray for Zimbabwe. God is doing something special and
amazing."<END QUOTE>[/indent]
Several Christian organizations -- the Zimbabwe Catholic bishops’
conference, the Evangelical Fellowship of Zimbabwe, the Zimbabwe
Council of Churches, and other groups issued a statement condemning
Mugabe for apparent disregard for the constitution by the government
and police and failure to deal with corruption. "These grievances
must be viewed as the early warning signs which indicate underlying
and simmering tensions that will soon explode into civil unrest if not
addressed."
In fact, widespread civil unrest is exactly where this is headed, from
the point of view of Generational Dynamics. Zimbabwe is in a
generational Awakening era, like America and Europe in the 1960s and
1970s, and the first post-war generation (like America's Boomers) are
on the path to holding massive protests. Zimbabwe's last generational
crisis war was the war for independence that climaxed in 1980.
Mugabe's government has used massive arrests, massacres, atrocities
and torture to stop earlier protests, but this protest could not be
stopped because it used social media, and because the form of the
protest was for the protesters to stay and home and shut down the
country, rather than march through the streets. Now that one protest
has been successful, it's likely that there will be more.
As we described earlier this month in "1-Jul-16 World View -- Zimbabwe, Venezuela, Puerto Rico - three amigos in Marxist economic destruction"
, Zimbabwe is in the
midst of a major financial crisis because Mugabe has destroyed the
nation's economy by shutting down the farms and businesses, because
they were run by whites, and turned them over to corrupt cronies in
his own Zanu-pf political party who couldn't run a business or a farm
if their lives depended on it. Zimbabwe was the breadbasket of Africa
in the 1990s, but it took Mugabe only a few years to destroy the
economy, and to give away the pieces to his corrupt cronies, leaving
his political enemies to starve. Mugabe's breathtaking destruction of
the country's economy is a major motivation for the protests occurring
now. Religion News Service and Catholic News Agency and The Zimbabwe Mail and Nehanda Radio (Harare)
****
**** Zimbabwe war veterans suddenly turn on Robert Mugabe
****
The success of the #ThisFlag movement has triggered other forms of
protest. On Thursday, Robert Mugabe's most loyal supporters, the
Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association, suddenly turned
on Mugabe.
These were the veterans that fought alongside Mugabe in the war of
independence. After the war, they were in the front lines of
torturing and massacring Mugabe's political enemies. Any anti-Mugabe
protestor could count on being arrested and beaten at the hands of
Mugabe's war veterans. The veterans have formed the backbone of
Mugabe's party, the Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front
(Zanu-pf).
So the surprise move to turn against Mugabe has significantly changed
the political landscape in Zimbabwe. According to the statement:
[indent]<QUOTE>"We note, with concern, shock and dismay, the
systematic entrenchment of dictatorial tendencies, personified by
the president and his cohorts, which have slowly devoured the
values of the liberation struggle. ...
Mugabe should understand that his leadership is as a result of our
support as we are the vanguard of the ruling ZANU PF, without war
veterans who fought for the liberation of this country then there
is no ZANU-PF. ... So to Mugabe we say, you cannot stop us as war
veterans from debating the succession of the party’s leadership,
as we are the spine of the party."<END QUOTE>[/indent]
However, one should not assume that this change of heart was motivated
by feelings of guilt over past tortures and massacres. Actually, it
was motivated by the fact that Mugabe had ordered the firing of the
chairman of the veterans association, Christopher Mutsvangwa.
According to the statement:
[indent]<QUOTE>"We still recognize Cde Christopher Mutsvangwa as our
national chairperson amongst the war veterans and Mugabe should be
warned Mutsvangwa cannot be fired willy nilly as that has to be
done through a congress. Mugabe is fond of firing from the party
anybody who raises a voice against him and we are saying no enough
is enough."<END QUOTE>[/indent]
This is taking place in the context of a growing battle over Mugabe's
successor as leader of Zanu-pf. The 92-year-old Mugabe claims that
his plans are to live past the age 100, but others are not so sure.
Two factions have emerged. The veterans want Mugabe to be succeeded
by the current vice president, Emmerson Mnangagwa. Mugabe himself
wants to be succeeded by his own wife, Grace Mugabe.
In February, police used tear gas and water cannons to disperse
hundreds of veterans who were demonstrating against what they
described as criticism by Grace Mugabe. According to the veterans'
statement:
[indent]<QUOTE>"Regrettably, the general citizenry has previously
been subjected to this inhuman and degrading treatment without a
word of disapproval from us. That time has passed. We wish to
categorically condemn the brutal suppression of the freedom of
expression, whether exercised by ourselves or by anyone
else."<END QUOTE>[/indent]
From the point of view of Generational Dynamics, this is a very
interesting story because it shows how very different cultures can
have Awakening eras with many similarities. What unites Awakening
eras across all cultures is the rise of the first generation following
the previous generational crisis war, and the appearance of marches,
demonstrations and other forms of protest, just as occurred in America
and Europe in the 1960-70s.
Okay Africa and Reuters and AP and The Standard (Harare - 27-Mar)
KEYS: Generational Dynamics, Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe,
Evan Mawarire, His Generation Church, Zimbabwe Catholic bishops’ conference,
Evangelical Fellowship of Zimbabwe, Zimbabwe Council of Churches,
African National Union-Patriotic Front, Zanu-pf,
National Liberation War Veterans Association, Christopher Mutsvangwa,
Emmerson Mnangagwa, Grace Mugabe
Permanent web link to this article
Receive daily World View columns by e-mail
Contribute to Generational Dynamics via PayPal
John J. Xenakis
100 Memorial Drive Apt 8-13A
Cambridge, MA 02142
Phone: 617-864-0010
E-mail: john@GenerationalDynamics.com
Web site: http://www.GenerationalDynamics.com
Forum: http://www.gdxforum.com/forum
Subscribe to World View: http://generationaldynamics.com/subscribe
This morning's key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com
- Christian pastor leads '#ThisFlag' demonstrations against Robert Mugabe in Zimbabwe
- Zimbabwe war veterans suddenly turn on Robert Mugabe
****
**** Christian pastor leads '#ThisFlag' demonstrations against Robert Mugabe in Zimbabwe
****
Grace Mugabe, the young wife of 92-year-old Robert Mugabe, who he wants to be his successor
Zimbabwe is being suddenly riven by anti-government demonstrations and
clashes with security forces that suddenly erupted into a major
political force almost spontaneously earlier this month, fed by social
media with the hash tag #ThisFlag.
Evan Mawarire, the 39-year-old pastor of the His Generation Church in
the capital city Harare, used social media to organize a nationwide
"stay-away," a shutdown of schools, businesses and shops around the
country. Since any sort of government protest can be punished
violently by the government of the 92-year-old president Robert
Mugabe, Mawarire chose the national flag as the symbol of protest,
along with the hash tag #ThisFlag. According to Mawarire, the
Zimbabwe flag used to be a symbol of national pride, but today it's a
symbol of endemic corruption, injustice, starvation, and poverty in
the country.
The July 6 national shutdown shut down much of the country, and
Mawarire was summoned by police for questioning, and was charged with
inciting public violence, disturbing the peace, and treason. Mawarire
might have been locked up for years, or even tortured and killed, as
is not uncommon in the Mugabe government. But court officials were
shocked when nearly 200 young lawyers flocked to Harare's Magistrate's
Court and volunteered to represent the pastor. The police were forced
to free Mawarire after only one night in custody, and drop the
charges.
After being freed, Mawarire posted on his Facebook page to his
followers:
[indent]<QUOTE>"You did so well. There was no violence. No one was
fighting. No one was throwing stones. Zimbabweans are peaceful
people and we can do this very well with peace. ... Continue to
pray for Zimbabwe. God is doing something special and
amazing."<END QUOTE>[/indent]
Several Christian organizations -- the Zimbabwe Catholic bishops’
conference, the Evangelical Fellowship of Zimbabwe, the Zimbabwe
Council of Churches, and other groups issued a statement condemning
Mugabe for apparent disregard for the constitution by the government
and police and failure to deal with corruption. "These grievances
must be viewed as the early warning signs which indicate underlying
and simmering tensions that will soon explode into civil unrest if not
addressed."
In fact, widespread civil unrest is exactly where this is headed, from
the point of view of Generational Dynamics. Zimbabwe is in a
generational Awakening era, like America and Europe in the 1960s and
1970s, and the first post-war generation (like America's Boomers) are
on the path to holding massive protests. Zimbabwe's last generational
crisis war was the war for independence that climaxed in 1980.
Mugabe's government has used massive arrests, massacres, atrocities
and torture to stop earlier protests, but this protest could not be
stopped because it used social media, and because the form of the
protest was for the protesters to stay and home and shut down the
country, rather than march through the streets. Now that one protest
has been successful, it's likely that there will be more.
As we described earlier this month in "1-Jul-16 World View -- Zimbabwe, Venezuela, Puerto Rico - three amigos in Marxist economic destruction"
, Zimbabwe is in the
midst of a major financial crisis because Mugabe has destroyed the
nation's economy by shutting down the farms and businesses, because
they were run by whites, and turned them over to corrupt cronies in
his own Zanu-pf political party who couldn't run a business or a farm
if their lives depended on it. Zimbabwe was the breadbasket of Africa
in the 1990s, but it took Mugabe only a few years to destroy the
economy, and to give away the pieces to his corrupt cronies, leaving
his political enemies to starve. Mugabe's breathtaking destruction of
the country's economy is a major motivation for the protests occurring
now. Religion News Service and Catholic News Agency and The Zimbabwe Mail and Nehanda Radio (Harare)
****
**** Zimbabwe war veterans suddenly turn on Robert Mugabe
****
The success of the #ThisFlag movement has triggered other forms of
protest. On Thursday, Robert Mugabe's most loyal supporters, the
Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association, suddenly turned
on Mugabe.
These were the veterans that fought alongside Mugabe in the war of
independence. After the war, they were in the front lines of
torturing and massacring Mugabe's political enemies. Any anti-Mugabe
protestor could count on being arrested and beaten at the hands of
Mugabe's war veterans. The veterans have formed the backbone of
Mugabe's party, the Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front
(Zanu-pf).
So the surprise move to turn against Mugabe has significantly changed
the political landscape in Zimbabwe. According to the statement:
[indent]<QUOTE>"We note, with concern, shock and dismay, the
systematic entrenchment of dictatorial tendencies, personified by
the president and his cohorts, which have slowly devoured the
values of the liberation struggle. ...
Mugabe should understand that his leadership is as a result of our
support as we are the vanguard of the ruling ZANU PF, without war
veterans who fought for the liberation of this country then there
is no ZANU-PF. ... So to Mugabe we say, you cannot stop us as war
veterans from debating the succession of the party’s leadership,
as we are the spine of the party."<END QUOTE>[/indent]
However, one should not assume that this change of heart was motivated
by feelings of guilt over past tortures and massacres. Actually, it
was motivated by the fact that Mugabe had ordered the firing of the
chairman of the veterans association, Christopher Mutsvangwa.
According to the statement:
[indent]<QUOTE>"We still recognize Cde Christopher Mutsvangwa as our
national chairperson amongst the war veterans and Mugabe should be
warned Mutsvangwa cannot be fired willy nilly as that has to be
done through a congress. Mugabe is fond of firing from the party
anybody who raises a voice against him and we are saying no enough
is enough."<END QUOTE>[/indent]
This is taking place in the context of a growing battle over Mugabe's
successor as leader of Zanu-pf. The 92-year-old Mugabe claims that
his plans are to live past the age 100, but others are not so sure.
Two factions have emerged. The veterans want Mugabe to be succeeded
by the current vice president, Emmerson Mnangagwa. Mugabe himself
wants to be succeeded by his own wife, Grace Mugabe.
In February, police used tear gas and water cannons to disperse
hundreds of veterans who were demonstrating against what they
described as criticism by Grace Mugabe. According to the veterans'
statement:
[indent]<QUOTE>"Regrettably, the general citizenry has previously
been subjected to this inhuman and degrading treatment without a
word of disapproval from us. That time has passed. We wish to
categorically condemn the brutal suppression of the freedom of
expression, whether exercised by ourselves or by anyone
else."<END QUOTE>[/indent]
From the point of view of Generational Dynamics, this is a very
interesting story because it shows how very different cultures can
have Awakening eras with many similarities. What unites Awakening
eras across all cultures is the rise of the first generation following
the previous generational crisis war, and the appearance of marches,
demonstrations and other forms of protest, just as occurred in America
and Europe in the 1960-70s.
Okay Africa and Reuters and AP and The Standard (Harare - 27-Mar)
KEYS: Generational Dynamics, Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe,
Evan Mawarire, His Generation Church, Zimbabwe Catholic bishops’ conference,
Evangelical Fellowship of Zimbabwe, Zimbabwe Council of Churches,
African National Union-Patriotic Front, Zanu-pf,
National Liberation War Veterans Association, Christopher Mutsvangwa,
Emmerson Mnangagwa, Grace Mugabe
Permanent web link to this article
Receive daily World View columns by e-mail
Contribute to Generational Dynamics via PayPal
John J. Xenakis
100 Memorial Drive Apt 8-13A
Cambridge, MA 02142
Phone: 617-864-0010
E-mail: john@GenerationalDynamics.com
Web site: http://www.GenerationalDynamics.com
Forum: http://www.gdxforum.com/forum
Subscribe to World View: http://generationaldynamics.com/subscribe
