Simon Muzenda
Encyclopedia
Simon Vengai Muzenda was a Shona
from the Karanga group, a Zimbabwe
an politician
who served as a Deputy Prime Minister and vice president under President Robert Mugabe
, a Shona Zezeru.
Muzenda was born in the Gutu District of what was then the Victoria Rrovince of Southern Rhodesia
, firmly under British
colonial rule, as a son of a peasant farmer, and brought up by his grandmother, who ensured his regular attendance of a local Catholic
missionary school. A relatively bright child, he was sent for teacher training after spending his teenage years herding the family's cattle, and, following the advice of his tutor, travelled to the Marianhill mission in Natal, South Africa, where he showed a proficiency in carpentry
.
Between completing his carpentry course and furthering his studies, Muzenda became aware of politics during contacts with fellow students, which included several men prominent in black activism South Africa and Rhodesia
; after his return to Rhodesia in 1950, he worked in a furniture factory in Bulawayo
and became involved with Benjamin Burombo, an activist who was among the earliest to challenge discriminatory laws.
After marrying his wife Maud, a nurse, Muzenda moved to the Midlands town of Umvuma in 1955 and started his own carpentry business; he also stayed active in political activism and eventually become administrative secretary of the Zimbabwe African National Union
(ZANU), attracting the attention of Rhodesian security forces and being imprisoned in Salisbury
's central prison for two years, which he described as a "place of study" later in his life, as it gave him and his inmates the opportunity to complete their educations.
In 1964, he was arrested again, this time for possession of a pistol after having been elected deputy organizing secretary of ZANU; at this time, Muzenda had become convinced that the only way to overthrow white colonial dominance was an armed revolution, and began organizing young blacks to receive military training in other African countries, in the USSR
and in China. He was soon imprisoned again and remained in jail until being released under the Anglo-Rhodesia agreement in 1971.
Following his release, Simon Muzenda went into exile in Zambia, and later to Mozambique. Failing to draw Joshua Nkomo
and his ZAPU movement into a unified political front, he backed Robert Mugabe
, who was then also hiding in Mozambique
, as the leader of the ZANU Patriotic Front (PF).
After the ensuing guerilla war, which ended with the Lancaster House Agreement
, and a brief interregnum of British government while democratic elections were organized, Mugabe
was elected as the first prime minister of the new independent Zimbabwe
and made Muzenda the deputy prime minister and foreign minister in 1980; Muzenda also retained political power over his home area despite quarrels between his own tribe, the Karanga
people, and the Zezuru from which Mugabe stemmed. In 1987, when Mugabe became executive president, Muzenda was appointed as his first vice-president.
In Zimbabwe's early years, Muzenda was generally respected by the people as a no-nosense, plain-spoken man from the working class, but in later years, he appeared more and more crude. In 1990, his campaign for a seat in Zimbabwe's parliament suffered a blow after opposition candidate Patrick Kombayi
was shot and left permanently disabled; two state agents were convicted of attempted murder, but pardoned by Mugabe shortly after the trial ended, and even though Muzenda was not publicly accused of being involved in the shooting, it affected his standing with the public.
During the years of Mugabe's rein, Muzenda always gave unreserved backing to the president, even when the regime began muzzling the independent press, curb the activities of foreign correspondents and crushing political opposition. He also participated in Mugabe's land redistribution programme
, taking over the Chindito farm, south of Harare
, in April 2002 and ejecting the white farm owner, Chris Nel; this incident caused a controversy with the Commercial Farmers Union.
In the two years preceding his death, Muzenda had been in failing health, with problems including hypertension
and diabetes; after returning from medical treatment in China in July 2003, he was admitted to the coronary care unit of Harare's main government facility, the Parirenyatwa hospital, where, according to medical sources, he fell into a semi-conscious state. Two weeks before his death, Zimbabwe's state-owned media dismissed reports that he was in declining health, instead announcing that he was making "remarkable progress" towards a full recovery.
Muzenda died on 20 September 2003.
Shona people
Shona is the name collectively given to two groups of people in the east and southwest of Zimbabwe, north eastern Botswana and southern Mozambique.-Shona Regional Classification:...
from the Karanga group, a Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
an politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
who served as a Deputy Prime Minister and vice president under President Robert Mugabe
Robert Mugabe
Robert Gabriel Mugabe is the President of Zimbabwe. As one of the leaders of the liberation movement against white-minority rule, he was elected into power in 1980...
, a Shona Zezeru.
Muzenda was born in the Gutu District of what was then the Victoria Rrovince of Southern Rhodesia
Southern Rhodesia
Southern Rhodesia was the name of the British colony situated north of the Limpopo River and the Union of South Africa. From its independence in 1965 until its extinction in 1980, it was known as Rhodesia...
, firmly under British
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
colonial rule, as a son of a peasant farmer, and brought up by his grandmother, who ensured his regular attendance of a local Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
missionary school. A relatively bright child, he was sent for teacher training after spending his teenage years herding the family's cattle, and, following the advice of his tutor, travelled to the Marianhill mission in Natal, South Africa, where he showed a proficiency in carpentry
Carpentry
A carpenter is a skilled craftsperson who works with timber to construct, install and maintain buildings, furniture, and other objects. The work, known as carpentry, may involve manual labor and work outdoors....
.
Between completing his carpentry course and furthering his studies, Muzenda became aware of politics during contacts with fellow students, which included several men prominent in black activism South Africa and Rhodesia
Rhodesia
Rhodesia , officially the Republic of Rhodesia from 1970, was an unrecognised state located in southern Africa that existed between 1965 and 1979 following its Unilateral Declaration of Independence from the United Kingdom on 11 November 1965...
; after his return to Rhodesia in 1950, he worked in a furniture factory in Bulawayo
Bulawayo
Bulawayo is the second largest city in Zimbabwe after the capital Harare, with an estimated population in 2010 of 2,000,000. It is located in Matabeleland, 439 km southwest of Harare, and is now treated as a separate provincial area from Matabeleland...
and became involved with Benjamin Burombo, an activist who was among the earliest to challenge discriminatory laws.
After marrying his wife Maud, a nurse, Muzenda moved to the Midlands town of Umvuma in 1955 and started his own carpentry business; he also stayed active in political activism and eventually become administrative secretary of the Zimbabwe African National Union
Zimbabwe African National Union
The Zimbabwe African National Union was a militant organization that fought against the standing government in Rhodesia, formed as a split from the Zimbabwe African People's Union...
(ZANU), attracting the attention of Rhodesian security forces and being imprisoned in Salisbury
Harare
Harare before 1982 known as Salisbury) is the largest city and capital of Zimbabwe. It has an estimated population of 1,600,000, with 2,800,000 in its metropolitan area . Administratively, Harare is an independent city equivalent to a province. It is Zimbabwe's largest city and its...
's central prison for two years, which he described as a "place of study" later in his life, as it gave him and his inmates the opportunity to complete their educations.
In 1964, he was arrested again, this time for possession of a pistol after having been elected deputy organizing secretary of ZANU; at this time, Muzenda had become convinced that the only way to overthrow white colonial dominance was an armed revolution, and began organizing young blacks to receive military training in other African countries, in the USSR
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
and in China. He was soon imprisoned again and remained in jail until being released under the Anglo-Rhodesia agreement in 1971.
Following his release, Simon Muzenda went into exile in Zambia, and later to Mozambique. Failing to draw Joshua Nkomo
Joshua Nkomo
Joshua Mqabuko Nyongolo Nkomo was the leader and founder of the Zimbabwe African People's Union and a member of the Kalanga tribe...
and his ZAPU movement into a unified political front, he backed Robert Mugabe
Robert Mugabe
Robert Gabriel Mugabe is the President of Zimbabwe. As one of the leaders of the liberation movement against white-minority rule, he was elected into power in 1980...
, who was then also hiding in Mozambique
Mozambique
Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique , is a country in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west and Swaziland and South Africa to the southwest...
, as the leader of the ZANU Patriotic Front (PF).
After the ensuing guerilla war, which ended with the Lancaster House Agreement
Lancaster House Agreement
The negotiations which led to the Lancaster House Agreement brought independence to Rhodesia following Ian Smith’s Unilateral Declaration of Independence in 1965. The Agreement covered the Independence Constitution, pre-independence arrangements, and a ceasefire...
, and a brief interregnum of British government while democratic elections were organized, Mugabe
Robert Mugabe
Robert Gabriel Mugabe is the President of Zimbabwe. As one of the leaders of the liberation movement against white-minority rule, he was elected into power in 1980...
was elected as the first prime minister of the new independent Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
and made Muzenda the deputy prime minister and foreign minister in 1980; Muzenda also retained political power over his home area despite quarrels between his own tribe, the Karanga
Karanga
Karanga may refer to:* Karanga , Mangaia, Cook Islands* Karanga , an element of Māori cultural protocol, the calling of visitors onto a marae.* Ikalanga language* "Te Karanga", a song by Rhian Sheehan* a clan of the Shona people...
people, and the Zezuru from which Mugabe stemmed. In 1987, when Mugabe became executive president, Muzenda was appointed as his first vice-president.
In Zimbabwe's early years, Muzenda was generally respected by the people as a no-nosense, plain-spoken man from the working class, but in later years, he appeared more and more crude. In 1990, his campaign for a seat in Zimbabwe's parliament suffered a blow after opposition candidate Patrick Kombayi
Patrick Kombayi
Patrick Kombayi was a Zimbabwean businessman, a former mayor of Gweru and an active member of the Movement for Democratic Change-Tsvangirai faction in the Midlands Province...
was shot and left permanently disabled; two state agents were convicted of attempted murder, but pardoned by Mugabe shortly after the trial ended, and even though Muzenda was not publicly accused of being involved in the shooting, it affected his standing with the public.
During the years of Mugabe's rein, Muzenda always gave unreserved backing to the president, even when the regime began muzzling the independent press, curb the activities of foreign correspondents and crushing political opposition. He also participated in Mugabe's land redistribution programme
Land reform in Zimbabwe
Land reform in Zimbabwe officially began in 1979 with the signing of the Lancaster House Agreement, an effort to more equitably distribute land between the historically disenfranchised blacks and the minority-whites who ruled Zimbabwe from 1890 to 1979...
, taking over the Chindito farm, south of Harare
Harare
Harare before 1982 known as Salisbury) is the largest city and capital of Zimbabwe. It has an estimated population of 1,600,000, with 2,800,000 in its metropolitan area . Administratively, Harare is an independent city equivalent to a province. It is Zimbabwe's largest city and its...
, in April 2002 and ejecting the white farm owner, Chris Nel; this incident caused a controversy with the Commercial Farmers Union.
In the two years preceding his death, Muzenda had been in failing health, with problems including hypertension
Hypertension
Hypertension or high blood pressure is a cardiac chronic medical condition in which the systemic arterial blood pressure is elevated. What that means is that the heart is having to work harder than it should to pump the blood around the body. Blood pressure involves two measurements, systolic and...
and diabetes; after returning from medical treatment in China in July 2003, he was admitted to the coronary care unit of Harare's main government facility, the Parirenyatwa hospital, where, according to medical sources, he fell into a semi-conscious state. Two weeks before his death, Zimbabwe's state-owned media dismissed reports that he was in declining health, instead announcing that he was making "remarkable progress" towards a full recovery.
Muzenda died on 20 September 2003.
External links
- Obituary for Simon Muzenda (from The GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
)