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| Africa |
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| A
Few Observations |
| I lived
in Harare, Zimbabwe
from February 1994 to December 1995. The
first cultural shock was the security in
the wealthy northern suburbs. It was not
uncommon to see concertina barbed wire or
glass shards on top of 12 foot walls, floodlights,
motion detectors, bars on windows and doors,
large watchdogs, and uniformed security
guards along with the swimming pool, tennis
court, servant's quarters, and satellite
dish. Housing in the northern suburbs, particularly
rentals, is difficult to procure. For the
first three months, I lived in the Bronte
Hotel, a bed and breakfast in a Cape Dutch
style building dating back to 1911. The
hotel was quite a pleasant place, sipping
a gin and tonic in the garden next to the
swimming pool every evening. Through a friend
of a friend of a colleague, I was finally
able to find a furnished house in Avondale,
one of the few houses in the northern suburbs
lacking any security precautions. Yet, no
one ever bothered us and we never stopped
anybody who wandered around the property.
The furnishings were out of a 1950's time
capsule. One cm wide cracks had developed
in the foundation due to the expansion and
contraction of clay soils during wet and
dry seasons. But the biggest surprise came
during the dry season when the kitchen was
invaded by hordes of ants seeking water,
the floor black and seething. Driving was
an interesting experience around Harare.
There are car-swallowing potholes. Roadblocks
would be set up by the Zimbabwe Republic
Police (ZRP) along the major highways in
and out of the city to catch drunk drivers.
Large numbers of passengers were being killed
or seriously injured due to intoxicated
bus drivers. Security guards and ZRP armed
with assault rifles are omnipresent. On
June 26, 1995, the ZRP used tear gas, batons,
and dogs to suppress violent student demonstrations
on the University campus. Dormitories were
evacuated and students were forced to leave
the campus in the middle of the night. In
September, a policeman shot a constable for challenging
him for urinating in public. On November
3, 1995 on a crowded downtown street,
a policeman fired his rifle at some thieves
who raided an office equipment store in
downtown Harare. Two passersby were killed
and a third was seriously wounded. A riot
and looting subsequently ensued. A few years
later, the economic and political situation
really deteriorated.
Farm invasions, seizure of land, and eviction
of white farmers were ordered by Robert
Mugabe. There were anti-media laws, general
strikes, political manipulation of hunger,
raging AIDS epidemic, rising unemployment, shortages
of maize, flour, fuel, soap, and other necessities,
and surging food and fuel prices. Since
1987, there has been only one party, the
Zimbabwe
African National Union Patriotic Front
(ZANU PF). On September 11, 1999, an opposition
movement, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), was launched
by Morgan Tsvangirai and formed an alliance
with the largest trade union, the Zimbabwe
Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU). In
March 2002, Robert Mugabe was re-elected
president under accusations of vote-rigging
and other election fraud. |
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