Quiet after the storm

Continuity and change in the cultural and political development of Zimbabwe

Bibliographic Data

ID19005200
AuthorsPreben Kaarsholm (0000-0002-7594-8766, Roskilde University, corresponding author)
Year1989
Volume2
Issue2
Pages175-202
Publication date1989-01-01
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueAfrican Languages and Cultures (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0954-416X
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/09544168908717703
OpenAlexW2128364713
LanguageEN
Citations received4
References cited5

changes: at the end of 1987 the special parliamentary representation which had been given transitionally to the white minority under the Lancaster House agreement was removed; the power of government was concentrated by making Robert Mugabe 'executive president'; and decisive steps were taken towards the creation of a one-party system through the amalgamation of the two major political parties in the country, ZANU-PF and PF-ZAPU, and through the incorporation into the cabinet of representatives of PF-ZAPU and Matabeleland. Through these initiatives national leaders claim to have strengthened the unity of society and to have removed important obstacles for the realisation of socialist development objectives. At the same time, the united governing party is being challenged by criticism of the one-party constitution plans. Edgar Tekere's populist Zimbabwe Unity Movement (ZUM) has done well in recent by-elections, and an increasing radical student movement and, unexpectedly, the press led by the Bulawayo Chronicle have attacked the spread of corruption and moral decay within Zimbabwean politics. The ZANU-PF elite in particular has been shaken by the so-called 'Willowgate' affair and the revelations of the Sandura Commission, and it is now an open question which type of economic and social development will actually be promoted during the next few years within the socialist rhetoric. Will a one-party-governed Zimbabwe experience a frustrating slide in the direction of an ever more meaningless, traditionally embellished 'African socialism', growing corruption and increasingly uninhibited display of self-seeking power, while at the same time preserving the basic colonial features of its economy and social structure? Or will democratic reforms clear the way for the removal of bases of regional power, for increased participation, initiative and influence at a local level and for intensified articulation of conflicting interests and needs, founded in those sharp

Communism · Constitution · Criticism · Elite · Language change · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Presidential system · Realisation · Socialism · Sociology · African studies and sociopolitical issues · History · Law · Public Administration

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