The Struggle Continues: 50 Years of Tyranny in Zimbabwe

622 Pages·2016·3.97 MB·English

by  David Coltart

THE STRUGGLE CONTINUES
THE STRUGGLE CONTINUES
50 Years of Tyranny in Zimbabwe
David Coltart
First published by Jacana Media (Pty) Ltd in 2016
10 Orange Street
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© David Coltart, 2016
David Coltart has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents
Act 1988 (UK) to be identified as author of this work.
All rights reserved.
Cover design by Shawn Paikin Author photograph on the back cover flap © V
Kaufman All photographs in this book are from David Coltart’s personal
collection, unless otherwise stated Job no. 002634
Also available as an e-book:
d-PDF 978-1-4314-2319-4
ePUB 978-1-4314-2320-0
mobi file 978-1-4314-2321-7
See a complete list of Jacana titles at www.jacana.co.za
This book is dedicated to Jenny, Jessica, Douglas, Scott Winston,
Bethany and my late parents, Bill and Nora
Praise for The Struggle Continues
“David Coltart’s The Struggle Continues … is a brilliantly engaging deep dive
into Zimbabwe’s political history, one that is equal parts damning and
altogether optimistic about Zimbabwe’s inherent potential. For a people that has
suffered so much under the yoke of repression – first under brutal minority rule
and later by a homegrown despot – Zimbabweans have the uncanny ability to
press forward with grace, dignity, and personal charm. David Coltart embodies
all of those qualities, and captures them expertly in this book. A must read for
anyone who is intrigued by Zimbabwean politics and history, but also those
interested in the power of our common humanity and the strength that is inside
us all.”
– KERRY KENNEDY, PRESIDENT, ROBERT F. KENNEDY HUMAN RIGHTS
“This magnificent book is far more than just the autobiography of one of the
most significant figures in Zimbabwean history; it is also a history of Zimbabwe
itself, and a moral testament.”
– PETER OBORNE, POLITICAL COLUMNIST OF THE DAILY MAIL, AND AUTHOR OF THE
RISE OF POLITICAL LYING, THE TRIUMPH OF THE POLITICAL CLASS AND BASIL
D’OLIVEIRA: CRICKET AND CONSPIRACY: THE UNTOLD STORY
“A searing, heartfelt, brutally honest account of the turbulent modern history of
Zimbabwe, written by a man who through love of country and strength of
character put himself at the centre of its most epochal events. But what sets
Coltart’s book apart from other African political memoirs is a beautiful, crisp,
clear-eyed prose that reads at times like a thriller. For anyone who wants to
understand the complexities and multiple truths of Zimbabwe and its people –
buy this book.”
– DOUGLAS ROGERS, JOURNALIST, TRAVEL WRITER AND AUTHOR OF THE LAST
RESORT
“A true Zimbabwean patriot. Coltart is as unsparing in his criticism of the white
supremacist regime of Ian Smith as he is of the corrupt and brutal legacy of
Robert Mugabe.”
– HON JOHN HOWARD OM AC
“David Coltart has delivered a masterful account of Zimbabwe’s unfinished
struggle for freedom. Brimming with telling anecdotes, poignant reflections and
also unflinching self-examination, it charts the 50-plus years of Zimbabwe’s
political woes with power and precision. If you want to understand in particular
the frustrations and setbacks of the last decade under Robert Mugabe you should
read this book.”
– ALEC RUSSELL, HEAD OF NEWS AT THE FINANCIAL TIMES AND AUTHOR OF AFTER
MANDELA: BATTLE FOR THE SOUL OF SOUTH AFRICA
“In The Struggle Continues, David Coltart grapples with the complex history –
both personal and national – of the transition from the injustice of white
minority rule to the disappointments of ZANU PF-led majority rule. What sets
Coltart’s book apart from recent memoirs by actors in Zimbabwe’s politics is its
deep introspection and refusal to whitewash his own past. The result is a work of
searing honesty, sensitivity and integrity.”
– PETINA GAPPAH, INTERNATIONAL LAWYER AND AWARD-WINNING AUTHOR OF AN
ELEGY FOR EASTERLY AND THE BOOK OF MEMORY
“David Coltart’s meticulously detailed narrative and analysis should be
required reading for anyone with an interest in the history of Zimbabwe, but also
for those who want to know how the bright dream of African freedom and
democracy can be stolen by those posing as revolutionary saviours.”
– BRENDAN SEERY, EXECUTIVE EDITOR, INDEPENDENT MEDIA SOUTH AFRICA
“Anyone who wants to understand the tragedy of Zimbabwe, this is the book to
read by someone who lived it and knows all the key dramatis personae. David
Coltart has penned a masterful account that is eye opening and shocking, yet
never loses hope in his beautiful African homeland.”
– CHRISTINA LAMB, CHIEF FOREIGN CORRESPONDENT OF THE SUNDAY TIMES,
AUTHOR OF THE AFRICA HOUSE AND CO-AUTHOR OF I AM MALALA
“The high mortality rate among politicians who have had the temerity to oppose
Robert Mugabe means that authentic insider books about the workings of
Zimbabwean politics are very rare. David Coltart has served as an Opposition
MP, a Senator and a Cabinet Minister and has survived several attempts on his
life to tell the tale. His book would be invaluable for this alone. But it is much
more. It is the story of a courageous and committed man who has dedicated his
life to fighting for human rights and democracy in Zimbabwe, a country that he
so clearly loves. He provides a compelling account, often in harrowing detail, of
the terror and oppression that has scarred that country since its independence.
But he is equally unsparing in his depiction of the discrimination and brutality of
the colonial era, his own role in that and his personal awakening to the injustice
and prejudice that underpinned the Rhodesian dream. My own window on
Zimbabwean politics was relatively brief and at a time when, in the Western
media, the victims of Mugabe’s regime were portrayed largely as white farmers.
While many of them did suffer cruelly, David’s book shows that this was but one
facet of a much longer and deeper malaise in which millions of black
Zimbabweans were denied justice and brutalised if they objected. What emerges
is a sobering account of man’s inhumanity to man. But David’s determination to
fight for the rights of all Zimbabweans, regardless of skin colour or ethnicity,
alongside his colleagues in the human rights movement and later the MDC, is
ultimately an uplifting story. If, as the book’s title suggests, Zimbabwe may still
realise its potential it will be due in no small measure to the efforts of the many
unsung heroes who emerge from the pages of this book.”
– SIR BRIAN DONNELLY, BRITISH HIGH COMMISSIONER, LATER AMBASSADOR, TO
ZIMBABWE, 2001–2004
“David Coltart tells a story that is part autobiography and part the dramatic
history of his country, Zimbabwe. The telling is all the more compelling because
it is told from his own ever-changing vantage point and shifting sensibilities.
What emerges from this dramatic journey is a sense of courageous personal
conviction and a faith in the inspiring resilience of his countrymen and women.”
– NICHOLAS “FINK” HAYSOM, SPECIAL REPRESENTATIVE OF THE SECRETARY
GENERAL FOR AFGHANISTAN, AND FORMER LEGAL ADVISOR TO PRESIDENT NELSON
MANDELA, 1994 TO 1999
“David Coltart has written an important book which will enrich literature on
Zimbabwean society spanning decades, including most importantly, key areas of
political and legal history dating back to the colonial days up to the current era.
It is often said people who forget their history are bound to repeat the mistakes
of old. Here Coltart offers a rich, honest, diverse account of the story of
Zimbabwe, as seen through his eyes and experiences, which will, hopefully, help
present and future generations learn from the errors of the past. The book’s
strength lies in its detail and the honesty and forthrightness of the author, who
does not sugar-coat his past but incudes all aspects of his experiences and
aspects of his country, the beautiful and the ugly. This is, no doubt, a significant
contribution at a time when Zimbabwe is crying out for such accounts from key
figures who have played an important role in shaping its history.”
– DR ALEX MAGAISA, UNIVERSITY OF KENT. FORMER ADVISER TO PRIME MINISTER
MORGAN R TSVANGIRAI, 2012–2013
“This elegantly written book amounts to far more than the memoir of a
politician, lawyer and campaigner. In essence, David Coltart has composed an
extended love letter to Zimbabwe, to the “people, hills, rivers, plains and trees”
of a land that “becomes deeply embedded in one’s soul”. His own story is
entwined with that of his country. Born in southern Zimbabwe to a mother whose
ancestors had arrived in Africa in 1820, Coltart served in the Rhodesian security
forces as a young man before becoming a lawyer and opposition politician at the
height of Robert Mugabe’s repression. Those of us who were privileged to meet
Coltart during this critical period never guessed at the precautions he was
forced to take, nor that on public occasions he would - as he reveals in this book
- wear a bullet-proof vest beneath his shirt. Coltart rose to become education
minister and almost single-handedly revived a shattered school system. In the
process, he helped to transform millions of young lives. He is still waiting for
Zimbabwe to break free of the crippling burden of repression. But the pages of
this book are devoid of bitterness or recrimination; they are filled, instead, with
a sense of hope and of the unfulfilled potential of the country he loves.”
– DAVID BLAIR, CHIEF FOREIGN CORRESPONDENT, DAILY TELEGRAPH