Dear Friends,
I have just finished celebrating the inauguration of President Barack Obama by watching it on television with my family. On a day when there is so much gloom in my beloved Zimbabwe - the legacy of decades of oppression - I found the entire occasion uplifting and inspiring. Today offers a beacon of hope for those of us throughout the world who are struggling against tyranny.
I was privileged to be present at the Democratic Convention in Boston in 2004 when Barack Obama first came to the attention of the international community. He delivered a stirring speech which had the refrain "Hope is on the way" repeated throughout. I was so inspired by that speech that I kept one of the placards handed out during the speech which bore that phrase and to this day it adorns the door of my study. It has served as a constant reminder to me during the last 4 bleak years that hope is indeed on the way. The events of today are a powerful confirmation of that promise.
Almost 45 years ago one of my most revered heroes Martin Luther King Jr. in his "I have a dream" speech delivered from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial said:
"With this faith we will be able to we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day".
Zimbabweans identify with those words - for Martin Luther King's dream is our dream. Our nation has been in a state of extreme despair and pessimism for many years. We all long for a radical transformation of our great Nation - we long that fear, repression, intolerance, hate, callousness and suffering will be replaced by joy, liberty, tolerance, respect, compassion and hope.