EFF STATEMENT ON ZIMBABWE INDEPENDENCE DAY
18 April 2016
The EFF celebrates and congratulates the people of Zimbabwe on the occasion of their 36th Anniversary of Colonial independence. Today, 36 year ago the Zimbabwean people ended a century of colonial rule, as well as racist and segregationist white minority rule. For the first time since the 1880s, a government constituted by the people, in particular indigenous and natives people of Zimbabwe was formed, headed by President Robert Mugabe.
Zimbabwean independence represented an important step forward in the attainment of the African Revolution. From Cicil Rhodes to Ian Smith, Zimbabweans lived under the wreath of racist anti-black government and white minority whose entire basis was denial the humanity of Africans. The colonizer dispossessed then of their lands and wealth, turning the native Africans into a hated, defeated and despised race.
We celebrate the resilience of the people of Zimbabwe who from the day Cecil Rhodes set foot in Zimbabwe, together with the British South Africa Company, have been resisting colonial rule. We celebrate the many heroes and heroines who fought in the insurrection wars of the late 1800s in the Matebeleland Rebellions. We celebrate the second Chimurenga of 1964 to 1979 that ultimately led to independence.
Zimbabwe remains an inspiration to the South African liberation struggle in particular the lesson that without the land, decolonization is incomplete and a social time bomb. With all its weaknesses, Zimbabwe stood the test of time regardless of being isolated by world big forces (through sanctions) for its insistence on returning the land to its native populations. Today, many Zimbabwean black families own and work their lands, something many in the continent do not share.