Whose 'unity' are we celebrating?

…..Day raises more questions than answers.

According to Zanu (PF) officials, Zimbabweans should celebrate "Unity Day" on December 22.

They however, fail to explain to us whose unity we are supposed to be celebrating, especially in a nation characterised by state-initiated political polarisation, rising tribal division and a broken-down family circle.

That this "Unity Day" is a child of rape perpetrated by President Robert Mugabe's Zanu (PF) on its erstwhile biggest political opponent, PF-Zapu, further makes its worth as contemptuous as the situation on the very ground it is being celebrated this year. That it was signed with the blood of more than 20,000 innocent civilians whose families have found neither closure nor justice makes it criminal, and that the party presiding over these celebrations is itself reeling under serious internal segmentation makes it paradoxical.

Whose unity are we celebrating when relatives of the 20,000 killed by the Gukurahundi genocide remain weeping and searching for answers? Whose unity are celebrating when, close to three decades after Gukurahundi, relatives are still not allowed to give a dignified burial to their loved ones, who remain buried in shallow graves? Whose unity are we supposed to be celebrating when those who suffered under Gukurahundi are still crying for justice and closure for the genocide? Whose unity are we celebrating when, instead of being brought before the court of law, perpetrators of the Gukurahundi massacre are still wielding the rod and striking into silence those crying out for justice?

Are the people of Matabeleland supposed to celebrate "Unity Day" when Emmerson Mnangagwa, the man who murdered their relatives, has just been rewarded with the second-highest office and is acting President on the day?

Whose unity are we celebrating when the two parties that went into this "marriage of convenience" are in the sixth anniversary of their divorce? Whose unity are we supposed to be celebrating when a simple game of soccer between Highlanders and Dynamos raises tribal clashes that culminate in loss of human life and destruction of property? Whose unity are we celebrating when the people of Zimbabwe are denied the freedoms of speech, assembly, expression and political choice? Whose unity are we celebrating when the hundreds of thousands affected by a humanitarian disaster called "Operation Murambatsvina" are still languishing in abject poverty and with the Operation Garikai houses they were promised still out of reach?

Who can celebrate "unity" when thousands of people in Matabeleland now shout, "ALIQUNYWE!" because their tribal belonging has become a hindrance to them being treated like equal citizens? Can we celebrate "unity" when millions of citizens are out of the country and away from their families because they have been persecuted on charges of terrorism cooked-up just to stop them from participating in opposition politics?

Zanu (PF) might be good at fooling its brainwashed members, but for every rational thinker, this "Unity Day" will remain meaningless till there is justice for Gukurahundi, which should include the jailing or people like Mnangagwa, Perrence Shiri and others who carried out the gory operation. There can be no reconciliation without justice. Zimbabweans will not rest till people like Joseph Chinotimba and Jabulani Sibanda and their cronies are arrested and tried for the murder of five helpless white farmers that were brutally killed during the violent farm invasions of 2000.

A reasonably-minded Zimbabwean will not celebrate "Unity Day" before there is justice for the state-sanctioned murders of Lookout Masuku, Cain Nkala, Learnmore Jongwe, Gift Tandare, Better Chokururama, Tonderai Ndira, Godfrey Kauzani and hundreds of other opposition political activists.

"Unity Day" will remain meaningless till there is closure regarding the disappearance of Patrick Nabanyama and justice for the torture of Solomon Chikohwero, Remember Moyo, Fletcher Dulini-Ncube, Gilbert Moyo, Khethani Sibanda, Mike Campbell, Ben Freeth and Sazini Sibanda. For "Unity Day" to have a meaning, Zimbabweans must first be free to exercise their rights as governed by the constitution, perpetrators of violence must be brought before justice and all those who carried out the brutal "Operation Mavhotera Papi" of 2008 must first be dealt with.

Otherwise, this day shall always arouse negative emotions and further tear Zimbabwe apart, while the suffering masses will always despise the corrupt rich and powerful who lead these "celebrations".

Mxolisi Ncube is an exiled Zimbabwean journalist based in Johannesburg, South Africa. He writes here in his personal capacity and can be contacted on ncubemxolisi90@gmail.com