Tobias Nnabugwu

Lauren Dellasanti

English 111

09 November 2015

Democracy and Institutionalized Dictatorship in Zimbabwe.

Many of the fundamentals of democracy that the people of Zimbabwe desired in their

government can be found within the words of the U.S. Constitution. For example, The right to

self-determination, the right to liberty, right to due process of law, freedom of movement,

freedom of thought, freedom of religion freedom of expression, right to peacefully assemble and

freedom of association. Democracy is the best form of government in the sense that it offers the

people the right to elect those who will represent them in government and also, offer the people

the freedom to exercise their inalienable rights freely, while dictatorship, as opposed to

democracy employs the use of force in the process of governance and does not offer the people

the chance to elect or chose their leader.

As Zimbabwe was declared an independent nation on 18 April 1980, Zimbabweans was

full of hope and eager for the change of attaining independence will offer them after been freed

from the shackle of colonialism. They were passionate and hopeful about adopting democracy as

a form of government that will safeguard their fundamental human rights and make them do

away in their minds the kind of government they were subjected to under the colonial rule. They

craved and desired for this change so much, that they wanted their country for the first time in

history to be ruled by an elected indigenous leader. However, when the desirable is not

available, the available becomes the desirable. Their wish suffered a very serious setback, when

some group of soldiers led by President Mugabe toppled the government through a military coup
d tat thereby establishing an institutionalized dictatorship with the use of force, as a form of

governance to the people of Zimbabwe against their wish. Under this form of governance,

Zimbabweans suffered, human rights were violated, they were oppressed, suppressed,

subjugated, denied of their economic, social and cultural rights and many other atrocities that

comes with administering with force. All these and many other infringements and violations was

what the government of Mugabe brought to people against what they truly desired. In clarion call

for a change and betterment which they anticipated and hoped for they called for referendum for

a change, at the end of the political referendum, they agreed that the best form of government for

their people is democracy and that they want an elected official that is massively elected by the

people to pilot the affairs of their country. Thus, the first presidential election was held on March

28 1990, having Mugabe as one of the contestant emerged as the first elected president of

Zimbabwe. Democracy, as a form of government now institutionalized in Zimbabwe, is therefore

defined as a system of government where the electorates elect those who will represent them in

government. In other words, it is the government of the people by people and for the people. In

this system of government, the people form the basis and the nucleus of governance. A

government where people consent is recognized by those representing them in government. On

the other hands, Dictatorship is defined as a system of government where dictator is at the helm

of affair in the governance of the people dictating and mandating to the people with the use of

force. A dictator employs absolute rule, Undemocratic rule, despotism, tyranny, autocracy and

fascism in the administration of the people. These are the administrative principles that President

Mugabe institutionalized in Zimbabwe against the will of the people. All these as principles, as

identified in Mugabe system of governance, uses force in bringing to bear what the yearnings of
people are. A situation whereby the masses are subjected to whims and caprices of the soldiers

who are acting under the directive of their commander in chief of armed forces.

The United Nations declaration on the Rights of indigenous peoples (UNDRIP) in

articles 3. Indigenous peoples have the right to self-determination. By the virtue of that right,

they freely determine their own political status and freely pursue their economic, social and

cultural determination. This is a right accruable to Zimbabweans under democratic rule and also

many other countries that practice democracy. As the people of Zimbabwe, they desired to have

no interference in any matter that affects them politically, the right to vote and be voted, the right

to freely pursue any matter that affect them economically like the basic economic question that

asks who gets what, how to get it and when to get it. They totally want no form of interference

from the government, whatsoever in making this decision. This is also applicable to the

distribution of their natural resources, the national income of the country and whole lot of other

key economic decisions that affects them. They are continually subjected to the decision made

by Mugabe and his administrators, they lack a voice to echo out their concern about any

economic policy, whether favorable or unfavorable. As we are equally created by God,

democracy should be a system of government that would enable the people to have self-

determination of pursuing their economic, political, social and cultural life without any form of

violation to this right that nature and God endowed for human beings.

Furthermore, when Zimbabweans, thrive and desired to exercise their right to self-

determination they never get to, because of certain restraints and limitations, as they were made

to abide by the government. This right were often violated in such a way that it appears like is

not existence at all. According to US Fed News Service March 2007, two citizens and up to

fifty opposition and civil society members were beaten, detained or arrested when the
Zimbabwean security forces disrupted a peaceful meeting. This and many other ways has been

how this right is often disrupted every time in Zimbabwe. Right of liberty which is simply

defined as freedom to which all human beings are entitled and in whose exercise the government

may not interfere. This right allows one to live life free of government control. This is not to say

that you have to violate the law of the land in the process of exercising this right, you have the

obligations to pay your taxes as responsible citizen of the country and also obey any law that is

applicable to you as a citizen. But the government cant force you to take certain actions against

your will, in the interest of the society at large. The government cannot tell you that you must

vote in a certain way. As citizens of Zimbabwe, they have the right to make up their minds in

issues that affect them and also those that affect the nation of Zimbabwe at large. Indeed, they

were supposed to have this right as stipulated in their constitution, but they have been betrayed,

dejected, oppressed and subjugated by the government of Mugabe who has solely stripped them

of the right that belongs to them as people of Zimbabwe. In universal declaration of human rights

section 3, subsection 1, which stipulates that Everyone has the right to life, liberty and

security. Right to life, liberty and security as a universal declaration entails that all human

beings has these rights, irrespective your race, color or where you are from to exercise this right

without interference. This is to say that the people of Zimbabwe are entitled to this right as well

just because they are human beings but it has often been denied. In 2002, the government passed

the public order and security named access to information and protection of privacy act, this law

was made to protect Mugabe from criticism building on this, he was able to commit more human

atrocities without questioning. The violations of civil and political rights skyrocketed in such a

way
 In event of violation of any these rights, the last hope of the common man is to seek

redress in the court of law following the due process of law. Due process of law is defined as fair

treatment through the normal judicial process as a citizens entitlement. A situation whereby the

right of the people have been violated, the only place they could seek redress is in the law court.

This is not attainable in Zimbabwe at all you will never have the freedom to exercise this right

because people are continually subjected to the dictates of the government of government of

Mugabe. Accept anything that government says or if you dont accept it and chose to oppose the

government, they will come for your life. Is this the government, the people of Zimbabwe

desired, the obvious answer is no, but they do not have a choice to accept it or not. In United

Nations charter, having right to due process of law means that you are protected against abuses

of legal system such as imprisonment without trial, secret trials and excessive punishment. As a

result of this declaration, it permits one to be tried before imprisonment, it permits one to seek

for advocate who will solicits and advocates on their behalf. But in Zimbabwe, a journalist has

been arrested for publishing a newspaper in a southern town without government permission and

was sentenced to eight months imprisonment, several newspapers and radio stations have already

been closed under the Zimbabwe harsh media laws and dozens of journalist have also been

arrested over the past 15 years. This what the due process of law mean to the people of

Zimbabwe when you singlehandedly oppose the government of Mugabe. He will make sure that

he uses the forces available to him prosecute and imprison you at his will.

The people of Zimbabwe have been crying aloud for world intervention in their country

against the government which has institutionalized dictatorship experimenting it with the use of

force in the governance of the people of Zimbabwe. In other to alleviate them from this worst of

form government, the only solution would be the introduction of Democratic rule in Zimbabwe.
A government that will guard and protect their rights and freedom as declared by United Nations.

A government that will enable them elect their leader freely without manipulation, a government

that will them enable to exercise their economic, political, social and cultural rights without any

form of interference. Based on the deprivation, subjugation, oppression, violation that people of

Zimbabwe has endeared under the administration of Mugabe, it is pertinent to suggest that with

the advantages of democracy, as of government, it is unarguably is the best form of government

as opposed to dictatorship which uses force in administration and governance of the people.