Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe on Sunday issued an unprecedented appeal for an end to politically and racially driven violence in Zimbabwe, as the nation marked 30 years of independence.
“The leadership of the inclusive government urges you to desist from any acts of violence that will cause harm to others and become a blight on our society,” the president told a packed football stadium in Harare. “As Zimbabweans, we need to foster an environment of tolerance and treating each other with dignity and respect irrespective of age, gender, race, ethnicity, tribe, political or religious affiliation.”
Mugabe — at 86 Africa’s oldest leader — has been isolated by the international community, which blames him for much of the political turmoil that has wracked the country through its recent history.
The Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), the former opposition party that has partnered with Mugabe’s ZANU-PF in a fragile power-sharing government, welcomed the speech.
“Those positive statements are half the journey,” MDC spokesman Nelson Chamisa said. “The other half is going to be action on the implementation to make sure that there is no violence.”
However, Lovemore Madhuku, chairman of the pro-democracy National Constitutional Assembly, accused Mugabe of “posturing.”
“He is very good at that,” Madhuku said. “His political culture is well-documented. He uses violence and this statement today cannot be said to be a change of heart. He wants to pretend he is against violence, but of course none will believe that.”
The National Sports Stadium in Harare was awash with the green, yellow, red, black and white of the Zimbabwean flag, but participants wore normal street clothes after a warning earlier in the week that political gear and party regalia would not be allowed.
Some in the crowd waved placards with messages that read, “Zimbabwe at 30 — back to glory,” “We are our own liberators” and “1980-2010: In defense of independence, freedom and our heritage.”
Mugabe arrived at the stadium to loud cheers and lit an “eternal flame” of independence before delivering his speech.
In a rare public show of unity, Zimbabwean Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, the MDC leader, smiled and shook hands with Mugabe when he arrived. However, he did not participate in the ceremony, leaving center stage to his partner in a power-sharing arrangement his party has said is unworkable.
Fanuel Chikwakwaire, a jobless 30-year-old from Glen View township, called for a change in leadership after three decades that have seen Mugabe dominate the political landscape.
“On this day I am hoping for change, especially for the president,” Chikwakwaire said at Sunday’s ceremony. “He is not going to go on and on. The talks must end now so we can vote.”
The main event was bookended by an all-night concert on Saturday and a football game between Zimbabwe’s two biggest teams on Sunday.
Mugabe, a former guerrilla leader, was hailed as a hero when he led Zimbabwe to independence in 1980 from the white-minority Rhodesian regime, but Zimbabwe, once considered a regional model of stability, has endured a spectacular economic collapse as Mugabe has retained a stranglehold on the presidency.
Mugabe fell out with his Western allies following land reforms in 2000 that saw militant ZANU-PF members seize land from white commercial farmers, often violently.
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