Brightface Mutema
There has been a lot of consternation among the opposition and civic ranks regarding the arrest of the so called pro- democracy and human rights activists. Arguments have been flying to the effect that this was just a complete display of suppression of civic space by President Mnangagwa’s government.
Well, excerpts of the , Center for Applied NonViolent Action and Strategies (CANVAS) basic course workshop held on 15 May 2019 will help the doomsayers revisit their claims. The organisers hid their true regime change agenda under the guise of holding a training workshop under the theme, ‘building unity through articulating a strong vision for tomorrow.’ It is thus important that we help each unpacking the agenda of the workshop for those who are quick to attack government actions.
They intended to come back home and start their anarchist machinations as follows. It was going to be paramount for their operation to succeed that they start by analysing all existing civic society organisations to work and cooperate on the ‘positive social change’ regardless of their different interests or geographic location. What positive social change were they planning to initiate? It was actually a political change mantra that punctuates opposition politics.
As if that was not enough, they agreed to find the ‘smallest common denominator’ that would help forge an alliance and build bonds of unity within the would be actors and various groups standing for democracy and accountability. In this case, it was a crystal clear plan to mobilise different organisations and groups to effect a political change.
It was not by coincidence that Nelson Chamisa reinvigorated his quest and calls for confrontational politics. He knew the ground that he stood on and that his commanders were being sharpened in regime change tactics abroad. Unfortunately to them, the chickens came home to roost as they are now facing serious charges of trying to subvert the government. On the other hand, Chamisa’s flame doused off, he has since gone into the cockpit.
Something fascinating also emerged from the CANVAS workshop that our intelligence section got hold of. It was about a shared vision of a better tomorrow that provided the hope to ‘act’ and guidance for the ‘difficult path’ to come. This again does not need any form of magnification for one to pick that a wave of protests were referred to as the hope to act and a difficult path. History has shown that it is not a troll in the park when one chooses to protest in Zimbabwe, so these so called pro-democracy leaders were equipped with sufficient arsenal to define the trajectory.
One continues to query why at the same workshop, they agreed to create a vision with others which was going to be the bedrock to strong alliances and shared struggle. Massive and clandestine recruitment were going to be rolled out the country and alliance building was going to be strengthened since numbers were vital to start the confrontation with government through waves of violence. An insurrection was on its way and was thwarted at the airport.
Those who criticise for the sake of criticising should be brought to the reality again that the workshop agreed that those civic leaders were to identify key institutions and organisations to influence and sway towards change. They also were tasked to target institutions that support the status quo, that needed to be changed, and also key groups that support change in line with the vision of the movement. Furthermore, to prove the workshop was a springboard to regime change, they discussed how to shift loyalties of status quo supporters so they could be mobilised by the movement.
This piece would help those who came out and are still coming out guns blazing in labelling President Mnangagwa’s administration as toxic to civic space. For you to judge, but in all fairness, the activists deserved the arrests and it is now incumbent to them to clear their names against a pregnant submission of evidence I have just provided.
