Keith E Rice's Blog

Random Thoughts of a SocioPsychologist - www.integratedsociopsychology.net

(originally posted 17/04/08)

As the crisis in Zimbabwe worsens and the country slips further into turmoil, Alan Tonkin has forwarded this piece he wrote for the Global Values Network web site he runs. GVN is one of the most advanced projects in the world at using Spiral Dynamics to monitor shifts in societies and assess impacts at national, international and even global levels.

Alan's piece not only presents an incisive analysis; it draws attention to both the very real human tragedies being experienced in Zimbabwe and the dangers which could engulf the region if the country is allowed to implode.

I am honoured to publish Alan's work as a 'guest blog'.

Different Politics - Different World Views                                                    

The issue of the release of the final Zimbabwe Election results is being contested by both ZANU-PF and the Movement for Democratic Change but for very different reasons.  Before going into these reasons one needs to look behind the claims and counter claims in order to more fully understand why there is this dispute.  

Zimbabwe: A Brief Review of Recent History 

Going back over the period following the Second World War, Southern Rhodesia was still a British colony which in 1953 was incorporated into the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland.  Following the independence of both Nyasaland and Northern Rhodesia in 1964 (which became Malawi and Zambia respectively), Ian Smith rejected majority rule and declared independence from Britain in 1965 in order to protect Blue Order 'civilised values'. 

Shortly thereafter both Joshua Nkomo (ZAPU) and Robert Mugabe's (ZANU) forces took to the bush with assistance from Zambia and Mozambique.  The bush war took a terrible toll on the population of Rhodesia in the period leading to the Lancaster House talks in the late 1970's.  It was during this period that Britain put pressure on South Africa to persuade Ian Smith to settle with the nationalists under Joshua Nkomo and Robert Mugabe.

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