Our Zimbabwe --- April 1980

Our Zimbabwe was won in a hard fought war, in which so many made the ultimate sacrifice. On 18 April 1980, the reins of power were ceremoniously handed over by Britain's Lord Soames to Robert Gabriel Nugabe, at Rufaro Stadium. A legendary reggae star, Bob Marley, sang for us in celebration. We went wild with joy, hope and and expectation when he sang these words, especially composed for us and the World -

Every man got to decide his own destiny

And in this judgment there is no partiality

Divide and rule could only tear us apart

In every man's chest there beats a heart ...

Our hearts were indeed beating strongly, with love for each other, and hope, great hope for a bright new future. And we dared to dream, dream aloud, that our nation would have a future in which we could live out the true meaning of the creed -

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men and women are born equal"              

And we dared to believe ... to believe that we were free ... free from oppression ... free to be who we were ... free to unleash the potential of our people ... and take our place amongst the nations of the World ... as being the great sons and daughters of Africa, most endowed of all continents.

And we imagined that the great bell of freedom would ring ... ring in every village, in every town and every city ... and all of God's children, black men and women, white men and women, brown men and women, Shona and Ndebele, Manyika and Kalanga, Shangaan and Tonga, Nambya and Suthu, Protestant and Catholic, Moslem and Hindu ... all would join hands and sing -

Free at last ... free at last! Thank Almighty God and our ancestral spirits, we are free at last!

But were we ?

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Our Zimbabwe --- 2011

Much has happened since that great day in 1980. Today we have a need to account; to account to God and man, and to those whose blood was spilt to deliver us to freedom.

So in humility, truth and good grace we tell our stories without fear, favour or prejudice.

We tell these stories so that we may know, that the World may know, that our children will know ... what happened to us, to our country and to our hopes, beliefs and dreams.

Now read .... Our Stories

Please tell your story. Note that this site is not intended to promote any political point of view. All stories are welcome provided they are true.

There are many who sincerely beleive that changing from Rhodesia to Zimbabwe was a mistake.
Let us hear their stories as well. 

It is an African tradition to tell stories. The stories are handed down from from father/mother to child and then on to grandchildren. In this way those that follow us know who we were, what happened and where they came from.

We need to write our own history, not let others write it for us.

You may have a story to tell. It may be a happy story. It may be a sad story.

Maybe you feel strongly that you should tell what happened to you or your family during the liberation war. Maybe you actually fought in the liberation war, or helped those who fought? What was it like to have to face the enemy and deal with mujibas?

Maybe you were on the side of Ian Smith? We want to hear from ALL our people.

Did independence bring you happiness in any particular way? Life is full of struggles. Were there any challenges that you faced and were able to overcome in a way that others should know about?

Did you become involved in a way that helped others? Was there something really exciting that happened to you or your community?.

Do you know of someone else whose story is of interest to Zimbabweans or the World? Help them to tell their story.

Maybe you had to leave Zimbabwe. What was your journey like? Did you have to jump a border?

How are you doing in a foreign country? Do you feel that you have your full dignity? Have you experienced xenophobia?

To see how your story will appear, click on the "Our Stories" button at the top of this page.  Or you may want to read an inspiring piece by our very own Tendai Tagarira titled "A Grain of Sand ".