Zimbabwe activists capitalise on social media

Evan-Mawarire-and-Patson-Dzamara

Evan Mawarire started #thisflag, but the movement has taken on new life over the past few months.

In a moment of deep frustration this April, Evan Mawarire, a pastor based in Zimbabwe’s capital of Harare, set his camera to record.

Draped in the Zimbabwean flag, the emotional 39-year-old looked into the lens and spoke for over 4 minutes about his weariness at what he saw as the government’s failures and broken promises of liberation.

“When I look at the flag it’s not a reminder of my pride and inspiration – it feels as if I just want to belong to another country,” he said.

As he posted the video online, he could never have imagined the response. Within a day, the video had reportedly been viewed 120 000 times and soon the hashtag #thisflag was trending as other Zimbabweans emulated the pastor in posting their own grievances.

“I was astounded that such a large number of people felt the same way. So many people identified with what I was saying, that our country has let us down,” Mawarire told African Arguments.

However, it did not stop there. With the administration of President Robert Mugabe and the ruling ZANU-PF party tightening its grip on the media recently, #thisflag broke a taboo and soon found itself at the heart of what seemed to be a growing trend of disgruntled Zimbabweans remonstrating, demonstrating and mobilising online.

Later that month, for example, ZANU-PF’s Acie Lumumba opted to air his grievances at being fired from the Youth Empowerment committee under the hashtag #digdeeper. He later resigned from the ruling party and has been posting videos on social media attacking Mugabe and accusing cabinet ministers of corruption.

Meanwhile, other opposition groups such as #Asijiki (meaning ‘we will not back down’) have also emerged in the wake of #thisflag.

Moreover, many of these new groups and movements have not just stayed online but also translated into action on the streets.

In June, for instance, Mawarire led a group of over 200 activists to meet Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe Governor John Mangudya to protest against the introduction of bond notes.

Continued next page

(283 VIEWS)

Comments

No comments yet. Why don’t you start the discussion?

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *