“I am not a political shark” says Zimbabwe legislator who has represented three different opposition parties in 20 years

Another stunt, she performed almost a year after the sanitary pads one, was the smuggling into Parliament of a four-month-old baby, King. Her point was simply that, breastfeeding women legislators were being denied the right to participate fully in debates because they could not bring their babies to Parliament and get time and breastfeed them.

“This particular House and this Parliament is not women friendly. Most of these women that you are beginning to see in this House are child bearing and there is nothing here in this Parliament that allows you to bring a baby, be looked after and breast feed,” she told the House after Speaker of Parliament Jacob Mudenda had conferred with her and given her a chance to explain why she had brought in the baby.

“Our Constitution Mr. Speaker makes sure that both men and women have equal opportunity to participate in political activities (but) we are hamstrung by the inability to be able to do so, because we have to look after babies,” she said.

Mudenda responded: “I think it is correct that we do not have provisions or facilities to bring babies here so that those Members of Parliament who are breast feeding and would like to come to the House to debate can do so and go back to breast feed the children within the premises of Parliament.

“I am aware that the labour law does allow, I think extended long leave, maternity leave for parents especially mothers to go and take care of their children. If it is not possible, they can come within the premises but we need to provide for such facilities in future.”

Though she wanted to quit politics because she had done what she could, Misihairabwi-Mushonga, says her biggest disappointment has been the disintegration of the MDC.

Founded in 1999 as a movement for democratic change, taking in trade unionists, civil society, academics and some disgruntled white farmers, the party first split in 2006 after disagreement over whether to participate in the reintroduced Senate elections.

It split again in 2014 after Tsvangirai lost the presidential elections in 2013 but refused to step down to allow what his lieutenants said was a leadership renewal.

Right now the MDC is embroiled in another wrangle over leadership, after the Supreme Court ruled that Chamisa’s appointment by Tsvangirai as a vice-president of the party and his subsequent appointment as acting president were illegal.

The court said Khupe should have taken over pending an extra-ordinary congress and ordered the party to revert to the elected positions of the 2014 congress where Chamisa was reduced to an ordinary card-carrying member before being rescued by Tsvangirai when he appointed him secretary for policy coordination.

“My worst moments are not actually about ZANU-PF,” Misihairabwi-Mushonga said. “My worst moments are about a dream that some of us had from the formation of the NCA (National Constitutional Assembly) pushing for a constitution that had specific values.

“I look at my colleagues we had a struggle with from 1998 and I can’t recognise 95 percent of them. Because ma value systems avo, the way they talk, abuse inobuda mukanwa mavo is just intolerable.

“I could have died for those guys because they represented a different Zimbabwe but aah what I then saw, the positions they now take on certain issues, is so disheartening. Every day things get worse.”

Ed: This interview was conducted last year but was canned  pending The Insider’s membership of the Civil Newsroom.

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