365 Days of incarceration: Daylight raping of justice.

Solomon Madzore

365 days ago, heavily armed policemen pounced on the Youth Assembly President Solomon ‘Mandela’ Madzore’s residence in Waterfalls-Harare, rounded him and subsequently locked him up. The President joined 28 other party members, leaders, human right activists who had already been toiling under political persecution-tortured and grossly ill-treated. 

Today, the Youth Assembly, the Party, Human rights activists and the nation at large, bemoan the gross injustices, human rights abuses and heartless torture that the Glen View 29 have gone through for over a year now. 

World over, political persecution of opponents has been a renowned characteristic of clueless dictators who would have fast fallen out of favor with the masses- yet history has shown us that those would be the tertiary symptoms of the imminent departure of fascist regimes. 

Nelson Mandela in prison

The world icon, Mandela spent 27 years in incarceration in the hands of the brutal apartheid regime, and it fell. Martin Luther Jnr., Mahatma Gandhi, Raila Odinga, Wamba de Wamba among others were all persecuted yet emerged victors over fascisms and dictatorships. 

The brutal Zanu PF regime has tortured, maimed and killed innocent civilians and political activists in their now 32 year power retention quest. President Morgan Tsvangirai has been brutalized, prosecuted but the people have continued to rally behind him and clearly spoken out for change. Nelson Chamisa, Elton Mangoma, Jestina Mukoko, Munyaradzi Gwisai and others, Jennie Williams among other influential activists have suffered regrettable brutality and prosecution in the jaws of the regime. 

Johannes Tomana

The incarceration of the Glen View 29 is a clear case of political persecution meant to send chills of trepidation to the sons and daughters of Zimbabwe. It is an apparent case of aggravated efforts by Zanu Pf to destabilize the Youth Assembly, the Party and the broader pro-democracy movement. The clueless Zanu Pf which has been rejected by the people and has also failed-in fact has no means- to appeal to the peace loving; democracy-thirsty citizens of Zimbabwe has shown its desperation and resorted to violence, terror and persecution to prolong its stay in power. 

The Youth Assembly would like to painstakingly affirm that its foundations remain strong and will continue to demand justice.  Their rights to fair trial, personal liberty, and human dignity have been trampled upon. Their freedom from torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment; freedom of movement and residence; have been curtailed. We cannot afford anymore to watch as the fundamental freedoms and human rights of sons and daughters of Zimbabwe are grossly disregarded.

The MDC Youth Assembly would like to demand the unconditional release of these prisoners of conscience and the restoration of their freedoms and rights. Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. 

Justice Now. Justice delayed is justice denied. FREE THEM NOW.

Together to end,building a youth with a difference.

Our Last Mile….

The MDC family celebrated its thirteen years of a focused peoples struggle for real emancipation in Bulawayo at the weekend.

We have come a long..The peoples President.

 

13 years ago, Zimbabweans, tired of a corrupt system of governance, rose up to demand democratic space and seek emancipation. The Movement of the people, the MDC was instituted to spearhead the struggle for change and transformation.

The road behind has been bumpy, crooked yet the sons and daughters of Zimbabwe have endured. The Youth Assembly would like to applaud the broader membership for remaining focused and vigilant.

The movement has over these thirteen years brought together the working people, the students, the peasants, women, residents, academics and beyond – to further the pro-poor agenda through disciplined pursuit of social democracy. This has seen the party strongly pursuing a people driven constitution agenda since 2000, with a historic mobilization for the rejection of an imposter document. The party has genuinely pursued this agenda to the level of producing a people’s document that is set to be tabled to the stakeholders soon.

The pursuit of the real change and the people’s emancipation agenda has seen the party peacefully participate in elections against the non-tolerant culture from thick skinned Zanu Pf, ultimately winning parliamentary majority and the presidential election in the 2008 plebiscite. The Youth Assembly greatly acknowledges and salutes the role that the young cadreship of the party has played and would like to wish even stronger hearts as the struggle enters the last mile. The assembly salutes and draws inspiration from the real change heroes- Learnmore Judah Jongwe, Tonderai Ndira, Youth Commander Chikadaya, Better Chokururama among others who have sacrificed life and limp in pursuit of the vision of the movement and the people of Zimbabwe.

Let there be PEACE....

The people’s movement has encountered several challenges along the way-internal and external, which the movement perseveringly turned into stepping stones. The movement proudly stands today as the largest party in the country.

The mile ahead is indeed a mile crammed with crucial events that are going to craft the trajectory to the nation’s destiny. The people of Zimbabwe have laid their voice regarding how they want their country to be governed in the historic people driven constitution making process, which the assembly will mobilize for cementing in the coming referendum. The youth assembly will scale up the “My Voice is in. My Vote is yes” campaign against all odds.

 It is the young people’s obligation in this last mile to stand up, act and take charge of their own destiny. An opportunity to transform the nation to a new democratic Zimbabwe we have been fighting for the past 13 years is here. The Assembly would like to challenge young people to register to vote, to go out in their numbers to vote and to be prepared to go out en-mass to defend their vote.

A New Zimbabwe is within reach.

Our Era is now. Let’s do it now to shape our own destiny.

Together to end,building a youth with a difference.