MyWellesley
Give

Shingirai Taodzera, The Rooster falls, and The Crocodile rises: Zimbabwe’s militarised transition and prospects for the future

November 8, 4:30pm, Knapp Atrium, located on the lower level of Pendleton East

Zimbabwe’s long serving dictator, Robert G. Mugabe fell in an unprecedented, bloodless coup in November 2017, having been in power since 1980. The Zimbabwe Defence Forces (ZDF), led by the current vice president General Constantino G. Chiwenga replaced Mugabe, nicknamed Jongwe (The Rooster) by his supporters with his protégé, the current president, Emmerson D. Mnangagwa, popularly known as “The Crocodile”. Mnangagwa subsequently won a controversial election on 31 July, and took his oath of office on 26 August after the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) lost a Constitutional Court petition to have the results nullified. For some, his rise to power provides an opportunity for political and economic recovery in Zimbabwe, while others remain sceptical of Mnangagwa and the ruling ZANU PF coalition’s ability to effect real change. This talk provides an analysis of this military-backed transition, and what it means for Zimbabwe’s future.

Shingirai Taodzera
Shingirai Taodzera

Shingirai L. Taodzera is a Zimbabwe-born political scientist, international development specialist, PhD Candidate in International Development and Trillium Scholar at the University of Ottawa. He is a visiting fellow with The Freedom Project.