The weaponization of the struggle
I took a week-long trip from Mutare, Chipinge, Masvingo and Bulawayo. Ideally, l was doing a dateline for my research on HIV resilience through gender lenses, but l also took time to broaden my mind and visit a few places and tourist attractions. One thing about travelling is that you see the world moving, not in standing still picture.
For a girl who lived in a capital city, who understands the struggle of city life- it was breathtaking knowing our other people were surviving outside the capital city. I always kept my eyes on women farming, women mining, women praying, women walking in town and women selling.
Moving around and capturing those bliss moments made me appreciate our different struggles in life. We might all be affected by the same geopolitical issues, but our efforts are diverse. In Mutare, it was the struggle for growth; in chipinge, it was the struggle for the market. In Masvingo, it was the struggle for gatekeeping, and in Bulawayo, it was a substance competition.
Staying in the city made us believe that we all have the exact cause, but everyone is looking out for their source of breakthrough. The same youths used in Harare to fight the system are the same ones that support and push the system in Masvingo. It is still a fight between the real and the ideal.
I stopped for 1 hour in Chiyangwa ( a mining community) l was asking women how they were surviving, and they metaphorically equated their lives to the diamonds found there. I was told about the fictional story of chiadzwa before the government intervened. And there was always a struggle to get diamonds in exchange for groceries. It was a struggle of who got it first. The operations and weaponization of this mining community led to the death of many people.
While the story of the chiadzwa diamonds remains largely oral, there are undisputed factors associated with the role of the government in the exploitation of these minerals following a struggle for water and sanitation in this area. People would walk from churumhanzu by foot in search of diamonds. Before the government weaponized diamonds, the people’s struggle was who sold it first to Roy.
The rise of the “Gwenja” vocabulary ( illegal small miners) tells the soul tale of the weaponization of people’s struggle. The chiadzwa story bleeds with catastrophic memory of pain and death. There is a belief that chiadzwa money is “cursed”; you can struggle to get it, but you will not buy anything meaningful. I guess it’s a psychological issue of a struggle and merry relationship.
Travelling across four provinces has made me appreciate the diversity of what we call struggle, how we have different opportunities and how we utilize those opportunities. My trip has made me understand how powerful people use our struggle as a weapon if we do not fight on our own. It made me question if l know my struggle.
We live in a country characterized by political instability, but what is being used by the bug wigs as a weapon for mass destruction is our struggle. We pay with our blood and sweat for a few to dine. We use our intelligence to build a roof over the king’s men’s heads and exploit our Labour to fend for the princes. It is a power struggle, using vulnerability as the most incredible tool.
Our struggle is our birthright, but powerful allies use our story and pain to capitalize on profit. Passionate people with absolute autonomy and zeal to fight die with perilous honour because the clever have weaponized their struggle. what is your struggle ?…
