Beyond the house of hunger: democratic struggle in Zimbabwe

Abstract

In 1980, after more than a decade of armed liberation struggle, ZANU‐PF took power in Zimbabwe. The new government under President Mugabe became increasingly repressive, seeking to force opposition either into alliance with ZANU, or into silence. This authoritarian process appeared to be culminating in a formal one‐party presidentialist state, de facto one‐party rule having being achieved in the late 1980s. This article describes the process and analyses growing opposition to it, both from within ZANU and from groupings within civil society — notably students, workers, peasant communities, and the petty bourgeoisie. In this section the role of the petty bourgeoisie is examined, especially its private sector component. Part two, to be published in ROAPE 55 describes and interprets peasant discontent and worker opposition.