Chinese political schools for Zimbabwe

By Lance Guma

2 August 2006

In the beginning it was buses, aeroplanes and broadcasting equipment but now Zimbabwe can expect the setting up of a ‘political school’ thanks to a visit by a group of Chinese academics. Led by a Professor Xie Chuntao, it did not take long for the Chinese delegation to convince Zanu PF officials that brainwashing Zimbabweans via a special school that would teach party ideology was the best way forward. Those might not have been the actual words used but analysts point out that this is the ultimate aim behind political commissar Elliot Manyika announcing the move.

Party cadres would be taught the country’s history alongside the same lines as what the Communist Party of China (CPC) does in China. According to the Herald ‘academics from CPC are in the country and delivered a lecture yesterday to Zanu PF provincial political commissars, students from tertiary institutions, war veterans and other stakeholders.’ Manyika is quoted as saying Zimbabwe would draw on the experiences of the CPC to set up the school and critics say this points to increased autocratic rule by Mugabe’s government. Zanu PF has already appointed a 10-member committee to draw up the framework for setting up the school.

A similar project under the youth ministry saw the setting up of the notorious youth militia or ‘green bombers as they are known and this was also under the pretext of teaching national values. Graduates from these camps went on to beat up opposition supporters in the run up to several elections. The BBC also carried a documentary exposing how some of the youths are taught how to torture or even kill government opponents. Recently the youths have been deployed at all major border points to search Zimbabweans for what the Reserve Bank says is ‘excessive’ amounts of Zimdollars outside the country.