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The Conservative Alliance of Zimbabwe was the final incarnation of a party formerly called the '''Republican Front''' and prior to that the Rhodesian Front . In the immediate post-independence period, the party sought to promote the position of Whites In Zimbabwe and did not initially seek support amongst other ethnic groups. However, CAZ played an indirect role in the formation of a broad-based political movement, the Movement for Democratic Change ( MDC ), that would maintain multi-party democracy in Zimbabwe.African Studies : Opposition Politics in Zimbabwe WHITE POLITICS - POST INDEPENDENCE White politics in Zimbabwe immediately after independence were mainly involved in contesting 20 reserved "white roll" seats in the Zimbabwe parliament, although some whites joined ZANU (PF) . The RF party remained under the dominance of Ian Smith who insisted on keeping its identity as a white party concentrating on issues of importance to whites. The RF and later CAZ did not contest common role seats in either 1980 or 1985. The inadequacy of this as a political strategy quickly became apparent. Most of the sitting RF MPs in the 1980 to 85 parliament either became independents or defected to ZANU. Smith's response to this in the 1985 general election was to mount a campaign against the defectors and RF (now renamed CAZ) succeeded in winning 15 of the 20 white seats. Rhodesia and Zimbabwe election results The white seats in Parliament were abolished in 1987, although CAZ continued to enjoy limited representation at municipal level. By that time, white led civic groups such as the CZI (Confederation of Zimbabwe Industry) and CFU (Commercial Farmers Union) were openly supporting ZANU. The adherents of the former Rhodesian Front now had no obvious political purpose. But, they were politically astute (having been the governing party for 20 years) and were well resourced. Whites In Zimbabwe controlled critical areas of the national economy. White farmers assumed the character of a "landed gentry" and were able to exercise much influence over the black workers on their estates. Whites were a coherent group who could act together to achieve a political purpose. In the new Zimbabwe, conservative white farmers suddenly found a great deal in common with white liberals and civil rights activists. (Zimbabwean MP and white farmer) with fellow MDC members]] Whites In Zimbabwe sought to preserve their position in the country by supporting democracy, civil rights, the rule of law and through opposition to the arbitrary transfer of property through Land Reforms . This was quite a transformation from the position that most whites had taken in the period before independence. The whites became very active in Zimbabwean opposition politics. The ending of reserved white seats in Parliament and the merger of ZANU and ZAPU in 1987 created a situation in which Zimbabwe began to move towards being a one-party state. The leading opponent of this was initially Edgar Tekere who formed the Zimbabwe Unity Movement party (ZUM) to contest elections in 1990. However, ZUM made only limited progress. People had little confidence in Zimbabwe’s political parties which were widely seen as opportunistic and faction ridden. Instead, opposition was channelled through civic groups such as the CCJP (Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace) and the ZCTU (Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions). In July 1992, and ZANU-Ndonga . It was also attended by ZUM and ZCTU. The Forum For Democratic Reform and the Forum Party (incorporating CAZ) emerged from this. The Forum Party (lead by former Chief Justice Enoch Dumbutshena ) made little initial impact, coming third place in the 1995 elections with 6% of the vote. Forum attracted support mainly from whites and urban middle class blacks - having an ideological base too narrow to appeal to a mass electorate. However the concept of a broad-based, non-ethnic opposition movement was born. This eventually lead to the launch of the MDC at Rufaro Stadium on 11 September 1999. By the late 1990s, Zimbabwe was experiencing a variety of economic, social and political problems. The nation needed a change of direction and opposition elements (including the white community) sensed an opportunity. 2000 ELECTION The General Election Of 2000 saw the first seriously contested general election in the country since 1962. The MDC came very close to winning it, securing almost half of the 120 elected seats in Parliament. MPs elected included several whites. FOOTNOTES |
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