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Gukurahundi
Part of aftermath of the Rhodesian Bush War
Location
Zimbabwe
Date
3 January 1983[1] – 22 December 1987[2][3]
Target
Ndebele and Kalanga peoples
Attack type
Pogrom, torture, indefinite detention, mass murder
Deaths
2,000–20,000[4]
Perpetrator
5th Brigade of the Zimbabwe National Army
Motive
Racism, crushing dissent to the Mugabe regime
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The Gukurahundi was a series of mass killings in Zimbabwe which were committed from 1982 until the Unity Accord in 1987. The name derives from a Shona-language term which loosely translates to "the early rain which washes away the chaff before the spring rains".[5]
During the Rhodesian Bush War, two rival nationalist parties, Robert Mugabe's Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU) and Joshua Nkomo's Zimbabwe African People's Union (ZAPU), had emerged to challenge Rhodesia's predominantly white government.[6] ZANU initially defined Gukurahundi as an ideological strategy aimed at carrying the war into major settlements and individual homesteads.[7] Following Mugabe's ascension to power, his government remained threatened by "dissidents" – disgruntled former guerrillas and supporters of ZAPU.[8]
ZANU recruited mainly from the majority Shona people, whereas ZAPU had its greatest support among the Ndebele and Kalanga peoples. In early 1983, the North Korean-trained Fifth Brigade, an infantry brigade of the Zimbabwe National Army (ZNA), began a crackdown on dissidents in the Matabeleland North, Matabeleland South, and Midlands provinces, home of the Ndebele and Kalanga. Over the following two years, thousands of Ndebele and Kalanga were detained by government forces and either marched to re-education camps, tortured, raped and/or summarily executed. Although there are different estimates, the consensus of the International Association of Genocide Scholars (IAGS) is that more than 20,000 people were killed. The IAGS has classified the massacres as a genocide.[9]
^Stiff 2004, pp. 181–228.
^Sithole 1991, pp. 143=152.
^Mashingaidze 2005, pp. 82–92.
^"Ghosts of Gukurahundi still haunt survivors, as Zimbabwe officials refuse to acknowledge". 12 March 2019.
The Gukurahundi was a series of mass killings in Zimbabwe which were committed from 1982 until the Unity Accord in 1987. The name derives from a Shona-language...
and oversaw the Central Intelligence Organisation. His role in the Gukurahundi massacres, in which thousands of Ndebele civilians were killed during...
Union (ZANU) to form ZANU–PF after an internal military crackdown called Gukurahundi in western Zimbabwe, mostly on ethnic Ndebele ZAPU supporters. He was...
almost all based in camps around Lusaka, Zambia.[citation needed] The Gukurahundi (Shona: "the early rain which washes away the chaff before the spring...
Nkomo's Zimbabwe African People's Union (ZAPU) also deteriorated. In the Gukurahundi of 1982–1987, Mugabe's Fifth Brigade crushed ZAPU-linked opposition in...
1980, Zimbabwe initially made significant economic and social progress, Gukurahundi was a series of alleged massacres of people inhabiting areas largely...
States to release "all diplomatic and intelligence cables relating to the Gukurahundi massacres" of Zimbabwe and to explain the U.S. decision "to remain silent"...
1985 election. As Defence Minister he was involved in the notorious Gukurahundi Genocide against the Ndebele people, although he issued a number of conflicting...
Bulawayo Chairman refuses to sign Gukurahundi petition, 31 October 2006. ZimDaily Shamuyarira under fire over Gukurahundi, 11 March 2006. New Zimbabwe. Why...
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civilians accused of supporting "dissidents" in what came to be called Gukurahundi. Meredith asserts that this far exceeded anything that had occurred during...
struggle and later for his role in uniting ZANU and ZAPU, which ended the Gukurahundi massacres. After his death, Mugabe called him a "rare gift to the nation...
He is known for calling on the Zimbabwean government to recognize the Gukurahundi genocide. In particular, he has also asked for the return of cattle seized...
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counter-revolution being planned by Joshua Nkomo. Tsvangirai would later use Gukurahundi against ZANU and to drum up support in Matabeleland. Tsvangirai has periodically...
Holodomor / genocide question Massacre of Arabs during the Zanzibar Revolution Gukurahundi Massacres of Hutus during the First Congo War 2023 Israeli genocide accusation...
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witnessed some of the most traumatic events of his life, including the Gukurahundi massacres in 1984. These horrific acts, which targeted Ndebele-speaking...
he led the organizations effort's to document and put and end to the Gukurahundi massacres, perpetrated in Matabeleland by forces directed by Prime Minister...
Lancaster House Agreement December 1979 British Dependency 1979–1980 Zimbabwe 1980–present Gukurahundi 1982–1987 Second Congo War 1998–2003 Coup d'état 2017...
around Matabeleland. The Matabele unrest led to what has become known as Gukurahundi (Shona: 'the early rain which washes away the chaff before the spring...
Holodomor / genocide question Massacre of Arabs during the Zanzibar Revolution Gukurahundi Massacres of Hutus during the First Congo War 2023 Israeli genocide accusation...
Holodomor / genocide question Massacre of Arabs during the Zanzibar Revolution Gukurahundi Massacres of Hutus during the First Congo War 2023 Israeli genocide accusation...
and British High Commissioner to Nigeria. "Sir Martin Ewans". The Times. 25 April 2012. "Gukurahundi era diplomat dies". The Zimbabwean. 10 May 2012....
Holodomor / genocide question Massacre of Arabs during the Zanzibar Revolution Gukurahundi Massacres of Hutus during the First Congo War 2023 Israeli genocide accusation...
test to see if they were loyal to the revolution.: 12 For the party, Gukurahundi, a Shona word which literally means "the early rain which washes away...
(19 May 2015). "Zimbabwe: new documents claim to prove Mugabe ordered Gukurahundi killings". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 1 February 2024...