2016 Zimbabwe protests
| 2016–17 Zimbabwe protests | |||
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Zimbabweans protesting in Cape Town, South Africa in support of the 2016 Zimbabwe protests taking place in Zimbabwe at the time.
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| Date | 6 July 2016 – 21 November 2017 | ||
| Location | Zimbabwe; cities across South Africa, England, United States, Australia, Canada | ||
| Caused by | Corruption, hunger, late payment of civil servants' salaries, economic repression, police brutality | ||
| Goals | Firing corrupt ministers, the removal of police checkpoints, paying civil servants on time, stopping the introduction of bond notes, regime change, release of arrested activists, stopping police brutality | ||
| Methods | Civil resistance, demonstrations, protest marches, rioting, picketing | ||
| Resulted in | Robert Mugabe resigns as President of Zimbabwe following the military takeover of the country | ||
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The 2016–17 Zimbabwe protests began in Zimbabwe on 6 July 2016. Thousands of Zimbabweans protested government repression, poor public services, high unemployment, widespread corruption and delays in civil servants receiving their salaries. A national strike, named "stay-away day," began on 6 July and subsequent protests took place across the country and diaspora.
The Zimbabwean government blamed Western governments for the protests and were accused of blocking social media such as WhatsApp from 9am until 11am on 6 July 2016 to prevent people from gathering to protest.
On 18 November 2017, anti-Mugabe solidarity protests were held in Zimbabwe and other countries, following the military takeover of the country on 15 November. On 21 November, Robert Mugabe sent a letter to Zimbabwe's Parliament resigning the presidency.
The economy of Zimbabwe began shrinking significantly around 2000, following a series of events and government policies such as the fast-track land reform programme and the 1997 War Veterans' Compensation Fund pay-out. This led to hyperinflation, devaluation and the eventual collapse of the Zimbabwean dollar, high unemployment and general economic depression over the course of sixteen years.
The 2009 collapse of the Zimbabwean dollar led to the government's adoption of the US dollar and the informal adoption of other currencies (e.g. the South African rand and the Botswana pula). However, due to US dollars becoming scarce in circulation, to address the shortages, the government announced that it would issue its own notes known as "bond notes" that would be equivalent to US dollars. This led to widespread voiced resistance and campaigns by Zimbabweans around the country, fearing the return of the Zimbabwean dollar.
On 19 April 2016, Pastor Evan Mawarire posted an influential Facebook video calling for reform. The video begins with Mawarire stating, "I'm not a politician; I'm not an activist... just a citizen". As the emotive music plays, Mawarire wears the Zimbabwe flag and goes through each colour of the flag's stripes: "They tell me that the green is for the vegetation and for the crops. I don't see any crops in my country." He then returns to each colour again, stating how each colour should be an inspiration: the green "is the power of being able to push through soil, push past limitations and flourish and grow." He ends the viral video by promising to stop standing on the sidelines and start fighting for his country. From 1 May to 25 May, Mawarire headed an online campaign in a series of videos over social media, urging Zimbabweans around the world to wear the Zimbabwean flag around their necks and speak-up against the government.
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Wikipedia