Speech byiComrade Robert MugabePrime Minister of Zimbabwe3rd Anniversary of IndependenceApril 18, 1983

Here we are once again joyfullyassembled here and elsewhere tc markthe historic event of our independencewith country-wide celebrations.

This reception here is only a smallpart of those celebrations. I welcomeyou all to this Third Anniversary EveReception which will be followed byother celebrations planned to be heldthroughout the country tonight andtomorrow.

Surely, as we rejoice and enjoy our-selves during these celebrations, wemust also spare some time to spend onthe full meaning and significance ofthis historic event of April 16.

You will no doubt recall that up to1980, our principal political goal wasfreedom and independence. This was sobecause British settler colonialismhad for 90 years imposed upon us an un-just, political order whose value systemwas bedevilled by intolerable imbalancees,inequities and antagonistic contradictions.

The full political and economicrights of the settler minority pittedthemselves against the denial of thoserights to our indigenous majority.Democracy had become supplanted by aracial oligarchy which, by unlawfullysevering its "olonial and constitutionalties with its imperial power, hadsought to perpetuate itself and the in-justice it fostered.

In those circumstances, a nationalarmed struggle, no matter how bitterand protracted, became the only effectivemeans of negating the negative valuesthat had become legitimised by illegalityand establishing a new political orderwith more positive values.

The attainment of independence onApril 18, 1980 became, therefore, botha postulation and vindication of thevalues of a truly democratic politicalsystem. Rejected by us was the conceptnot only of minority rule but alsothat of racial superiority on which itwas based.

Similarly rejected by us was the con-cept of an ethnic political system inwhich race or tribe is projected as apolitical group with separate politicalrights, even though the Lancaster Housetemporary compromise accords the whitecommunity its own separate seats inParliament. Thoroughly rejected byus, therefore, were the concept ofpolitical and racial inequalities.

My party and Government further holdsthat if democracy rejects politicalinequality, it cannot, without contra-dicting and therefore negating itself,at the same time espouse the conceptof economic inequality. Those westerncountries which are in the habit oflecturing us on democracy and civilliberties, must surely first undertakean introspective evaluation of theirown so-called democratic systems which,to some of us, are nothing but a vastfalsity masquerading as a classicalsyllogism of democracy.

It is argued for our logical accep-tance that democracy operates withinthe political order where it concernsitself with rights such as adult univer-sal suffrage (one man, one vote),freedom of speech, freedom of assembly,freedom of religious worship, propertyrights and so on.

It is precisely on the question ofproperty or economic rights thatdemocracy is made to stand on its headin those western countries wherecapitalism is the order of the day.

If democracy has to do with equal rightswhere, I ask, are equal economic rightsunder capitalism? I suppose it would beargued in reply that the opportunityto become a millionaire exists as muchfor the man in Karlem as it does forthe Fords and Rockefellers. Our blackbrother in Harlem, it will be argued, hasthe same opportunity as Rockefeller toacquire property and so emerge as amillionaire.

My party and Government totally reject

this thesis of democracy as an outrageousfallacy completely untenable within thepremises of the syllogism of democracy.To us, therefore, this IndependenceAnniversary must serve as a reminderof our total rejection of capitalismbecause of its incompatibility with ourdefinition and interpretation of truedemocracy, which postulates the theory ofequal political and economic rights.

It should, in other words be an occasionto remind us of our total commitment tosocialism as the only philosophicaldoctrine in - built with a commonsocio-economic denominator capable ofascribing to us the basic economicrights that foster true human equality.

What independence must now mean to usin practical terms is the continuationof that revolutionary process which yieldedit, but in another form, that will seek totranslate it into a political instrumentfor the attainment of those socialistgoals we have set ourselves.

Our beginning has already been made,for the Three-Year Transitional NationalDevelopment Plan, which postulates thegeneral principles of our ideologicaldirection, is meant to chart the nationalpath to those socialist goals: Letit thus always be remembered that whatwe wish to correct is" the inequity yieldedby >;he fact of history namely that, the

ownership of our economic resources gotreposed through conquest into the hands ofa few.

The basic injustice of this unequaleconomic system does not arise fromthe fact that those few are white incolour, although that racial dimensioncertainly aggravates it, but rather fromthe fact that the majority were de-prived and impoverished by the minority.

And so, even if the present whiteowners of property and natural resources,the need for a socialist revolutionwould still remain urgent. A bourgeoisiedoes not cease to be exploitative merelybecause its colour has turned blackor because it is now national ratherthan foreign.

On this subject, I wish to express r.yutter dismay at the bourgeois tendenciesthat are affecting our leadership atvarious levels of Government. When,for example, we established a system oflocal government in both rural and urbanareas, we were of the strong belief thatdemocracy would further be enhanced bygiving power to the people through localcouncils.

But what has our experience been overthe short period of our independence.We have had saddening cases of unscrupulouscouncillors and many mayors motivated by anunparalleled instinct of self-aggran-

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disement and downright avarice abusingtheir newly acquired status by unashamedlyassigning to themselves money-makingcontracts, misappropriating publicfunds, and misusing public property.

In other words, the socialist directionof the party and Government has meantnothing or little to them. Happily,the majority of our councillors andmayors have done well.

But local councillors have not beenour only offenders, for even cabinetministers, with a mere theoretical andthus hypocritical commitment to social-ism have, under one guise or another,proceeded to acquire huge propertiesby way of commercial farms and otherbusiness concerns.

This way, the direction of demo-cracy and socialism is vitiated asthose who should mete out socialjustice to the people and societyturn into a class of avariciousexploiters of the masses and sotraitors to their cause. A wolfein a sheep's skin is certainly worsethan a wolf in a wolf's skin.The latter deceives no one, for theinnocent sheep, will readily recogniseit for what it is. Not so the former.

The task which those of us committedto socialism have in such circumstancesis to uncover those wolves by removingfrom them their borrowed skin sothat they become clearly recognizable

by all of us as ravenous wolvesagainst whom the innocent massesmust be protected.

I speak in this fashion becausethe Three-Year Plan being, as alreadystated, our first real systematicattempt at socialism must not beallowed to fail for lack of commitmentfrom the ministers and other govern-mental and party leaders chargedwith its implementation. I hope,therefore, that the opportunityprovided by the event of our ThirdIndependence Anniversary willenable all of us to re-examine ourselvesand attempt some adjustment orcorrection where our actions havebeen a deviation from the correctsocialist and democratic line.

For all of us however and whetherwe be workers, peasants, militarycadres, students, professional orleaders in Government or in otherspheres, or we are self-employed,the moment also calls for a furtherdedication and for more seriouscommitment to the basic principles ofdiscipline, hard work, loyalty tothe nation, and national unity.

Independence is a political pheno-menon created by our working together,and together we must continue tostrive to make it work by otr servingthe basic principles of our society.

Our first requirement must remain

the peace of our nation. Our nationcannot afford the luxury of banditry anddissident activities. I am inno doubt that, if we all remaincommittee to peace and are unitedir. our efforts to eliminate thescourge of dissidents and bandits in thoseparts of Matabeleland where they are,we shall soon succeed in creating thenecessary peace in th ? areas.

Because of that commitment, govern-ment is continuing its vigorouscampaign of hunting and annihilatingdissidents on the one hand, andpoliticisizing and educating themasses on the other.

In circumstances in which oureconomy has been adversely affectedby world recession and recently bythe worst drought ever, our nationcan ill-afford to be complacent.

This is now the moment for all ourworkers in the various sectors, forthe peasantry hard-hit by thedrought, for all our professionals,and for all arms of Government todecide to enter the forth year ofour independence with a newresolution to work twice harderthan during the year just gone.

Each and everyone of us has a vitalrole to play for we all are linksin the unfolding chain of desiredprogress and advancement. Save thatchain by removing a single link and theprogress we desire is immediatelyhalted or delayed.

The more goods our factories canproduce, the more they will becomeavailable for our local consumption andfor the export market whence ourforeign currency earning flow. Simi-larly, the more agricultural andmineral products we produce, the moregoods we shall have for both our localand external markets, with greaterbenefits accruing to our economyand to the society it serves.

Our fourth year of independencemust of necessity be attended bymore visible signs of transformationin order to give greater meaningto our new political reality.

There must arise more co-operativesnot only in the agricultural sectorbut also in other sectors, involvingfull participation by both thepeasants and the workers. Theremust also emerge more stateenterprises in well-defined areasand sectors, as well as greater stateparticipation in hose existingenterprises.

The role of the workers willcontinue to be enhanced in the dir-ection of his organization, histraining and hisparticipation in themanagement of the enterprises forwhich he works. Social services,such as education, health and socialwelfare, which are earmarked underthe Three-Year Plan for greater ex-pansion and wider application, willcontinue to receive special emphasis.

Whatever plans we have will actuallydepend for their success on thefinancial resources available to us,the quantity and quality of skilledmanpower at our disposal, the technologywe can muster, and the determinationand will of our people to advance them-selves through hard work and the spirit ofof self-reliance.

Yes, we are now three years old, butlet us account fcr it through ourown actions and perseverance bothas a nation of individuals.

I believe we have done well, as thePresident will, in his speech tellus. Let us now proceed into our fourthyear of independence more determined tosucceed in our various walks oflife as a nation.