Geography and People •Zimbabwe is landlocked nation

• Goods must be sent through neighboring nations, usually Mozambique

•Mild climate, wet and dry seasons

•Produces cash crops like tobacco and cotton, food crops like corn

•Suffered from drought only in 1980’s

•Mineral deposits such as chromium, coal, copper, nickel, and gold

•Ethnic breakdown-80% of people are Shona 19% are Ndebele (ehn duh BEH leh) each with own language Whites, Asian and people of mixed race make up rest

Road to Independence• Used to be center of an ancient gold-trading kingdom

• 1890’s British built a colony in what is today Zimbabwe

• British called their colony Rhodesia after Cecil Rhodes

• Thousand of white settlers migrated there

•

• In the 1960’s as other nations were becoming independent, Britain took steps toward having Rhodesia have black majority rule. White Rhodesians objected and were determined to hold onto power even though they made up less than 5%

• In 1965, they issued their own declaration of independence, which other nations did not recognize.

•United Nations condemned actions of white-led gov’t – called on member nations to stop trading with Rhodesia

•By 1970’s, several black nationalist groups launched a guerilla war to win freedom

•Fighting continued through the decade claiming 20,000 lives

•Finally, both sides agreed to negotiation

•1980- Rhodesia was renamed Zimbabwe – nationalists achieved their goal

Rebuilding the Nation

• Leader of independence struggle- Robert Mugabe formed a gov’t

• Mugabe urged blacks and whites to work together to rebuild the nation

• Number of protections included in constitution for white minority

• Zimbabwe becomes multi-party democracy

Economic Development• Best land in Zimbabwe belongs to about 4,000 big

farmers, most white • About 7 million black farmers are crowded onto rocky,

dry land• Under a 1992 law, gov’t started buying land to transfer to

peasants• Tensions rose because white landowners objected to

having to sell their land at prices set by gov’t • Today gov’t controls large degree of economy in

Zimbabwe

Land Ownership Today

• 2000: 4,000 whites own 70% of prime land

• 1890-1980: Black peasants were moved to less fertile areas during the colonial area

• March 2000: "War veterans" occupy white-owned farms

• 2000-2002: Several white farmers and black workers killed during violence

• 9 August 2002: 3,000 white farmers must leave their homes

• Agricultural production has plummeted. Starvation

Inflation

• Hyperinflation results in the $10 million banknote (Feb. 2008)

• A roll of toilet paper costs $145,750 — in American currency, about 69 cents.

• Zimbabwe's $500 bill is now the smallest in circulation.

• by November 2008 Zimbabwe's inflation had reached 85 000% which is almost the same level that the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) reached in November 1993 (91 253%).

Politics Today• Election held Saturday, March 29, 2008

– Robert Mugabe vs. Morgan Tsvangirai• As of right now Tsvangirai appears in lead• Rumor is 84 year old Mugabe might be declared

winner – might lead to uprising

Mugabe

Tsvangirai