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2017 Zimbabwean coup d'état

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2017 Zimbabwean coup d'état
Location of Harare in Zimbabwe
Date 14 November 2017 – present (6 years, 7 months and 1 week) Location Harare, Zimbabwe Result Ongoing
Belligerents
Coup soldiers Elements of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces	Government of Zimbabwe and loyal state institutions
Commanders and leaders
Emmerson Mnangagwa Former 1st Vice President Constantino Chiwenga Commander of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces Christopher Mutsvangwa	Robert Mugabe President of Zimbabwe Phelekezela Mphoko 2nd Vice President Sydney Sekeramayi Jonathan Moyo Saviour Kasukuwere Ignatius Chombo

On the evening of 14 November 2017, elements of the Zimbabwe National Army gathered around Harare, the capital of Zimbabwe, and seized control of the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation and other areas of the city. The next day, they issued a statement saying that it was not a coup d'état and that President Robert Mugabe was safe, although the situation would only return to normal after they had dealt with the "criminals" around Mugabe responsible for the socio-economic problems of Zimbabwe.^[1] Jacob Zuma, the President of South Africa, phoned Mugabe and confirmed that he was "fine", but under house arrest.^[2]

The coup took place amid tensions in the ruling ZANU–PF party between former Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa, who was backed by the army, and First Lady Grace Mugabe, backed by the younger G40 faction, over who would succeed the elderly President Mugabe. A week after Mnangagwa was fired and forced to flee the country, and a day before troops moved into Harare, army chief Constantino Chiwenga issued a statement that purges of senior ZANU-PF officials like Mnangagwa had to stop.^[3]

Background

In the first week of October 2017, tensions between then Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa and Grace Mugabe, two leading figures to replace the 93-year old Robert MugabeasPresident of Zimbabwe were prominently displayed in the public sphere.^[4] Mnangagwa, a protege of Mugabe's who had been his ally since the Zimbabwe War of Independence in the 1960s,^[5] said that doctors had confirmed that he had been poisoned during an August 2017 political rally led by the president and had to be airlifted to a hospital in South Africa for treatment.^[4] However, he also pledged his loyalty to the ZANU–PF party and President Mugabe, and said that the story spread by his supporters that Grace Mugabe had ordered the poisoning via a dairy farm she controlled was untrue.^[4]

Grace Mugabe denied the poisoning claims as ridiculous and rhetorically asked "Who is Mnangagwa, who is he?"^[4] Phelekezela Mphoko, the other Vice President of Zimbabwe publicly criticised Mnangagwa, saying that his comments about the August incident were part of an attempt to weaken the country, the power of the president, and divide ZANU-PF, since doctors had actually concluded that stale food was to blame.^[4] On 6 October 2017, Grace Mugabe, went off-script from a planned speech in Harare to attack Mnangagwa, saying that her supporters were constantly receiving threats that if Mnangagwa did not succeed Mugabe, they would be killed, and that the faction backing Mnangagwa was plotting a coup d'état.^[4]

At a rally on 4 November, President Mugabe publicly rebuked Mnangagwa for the first time. At the same rally, Grace Mugabe called him a "coup plotter" and a "coward".^[5] On 6 November, the president fired Mnangagwa.^[5] A statement from Information Minister Simon Khaya Moyo, said that Mnangagwa had "consistently and persistently exhibited traits of disloyalty, disrespect, deceitfulness and unreliability."^[5] Mnangagwa fled the country into exile in South Africa,^[6] but vowed to return and called for members of ZANU-PF to abandon the president.^[3] After his exile, more than a hundred of Mnangagwa's alleged senior supporters were targeted for disciplinary sanctions by backers of Grace Mugabe.^[7]

Mnangagwa's dismissal essentially left Grace Mugabe and her Generation 40 (G40) faction of younger ZANU-PF officials as the only major contender to succeed Robert Mugabe.^[1][3] Mnangagwa was one of Mugabe's last political allies who had stayed with him since independence in 1980, and had the support of several generals in the Zimbabwean army, who had publicly stated that only a veteran of the war for independence – which would rule out Grace Mugabe – should rule the country.^[5] Although Mugabe had depended on support from the military to maintain his rule, in the last few years, he had undertaken a systematic replacement of old veterans from the war of independence in important ZANU-PF party positions with younger officials who did not fight in the war.^[1] This move was seen as risky because Grace Mugabe is a divisive figure in Zimbabwe and does not have much support from ZANU-PF officials from the liberation war era.^[8]

On Monday, 13 November, Zimbabwean army chief General Constantino Chiwenga called a press conference at the military headquarters where he read a statement saying that the army would intervene if their historical political allies continued to be targeted.^[1][3] He called recent events "treacherous shenanigans" and said that the military "will not hesitate to step in" if that was necessary to protect the Zimbabwean revolution.^[1] Chiwenga also urged people to attend the December 2017 ZANU-PF party congress to exercise their democratic rights and that the party had been infiltrated by counter-revolutionaries. He also said that the infighting and purges in ZANU-PF had led to chaos and "no meaningful development in the country for the past five years."^[3] The statement was made with ninety high ranking officers from important units of the Zimbabwe National Army present to present an image of army unity. The statement was originally broadcast on Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation, the state broadcaster, but pulled off the air, though there was no initial official government response.^[1]

Events

On Tuesday, 14 November, military armoured vehicles were spotted on roadways around Harare, the capital of Zimbabwe,^[9] and drove in convoys through the city.^[1] The same day, Kudzanayi Chipanga, the leader of the ruling ZANU-PF party's youth league, which is aligned with Grace Mugabe,^[8] said that the Youth League was "ready to die" to try and prevent the army from deposing Mugabe and choosing a new leader,^[10] and that the generals should retire if they were unsatisfied with Mugabe's rule and wanted to become politicians.^[11] Mugabe attended a weekly meeting of the Zimbabwe cabinet on Tuesday afternoon. In the early evening after the cabinet meeting, Simon Khaya-Moyo spoke for ZANU-PF and accused army chief General Chiwenga of treason and inciting insurrection.^[1][12]

That evening soldiers took over the Harare offices of the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC), the state broadcaster, manhandling some of its employees. Workers at ZBC were later told that they did not have to worry and that the troops were protecting the station.^[9] According to the military, the reason for its actions was because the ZBC had been ordered not to broadcast the military's statement on Monday.^[1]

At 5am on Wednesday, 15 November, Major General SB Moyo, the army chief of staff and an ally of Chiwenga's, spoke on behalf of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces in a broadcast on ZBC.^[8][11][13] Moyo asserted that it was not a military takeover and that President Mugabe was safe. However the statement also said that the military was "targeting criminals" around Mugabe responsible for the country's socio-economic problems, and that after they achieved their aims, the situation would "return to normalcy".^[9][14] Moyo announced that all military leave was cancelled, soldiers should return to their barracks, security forces should "cooperate for the good of our country", and that "any provocation will be met with an appropriate response".^[1] Moyo also said that the independence of the judiciary of Zimbabwe was guaranteed and that citizens should remain calm and avoid unnecessary movement.^[9]

After the speech, the military apprehended Ignatius Chombo, the Zimbabwean finance minister and a leader of G40, the pro-Grace Mugabe faction of ZANU-PF.^[1] According to South Africa's The Times, other cabinet ministers seized who were leaders in G40 include Jonathan Moyo‚ minister of higher education and Saviour Kasukuwere, minister of local governments.^[15]

Also early that morning, gunfire and artillery were heard in the northern suburbs of Harare, where many government officials, including the president, have their residences.^[9] According to Agence France-Presse, a witness heard sustained gunfire near Mugabe's private home in the suburb of Borrowdale.^[1][12] Reuters reported an explosion close to the main campus of the University of Zimbabwe.^[1] Soldiers also blocked access to the Parliament of Zimbabwe, government buildings, courthouses, and the president's official residence in Harare.^[1] It was reported that two journalists were assaulted and hospitalised by the military whilst covering the coup.^[16]

For most of Wednesday morning, state-controlled television and radio stations simply rebroadcast Major General Moyo's statement without further news updates and played patriotic songs about independence from the 1980s alongside normal programming. State-owned newspaper The Herald ran headlines downplaying the military's actions and its website ran a live blog under the headline "Live and developing: No Military Takeover in Zim."^[17][18]

House arrest

Major General Moyo's initial statement said that “Mugabe and his family are safe and sound, and their security is guaranteed", indicating that President Mugabe and Grace Mugabe were likely both under military custody, though no clarifications were initially issued.^[19] South African President Jacob Zuma said that Robert Mugabe had been placed under house arrest by the Zimbabwe military. Mugabe told Zuma in a phone call that he was fine but was unable to leave his home.^[20][21] Sky News reported that there were unconfirmed reports that Grace Mugabe had fled to Namibia,^[2] and The Guardian also cited unconfirmed reports that she was in Namibia, but for a business trip.^[6]

Reactions

Domestic

Nelson Chamisa, the deputy leader of the Movement for Democratic Change – Tsvangirai, the main opposition party in Zimbabwe, called for "peace, constitutionalism, democratization, the rule of law and the sanctity of human life".^[1] Tendai Biti, the leader of another opposition party, said that setting up a transitional government which could engage in dialogue with regional organisations would be integral to a "roadmap back to legitimacy".^[6] Chris Mutsvangwa, leader of the Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association and an ally of Mnangagwa, praised Army General Constantino Chiwenga for "a bloodless correction of gross abuse of power" and hoped that the army would restore a "genuine democracy" and Zimbabwe as a "modern model nation".^[22][23]

African

Jacob Zuma, the President of South Africa, phoned Mugabe and confirmed his house arrest. Zuma also asked for calm and a transition that was in accordance with the Constitution of Zimbabwe. He also sent ministerial-level envoys to talk with the leaders of the Zimbabwe military.^[2][6]

Alpha Conde, the President of Guinea and the leader of the African Union, expressed concern over the military action, which he said was "clearly soldiers trying to take power by force". Conde also called for "constitutional order... be restored immediately" and for "all stakeholders to show responsibility and restraint".^[2]

International

Foreign embassies, including the American, Canadian, British, and Dutch embassies in Harare, issued warnings to stay inside because of the military activity in the city.^[7][8][11] A foreign ministry spokesperson said that a meeting which occurred on 10 November between General Chiwenga and Chinese defence minister Chang Wanquan was innocuous and that China hoped that "the relevant parties in Zimbabwe appropriately handle their internal matters".^[24]

Analysis

Derek Matyszak, an analyst from the Institute for Security Studies, said that it was rare to see tanks on Zimbabwe's roads, and that their mere presence meant that the country was "entering new territory."^[12] According to Nii Akuetteh, an African policy analyst, the army's decision to present its actions as not being a coup was to avoid garnering opposition to their actions.^[25]

See also

• 2007 Zimbabwean coup d'état attempt
• 2016–17 Zimbabwe protests
• 2016–17 Zimbabwe floods

References