Hope for us in the Diaspora

A new era dawned when His Excellency the Prime Minister of Zimbabwe, Morgan Tsvangirai became the second African leader to meet President Barrack Obama at the White House in Washington DC. Another milestone for a man who has suffered at the hands of a man he now shares a unity government with. He was labeled a sellout; a puppet of the west, tortured, imprisoned, charged for treason and yet survived and now travels the world as the Prime Minister of Zimbabwe. For some of us who were fortunate to attend the meeting, where he addressed the Zimbabwean community a challenge was thrown at our feet; Zimbabwe needs us all to contribute intellectually, materially and financially.

Some of us have savings yet some of us have nothing, so when the call comes for us to go back home are we ready to make a positive contribution? The unity government has its own challenges we have our own challenges and aspirations. The time has come for us to be doers and not critics without solutions. We need to come together and present ideas that will help our government to encompass our needs, among them a need to have the government provide both residential and business stands for Zimbabweans abroad to invest in our country. We also need to have a safeguard that protects whatever we are taking back in, be it machinery or other assets we need to be exempted from excessive duty. The 19th amendment has allowed an opportunity for those requiring dual citizenship to participate in the process.

Our society in the Diaspora has an equal important role to play for the developments at home. We are hoping the new constitution will provide for us to vote in elections at home. We need to bring these ideas together so that during the process of drawing the constitution we have our input. It is imperative that Zimbabweans in the United Sates at least have an association for our community that will take care of our fellow Zimbabweans here and at home. We have Zimbabweans here sitting pretty and we also have some struggling. An association has an opportunity to bring up issues and solutions as it becomes a link for the community. This has nothing to do with politics it is something we have seen most communities do. We need doctors, lawyers, scientists, nurses, security guards, teachers, and engineers etc to all come together and create our own yellow pages. We need each other and the sooner we do this the better for our country.

It might be far fetched for others but some of us, who dream positively, how about pooling resources and end up owning a hospital in Zimbabwe or a clinic or Lever Brothers? The door for these opportunities has been presented to us and we need to sneak in before someone shuts it. Let us truly become Zimbabweans with a single loyalty. Freedom is not a preserve for a few people it encompasses all. Let us embrace our common denominator, being Zimbabweans first and foremost. We need to remove the colonial mindset that limits us to pulling each other down, but instead take ownership and encourage each other and stand together. If, in the words of the Prime Minister he can share a table with President Mugabe who mistreated him for all we know, and sacrificed a lot so the country can move forward what more can we who were afforded the opportunity in the Diaspora hold us back? I am writing this piece to benefit some of my brethren and sisters who did not get to hear the man speak. It is up to each individual to see how best we can move forward. All ideas are welcome and I will spearhead bringing people together; a coalition for the willing. I can be reached at: jcharliej@yahoo.com.

Food for thought for those with ideas lets crack our heads and create a viable association for our community.

James Charlie
(H) 214-575-5706
(C) 972-480-1584