Father Zimbabwe: Media, Memory and Joshua Nkomo

Abstract

This chapter looks at the struggle over the memory of Nkomo in Zimbabwe’s history through the lens of the press, both private and state media. He posits that whilst the state media sought to overlook the controversies surrounding the relationship between Nkomo and the ZANU PF government, the private media effectively promoted debate on and about his life pointing to his treatment at independence as demeaning. The private press thus questioned the choice of the selection of makers of his statue, the place to erect his statue and what it meant to the state vis-`a-vis what it meant to the veteran nationalists’ supporters. This chapter is focused on the immortalisation of Nkomo into Zimbabwe’s cultural landscape. The immortalisation of Nkomo can shade light on the complex nature of nationalism in Zimbabwe.