Identity and the Genocide That Did Not Happen: An Analysis of Two Zimbabwean Plays 1983: Years Before and After and Speak Out!

Abstract

Between 1983 and 1987, three years after Zimbabwe gained independence from Britain, there were disturbances in the Ndebele dominated Matabeleland and Midlands provinces, resulting in the massacre of an estimated 20,000 unarmed civilians by an elite armed unit sent by the newly elected democratic (Shona dominated) government. This has become known as the Gukurahundi. The atrocities ended with the signing of the Unity Accord in 1987; however, the Gukurahundi issue has remained sensitive, due to the official silence on this painful period, which has lasted many decades. Victims and families in this community have been given no closure. This article examines the portrayal of identity/genealogy issues by two stage plays: 1983: Years Before and After and Speak Out! The view that we take is that theatre offers a map of individual and social experience that provides a tapestry of the people’s suffering, pain, concerns, hopes, and aspirations. We observe that the plays under study grapple with issues of identity emanating from the undocumented deaths and disappearances of people during the Gukurahundi, whose effects manifest today in the lives of the survivors and children of victims, through failure to obtain birth certificates and identity documents, and through an identity crisis. We conclude that theatre has provided an avenue for the victims of the Gukurahundi to share their experiences and to protest against their continued marginalisation.