Just a personal thought: There is merit in the fight for rights and freedoms of people of Matabeleland but there is absolutely no justification in bashing all ethnic Shona people. There is merit in some people from Matabeleland advocating for a separate state but expecting such a state to be exclusively Mthwakazian and exclude Shona people is delusional (if not bigoted) and unacceptable.
The rights and freedoms of Mthwakazi people are not mutually exclusive of the rights and freedoms of ethnic Shona people. Rights and freedoms for all will be attained through fighting repressive policies and attitudes propagated by the Shona-dominated political system driven by a deranged government but never by exorcising the region of Shona people.
It is the system that is at fault and it is that system that requires an overhaul. Dare I say that beneficiaries of the system are in the minority (some are Mthwakazian!) while the victims who make the majority of all ethnic groups.
A distinction has to be made between Shona people and a Shona-dominated government that has legislative powers. The Shona-dominated government by definition includes a minority of Mthwakazians who have served that government willingly and have not necessarily improved the lives of all Zimbabweans, including residents of Mthwakazi. The ordinary Shona people (who make the majority) are just as powerless as Mthwakazians, they have little influence on a government that has no respect for election outcomes.
I accept there will be many approaches in the fight for the rights and freedoms of Matabeleland and all stand an equal chance of sending a message to the government. However, I doubt that bigoted views of an exclusive state will gain the vital support of the international community. If a Jewish state is unacceptable what makes a Mthwakazian state any different? An intolerant state can hardly be democratic; such a state will not meet the desires for freedom of expression craved for by many in Matabeleland.
MTHWAKAZI INDEPENDENT 