Shoot the archer not the arrow

Crucial to addressing challenges is having the right diagnosis. The selective justice, inept governance structures, social and economic inequalities experienced in Zimbabwe have their foundation in tribalism; tribalism determines who gets what, when, and how. If we want to rid ourselves of injustice, we must be rid of the root cause of it – the idea of tribe and the tribalized thinking that activates it and the social norms, systemic patterns and social structures it creates.

Fighting tribalism is dependent on our ability to recognise and respond to its root causes. We must come to the realisation the roots are in us, embedded in the tribalized thinking and belief system that all of us possess to varying degrees. Our view of difference is more tribal than substance based. We need to confront the tribalism in us so that policies we put across do not emerge from tribalized thinking and become part of the problem they are trying to solve.

The first corrective step is the acceptance that we all have weaknesses, and that we all play a part in manufacturing the idea of tribe and maintaining the tribalized belief system that shapes our responses to ‘difference’. We invest more time in articulating our differences, justifying who is (and isn’t) included in our definitions of tribalism instead of exploring how underlying beliefs in different tribes remain embedded in our worldview.

It is essential to build an anti-tribalism movement that would not only eliminate the perceived importance of tribal identities or reverse the damage tribalism is causing but also develop governance systems better prepared to advance the interests of everyone.

We must be clear that tribe is an idea not a fact; there is no biological validity – there is no gene pool common to any so-called ‘tribal group’; it is disheartening that tribe remains one of the most powerful organising ideas in our society, profoundly influencing people’s choices, opportunities, access and experience of human rights.

Like race, tribe, as conceptualised today, must be understood as a classification system that emerged to morally justify European slavery and colonialism, oppression, and discrimination. Tribe has been misused by tribalists to dehumanise certain population groups, deprive them of opportunity, strip them of their rights and maintain inequalities. Moral superiority is a critical component in this conception of tribe.

Creating effective anti-tribalist systems and institutions requires a balanced approach to the identification of issues, setting of goals, identification and evaluation of alternatives, selecting the best options and implementation and monitoring policy.

We must be honest and willing to learn, analyse and understand the foundations of challenges facing society at individual, structural and institutional level.

An anti-tribalist society requires a commitment by all to confront tribalism at individual, structural, and institutional level. We need genuine commitment to understand what the problem is and call it out. Tribal supremacism is the reason Zimbabwe is hurting everyone. People need to call out tribalism whenever they witness it, suspect and experience it. Tribalism causes trauma and pain to communities who are subject to tribal bias, and it is the responsibility of society to provide tools that promote an anti-tribalist society.

Focusing only on the symptoms of tribalism such as inequity in society is nothing but a distraction from real solutions. Such focus conveniently avoids tackling the foundation of tribalism; it does not want us to know the disease because when we know the disease we will fix it and there is no political capital in that.

We must raise our tolerance threshold of discomfort to deal with tribalism. If we are too uncomfortable to confront tribalism lurking in us, it becomes impossible to interrogate the causes of inequality beyond our comfort zone. What we end up with is finger pointing and piecemeal efforts that, instead of tackling tribalism, target victims of it – locating the problem with those who are tribalized, and projecting a symptomatic approach preoccupied with celebrating cultural differences, symbolic solidarity, and initiatives to improve representation without relocation of real power.

Our focus must not be the deficiencies of people but that of policy. We need to see the causal factors behind the struggles of people. Tribalism is structural and institutional, it is systematic, and these must be the focus of all solutions. To ensure anti-tribalism activities are relevant and effective in eliminating tribalism in our society, we must be comfortable to question our individual roles in perpetuating tribal inequality in our social, economic and political structures.

Tribalism is the root of Zimbabwe’s challenges and an anti-tribalism approach is required. Anti-tribalism is the realisation that we are not free of tribal prejudices and a commitment to fight tribalism wherever we find it, including in ourselves. There must be commitment to take an anti-tribalist approach across all governance structures. We must move away from a system that, through tribal loyalty, imposes perpetrators of injustice to be judges in their own cause. Power must be decentralised, devolved from the State to communities, and communities must be co-authors of protection measures against tribalism.