Protests and Repression Returns to Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe was rocked by protests in mid-January in the most significant public display of dissatisfaction with the government of Emerson Mnangagwa. Mnangagwa you will remember deposed longtime Zimbawe ruler Robert Mugabe in a coup in November 2017  -- an this past summer he further ensconced himself in power through an election in which he was declared the winner.    The proximate cause of these protests were a sudden increase in the price of fuel. The government's response was exceedingly violent and repressive. Thousands of people are now languishing in jail.   On the line with me to explain what caused these protests and why the once promising reign of Mnangagwa is now looking more and more like a facsimile of the Mugabe era is Mako Muzenda.    Mako Muzenda is a freelance journalist from Zimbabwe. --and I have had the pleasure of editing her contributions to UN Dispatch. She is currently finishing her post graduate work at university in South Africa, which is where I caught up with her for this episode.       We kick off discussing the fuel tax hike that lead to these protests before having a longer conversation about the ups and downs of the Mnangagwa era in Zimbabwe.