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Zimbabwean state media has been known to portray the long-serving President as a superhuman who has remained unscathed by the ravages of age. Rumours of his failing health have often been downplayed by narratives of him being as “fit as a fiddle.” This myth of the indefatigable Mugabe was dealt a blow when in February 2015 he fell to the ground in...
Citations
... At least 20,000 civilians were reportedly killed in the operation (CCJPZ 1999). President Mugabe later described that period as a 'moment of madness' (Siziba and Ncube 2015). All the incidences of the Gukurahundi brutality towards civilians happened under the command of General Mujuru. ...
The military remains active in Zimbabwean politics, yet military practices within and outside the barracks have received scant attention, especially regarding how the military sustains political parties in power. This article argues that the military is the power behind the survival of the Zimbabwe African National Union – Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) as a political party. Understanding the Zimbabwe military requires a detailed understanding of its relationship with ZANU-PF, but also of the ways in which the military’s economic interests inform its deep involvement in politics. The Zimbabwe military produces a political threat and then seeks to protect against the same threat it created within and beyond ZANU-PF. However, the relationship between ZANU-PF and the military is deeply rooted in history and determines the political path of the party. There has never been a period in which the military has been the apolitical and professional organisation which orthodox theories of its role would suggest.
... However, while continuing to ask "Murisei President" (How are you feeling, president?), Platinum appears to insinuate the President's ill health, which led him to visit doctors in Singapore and other countries on several occasions. While Mugabe himself and the state-controlled media have always portrayed him as a superhuman who remained largely "fit as a fiddle" despite his old age, his fall at the airport in full view of the public and cameras confirmed his failing health and questioned popular narratives of his invincibility (see Maringira and Gukurume 2022;Siziba and Ncube 2015). ...
Dancehall music in Zimbabwe has become a very popular genre among urban youth. Since its emergence, this localised music genre has reconfigured urban public culture in complex ways. Drawing on popular musical forms (Zimdancehall), this article examines how urban youth use this musical genre to articulate and express their frustrations, grievances, and everyday existential struggles. This article critiques popular songs and lyrics of selected young Zimdancehall artists to show how their musical discourse can be viewed as alternative discursive spaces of counterhegemonic narratives and a critique of the excesses of the post-colonial state. I argue that Zimdancehall music has become a space where young people simultaneously articulate and navigate their existential frustrations and waithood. While marginalised from mainstream socio-economic and political processes, and detached from the corridors of power, young people use music to speak truth to power. They sing about their anxieties with the socio-economic and political injustices metaphorically and creatively. I assert that through music, young people have found a way of (in)directly addressing the political elites who are complicit in their everyday existential struggles. I argue that Zimdancehall lyrics should be read as ideological texts which articulate a specific type of being and becoming, epitomised by the politics of suffering and smiling.
... In West African countries where coups have been rampant, satire in post-coup and authoritarian regimes, has been credited for being 'iconic tools in the hands of society's subalterns, used to caricature those in power, subvert authority, and, in some instances, empower themselves' (Obadare, 2009: 245). In nation-states like Zimbabwe, memes and other satirical forms are instrumental in circumventing stringent media laws that prohibit people to directly ridicule the power bloc (Manganga, 2012;Mboti and Tagwirei, 2014;Msimanga et al., 2021;Siziba and Ncube 2015;Tshuma et al., 2021). In South Africa, scholarly work on satire has largely been on the representation of racial relations in post-Apartheid South Africa and the use of pornographic satirical humour in South Africa's body politics (Mpofu, 2019). ...
This paper critically explores the use of satire and humour by fast-foods outlets in South Africa and Zimbabwe to advertise and market their menu through digital media platforms, Facebook and Twitter. Using Nando’s South Africa and Mambo’s Chicken, in Zimbabwe, as case studies, we examine how satire and humour are used as advertising strategies, and as a reflection of these countries’ economic and political environments. Consumers are overwhelmed with information coming from different sources such as Television, radio, newspapers and Internet. The paper’s theoretical approach is gleaned from advertising and satire. We argue that through their encounter with food, consumers tend to understand the reason behind their ‘empty stomach’, and mediate on prevailing socio-political and economic issues.
... Located within the protest paradigm, most of these studies have chronicled how in addition to entertaining, music functions as critical commentary about poor governance, deteriorating standards of living and various social ills afflicting post-colonial Zimbabwe (Benyera 2015;Chitofiri, Mutasa, and Gwekwerere 2017;Dube and Ncube 2019;Guzura and Ndimande 2015;Makina 2009;Mano 2007;Vambe 2000). Other studies have investigated how the medium of satire expresses the resilience and resistance of the subaltern masses to the oppressive hegemony of the power bloc (Kuhlmann 2012;Siziba and Ncube 2015;Willems 2011). Similarly, some empirical works have studied how this logic of protest manifests within the domain of theatre productions (Chikonzo 2016;Chivandikwa 2012;Mpofu and Moyo 2017;Nenjerama and Sibanda 2019). ...
ABSTRACT
Drawing on theorisations of popular culture as a site of cultural
hegemony and Bourdieu’s sociology of taste, this paper is an
analysis of social media discourses about Skhosana Buhlungu’s
song Dlala ntethe. Our main thesis is that the song became the
locus of expression and contestations about ethnic identity. We
demonstrate how the song, like all forms of popular culture,
became implicated in the ideological battle for cultural
hegemony in a highly ethnicised Zimbabwean society. The paper
is based on purposively sampled Facebook and Twitter posts
gathered via manual web crawling using the hashtags #Dlala
ntethe and #Ntethe. A thematic analysis of the data reveals that
aesthetic endorsement of the song became a marker of ethnicity.
Findings demonstrate that taste for Dlala ntethe was
subordinated to the logic of an essentialist Ndebele ethnic
solidarity. Additionally, it emerged from the analysis that when it
was expedient to do so, Ndebele identity was framed as a fluid
cultural construct that is conferred or revoked depending on
one’s disposition towards Dlala ntethe. Relatedly, debates about
the aesthetic quality of Skhosana’s music reveal an ethnic double
standard where similar musical offerings by Shona and South
African musicians are not subjected to the same standard.
... Memes have become part of social media activism and political dissent across the world as some of the research (Shifman 2014;Siziba and Ncube 2015;Bayerl and Stoynov 2016;Makombe and Agbede 2016) referenced in this discussion shows. This also applies to Zimbabwe where, as alluded to earlier, memes have become an online and social media phenomenon and a common tool that ordinary Zimbabweans have utilised to critique state narratives and those in power. ...
... In this analysis, I consider how police as agents of state repression are imagined and represented in the created memes. The selected memes rely heavily on humour which, as observed by scholars (Knobel and Lankshear 2007;Shifman 2014;Siziba and Ncube 2015;Bayerl and Stoynov 2016;Makombe and Agbede 2016;Onanuga 2020), is a key component in memes. I therefore focus on how ordinary Zimbabweans made sense of police brutality and created their own meanings out of published photos of police who were violently dispersing protesters, by creating memes and eliciting laughter and pleasure from the memes. ...
... The humour and memes analysed in this article can thus be classified under what Taecharungroj and Nueangjamnong (2015) term "aggressive humour memes" and define as memes involving the creator describing "other people in a negative manner such as ridicule and mockery" (294). I therefore concur with Siziba and Ncube (2015) who, taking their cue from Scott (1985), identify satirical memes as forms of invisible power deployed by the weak to challenge and resist the state's official narratives about those in power. However, I go further than Siziba and Ncube and read satirical memes as instruments of power for the subordinated, who demonstrate how they are better placed to see through the vices and follies of the "powerful". ...
Zimbabwean state leaders have resorted to violent repression of mass protests to secure power. Mass protests, peaceful or not, have turned out to be too risky and impermissible despite the Zimbabwean constitution legalising peaceful protests. This article focuses on the Zimbabwean experience of violent repression and draws on the brutal experiences of protesters at the hands of the police on 16 August 2019. The principal focus of the article is on how ordinary Zimbabweans responded by creating and circulating satirical memes on social media, utilising humour to critique and ridicule police brutality. The analysis is informed by Scott’s concept of the weapons of the weak, the views of Barber on popular culture, by Fiske on popular pleasure and Mbembe on the commandement. I also draw from ideas on the concept of laughter and/or humour posited by Bakhtin, Singh and Taecharungroj and Nueangjamnong. I argue that laughter drawn from satirical memes offers comic relief to a people who have gone through violent repression. It is also a tool that empowers them to make meaning of police brutality, to expose the police’s vices and follies, and to condemn and show resentment towards state and police excesses.
... Memes are created and manipulated images by people using applications and 'provide an ideal social media tool for responding to current events through humor' (Ross and River 2018: 289). This article argues that studies on memes and health communication are scarce, especially from the global South (considering the cases we are focusing on) as scholars have mainly focused on political communication, presumably, because of the volatile political and authoritarian regimes that clamp down alternative views leaving internet memes, satire and humour as an avenue to speak back to power (Siziba and Ncube 2015;Nyamnjoh 2009;Obadare 2009). The study's focus on humour is largely driven by the view that it 'can serve as a unique key for the understanding of social and cultural processes' (Shifman 2007: 187) such as health pandemic. ...
... In Africa, they have been used to comment on electoral processes and politics (Yeku 2018;Uzuegbunam 2020;Adegoju and Oyebode 2015). Humour and memes have been used as a means of silent resistance for Zimbabweans, showing how the indefatigable Mugabe and his character created in state-controlled media could also be critiqued on social media platforms (Siziba and Ncube 2015). Siziba and Ncube (2015) argue that these memes can be identified as significant humorous forms of challenging, rewriting and revealing different truths about Zimbabwe and deconstructing myths surrounding the exaggeration of Mugabe's power. ...
... Humour and memes have been used as a means of silent resistance for Zimbabweans, showing how the indefatigable Mugabe and his character created in state-controlled media could also be critiqued on social media platforms (Siziba and Ncube 2015). Siziba and Ncube (2015) argue that these memes can be identified as significant humorous forms of challenging, rewriting and revealing different truths about Zimbabwe and deconstructing myths surrounding the exaggeration of Mugabe's power. Considering this, memes and the digital space can be likened to politics of performance with an ideological transaction that in turn is used to comment on political processes (Yeku 2018). ...
This article inquires why humour flourishes in face of tragedy. Memes, as we argue, give people a sense of power as they offer commentary that critiques and mocks the government policies and ineptness, simultaneously offering a sense of hope and relief in face of the pandemic. With a focus on the COVID-19 pandemic, this study probed the nature, character and the why of humour in two southern African countries: South Africa and Zimbabwe. Findings show that memes were used to comment on lockdown regulations and speak against public authorities, to raise awareness of COVID-19 and expose poor health delivery systems. Our findings show that memes in South and Zimbabwe were used to bring dialogue about the COVID-19 pandemic and communicate health-related issues.
... The Week also comes in as part of a wider network of different forms of political satire challenging mainstream discourses in Zimbabwe and across Africa. Fictional narratives in the form of memes have been used as counter-discourses to challenge the construction of Zimbabwe's former president, the late Robert Mugabe (Siziba and Ncube 2015). Across the continent, cartoonists have also used nicknames and animal names as counter-discourses to challenge abuse of power by political leaders (Eko 2007). ...
Comparing and contrasting the journalistic routines that manifest in a Zimbabwean political satire show, The Week with Cde Fatso, and those manifesting in content from the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation Television, the study argues that political satire’s alternativeness as a form of journalism lies in its journalistic role performance. By subverting conventional journalistic routines, satire can offer an alternative version of journalism that is overlooked by traditional media due to different forces. Under Zimbabwe’s conditions, The Week has risen to fulfil interventionist, watchdog and civic journalism roles that have been neglected by the national broadcaster.
... However, most studies in the Global South have assessed how satire, memes and humour are avenues for challenging and critiquing the ruling elite (Willems, 2011;Siziba & Ncube, 2015;. These studies are in relation to how humour is oppositional and transgressive in nature and is used as political weapons. ...
... They are a means of silent resistance, take on forms of manipulated videos, phrases images and words (see Siziba & Ncube, 2015, 517-518). They can be used to advertise or commercialise products on social media platforms (Siziba & Ncube, 2015). This performance and playfulness online, particularly through the creation of memes and viral videos, gives individuals the capacity to create and express political and cultural discontent. ...
The world over, by no doubt, came to halt due to coronavirus disease (COVID-19)—the worst pandemic to be experienced in the twenty-first century. The virus was initially reported in late December 2019 in Wuhan, China, and spread across the globe. This pandemic has pushed countries into recessions, forcing sudden severe restrictions and curfews to people’s everyday lives. These restrictions have introduced new social life-styles such as social distancing, quarantining and regular use of hand sanitizers. The virus forced countries, corporate organisations and institutions into a new way of implementing work. Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been the general playfulness about the virus that has seen an outpouring of memes and gags on social media platforms that invite academic scrutiny. In this chapter, we consider how humour has been used as a means of communicating indigenous ways of boosting the immune system and treating COVID-19 pandemic. We consider how memes gave people a sense of power to comment on prescribed treatments for the COVID-19 virus. Findings show that memes were used to challenge vaccines, commercialise indigenous herbs such as Zumbani/umsuzwane and constitute a social commentary on COVID-19 indigenous herbs.
... However, most studies in the Global South have assessed how satire, memes and humour are avenues for challenging and critiquing the ruling elite (Willems, 2011;Siziba & Ncube, 2015;. These studies are in relation to how humour is oppositional and transgressive in nature and is used as political weapons. ...
... They are a means of silent resistance, take on forms of manipulated videos, phrases images and words (see Siziba & Ncube, 2015, 517-518). They can be used to advertise or commercialise products on social media platforms (Siziba & Ncube, 2015). This performance and playfulness online, particularly through the creation of memes and viral videos, gives individuals the capacity to create and express political and cultural discontent. ...
Not only did the COVID-19 pandemic infect large parts of the world’s population, but it also affected the mass media and the internet. The pandemic has gone viral on the internet. On one hand, COVID-19 is frequently concerned with “i-memes”, or social media-based memes (also known as internet memes), a popular form of communication among users. How do these internet memes comment on the COVID-19 pandemic? This question will be answered through influential examples that reflect the crisis discourse. The COVID-19 pandemic also generated viral hoaxes, fake news, misinformation and puns regarding the origin, scale, prevention, diagnosis and treatment of the virus, a phenomenon the World Health Organization describes as “infodemic”. Using a critical review of literature based on a thematic approach, this chapter analyses the common “conspiracy theory” associated with the COVID-19 pandemic circulated on social media platforms.
... However, most studies in the Global South have assessed how satire, memes and humour are avenues for challenging and critiquing the ruling elite (Willems, 2011;Siziba & Ncube, 2015;. These studies are in relation to how humour is oppositional and transgressive in nature and is used as political weapons. ...
... They are a means of silent resistance, take on forms of manipulated videos, phrases images and words (see Siziba & Ncube, 2015, 517-518). They can be used to advertise or commercialise products on social media platforms (Siziba & Ncube, 2015). This performance and playfulness online, particularly through the creation of memes and viral videos, gives individuals the capacity to create and express political and cultural discontent. ...
Is it okay to meme and laugh during the pandemic? What does laughter mean amidst moments of crises? This research explores laughter during health disasters and pandemics. It takes particular focus at the case of listeriosis and COVID-19 which both affected South Africa while only the latter affected Zimbabwe. The comparative study explores the use of memes in the two countries as important tools in health communication revealing, among other things, citizens’ fear of death, despondency as Black Social Media used its digital leisure, spaces and resources to challenge the system, that is, White monopoly capital and industry by critiquing the system via laughter and uncomfortable memes and commentary. Internet memes remain a central language in the digitally colonized space of human communication, and interaction help society critique, question, desensitize, rebel and correct itself. It also allows power to escape, play along or threaten the subjects and citizens, depending on the depth of citizenship in a given state.
