Global NewsZimbabwe Opposition Leader Morgan Tsvangirai Dies Aged 65

Zimbabwe Opposition Leader Morgan Tsvangirai Dies Aged 65

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BEVERLY HILLS, February 15, (THEWILL) – Zimbabwe’s main opposition leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, has died in South Africa, a senior official in his MDC party has said.

Tsvangirai, 65, a former prime minister, had reportedly been suffering from colon cancer.

“He died this evening. The family communicated this to me,” MDC vice president Elias Mudzuri revealed.

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His career was marked by a long political struggle against former President Robert Mugabe and he had been beaten and imprisoned numerous times.

Tsvangirai was born on 10 March 1952 in the Gutu area of Southern Rhodesia, one of nine children of a carpenter. He left school to become a textile weaver, but then went to work in a mine in Bindura, 50 miles north-east of Harare.

Tsvangirai became involved in union activities and was elected to the executive of the National Mine Workers Union. When Zimbabwe gained independence in 1980 he joined Mugabe’s Zanu-PF party and rose to become a senior official.

By the late 1980s, he had become head of the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions, which had been set up on independence. As the congress began to break its close ties with Zanu-PF, Tsvangirai found himself at the head of a powerful opposition group.

In December 1997 and early 1998, he led a series of strikes, known as “stayaways”, against tax increases, which brought the country to a standstill which forced Mugabe’s government to cancel two tax rises and to abandon a promised tax to help fund war veterans’ pensions.

Tsvangirai founded the MDC (Movement for Democratic Change) in 2000, repeatedly challenging Mugabe during the ex-president’s long grip on power and was the most effective opposition leader in Zimbabwe since independence.

His greatest strength was his bravery. He risked his life to stand up to the authoritarian rule of Robert Mugabe and his allies in the security forces. He was twice severely beaten for his pains and three times charged with treason.

Tsvangirai was eventually sworn in as prime minister but found it impossible to achieve any meaningful reforms. However he played a part in paving the way for the overthrow of Mugabe in 2017.

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