By Tatenda Gapa

PAUL CHIDYAUSIKU’S life story is riveting. He is one of the first Shona writers, a prominent journalist of his time, a character who defied as well as challenged the repressive colonial regime using the mighty of the pen and power of his convictions.
Paul Chidyausiku, that great writer, was born in 1927 in Chinamora near Harare (then Salisbury).
A grandson to Chief Chinamora (paternal) and Chief Chiweshe (maternal), the talented writer grew up in Domboshava.
The traits of royal blood flowing in his veins are visible in his writings and sharp wit.
At the ripe age of 90 he has it all and vividly remembers events that have shaped Zimbabwe.
Blessed with a superb intellect that could have made him, had he been a weak character, an efficient tool for Rhodies, Chidyausiku chose to use his skills to champion the cause and rights of his people.
Despite having a good command of the English language, spoken and written, the author chose to express himself in his mother tongue.
Determination and resolve to assert himself as a human being and not a second class citizen saw him being among the first Shona writers to be published in the then Rhodesia.
He was among the first five or so Shona writers to be published in the then Southern Rhodesia.
His writings are deep-rooted in Shona traditions.
A novelist, playwright, poet and journalist, his works have won awards.
Chidyausiku initially went to an agricultural college and taught the subject for many years before he went back to school to train as a journalist at the London School of Journalism, UK.
He worked for Mambo Press as an editor; moved on to the Literature Bureau as an editorial officer. He was later invited to join Zimbabwe Newspapers to pioneer a newspaper in Shona called Kwayedza.
Chidyausiku has nine Shona publications, one of which is a collection of poems.
His writings reflect the pre-occupations of his generation.
Most of the early writers in the Shona language were teachers. Their writings mostly delivered advice on how to live, or how the people lived before the coming of whites and how Africans were expected to conduct themselves in their day-to-day activities.
Chidyausiku is among writers who have fought all their lives to preserve our culture and heritage, especially in the face of the so-called superb Western civilisation that threatens African value and belief systems.
According to Chidyausiku, his interest in writing developed from a culture of reading that was cultivated when he was growing up.
“When I was young I used to herd cattle on my own because my siblings at that time were all girls and I would end up reading lots of literature,” he said.
“When my brothers were born I was already teaching at Makumbi Mission in 1945 and they were too young to make much of conversation with and as a result I found myself reading a lot in the Jesuits library (sic).
“The sisters who I had worked with at Makumbi Mission bought a farm at Loreto in Kwekwe and I began to teach children how to farm. Again I continued reading, devouring anything I got hold of,” he said.
It was during this period that his interest in journalism began taking root.
“While I was at Loreto, I read newspapers that came from African Newspapers in Salisbury and I began to write stories from Midlands, which I sent to them but the paper was later banned by the whites.
“In 1946 The Literature Bureau began to encourage people to write books and so I began writing my first book Nhoroondo Dzekuwanana which got second prize after Patrick Chakaipa’s Karikoga Gumi Remiseve,” he said.
He later left the classroom to further explore his interest in literature.
He joined Mambo Press where he worked as the editor of the Moto magazine, the vibrant publication that was a pain in the backside of Rhodesians.
Founded in May 1957, Mambo Press started off under the name Catholic Mission Press of the Diocese of Gweru.
Back then it was simply envisaged as a publication to supply the literary needs of the local Catholic missions and schools.
The founding staff comprised one priest, one brother, three sisters from Fribourg (Switzerland) and a few untrained young local assistants.
But by the early 1960s the publication was meeting the needs of communities beyond Gweru.
A shift in the thrust of the publication happened in 1962 when Father Mike Traber took over leadership of the publication.
With the banning of the African Daily News in 1964, the national weekly Moto became the only paper delivering stories and events from an African perspective.
According to Chidyausiku, producing the weekly Moto was difficult because of restrictions in terms of content that could be produced.
“I had to write stories in deep Shona to escape censure, raids were frequent at our offices,” said Chidyausiku.
“Once a cartoon was published in the paper, which Fr Mike Traber took the fall for. Fr Traber, who directed the editorial board, was tried and found guilty of subversion in 1969, although the Appellate Division overturned this conviction on a technicality, he was deported,” he said.
Restrictions that were associated with journalism and publishing were quite serious, said Chidyausiku.
“During the liberation war, Mambo Press was bombed for its publications criticising Ian Smith’s government and parts of human bodies were found in the ruins – apparently those who planted the bomb died on the scene.
“Machinery equipment had to be sent from Switzerland for us to resume operations,” he said
Despite the harsh repressive conditions, Chidyausiku sailed through in the journalism industry while simultaneously writing books.
The books he wrote are Nhoroondo Dzekuwanana, Sekuru Mafusire, Nyadzi Dzinokunda Rufu, Karume Kangu, Ndakambokuyambira (a play), Kupai Ikoko, Kuyaruka Kwemukomana, Kuyaruka Kwomusikana, Kuziva Mbuya Huudzwa and an English publication titled Broken Roots.
Today, the prolific writer resides at a plot in Guzha Township, Seke and has written a book on land yet to be published.