WHEN First Lady Amai Dr Grace Mugabe thanked veterans of the country’s liberation struggle for their role in bringing freedom and their ‘suffering in silence’, principally on the issue of their welfare in Chimanimani last week, she straddled into a subject that should, all things being equal, propel Government into action as a matter of urgency.
Almost four decades after the brutal war of liberation that was preceded by ultimate sacrifices from those brave young men and women who braced the inhabitable conditions that characterised taking on the menacing Rhodesians, war veterans are yet to fully benefit from fruits of independence like in other countries where such people are feted like kings and queens.
War veterans are important to Zimbabwe in many ways.
They are a definition of our history.
They are the link to our future.
They are the glue that binds our present.
But the way we have dealt with the issue of their welfare is disappointing to say the least.
We should be ashamed of ourselves.
We should be ashamed that it had to take the usual vocal intervention of Amai Dr Mugabe and Welfare Services for the War Veterans, War Collaborators, Former Political Detainees and Restrictees Minister Christopher Mutsvangwa to wake Government from their slumber over the welfare of war veterans.
War veterans’ silence alone, as Dr Mugabe said in Manicaland, should spur someone to remember these great people.
Probably their silence is why most of them are watching silently as the Zimbabwean story is slowly consumed by the marauding West through their so-called Peace and Security Studies Programme at the country’s universities.
Probably this explains why characters like Jealous Mawarire fail to pre-occupy themselves with Zimbabwe’s real historical narrative such that they audaciously question people like Vice-President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s role in the liberation struggle.
Probably that is why some student at Midlands State University is convinced that the country’s independence was a product of negotiations at Lancaster House in Britain, not the outcome of that protracted war of liberation.
Maybe in their silence, the comrades no longer want to tell us about their ghastly experiences in the bush.
Someone must look into this and urgently do something about it.
Or as is becoming the norm now in this country, we will wait for President Robert Mugabe, his Vice-Presidents or his wife Dr Mugabe to speak first before someone remembers to do their job.
“Ndinodakutenda mawar veterans edu,” said Dr Mugabe.
“Dai vari vanhu vanotaurisa dai nzeve dzedu dzakurwadza nekunyunyuta, asi vanongoramba vakanyarara.
“Ini ndinoti we haven’t done enough for these people.”
Dr Mugabe cannot be the lone voice in this issue.
President Mugabe cannot be the lone voice in this issue.
Christopher Mutsvangwa cannot be the only one clamouring for an improvement into the lives of these people.
Vice-Presidents Mnangagwa and Phelekezela Mphoko cannot do it alone.
It is the collective responsibility of all Zimbabweans to join hands with the aforementioned and contribute to the welfare of our veterans and guardians of the struggle.
Those on the wrong side of history will point out to the fact that ‘something’ has been done before for the war veterans in 1997 when they were given Z$50 000 in gratuities each.
On top of that, they get monthly US$165 allowances, which in all fairness is a pittance compared to the role they played in liberating the country.
Compare this to other countries.
In November 2010, the Namibian Government agreed to pay an estimated 40 000 former liberation fighters about US$2,84 million (N$2 billion) as compensation.
Cabinet approved that the veterans who went into exile between 1988 and 1989 and those who joined the struggle during the same period will receive N$20 000 each.
In the United States (US), several funds for its ‘veterans’ of the Vietnam War have been availed.
“United States military involvement in the Vietnam War officially began on August 5 1964; however, the first US casualty in Vietnam occurred on July 8 1959.
“Approximately 2,7 million American men and women served in Vietnam,” reads the US Government website in part.
“During the war, over 58 000 US military members lost their lives and 153 000 were wounded.
There were 766 prisoners of war of which 114 died in captivity.
The war was officially ended by Presidential Proclamation on May 7 1975.
“Vietnam Veterans may be eligible for a wide variety of benefits available to all US military veterans.
Benefits include disability compensation, pension, education and training, health care, home loans, insurance, vocational rehabilitation and employment and burial.”
In the United Kingdom, war veterans are represented by an organisation called Veterans UK which is part of the Ministry of Defence (MOD).
Veterans UK delivers a life service to both the armed forces and veteran communities.
Around 600 000 individual serving and former service personnel and dependants make up the Veterans UK customer base. These are the end customers of Veterans UK services. This aspect of service delivery can significantly influence the morale and effectiveness of individual service personnel, their dependants and their units.
The scale of delivery is shown in the table below:

Compensation 35 000
Pensions 365 000
War pensions 170 000

Customers include not only individual service people and veterans but also the Services’ Personnel Management Authorities, MOD planning staff and policy makers, a variety of other business areas within defence and other government departments like HM Revenue and Customs, Department for Work and Pensions and the Department of Health
We need to take care of our war veterans in order to protect our history and heritage.
Amai Dr Mugabe’s Chimanimani call for an improvement of the welfare of war veterans should be the starting point.
Let those with ears listen.