Dumiso Dabengwa (6 December 1939 – 23 May 2019) was a

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Mozam ...

an politician. He served as the head of

Zimbabwe People's Revolutionary Army Zimbabwe People's Revolutionary Army (ZIPRA) was the military wing of the Zimbabwe African People's Union (ZAPU), a Marxist–Leninist political party in Rhodesia. It participated in the Rhodesian Bush War against white minority rule of Rhodes ...

(ZIPRA) intelligence during the

Rhodesian Bush War The Rhodesian Bush War, also called the Second as well as the Zimbabwe War of Liberation, was a civil conflict from July 1964 to December 1979 in the unrecognised country of Rhodesia (later Zimbabwe-Rhodesia). The conflict pitted three for ...

.Godwin, Peter. ''Mukiwa: A White Boy in Africa'', 2005. Page 331.

Political career

During the Rhodesian Bush War the white minority nicknamed him the "Black Russian" because he trained in

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

. From 1992 to 2000 he served in the government as Minister of Home Affairs, and in 1991 he was appointed to the chair of the

Matabeleland Zambezi Water Project The Matabeleland Zambezi Water Project (MZWP) is an ambitious project being undertaken in the arid Matabeleland North province of Zimbabwe.The project seeks to end the perennial water shortages bedevilling Zimbabwe's second city of Bulawayo by brin ...

. From 2003 to 2010 he was placed on the

United States sanctions After the failure of the Embargo Act of 1807, the federal government of the United States took little interest in imposing embargoes and economic sanctions against foreign countries until the 20th century. United States trade policy was entirely a ...

list. Dabengwa ran as a ZANU-PF candidate for a seat in the House of Assembly from Nkulumane in the 2000 election, but was defeated by

Movement for Democratic Change Movement for Democratic Change or MDC may refer to: * Movement for Democratic Change – Tsvangirai (MDC–T), the former main opposition party in Zimbabwe ** Movement for Democratic Change – Tsvangirai Congress 2006, the second MDC–T congres ...

(MDC) candidate

Gibson Sibanda Gibson Jama Sibanda (1944 – 24 August 2010) was a Zimbabwean politician and trade unionist. He was a founding member of the Movement for Democratic Change and at the time of his death was the Vice-President of the faction of the Movement for Demo ...

. Dabengwa said that the MDC would have won even if its candidate was a donkey. He was again defeated in the March 2005 parliamentary election. He served as a member of the ZANU-PF Politburo,Cris Chinaka
"Mugabe bruised, not beaten, by defections"
Reuters (''IOL''), March 4, 2008. but he announced his support for the opposition candidacy of

Simba Makoni Simba is a fictional character and the protagonist of Disney's ''The Lion King'' franchise. Introduced in the 1994 film ''The Lion King'', Walt Disney Animation's 32nd animated feature, the character subsequently appears in '' The Lion King II ...

in the March 2008 presidential election at a press conference in

Bulawayo Bulawayo (, ; Ndebele: ''Bulawayo'') is the second largest city in Zimbabwe, and the largest city in the country's Matabeleland region. The city's population is disputed; the 2022 census listed it at 665,940, while the Bulawayo City Council cl ...

on March 1, 2008. A spokesman for Mugabe said that Dabengwa's defection to Makoni was unimportant, claiming that Dabengwa did not command any support. It was reported that Mugabe had offered to appoint Dabengwa as Vice-President following the election as the replacement for

Joseph Msika Joseph Wilfred Msika (6 December 1923 – 4 August 2009), was a Zimbabwean politician who served as Second Vice-President of Zimbabwe from 1999 to 2009.Sydney Kawadza"VP Msika dies", ''The Herald'', 6 August 2009. Early life Msika was born in ...

, but that Dabengwa had declined the offer. Following the election, although no official results were immediately announced, Dabengwa said in April 2008 that Makoni's campaign had accomplished its mission by preventing either Mugabe or Tsvangirai from winning a first round majority; he opposed holding a run-off and favored the formation of a transitional government of national unity followed by a new election. He was critical of Mugabe, saying that he was too old and should make way for younger leadership, but also criticized Tsvangirai, comparing him to former

Zambia Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most cent ...

n President

Frederick Chiluba Frederick Jacob Titus Chiluba (30 April 1943 – 18 June 2011) was a Zambian politician who was the second president of Zambia from 1991 to 2002. Chiluba, a trade union leader, won the country's multi-party presidential election in 1991 as t ...

and saying that a Tsvangirai victory would have been celebrated by the whites.

Zimbabwe African People's Union

Dabengwa was the leader of the revived

Zimbabwe African People's Union The Zimbabwe African People's Union (ZAPU) is a Zimbabwean political party. It is a militant organization and political party that campaigned for majority rule in Rhodesia, from its founding in 1961 until 1980. In 1987, it merged with the Zimba ...

(ZAPU), which is currently separating from the unity accord of 1987. He was a candidate of ZAPU for

President of Zimbabwe The president of Zimbabwe is the head of state of Zimbabwe and head of the executive branch of the government of Zimbabwe. The president chairs the national cabinet and is the chief commanding authority of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces. The in ...

during the 2013 general election. He moved out of ZANU-PF together with Benny Ncube, whom they had trained together during the armed struggle.

Treason charges

In 1982 Dabengwa was charged, with

Lookout Masuku Lieutenant General Lookout Khalisabantu Vumindaba Masuku (7 April 1940 – 5 April 1986) commanded the Zimbabwe People's Revolutionary Army (ZIPRA), the militant wing of the Zimbabwe African People's Union (ZAPU), during the Rhodesian Bush War ...

and four others, of treason by the

Mugabe Robert Gabriel Mugabe (; ; 21 February 1924 – 6 September 2019) was a Zimbabwean revolutionary and politician who served as Prime Minister of Zimbabwe from 1980 to 1987 and then as President from 1987 to 2017. He served as Leader of the Z ...

administration. They were acquitted due to lack of evidence in 1983. On release they were redetained under emergency regulations. At this time the

Gukurahundi The ''Gukurahundi'' was a genocide in Zimbabwe which arose in 1982 until the Unity Accord in 1987. It derives from a Shona language term which loosely translates to "the early rain which washes away the chaff before the spring rains". During ...

began. Dabengwa was released four years later.

Post script

During the launch of his childhood friend

Jill Baker Jill Baker (born 1952) is a British actress who has worked extensively in theatre and television for 50 years. Personal life Baker is a graduate of the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School. She and actor Bob Peck were married for 17 years, from 19 ...

's Book, The Horns, Dabengwa admitted that not only had he encouraged her to write this historical novel, but he was also the alter ego of her character Jabu.https://www.jillbakerauthor.com/rip-dumiso-dabengwa

References

External links

* http://www.zapu.org/index.php {{DEFAULTSORT:Dabengwa, Dumiso 1939 births 2019 deaths Northern Ndebele people ZANU–PF politicians Zimbabwe African People's Union politicians Government ministers of Zimbabwe Zimbabwe People's Revolutionary Army personnel Zimbabwean military leaders Zimbabwean Marxists People acquitted of treason Deaths from liver disease