Zimbabwe African National Union – Ndonga (ZANU–Ndonga; formerly officially ZANU and unofficially ZANU Mwenje or ZANU Sithole; ) is a minor political party in

Zimbabwe file:Zimbabwe, relief map.jpg, upright=1.22, Zimbabwe, relief map Zimbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Bots ...

. Its members were originally part of

Zimbabwe African National Union The Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU) was a militant socialist organisation that fought against white-minority rule in Rhodesia, formed as a split from the Zimbabwe African People's Union (ZAPU) in 1963. ZANU split in 1975 into wings l ...

, but split with what would become ZANU–PF over tribal tensions. A portion of the party reunified with ZANU-PF in 2015.

History

The

was a political party during the

Rhodesian Bush War The Rhodesian Bush War, also known as the Rhodesian Civil War, Second as well as the Zimbabwe War of Independence, was a civil conflict from July 1964 to December 1979 in the List of states with limited recognition, unrecognised country U.D.I. ...

, formed as a split from the Zimbabwe African Peoples Union. Its founders were the Reverend Ndabaningi Sithole and Herbert Chitepo, who were dissatisfied with the militant tactics of Nkomo in ZAPU. After Chitepo's

assassination Assassination is the willful killing, by a sudden, secret, or planned attack, of a personespecially if prominent or important. It may be prompted by political, ideological, religious, financial, or military motives. Assassinations are orde ...

on 18 March 1975, Robert Mugabe, in Mozambique at the time, unilaterally assumed control of ZANU. Later that year there was a factional split along tribal lines caused the Ndebele to follow Sithole into the moderate ZANU–Ndonga party, who renounced violent struggle, while the Shona followed Mugabe with a more militant agenda. Sithole joined a transitional government of whites and blacks in 1979, led by Bishop Abel Muzorewa. When sanctions remained in place, he joined Muzorewa for the

Lancaster House Agreement The Lancaster House Agreement is an agreement signed on 21 December 1979 in Lancaster House, following the conclusion of a constitutional conference where different parties discussed the future of Zimbabwe Rhodesia, formerly known as Rhodesia ...

in London, where a new constitution and elections were prepared. ZANU–Ndonga failed to win any seats in independent elections that swept Mugabe under the ZANU flag to power in 1980. Declaring that his life was in danger from political enemies, Sithole went into self-imposed exile in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

city of

Silver Spring, Maryland Silver Spring is a census-designated place (CDP) in southeastern Montgomery County, Maryland, United States, near Washington, D.C. Although officially Unincorporated area, unincorporated, it is an edge city with a population of 81,015 at the 2020 ...

, in 1983, returning to Zimbabwe nine years later to re-enter the political arena. Sithole was elected a lawmaker for his tribal stronghold of Chipinge in southeastern Zimbabwe in 1995, as was a colleague. In December 1997 he was tried and convicted for conspiring to kill Mugabe and disqualified from attending the Harare parliament. He was granted the right to appeal, but no appeal was filed. Sithole again won the Chipinge seat in June 2000, as ZANU–Ndonga's only representative. Sithole died on 12 December 2000, aged 80, in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, after going there for medical treatment. ZANU–Ndonga's candidate, Wilson Kumbula, won 1.0% in the March 2002 presidential election. After the parliamentary election held on 31 March 2005, the party remained without parliamentary representation. Along with three other minor opposition parties, ZANU–Ndonga was a member of the Zimbabwe Organisation of Opposition Political Parties. In 2015, some leaders of ZANU–Ndonga reunified with ZANU–PF, and called for supporters to "leave the opposition" and join the newly unified party.

Electoral history

Presidential elections

House of Assembly elections

References

External links

ZANU–Ndonga leader drags 2 officials to court
The Herald September 6, 2007 1975 establishments in Rhodesia Political parties established in 1975 Political parties in Zimbabwe {{Zimbabwe-party-stub