Editing Robert Mugabe (section)

==Biography==
Ideologically an African nationalist, during the [[Cold War]] he identified as a Marxist–Leninist, and as a socialist after the 1990s. His policies have been described as Mugabeism.

Mugabe commonly supported extreme Pan-Africanism by calling for the killing of all whites. He was incredibly corrupt and caused severe inflation, with his policies all but destroying Zimbabwe's economy. He was also guilty of protecting Ethiopian dictator [[Mengistu Haile Mariam]] and [[Protais Mpiranya]], a Rwandan soldier who helped carry out the [[Rwandan Genocide]]. He is thought to have risen to power by fear-mongering and electoral deception.<ref>[https://www.hrw.org/news/2019/09/06/robert-mugabe-leaves-behind-legacy-abuse Robert Mugabe Leaves Behind Legacy of Abuse], Human Rights Watch</ref>

Just hours after he came to power his Presidential Guard started a pre-dawn revenge rampage on his political opponents and used it as an excuse to murder yet more white farmers than he previously had and seize their property. They [[rape]]d as many women as possible, white and black, right in front of their families. He redistributed the seized property and money to lazy, incompetent cronies who promptly killed the farms and plunged the rest of the country into abject poverty while the regime subsisted on lavish foreign aid.<ref>[https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/chronic-cronyism-by-ruling-elite-leads-to-calls-for-widespread-consultation-on-new-constitution-1.1258716 Chronic cronyism by ruling elite leads to calls for widespread consultation on new constitution], ''The Irish Times''</ref>

During his early years in power, he assembled a special forces unit known as the Fifth Brigade<ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/1983/03/06/world/mugabe-s-fifth-brigade-grounded-in-loyalty.html MUGABE'S FIFTH BRIGADE: GROUNDED IN LOYALTY], ''The New York Times''</ref>, which massacred thousands of Ndebele in a series of [[pogrom]]s known as the ''[[Gukurahundi]]'' from 1983 to 1987. This was to punish the Ndebele people for supporting the ZAPU (Zimbabwe African People's Union) over his party, the ZANU (Zimbabwe African National Union) which was mainly supported by the Shona, the ethnic group Mugabe belonged to. If they weren’t killed outright they were sent to [[concentration camp]]s.<ref>[https://www.reuters.com/article/us-zimbabwe-mugabe-violence/mugabes-legacy-thousands-killed-in-rain-that-washes-away-the-chaff-idUSKCN1VR18H Mugabe's legacy: thousands killed in 'rain that washes away the chaff'], ''Reuters''</ref>

These massacres ended when ZAPU leader Joshua Nkomo agreed to merge his party with ZANU to form [[ZANU-PF]] (Zimbabwe African National Union - Popular Front) on 22 December 1987. All Fifth Brigade members were granted amnesty for their participation in the massacres. Although there are different estimates, the consensus of the International Association of Genocide Scholars or IAGS is that more than 20,000 people were killed. The IAGS has classified the massacres as a [[genocide]].<ref>[https://theowp.org/reports/tears-after-the-rain-the-legacy-of-the-gukurahundi-genocide-in-zimbabwe/ Tears After The Rain: The Legacy Of The Gukurahundi Genocide In Zimbabwe], The Organization for World Peace</ref><ref>[https://www.genocidewatch.com/single-post/genocide-watch-country-report-zimbabwe Genocide Country Report: Zimbabwe], ''Genocide Watch''</ref>

Also during his time in an office, thousands of Zimbabweans have been made homeless thanks to a land reform program. He believes LGBT people are worse than dogs and has been called "The [[Adolf Hitler|Hitler]] of Africa", a nickname which he openly embraced.

Having dominated Zimbabwe's politics for nearly four decades, Mugabe is a controversial figure. He has been praised as a revolutionary hero of the African liberation struggle who helped to free Zimbabwe from British [[colonialism]], imperialism, and white minority rule. Conversely, in governance he has been accused of being a dictator responsible for economic mismanagement, widespread corruption, anti-white [[racism]], human rights abuses, and crimes against humanity, so much so that multiple individuals and organizations have lobbied for Mugabe to be brought before the International Criminal Court to stand trial. Australia and New Zealand had previously called for this in 2005, and a number of Zimbabwean NGOs did so in 2006.<ref>[https://reliefweb.int/report/zimbabwe/zimbabwe-icc-prosecution-mugabe-urged Zimbabwe: ICC prosecution of Mugabe urged], ''ReliefWeb''</ref>