As a Zimbabwean native, I grew up fully aware there were certain things that couldn't be said in public no matter how opinionated or educated you were.
The only way some intelligent folks, especially social commentators like musicians, would break this taboo was through the use of hidden language like satire, metaphor, irony and so on. But the fact is, no one would know exactly what these artists meant. It was all about assuming that maybe he meant this individual or a certain organisation, but in truth, those sensitive subjects remained untouched. Everyone was just smart enough to save their day by censoring themselves, simple as that.
Social networks, Facebook at the fore, are changing this. From the interactions currently taking place on the social networking site, it's clear Zimbabweans are coming out of their shells and opening up in public, especially on political issues - something no one would have dared, say two years ago.
There are two particular Facebook accounts which have prompted me to pen this piece - Baba Jukwa and Amai Jukwa. One would assume these two are a couple judging by their names, but the content found on these accounts will make one think otherwise. The two accounts are vehicles being used to drive home political messages, be it propaganda, doctrine and so forth.
On the one hand, there is Amai Jukwa (presumably the wife), who posts pro-Zanu-PF material. On the other, there's Baba Jukwa (the husband), who posts opposite views, mostly pro the opposition party MDC (Movement for Democratic Change). To date, the Amai Jukwa page boasts 18 416 Facebook likes, while 2 432 people are said to be talking about it on the social network. The opposition page, Baba Jukwa, which was formed well after the Amai Jukwa page in March this year, has garnered 80 056 likes, with 18 397 individual talking about it.
Overcoming taboos
I am particularly interested about Baba Jukwa, not because of my political inclinations, but because of the way the page has broken tradition by talking about things that were considered revered in the past.
There is also some mystery surrounding the creator of this page, for no one really knows who the real Baba Jukwa is, with reports saying Zanu-PF officials are really keen to establish the identity of this character. This is mainly because some of the information posted on the page includes personal details like phone numbers and e-mail addresses of the politicians that he will be exposing. He also posts some intricate details of the alleged rot within Zanu-PF, meetings within the party, as well as the party's presumed strategy.
Everyone was just smart enough to save their day by censoring themselves, simple as that.
In one post, Baba Jukwa says: "Thanks for the technology, if you are trained hacker like me you can manage to get any information you want at any minute; hence I am saying that no one will ever dare publish his or her hands on me. I am also 10 000 steps ahead of my evil party."
But then in other posts he says there are about 10 operatives across the country's provinces who update the Facebook page on a regular basis. He even asks people to donate towards the well-being of the so-called operatives via PayPay, which he says is safe and untraceable.
According to a report by ZimDay, a daily paper in Zimbabwe, the Baba Jukwa page has caused much distress to Zanu-PF. "Although Zanu-PF spokesperson Rugare Gumbo denied the party was ruffled by Baba Jukwa, impeccable sources confided to Newsday that the some politburo members had put up a bounty for Baba Jukwa's head," the paper reported. It added that Baba Jukwa has reportedly caused a storm among politburo members with his expos'es of sensitive internal issues discussed during closed-door meetings.
One of the prominent Zanu-PF members whom Baba Jukwa usually attacks - Psychology Maziwisa, the party's deputy director of information - recently took to Twitter to fight back: "Ignore Baba Jukwa. He is not an animal to believe in, or to trust or respect save as an unrepentant liar and..."
Mass appeal?
According to the International Telecommunication Union, approximately 15.7% of Zimbabwe's population were Internet users as of 2011. This is a stunning increase from the 2000 penetration rate of 0.4%.
The country now has about 4.5 million Internet subscribers, according to local telecoms regulatory authority POTRAZ. The report unfortunately doesn't say if this figure represents both mobile and fixed Internet subscriptions.
We all know how social media impacted uprisings during the Arab Spring, which saw the toppling of governments in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya and Yemen.
Only time will tell if social media will also have an impact on Zimbabwe's politics.
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