Abstract
This thesis seeks to examine the factors that influence the structuring of political parties in Zimbabwe, particularly the role that is played by ethnicity, in the allocation of positions in decision-making organs. The thesis uses elements from both primordialism, constructivism as well as instrumentalism as toolkits for understanding the salience of ethnicity in the structuring and fragmentation of political parties. Primordial elements such as the significance of a shared history in the formation of ethnic identities (Young, 2002:6) and ethnicity being a continuity from the past (de Vos, 1982:17) are important in understanding how these affective bonds can be manipulated by politicians in pursuit of economic and political power. The integration of these three approaches – primordialism, constructivism and instrumentalism – is essential to avoid theoretical determinism. A combination of these approaches provides an important basis for understanding multi-ethnic contexts like in Zimbabwe. The thesis traces the origins of the ethnicization of party politics to the early 1960s when Zimbabwe African People’s Union (ZAPU) was formed and the split that led to the formation of the Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU). Using ZAPU, ZANU (PF) and the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), together with its offshoots, as case studies, the thesis dissects major crisis moments in the history of these political parties. The thesis identifies the factors that led to divisions and explores how these factors influence the structuring of the key decision-making organs after the crisis. Specifically, the thesis examines the influence of ethnicity within these political parties and how leaders manipulate it, often by appealing to the affective bonds, when pursuing political power and during crisis moments. When examining the influence of ethnicity in the structuring of political parties, the thesis focuses on both the rivalry and divisions between ethnic groups and between subgroups. The thesis also examines the strategies that have been employed by leaders to deal with the problem of ethnicity, including ethnic balancing in the key decision-making organs and reserving some positions for certain ethnic groups.