Zimbabwe has undergone great change since independence in 1980 with a worsening of the situation in terms of abject poverty, economic collapse and a crisis of governance and human rights marked by brutality and political violence. These trends are assessed in the Introduction and Conclusion of this book to reinforce the lessons from the liberation war period and the continuities of some of the struggles that rural women in particular face. What is telling is that the testimonies of the women of Chiweshe I gathered in 1993 already reflected a sense of disillusionment and resentment with government's failure to deliver on promises made at independence, years before the crisis of the 2000s emerged in its worst aspects. In this chapter, I set out the historical context of the liberation war in Zimbabwe, and more particularly in Chiweshe, and take the story through to the years immediately after independence. This frames the context for the women's testimonies of war in Chiweshe that occupy the next three chapters. By way of background, the first section outlines the history of Zimbabwe's war of independence and women's participation in it. The second section looks at the specific features of Chiweshe as a site for research. Finally, I outline some methodological issues that help explain the ways in which the women's testimonies were gathered and analysed.

Women and the Chimurenga (1966–1980)

In 1890 the British South Africa Company (BSACo) of Cecil Rhodes moved to acquire the territories that were to become Southern Rhodesia. A ‘Pioneer Column’ paved the way northward.