Organised crime on the increase

‘Desperation is the fertile ground from which a new criminal class is growing in Zimbabwe’

BY DARREN TAYLOR

Zimbabwe’s recent power-sharing agreement identifies fighting crime as one of the country’s top priorities in the near future. Zimbabwe has the highest inflation rate in the world, and millions of people are unemployed. In the midst of this depression, Jackson Madzima, a leading crime researcher, is warning of the rise of “mafia-like” syndicates in southern Africa as a result of the economic and political crisis in Zimbabwe.

“Criminals exploit chaotic situations,” Madzima said. “They know that there is a lesser risk of being arrested or being prosecuted so it becomes attractive that they base themselves in a place like Zimbabwe.”

“Instead of fighting crime, the police especially have been used to crush Zanu (PF)’s opponents,” he said.

“Desperation” is the fertile ground from which a new criminal class is growing in Zimbabwe. Madzima says the violent conflict that has been evident in Zimbabwe in

recent years has created the “impetus” for future criminal behaviour in the country and in the wider region.

The “high circulation” of illegal firearms in Zimbabwe, according to Madzima, is also a source of great concern, as is the fact that many young men and women have been trained by government forces to use such weapons for political reasons and have been “ordered to kill their opponents.”

In this regard, Madzima warns of rising discontent and disaffection among various pro-Mugabe groups, such as youth militia and war veterans.

He draws parallels with the situation in post-apartheid South Africa, where many people who’d previously been part of various violent anti-government resistance groups suddenly found themselves “purposeless” in a rapidly transforming society and were thus encouraged to join criminal networks.

Madzima says a “similar scenario” is emerging in Zimbabwe, where the rule of

law is being ignored because people essentially don’t respect the police.

He says “probably the most daunting challenge” facing the country at the moment is the “rehabilitation of an entire generation that has suffered the impact of economic implosion and political violence by security forces.”

From a criminological perspective, adds Madzima, “the challenge will involve a concerted effort to change the mindsets of a people who have lost all hope and trust in government and in its law enforcement and security institutions.”

Black market

These days in Zimbabwe, Madzima argues, almost everyone’s a criminal “by necessity.”

Madzima says even if there’s sweeping reform in Zimbabwe in the near future, it’s going to be “very difficult” to wean people off the “habit of criminality” and to persuade them to conduct their day-to-day dealings legally.

Madzima’s research in Zimbabwe has revealed that big business there has developed strategies that are “blatantly criminal” in order to survive the country’s economic crisis. Smuggling goods in and out of Zimbabwe has become an “accepted way of life.”

‘Mafia’ threat

He says the security of the entire southern African region could be threatened by the emergence of “mafia-like figures” as a direct result of the instability in Zimbabwe.

He points out that there are precedents of this throughout history, including in the United States, where the mafia rose to notoriety in the wake of the Great Depression in the 1930s.

“With the international isolation of Zimbabwe, the government has had no option but to look at alternative sources of funds in order to ensure its survival. Association with shadowy figures and other rogue governments become the only viable option.”  

Madzima insists though that authorities in southern Africa can take action to ensure that the situation isn’t as dire as he’s forecasting.

He says it’s “absolutely essential” that the Zimbabwean government halts “as soon as possible” its use of the police as a “political tool.. The police must be used primarily as an instrument to fight crime. That’s the only way to fight organized crime networks.”

Madzima advises southern African police chiefs to meet as a matter of urgency to recognize the threat the region’s facing as a result of the chaos in Zimbabwe and to come up with strategies to prevent the rise of a Zimbabwe-based mafia. Otherwise, he warns, it’ll be too late, and organised crime will have established a grip in Zimbabwe that will be difficult to pry loose, with harmful consequences for the whole region.