Colonialism-a subjugation of indigenous peoples through continuously refined methods?

[SkinnyTwin Theatre]

In Zimbabwe, we say Rhodes had sugar and the bible and we had the land, after he had our land and we had the bible which was not enough to pay for the sugar. Through history of colonialism, the colonizers have always had economic motives for subjugating a people, their lands, manpower are well documented. The stealing of cultural artefacts and the viewing of indigenous people as objects of study seem to have been central.

The most significant showcase of objectifying a people has been the Egyptian mummies. Even the dead have no peace as their graves are plundered and put on display like animals for the whole world to see. An interesting progression of common acceptance is the rhetoric of study and enquiry used to justify the defamation of the dead. Even in the movement of donating cadavers for scientific research, the morale and ethical issues are debunked by the use of progressive scientific terms until such ethical dilemmas are diluted and neutralised by common discourse.

In Zimbabwe and other colonies, the inadequacy and inferiority of beliefs and way of life were constantly reinforced as the reasons why the whites were superior and this was their supposed source of power as they took it upon and empowered themselves as the saviours of" the savages". The Marxist and communist movements which resourced the freedom fighters known as terrorists offered the colonized and emasculated the means to fight and assert their independence.

The colonialism just changed its colour and discourse and reconciliation was raised as an independence gift to the colonizers hiding and ensuring the continual existence of economic subjugation even in an independence era. This ever changing face of colonialism is also at play through the "band of extra ordinary gentleman" the western governments and media. The right of place of colonizers is constantly reinforced by the exacerbation of the descendents plight in post colonial Africa and also through the continual bastardisation of post colonial governments, their incompetence, corruption etc which go back to the founding premises of colonialism disregarding the role the rogue western elements play in destabilizing post colonial governments, economies etc in environments created by their governments and their leagues.