April 18 (Reuters) – Here is a look at Zimbabwe’s President
Robert Mugabe, the 88-year-old who has ruled the southern
African country for more than three decades.
The country celebrated its independence day on Wednesday:
1980 – Robert Mugabe’s ZANU-PF party wins independence
elections. He takes office as prime minister on April 18.
1982 – Mugabe deploys North Korean-trained troops to crush
rebellion by ex-ZAPU guerrillas. Government forces are accused
of killing thousands of civilians.
1987 – Mugabe and ZAPU’s Joshua Nkomo sign a unity accord,
leading to the integration of PF-ZAPU and ZANU-PF.
1990 – ZANU-PF and Mugabe win parliamentary and presidential
elections.
1998 – An economic crisis marked by high interest rates and
inflation provokes riots and increasing support for the
Zimbabwean Congress of Trade Unions led by Morgan Tsvangirai.
— The opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) is
formed and Tsvangirai is appointed leader in 1999.
2000 – Thousands of independence war veterans and their
allies, backed by the government, seize white-owned farms,
saying the land was illegally appropriated by white settlers.
Continued…
