David Coltart - The Struggle Continues: 50 Years of Tyranny in Zimbabwe

David Coltarts The Struggle Continues is a brilliantly engaging deep dive into Zimbabwes political history, one that is equal parts damning and altogether optimistic about Zimbabwes inherent potential. For a people that has suffered so much under the yoke of repression first under brutal minority rule and later by a homegrown despot Zimbabweans have the uncanny ability to press forward with grace, dignity, and personal charm. David Coltart embodies all of those qualities, and captures them expertly in this book. A must read for anyone who is intrigued by Zimbabwean politics and history, but also those interested in the power of our common humanity and the strength that is inside us all.

K ERRY K ENNEDY , P RESIDENT , R OBERT F. K ENNEDY H UMAN R IGHTS

This magnificent book is far more than just the autobiography of one of the most significant figures in Zimbabwean history; it is also a history of Zimbabwe itself, and a moral testament.

P ETER O BORNE , P OLITICAL C OLUMNIST OF THE D AILY M AIL , AND AUTHOR OF T HE R ISE OF P OLITICAL L YING , T HE T RIUMPH OF THE P OLITICAL C LASS AND B ASIL DO LIVEIRA : C RICKET AND C ONSPIRACY : T HE U NTOLD S TORY

A searing, heartfelt, brutally honest account of the turbulent modern history of Zimbabwe, written by a man who through love of country and strength of character put himself at the centre of its most epochal events. But what sets Coltarts book apart from other African political memoirs is a beautiful, crisp, clear-eyed prose that reads at times like a thriller. For anyone who wants to understand the complexities and multiple truths of Zimbabwe and its people buy this book.

D OUGLAS R OGERS , JOURNALIST , TRAVEL WRITER AND AUTHOR OF T HE L AST R ESORT

A true Zimbabwean patriot. Coltart is as unsparing in his criticism of the white supremacist regime of Ian Smith as he is of the corrupt and brutal legacy of Robert Mugabe.

H ON J OHN H OWARD OM AC

David Coltart has delivered a masterful account of Zimbabwes unfinished struggle for freedom. Brimming with telling anecdotes, poignant reflections and also unflinching self-examination, it charts the 50-plus years of Zimbabwes political woes with power and precision. If you want to understand in particular the frustrations and setbacks of the last decade under Robert Mugabe you should read this book.

A LEC R USSELL , HEAD OF NEWS AT THE F INANCIAL T IMES AND AUTHOR OF A FTER M ANDELA : B ATTLE FOR THE S OUL OF S OUTH A FRICA

In The Struggle Continues, David Coltart grapples with the complex history both personal and national of the transition from the injustice of white minority rule to the disappointments of ZANU PF-led majority rule. What sets Coltarts book apart from recent memoirs by actors in Zimbabwes politics is its deep introspection and refusal to whitewash his own past. The result is a work of searing honesty, sensitivity and integrity.

P ETINA G APPAH , INTERNATIONAL LAWYER AND AWARD-WINNING AUTHOR OF A N E LEGY FOR E ASTERLY AND T HE B OOK OF M EMORY

David Coltarts meticulously detailed narrative and analysis should be required reading for anyone with an interest in the history of Zimbabwe, but also for those who want to know how the bright dream of African freedom and democracy can be stolen by those posing as revolutionary saviours.

B RENDAN S EERY , E XECUTIVE E DITOR , I NDEPENDENT M EDIA S OUTH A FRICA

Anyone who wants to understand the tragedy of Zimbabwe, this is the book to read by someone who lived it and knows all the key dramatis personae. David Coltart has penned a masterful account that is eye opening and shocking, yet never loses hope in his beautiful African homeland.

C HRISTINA L AMB , C HIEF F OREIGN C ORRESPONDENT OF THE S UNDAY T IMES , AUTHOR OF T HE A FRICA H OUSE AND CO-AUTHOR OF I AM M ALALA

The high mortality rate among politicians who have had the temerity to oppose Robert Mugabe means that authentic insider books about the workings of Zimbabwean politics are very rare. David Coltart has served as an Opposition MP, a Senator and a Cabinet Minister and has survived several attempts on his life to tell the tale. His book would be invaluable for this alone. But it is much more. It is the story of a courageous and committed man who has dedicated his life to fighting for human rights and democracy in Zimbabwe, a country that he so clearly loves. He provides a compelling account, often in harrowing detail, of the terror and oppression that has scarred that country since its independence. But he is equally unsparing in his depiction of the discrimination and brutality of the colonial era, his own role in that and his personal awakening to the injustice and prejudice that underpinned the Rhodesian dream. My own window on Zimbabwean politics was relatively brief and at a time when, in the Western media, the victims of Mugabes regime were portrayed largely as white farmers. While many of them did suffer cruelly, Davids book shows that this was but one facet of a much longer and deeper malaise in which millions of black Zimbabweans were denied justice and brutalised if they objected. What emerges is a sobering account of mans inhumanity to man. But Davids determination to fight for the rights of all Zimbabweans, regardless of skin colour or ethnicity, alongside his colleagues in the human rights movement and later the MDC, is ultimately an uplifting story. If, as the books title suggests, Zimbabwe may still realise its potential it will be due in no small measure to the efforts of the many unsung heroes who emerge from the pages of this book.

S IR B RIAN D ONNELLY , B RITISH H IGH C OMMISSIONER , LATER A MBASSADOR , TO Z IMBABWE , 20012004

David Coltart tells a story that is part auto-biography and part the dramatic history of his country, Zimbabwe. The telling is all the more compelling because it is told from his own ever-changing vantage point and shifting sensibilities. What emerges from this dramatic journey is a sense of courageous personal conviction and a faith in the inspiring resilience of his countrymen and women.

N ICHOLAS F INK H AYSOM , S PECIAL R EPRESENTATIVE OF THE S ECRETARY G ENERAL FOR A FGHANISTAN , AND FORMER L EGAL A DVISOR TO P RESIDENT N ELSON M ANDELA , 1994 TO 1999

David Coltart has written an important book which will enrich literature on Zimbabwean society spanning decades, including most importantly, key areas of political and legal history dating back to the colonial days up to the current era. It is often said people who forget their history are bound to repeat the mistakes of old. Here Coltart offers a rich, honest, diverse account of the story of Zimbabwe, as seen through his eyes and experiences, which will, hopefully, help present and future generations learn from the errors of the past. The books strength lies in its detail and the honesty and forthrightness of the author, who does not sugar-coat his past but incudes all aspects of his experiences and aspects of his country, the beautiful and the ugly. This is, no doubt, a significant contribution at a time when Zimbabwe is crying out for such accounts from key figures who have played an important role in shaping its history.