ABTRACT.

This paper aims to explore the adoption of social network sites by the politically marginalised in Zimbabwe to protest against the existing government through online advocacy. The data collected from online content reveals the benefits that these network sites have brought to the politically relegated in Zimbabwe. The study mainly focuses on how these platforms have provided alternative spaces for the politically marginalised. It seeks to exhibit how the oppressed have used these platforms to express their views using pseudo names on social media platforms. These network sites are becoming very popular in the modern day and have a huge impact on the society comparing to the traditional media (Gunduz, 2017, p. 85). Unlike the traditional media which is monopolised and used as tools for propaganda in Zimbabwe, the social media platforms happen to be independent tools that can be used by anyone who affords a smartphone and data. This study is going to be focusing on how Facebook and Twitter aided in achieving the goal of bringing democracy to the country using Jackson and Foucult Walter (2015)’s concept of  “networked counter publics” and the social identity theory.

INTRODUCTION.

The research looks more into the ways in which political and human rights activists have used Facebook and Twitter in political protests and how these channels have also become more relevant in dealing with the situation in Zimbabwe using a case study of the #Zimbabwean Lives Matter movement. The movement hit the social media networks during the country’s first lockdown in 2020 and it trended around the whole world, with Zimbabwean citizens as well as other non-Zimbabwean citizens seen participating in the protest from around  the world. The movement was mirrored after the #Black Lives Matter campaign which took place in the United States of America after the death of George Floyd, a black man who died at the hands of US police officers in Minneapolis. The #Zimbabwean Lives Matter campaign is a movement that brought people together to speak in one voice through the use of online platforms. The history of these movements is something that can  can be traced to more than a decade ago. In 2010 there was a pseudo Facebook account which was leaking all top secrets Robert Mugabe’s government. I gained popularity because people were following to get some hints on what was happening in the government. People began to create some pseudo accounts which they used to comment on that page and this is a period when various protests groups began to emerge.

The #Zimbabwean Lives Matter movement was brought in as a revised strategy that surpassed all the other campaigns which were done in trying to make the government step down. I can safely say it was a revised strategy as Mutsvairo (2018, p.292), argues that digital activism in Zimbabwe remains in a evolving stage, though it did not really yield the desired results, to some extend it played a very pivotal role in drawing the attention of the relevant organisations to have a clear picture of what is happening in Zimbabwe.

The movement utilized Facebook and twitter to create an atmosphere that helped people to openly speak and spread the same ideology. This strategy instigated a sense of belonging amongst the members of the movement  as  Ciszeck (2017, p.2004) argues that social media acts as a space that helps the marginalised people to feel attached to a common community, giving them  power to share a positive social identity. Activists started forming online movements engaging the influential people, as the president of South Africa was quoted saying,“We have discussed Zimbabwe. We are going to have a special session to engage on Zimbabwe, we see what is happening in Zimbabwe,” (The Independence, August 7, 2020). The #Zimbabwean Lives Matter used Twitter was used in spreading the idea of the campaign and it was retweeted several times. It went viral on both Facebook and Twitter and no one was victimised in this protest as the past protests would do. The reason being this was done in a more advanced way and it caught the attention of almost every concerned citizen.

 Ciszeck, (2013, p.1993) posits that online advocacy have suddenly become a space where audiences ingest and relate with content and other group associates. Facebook and Twitter played a pivotal role in the formation of this movement (Ciszek, 2017, p.1995). It helped in the forming virtual communities where people from around the world including politicians joined in voicing their concern over the deterioration of political democracy in Zimbabwe as they were seen updating their Twitter handles with the theme #ZimbabweanLivesMatter. These social network sites embolden the activists to openly criticize the government act of violating human rights without fear as they were guaranteed that the whole world was watching (Driver, 2007,p.192).

The accessibility of the social media platforms has resulted in many online protests around the world which gives us an immediate opportunity to critically examine current digital movements among citizens and activists seeking political reform in Zimbabwe. These platforms have enabled violence free protests in Zimbabwe. They have become the most popular tools for advocating, (Mutsvairo, 2018,p.289). The #ZimbabweanLivesMatter used Facebook and Twitter to challenge the state media’s monopolization of news as they would post the unfiltered images and videos which represented the reality of how members of the opposition party and political activists were molested in Zimbabwe.  Pictures of police and military assaults, arrests of protesting citizens, detainment journalists and political activists were posted and tagged on Facebook and Twitter.

 Graham, (2018, p.2), the internet has opened up new ways for the development of online advocacy. Instead of people going on the streets to demonstrate or to hold some events, the #ZimbabweanLiveMatter movement used Facebook and Twitter to engage their targeted audiences. The movement would do some live streaming and this helped them to pass their intended messages to their targeted audiences in the absence physical interactions, (Graham, (2018, p.2). It was very easy for them to mobilize the masses in pushing the agenda of their campaigns.

 Graham (2018) argues that, “social movements found ways of using the internet to gain publicity,” (p.2). Political activists in Zimbabweans have since tried to bring a change in their political sphere; however, all previous offline efforts were helpless as they would result in abductions, serious assaults and arrests any time they go out in the streets to demonstrate against the government. This had instilled fear in most of the people who would want to demonstrate against the government and people could not freely discuss politics in public places. Driver, (2007, p.192) posits that, despite the abuse that is being experienced by opposition parties mostly in African countries, the internet has aided as the only safe place for their protests. The social media has introduced new ways of speaking out. The political activists in Zimbabwe have also put into context the idea of social movement campaign by creating the #Zimbabwean Lives Matter campaign. It helped them ensure their agenda was a success as their campaign found visibility all over the world with over one million participants.

There was a frame that was created for Facebook users to update their profile pictures and walls. The hashtag became a space for counterpublic engagement, members of the movement created a network in which conversations that nurture in-group political projects can and do reach beyond it. They successfully levy the technological affordances of Twitter to challenge dominant discourses of power and draw attention to issues and occurrences that affected them. (Jackson and Foucault Welles, 2016; Loader and Mercea, 2011; Papacharissi and de Fatima Oliveira, 2012), these strategies promoted the visibility of the campaign. The viral sharing of videos of police brutality and the trending of the #tag on social media platforms was by no doubt rapidly stimulating online political activity and community activism. The ability to attract the attention of the whole world through online advocacy, (Mutsvairo, 2018, p.291), made the #Zimbabweanlivesmatter an outstanding campaign.

The online groups they formed gave members of the movement a room to interact with others and through sharing of various experiences and that provoked their innermost conscience to fight for democracy. These groups encouraged them to participate in online protests leading to what Mutsvairo (2018), defined as, “the inevitable introduction of Electronic Democracy,”(p.290). Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp have become the democratic tools used by anyone who want to be heard, the sharing of images and videos on these platforms has made them conducive channels for what can be referred to as self-representation (Seargeant & Tagg, 2014, p.6). Unlike on traditional media where there are laws that regulate the flow of information. For example, laws like the Public Order Security Act (POSA), which stated that every information to be broadcasted in the state media should not promote public disorder, the Access to Information and Protection Privacy Act (AIPPA) which infringed the right of freedom of expression and it gave the traditional media little breathing space as it never allowed them to broadcast on existing protests. The social media are free podiums which enable people to disseminate information freely.

  worst is the Broadcast Service Act (BSA), which reserves the broadcasting right for only the licensed media houses and it’s up to the ministry of information and publicity to decide on whom they should licence and that is obviously in their best interest. However, the emergent of digital made platforms has helped political activists in Zimbabwe to gain coverage on their demonstrations and reach out to the masses.

Founders of the #Zimbabwean Lives Matter movement used these platforms and made them like what (Jackson et al, 2017, p.1869) defined as space for counter public engagements. He identified the fact that marginalised groups excluded from public sphere and formed their own public spheres whereby they involved the oppressed citizens of Zimbabwe and mobilized them to take part in protesting against the violation of their political rights. These counter public spheres gave them a platform to come together and build a community that aspired for change. The #Zimbabwean lives matter is a movement that originated online, and it was done online yet the results were so overwhelming as it made headlines on some of the biggest news channels in the world, with citizens responding to Emmerson Mnangagwa’s –the President of Zimbabwe- comment regarding the protest which shows that the social media has open up a new democratic channel which allows the citizens to comment and criticize news from any sources (Mutsvairo,2018,p.290).

When

@edmnangagwa

talks of “opposition terrorist groups” destabilizing the country what he means is: • Students carrying the Zimbabwe flag • Journalists investigating corruption • Nurses asking for PPE and a living wage • Citizens exercising rights #ZimbabweanLivesMatter

This is amongst other tweets which were tweeted in support of the movement. Digital media Platforms like Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp and YouTube have given everyone who has a smartphone and data the right to become Journalists and this made online advocacy to be so easy. People are no longer bound by the Broadcasting Service Act (BSA), they can share real time events happening around them with their loved once across the world (Gunduz,2017, p.88) and because of this people are not restricted access to any kind of information despite the level of sensitivity.

The use of pseudo names on social media platforms enable the movement to effectively challenge the status qou as members would openly expose the evil systems of the government without fear of accountability for their actions. Mutsvairo (2018, p.290), argues that the anonymous accounts have enabled activists to comment on news articles and disseminate information on various platforms making it very difficult for the state owned media houses to dominate the news industry. They are no longer in charge of what people should or should not hear as information is distributed on various digital platforms. The social media platforms have given the politically marginalised room to identify their selves and they have defied the media laws. The masses have employed new technologies to demand political restructurings in Zimbabwe, (Mutsvairo, 2018, p.291). The laws that govern the media industry in Zimbabwe are no longer relevant as they don’t apply to digital platforms. The circulation and large covering of online campaigns like the #Zimbabwean Lives Matter movement is one of what the government of Zimbabwe could refer to as a breach of law and instigators could have faced some serious charges, however, the right to concealment that comes with social media platforms made them very friendly for the marginalised to freely express their selves as most of. They are giving the protestors a unique voice, (Mutsvairo, 2018,p.291).

 In conclusion, Social network sites play a pivotal role on issues to do with identity and online advocacy. Social media platforms provided a space for the politically oppressed to find room to challenge the status quo. I beg to differ from Mutsvairo (2018, p.296) who argues that while it’s true to say social media is impacting the lives of Zimbabweans, it will take more time for it to actually have meaningful contributions towards political and social change given the country’s public sphere is still very much constrained. The use of Facebook and Twitter by the #Zimbabweanlivesmatter movements has helped in carrying out their campaign in a more diplomatic way. The movement managed to gain global and mass attention through the use of online technological affordances. Moreover, the use of anonymous accounts made it easy for the members to counter the constrained public spheres. Members freely take part in the movement without fear of police and military assaults and this helped the world to have an undiluted version of the things happening in Zimbabwe. The digital space has become space for the subalterns to identify as common groups, communicate their challenges and in most cases a place for them to retaliate to oppression.

References.

Abidin, C. (2021). From “Networked Publics” to “Refracted Publics”: A Companion Framework for Researching “Below the Radar” Studies. Social Media + Society.

Graham, M. (2018). The Routledge Companion To Media And Activism (1st ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315475059.

Mutsvairo, B. (2018). Mapping social media trajectories in Zimbabwe: The Routledge Companion To Media and Activisim.

Gündüz, U. (2017). The effect of social media on identity construction. Mediterranean Journal of Social Science.

Seargeant, P, & Tagg C. (2014) The language of social media: Identity and community on the internet.

Ciszeke, E.L. (2017) Advocacy Communication and Social Identity: An exploration of social media outreach: Journal of Homosexual.