‘Mwana anozvarwa akapfumba chibhakera’ - a child is born with clenched fists that are said to hold the gifts of their ancestry. Over the past four decades the ‘raised fist’ has become President Robert Gabriel Mugabe’s signature gesture, synonymous with our liberation struggle and symbolic of the country and the ruling party ZANU-PF.
In universal antiquarian political history, the fist became the adopted iconographic symbol of many political struggles and one that was adopted by ZANU-PF. It is a well recognised symbol in visual communication that does not necessitate the spoken word to explain or interpret it. The protection of one’s patrimony was symbolised by the clenched fistĪs an articulatory gesture, the clenched raised fist (chibhakera) is a symbol of strength, defiance, victory, an old universal symbol also used in combat or as a gesture of protest or raised to demonstrate and signify solidarity, unity, vigilance and completeness. The clenched fist also implied possession of something precious that needed to be guarded vigilantly. EVER since homo sapiens learnt to stand up, one of the things he did was raise his fist when provoked and in defence.Īnthropologically, the raised fist is a warning, combined with a gesture of self-defence.Īn invariable symbol of resistance and unity, the clenched fist is part of the broader category of hand symbols that include the ‘V’ for victory or peace, the clenched fist on chest, the forward-thrust hand/fist, and the clasped hands that make up part of humanity’s non-verbal communication.
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