Ruled by a White-minority and an apartheid system, Rhodesia was one of Africa’s wealthiest countries per capita; It had modern infrastructure, strong agriculture (commercial farms, mostly white-owned), significant mining. Living standards were high, especially for urban populations, even comparable to some European colonies in terms of industrialization.

However, widespread dissatisfaction among the Black majority with the Apartheid system and human rights abuses led to the Rhodesian Bush War, in which both sides engaged in racial violence; The war ended in 1979, bringing an abrupt close to Rhodesia; In a short transitional period, white minority rule and the Apartheid system were abolished, and Zimbabwe was born following independence in 1980.

Zimbabwe (1980-present)

Robert Gabriel Mugabe then became the de facto leader of Zimbabwe, ruling for 37 years, during which the country went from initial post-independence hope to economic collapse.

Mugabe made some… questionable decisions. Shortly after coming to power, he thought it was a good idea to involve Zimbabwe in the Second Congo War, a costly conflict far from home, even worse, shortly after a civil war; Later, in a spectacularly disastrous economic experiment, he effectively made every citizen a “billionaire” by printing money recklessly, triggering hyperinflation that rendered the Zimbabwean dollar as worthless as shit.

Not to be overlooked, the country that once suffered under extreme racism turned to enjoying it, sometimes brutally, by turning it into the opposite direction; White farmers and citizens were expelled, often violently, as land seizures intensified, while crimes against them were frequently ignored by the authorities.

Today, there is your beloved Zimbabwe, changed its currency for the fifth time, poverty has skyrocketed beyond 86%, women beg because their children go days without food, corruption is rampant, and the country suffers one of the highest homicide rates in the world, no clear water, no proper healthcare, you name it.

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