AS a young boy, Francis Chipeperekwa says he was always dreaming big, envisioning himself owning a fleet of trucks and other businesses.
With the innocence of youth, Chipeperekwa says he would mimic the roar of engines while driving bricks across the dusty grounds of his home or rolling inside old tyres, letting his imagination soar.
But those childhood dreams were a world away from the reality he faces today in exile, separated from his family after fleeing the country.
“Never did I ever think that I would find myself in exile in the United Kingdom,” Chipeperekwa told NewsDay.
After finishing school, Chipeperekwa obtained a driver’s licence and became a truck and bus driver, realising part of his childhood dream.
Driving across Zimbabwe’s landscapes gave him a sense of freedom and purpose.
But in 2023, as political tensions gripped the country ahead of the harmonised general elections, that freedom and dream, was shattered.
“The atmosphere in Zimbabwe felt like walking on eggshells as tensions between the ruling Zanu PF party and the opposition Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) had reached a boiling point, and the streets were rife with violence and paranoia,” he said.
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“Ordinary citizens, regardless of their political affiliations, were caught in the crossfire.”
Chipeperekwa said he was one of them.
On one seemingly ordinary Saturday morning in January last year, Chipeperekwa said he was hired to drive a group of opposition supporters to Murehwa, a journey like any other or so he thought.
But it quickly turned into a nightmare as he was caught up in political violence after he accidentally sideswiped a vehicle belonging to Zanu PF.
What followed was a terrifying ordeal, he said.
“The incident was seen as an intentional attack, a deliberate act of defiance against the ruling party,” Chipeperekwa said.
“My family was harassed and my life was threatened. Fearing for my safety and the well-being of my loved ones, I had to make the painful decision to leave the country.
“With the help of brave friends, I fled to Botswana, continuing on to South Africa and then landing in the UK.
“The journey was perilous, filled with uncertainty and fear, knowing that every step took me further away from my family, my home and the life I once knew.”
He added: “I left behind everything. My parents, my dreams — everything I had built. I didn’t know if I would ever see them again. All I had was the hope that one day, things would change.”
The Murehwa incident, which took place ahead of the August 2023 election campaigns, saw the Zimbabwe Council of Churches (ZCC) denouncing politically-motivated violence that rocked Bhunu area in Murehwa North in January 2023, where seven CCC supporters were brutalised.
“The circulating social media videos show a group of politically affiliated youths assaulting, humiliating and victimising the elderly CCC supporters over allegations of convening an ‘illegal’ political meeting,” the ZCC said about the incident.
“The Church is concerned by the inhumane treatment and serious injury caused to these elderly citizens of Zimbabwe.
“This recent incident, while seemingly isolated, signals the deepening and intensification of systemic political violence and intimidation as we approach the 2023 elections.”
Chipeperekwa’s story echoes that of many Zimbabweans who have fled political persecution in the country, their dreams deferred by violence and oppression.
“These acts of defiance have come at a high price broken families, shattered lives and mental scars that may never heal,” Chipeperekwa says.
“I want a chance to live my life, to work and to dream again. I hope the world hears our cries.”
