Robert Mugabe who served as Prime Minister of Zimbabwe from 1980 to 1987 and later President from 1987 to 2017 has died. Zimbabwe's first leader passed away at the age of 95 and the continent has lost an important icon in the anti-colonial freedom struggle. White minority rule regimes at one time plagued Southern Africa, with numerous European countries and the United States being complicit in human rights abuse. Robert Mugabe fought in the Rhodesian Bush War to free the people from the racist regime and British domination. As the years progressed he became more vocal about Pan-African political ideology and asserting African national sovereignty. Mugabe's leadership was not without faults. The Lancaster House agreement was designed to return land to Zimbabweans who lost it during land theft in the 1960s by white Rhodesian farmers. The mistake was to assume that this agreement was going to be honored. Zimbabwe and ZANU-PF seemed to abandon their socialist roots instead focusing on free market reforms. This resulted in economic mismanagement and combined with sanctions from the US and UK harmed the economy. The same countries that imposed sanctions were the ones who supported Apartheid South Africa , while Robert Mugabe was actively fighting against the regime. His legacy and administration remain controversial to some, but most Africans realize he was a dedicated freedom fighter and ally to the global south.
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