Africa’s first monument dedicated to USSR victory in Great Patriotic War to be unveiled in Zimbabwe
The first monument on the African continent dedicated to the victory of the Soviet Union in the Great Patriotic War will open in the capital of Zimbabwe, on the territory of the Liberation City (currently under construction) in the west of Harare, and will include the Museum of African Liberation – as noted by Institute of African Knowledge CEO and museum director Kwame Muzawazi in an interview with TASS
“This monument will become one of the centres of the memorial exposition,” Mr. Muzawazi said. “Africa well remembers that it was the crushing defeat inflicted by the USSR on Hitler’s fascism that inspired the peoples of the Black Continent to fight for national liberation, gave hope to throw off the colonial yoke, and once again become masters in their home. We have everything ready for the installation of the monument: a site has been chosen and its appearance has been agreed upon. We are just waiting for the monument to be made and delivered in Harare according to a design prepared in Grekov’s Moscow Studio.”
“The Soviet Union made a huge contribution to the fight against colonialism in Africa, which explains its place on the territory of the Liberation City,” Mr. Muzawazi stressed. “The Government of Zimbabwe, President Emmerson Mnangagwa and the ruling ZANU-PF party view our project as a priority for social and cultural construction. Various countries, including Russia, provide financial assistance in its implementation. An agreement on this has been reached during a recent meeting in 2023 between First Lady of Zimbabwe Auxillia Mnangagwa and Russian President Vladimir Putin.”
The Liberation City is being created in the west of Harare near the National Heroes Acre Memorial. The complex with an area of about 100 hectares will unite the Museum of African Liberation, other research and educational institutions, alongside recreational facilities and business centres.
“The most important thing that we want to convey to the visitors is that the decolonisation of Africa has not yet been completed even politically, not to mention the neocolonial pressure of the former metropolises in the economic sphere and the need to discard Western narratives in culture, history, and education,” Mr. Muzawazi said. “There are islands around Africa that still belong to Great Britain or France. We still have to rethink our history and culture from our positions. That’s why one of the sections of our museum is called The Case that Has Yet to be Completed.
