We are the government

peter etheredge: Afternoon.

bodyguard: How are you?

etheredge: I’m all right.

bodyguard:: You remember yesterday you said you just wanted to find somewhere to stay so that today you would pack your things and get some transport? That wasn’t done. We told these guys to be patient, we want to be patient with you. This farm by rights is a government farm of Zimbabwe. Do you understand that? Most of your guys are gone. They are nowhere on this farm. So we are being patient with you. We let you sleep yesterday, we let you go outside your place. Your ninety-one days are gone. So what do you want us to do now? We don’t care, we don’t see any papers from the messenger of the court, we don’t want to see anything. So get outside because we want to plow here. We want to do farming. We want to lift Zimbabwe. Do you understand this? We want to lift Zimbabwe. We are Zimbabweans. We are building Zimbabwe. Okay?

etheredge: I understand that.

bodyguard: So my friend, we want to be gentlemanly now. Tell us what you want.

etheredge: There is a court case on Thursday.

bodyguard: No, no, no, we told you yesterday. The court case will go on while you are outside the premises because by rights we own this place. We, we are the government! We are the government! You are forgetting the black man is ruling. We are the government, my friend. If you want our compensation, you complain outside the premises, not inside here. So we have come, we are serious with this issue, we are not going back. If you want to report it to the police, you can report it. If you want to report it to the government, you can report it. Everywhere, they know we are here. We have fought for this country, we have suffered for this country because of this land, that’s why we are here and we are going to get it. That’s for sure, my friend. Never make a mistake about courts and business and so forth—the land is ours. You are wasting your money. If you want to play anything, I am very sorry.

etheredge: I don’t know what to do.

bodyguard: My friend, we want you to take out your things. We are not here to fight, we don’t want to fight. Unless you want to fight yourself. You have got kids in the house and everything, so let’s be like men. Okay? Let’s be like men. I am stopping these guys here from doing what they want to do, okay? But I have come from Harare. I heard that you said yesterday, Tomorrow I will organize the transport, but today you are coming with a different statement. How can you be a man like that?

etheredge: I didn’t say that I was going to move off today. I said let’s see what happens today.

bodyguard: Ja, but today, today, my friend, what is happening is you are moving. You take all your property. There is nobody who is going to take even a needle. Take everything and disappear. If you want now to go through the courts, you will file to the courts. Are you getting that? If you want to go to the police, just call them to come and see me. I am not worried, you see.

etheredge: We are law-abiding citizens.

bodyguard: You are not law-abiding citizens. We have waited for you for ninety-one days, and you didn’t move a piece of your property, so you are not abiding the law. On Thursday you are going to court. There are some others that are not going to court; they are going to be jailed. Are you getting me? I am from Harare, I am telling you what is going to happen. You are going to be jailed because you are failing to comply with the laws of Zimbabwe. You are violating the laws. All of them!