Susan Tsvangirai - Impact of The Crash and Death

Impact of The Crash and Death

Tsvangirai's death came at a challenging time for the fledgling power-sharing government, just two days after Morgan delivered his maiden speech to parliament. Her death further complicated an already tense situation in Zimbabwe's government.

The crash raised suspicions of foul play. Even though traffic accidents are common in Zimbabwe, due to the fact that vehicles in the country are often in bad shape, many roads are in poor condition, and drivers often are inexperienced; previous political rivals of President Robert Mugabe from Herbert Chitepo on have also been involved in fatal car accidents: in 2001 Employment Minister Border Gezi and Defence Minister Moven Mahachi, and in 2008 government minister and former regional governor Elliot Manyika, all died in car crashes.

Tom McDonald, the United States Ambassador to Zimbabwe from 1997 to 2001, said, "I'm skeptical about any motor vehicle accident in Zimbabwe involving an opposition figure... President Mugabe has a history of strange car accidents when someone lo and behold dies – it's sort of his M.O. of how they get rid of people they don't like... So, when I hear that Tsvangirai was in an accident, it gives me pause." The former US diplomat is calling for an outside investigation of the crash.

A statement issued by the MDC said: "We suspect that this is not a genuine accident and we appeal to Zimbabweans in South Africa to remain calm as facts continue to surface. We strongly believe that these are the evil acts of a few individuals bent on derailing the progress of the Inclusive government. We are, however, alive to the fact that a lot of Robert Mugabe's opponents died in suspicious road accidents involving army trucks."

Following the brutal suppression of the opposition leading into the close 2009 election; Mugabe was pressured into a power-sharing deal, resulting in the formation of a unity government. Rumours that the fatal incident was a botched assassination attempt (intended for Morgan rather than Susan) are causing unrest in MDC supporters, which threatens to possibly collapse the fragile Mugabe-Tsvangirai coalition government. Many suspect that the burden of the loss of Tsvangirai's support may also undermine Morgan's performance as Prime Minister.