ZAPU: A Brief History of the Political Party in Zimbabwe

ZAPU stands for Zimbabwe African People's Union. It was a political party in Zimbabwe that was formed in 1976 by Joshua Nkomo, who was the leader of the party until his death in 1999. The party was formed as a response to the one-party state system that was in place in Zimbabwe at the time, and it sought to promote democracy and human rights in the country.

ZAPU was known for its leftist policies and its advocacy for the rights of the black majority in Zimbabwe. The party was also involved in the liberation struggle against white minority rule, and many of its members were imprisoned or forced into exile during the 1970s and 1980s.

After independence in 1980, ZAPU became one of the two major political parties in Zimbabwe, along with Robert Mugabe's ZANU. However, the party struggled to maintain its influence and popularity in the years that followed, and it eventually merged with ZANU in 1987 to form the ZANU-PF party, which has been the ruling party in Zimbabwe ever since.