Nostalgia, Scapegoating, and Alterity Politics. An analysis of the Albatross Undercutting Zimbabwe’s Leverage of Bilateral Relations with China

The article explores the interplay of nostalgia, scapegoating, and alterity politics within the context of China–Zimbabwe relations. Grounded in postcolonial critique, constructivism, and psychology, the paper grapples with how identities, historical narratives, memory, and the legacy of colonialism shape state behavior and policymaking. Therefore, this study interrogates the contradictions, continuities, and discontinuities surrounding the ideological frameworks, histories, and power structures as they impact Zimbabwe’s postcolonial policy praxis and maneuvers with China. Pursuant, I foreground the agency of domestic political dynamics in shaping the nature, impact, success, or failure thereof, of China–Zimbabwe relations. Overarchingly, the study brings nuance to the broader salience of identity politics in shaping the Global South relations with emerging powers either as a source of leverage or hindrance.