President Robert Mogabe of Zimbabwe, ends 37-Year-Rule as he resigns from official duty

HARARE, Zimbabwe — Robert Mugabe, who ruled Zimbabwe since independence in 1980 and once proclaimed that “only God will remove me,” resigned as president on Tuesday shortly after lawmakers began impeachment proceedings against him.

The speaker of the Parliament, Jacob Mudenda, read out a letter in which Mr. Mugabe said he was stepping down “with immediate effect” for “the welfare of the people of Zimbabwe and the need for a peaceful transfer of power.”

Lawmakers erupted into cheers, and jubilant residents poured into the streets of Harare, the capital. It seemed to be an abrupt capitulation by Mr. Mugabe, 93, the world’s oldest head of state and one of Africa’s longest-serving leaders.

“It’s the best thing that’s ever happened to Zimbabwe,” Perseverance Sande, 20, said in central Harare minutes after news of the resignation began spreading, as crowds of people started singing around her. “I’ve been waiting so long for this moment.”



Zimbabweans celebrated Mr. Mugabe’s resignation outside the Parliament in Harare. Credit

Mr. Mugabe, who controlled the nation by handing out the spoils of power to his allies and crushing dissent, had refused to step down even after being expelled on Sunday from ZANU-PF, the political party he had led for four decades.

Then on Tuesday, party members introduced a motion of impeachment, invoking a constitutional process that had never before been tested.



The party’s political rival, the Movement for Democratic Change, seconded the motion, a striking sign of the consensus in the political class that Mr. Mugabe must go — one that formed with astonishing speed after the military took Mr. Mugabe into custody last Wednesday.

Lawmakers were still discussing the impeachment motion when Mr. Mugabe’s justice minister, Happyton Bonyongwe, walked up to the stage. He was booed, because of a rumor that he had been offering bribes to sway votes against impeachment. Then he whispered into the ear of Mr. Mudenda, the speaker, and handed him a letter.

Calling the lawmakers to order, the speaker announced that he had received an urgent communication from the president. As the crowd grew quiet, Mr. Mudenda — with a wide smile across his face — read out the letter.
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