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Cde Elson Mupamaonde Dies<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
By a Correspondent\u00a0\u2014 War veteran Cde Elson Mupamaonde has died and has been declared a national hero.<\/p>\n
State media visited his family at Chipiri Farm in Centenary on Wednesday, where relatives described him as a pillar of strength and a unifying figure.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy uncle was a true hero, a liberation fighter. We loved him dearly,\u201d said his nephew, Thomas Muguti.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am in pain following the passing of my father. We lived well together and shared many good times,\u201d added his daughter, Tatiana Mupamaonde.<\/p>\n
Another daughter, Monalisa Mupamaonde, said: \u201cI am deeply saddened by my father\u2019s death. He was a good man who taught me many valuable lessons.\u201d<\/p>\n
Family spokesperson Peter Mushayavanhu said the conferment of national hero status had brought a measure of comfort during a difficult time.<\/p>\n
\u201cA dark cloud hangs over us. We are in mourning and still trying to come to terms with our loss. However, we are comforted by the granting of national hero status,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Born in 1950 in Sohwe, Muzarabani, Cde Mupamaonde joined the liberation struggle in 1972, crossing into Zambia via Botswana. He underwent military training in Morogoro in 1973 before being selected for specialised artillery training in Ukraine in January 1974 under the leadership of Cde Alfred Nikita Mangena.<\/p>\n
Upon returning home in December 1975, he applied his expertise during the liberation struggle, including involvement in the shooting down of an Air Rhodesia Viscount aircraft on 12 February 1979.<\/p>\n
His body\u00a0is expected\u00a0to be flown from Bindura to Sohwe, Muzarabani, this Friday, where it will lie in state until Sunday. On Sunday, it will be flown to Charles Gumbo Barracks ahead of burial at the National Heroes Acre on Monday.<\/p>\n
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