# Death of Susan Tsvangirai (2009)

URL: https://allhistories.com/zimbabwe/timeline/2009-death-of-susan-tsvangirai
Location: Beatrice, Mashonaland East, Zimbabwe
Themes: main-event

Susan Tsvangirai had married Morgan Tsvangirai in 1978 and was a prominent figure in the MDC, supporting her husband through years of arrests, beatings and the treason trial. She was widely respected among opposition supporters. On 6 March 2009, less than a month after Tsvangirai became prime minister, the couple's car collided with a lorry on the Harare–Masvingo road near Beatrice, about 80 kilometres south of Harare. Susan Tsvangirai was killed, and Morgan Tsvangirai was injured and taken to hospital in Botswana. The lorry was carrying aid for a US-funded programme. Many MDC supporters suspected foul play, given the history of opposition figures dying in road accidents, but Tsvangirai said he believed it had been a genuine accident. Thousands attended her funeral at her rural home in Buhera, and Mugabe visited Tsvangirai in hospital in a rare gesture of sympathy. Her death was seen as a personal blow to Tsvangirai at the start of the unity government. Morgan Tsvangirai later established the Susan Tsvangirai Foundation in her memory, and in his speeches he frequently paid tribute to the role she had played in sustaining him through years of persecution. At this point in the timeline (6 March 2009), the President of Zimbabwe was Robert Mugabe (31 December 1987 – 21 November 2017). Government: the Prime Minister of Zimbabwe was Morgan Tsvangirai (11 February 2009 – 22 August 2013).

## Why it matters
Susan Tsvangirai's death cast a shadow over the start of the unity government and fuelled suspicions of political accidents.

Ruler at the Time: [Robert Mugabe](https://allhistories.com/zimbabwe/rulers/robert-mugabe)

Prime Minister of Zimbabwe: Morgan Tsvangirai (MDC–T)

## Sources
- [Wikipedia — Susan Tsvangirai](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Susan_Tsvangirai)
- [Wikipedia — Morgan Tsvangirai](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morgan_Tsvangirai)
- [BBC News — Zimbabwe country profile](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-14113249)
- [Wikipedia — Crisis, Land Reform and Unity Government (period overview)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Land_reform_in_Zimbabwe)