Wing Commander Wing commander (Wg Cdr or W/C) is a senior officer rank used by some air forces, with origins from the Royal Air Force. The rank is used by air forces of many countries that have historical British influence. Wing commander is immediately se ...

Stanley Goreraza (died 5 June 2022) was an

officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," fro ...

in the

Air Force of Zimbabwe The Air Force of Zimbabwe (AFZ) is the air force of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces. It was known as the Rhodesian Air Force until 1980. The Air Force of Zimbabwe saw service in the Mozambican Civil War in 1985 and the Second Congo War of 1998– ...

who served as

defence attaché Defense or defence may refer to: Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups * Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare * Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks * Defense indust ...

at the Zimbabwean embassy in China. Born in

Rhodesia Rhodesia ( , ; ), officially the Republic of Rhodesia from 1970, was an unrecognised state, unrecognised state in Southern Africa that existed from 1965 to 1979. Rhodesia served as the ''de facto'' Succession of states, successor state to the ...

, Goreraza was formerly married to Grace Marufu, then secretary to and now the widow of

Robert Mugabe Robert Gabriel Mugabe (; ; 21 February 1924 – 6 September 2019) was a Zimbabwean revolutionary and politician who served as Prime Minister of Zimbabwe from 1980 to 1987 and then as President from 1987 to 2017. He served as Leader of th ...

. The couple had one child, a son, Russell Goreraza, who now manages his mother's extensive farm property, Gushungo Dairy Estate. In 1995, the fact that Goreraza's wife Grace had had two children by President Mugabe became public. In 1995 or 1996, Grace and Stanley Goreraza divorced and Grace married Robert Mugabe in 1996. By 2000, Goreraza was studying in China and he was due to return to Zimbabwe in late 2000. The following January, Goreraza was appointed Zimbabwe's defence attaché to China. In 2001, Goreraza was hospitalized in China and visited by Robert and Grace Mugabe., zimbabwejournalists.com In 2006, Goreraza was honoured for his long service in the Air Force of Zimbabwe, receiving a bar to his long and exemplary service medal. On 5 June 2022, Goreraza died of cancer.

References

20th-century births 2022 deaths Zimbabwean military personnel Air Force of Zimbabwe Zimbabwean diplomats Zimbabwean expatriates in China Deaths from cancer in Zimbabwe Year of birth missing {{Zimbabwe-bio-stub