By Lance Guma

In a sign of how bad things have become in Zimbabwe, Chimurenga music icon, Thomas Mapfumo, has called for an armed struggle to topple Robert Mugabe.

Mapfumo who was in the UK recently for the Live 8 concerts says the white regime of Ian Smith did more for the welfare of Africans than Robert Mugabe's government has.

The title of his new CD, 'Rise Up' has a song entitled 'Kuwarira Mukati'. In the song he calls on Zimbabweans to rise up and not suffer in silence.

Mapfumo says the government has banned his music on the state broadcaster because of the political content. The ban is now so broad they will not even play any of his love songs. He had a very good relationship with government before independence but this gradually deteriorated as Mugabe became more dictatorial, he said.

When people elected Mugabe they thought he would be their saviour, but Mapfumo believes he has been a big let down.

Pressed on what he meant by rise up, he said 'if we say enough is enough, the gun is the answer.'

He told SW Radio Africa: "The suffering in the country has gone on for far too long and people just have to do something to effect change."