Notes on Zeonism as proposed by Anavel Gato, a Zeon ace pilot, but also his contemporaries in the year 0083 UC.
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In U.C. 0083, the Zeon-remnant Delaz Fleet declared war upon the Federation and initiated a colony drop operation known as Operation Stardust. Part of Vice Admiral Aiguille Delaz’s plan involved the theft of a nuclear-armed mobile suit from the Federation. The pilot chosen to steal that suit was Anavel Gato.
During the theft, Gato was confronted by Federation test pilot Kou Uraki:
Gato: Anavel Gato hasn’t waited three long years just to let you, the unprincipled fools that you are with your infantile greed, stand in the way of our ideals!
Uraki: What do you mean, “ideals”?
Gato: Our dream, of true freedom for all Spacenoids. We will sever the evil hold of the Earth with our sword of justice.
—Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust Memory Remastered, English dub, episode 2: “Endless Pursuit”
Cima Garahau is most noted for her actions during the Delaz conflict, but her identity as a member of the Zeonist coalition began earlier, during the One-Year War. Her unit, Marine Amphibious Unit Cima, was ordered to deploy “riot gas” into civilian colonies. Her leaders’ deceit resulted in the deaths of whole colonies as MAU Cima pumped the poisonous G3 Gas in.1 2
Cima: You call this … a mission?! This is just slaughter!
—Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Rebellion, Zeonic Scanlations, chapter 40: “Nightmare of a Mayfly”
When the Federatoin defeated the Principality militarily, and the Principality sued for peace, Cima’s commanding officers disclaimed her actions. Notably, general TKTK said she acted without orders to gas those colonies, and the Principality promised her ship, the Lili Marleen, to the Federation as part of a reparations payment.2 Cima did not surrender, but took her fleed with her, and left the nascent Republic of Zeon.
The Cima Fleet more as pirates than as a military fleet. She is haunted by nightmares of that war, and her antipathy towards Zeonist leadership results in several attempts to turn tail and join the Federation side. After fellow Marine Geil Hunt joined the Federation, Hunt, going by the new name “Claude Kurtz”, negotiates on behalf of the Federation with Cima. Cima offers the Delaz Fleet’s plans for attacking Konpeito, which would deal a massive blow to Federation interests. The cost of her betrayal? She wants a stable home for her crews: “Admitting my entire fleet into the Federation forces.” (ibid)
The deal is to be concluded aboard the Federation battleship Birmingham, with Inspector General Admiral Green Wyatt. This dealing is interrupted by the arrival of the Albion, but the deal goes through in some sense. Cima acts on this proffer, and continues to pass information to the Federation.
After Gato’s attack on Konpeito, Cima is forced to proceed with her role in Admiral Delaz’ “Operation Stardust”: She captures a pair of empty colonies being moved from Side 6 to Side 3 and causes them to bounce off each other. One heads towards the Moon. Using her connections at Anaheim, Cima convinces Lunar Von Braun City to use their propulsion laser to redirect the Moonwards-bound colony, igniting its maneuvering propellant and sending it on a collision course with Earth.
As the colony plunges towards Earth, the Federation tries to destroy it with a “Solar Ray” concentrated-sunlight weapon deployed in Earth Orbit. The Solar Ray is attacked by the Delaz Fleet, but Cima orders her fleet to protect the Solar Ray. She was promised a position for her crew among a new Federatoin group, the Titans.
Cima’s ultimate position is unknown, and, thanks to the Federation’s coverup of the Delaz Conflict and the Gundam Project, ultimately unknowable. One source says that Federation pilot Kou Uraki killed her with Gundam Unit 3. Her crew and her flagship, the Lili Marleen, were also killed.3 2 Another source claims that, at that final battle, the Gerbera Tetra she piloted was actually a modified Gundam Unit 4 gifted to her by Anaheim, and that she piloted it remotely, allowing her to survive the battle. In this version of events, she and her crew survive the Delaz Conflict and take up jobs in the Jupiter Energy Fleet.4
Whichever end, it appears that she was more motivated by her loyalty to her soldiers than to any Zeonist ideals.