( CNN ) -- After more than three decades , Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe is not ready to give up power . Referred to by locals as `` old man , '' the 89-year-old leader trudges on , holding on to his presidency by suppressing the media and intimidating his opponents , rights groups say . But his supporters have dismissed the claims , saying the bespectacled leader wins hearts based on his popularity and policies . Zimbabwe election praised by African Union , sidesteps rigging claims . Last week , Zimbabwe 's election commission handed him another five years in power when it said he won 61 % of the votes in the country 's presidential elections . His rival , Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai , cried foul and threatened to mount a legal challenge . The United States , the United Kingdom and Australia all questioned the results . Mugabe has never been shy about his grip on power . `` This is my territory , and that which is mine I cling ( to ) unto death , '' he once said . War hero . Once hailed as a liberation hero , Mugabe became a household name during a guerrilla war against white colonial rulers in Zimbabwe , then known as Rhodesia . The white regime threw him into prison for 10 years . After his release in 1974 , he launched a fight for freedom from Mozambique . He coordinated a guerrilla war against then-Prime Minister Ian Smith 's white minority rule in Rhodesia and returned home a hero in 1979 . `` He was very clear of what they were looking for , which was really one person , one vote , democracy for his country , '' said Moeletsi Mbeki , brother of former South African President Thabo Mbeki . `` He was leading this party which had an army , which was credible , which was doing a good job against the white settlers in then-Rhodesia . '' He went on to lead the newly independent Zimbabwe -- first as prime minister in 1980 , then as president seven years later . Different paths . Mugabe and South Africa 's anti-apartheid icon , Nelson Mandela , both battled to free their nations from white minority rule . But Mandela , who became president in 1994 after he was freed from prison , kept a promise to retire after only one term . Though both were hailed as liberation heroes , Mandela is considered an iconic statesman . Mugabe , on the other hard , is vilified by some world leaders . `` In western lore he has been a terrorist , a Marxist ideologue , now a bloodthirsty tyrant , stereotypes that he alone on the continent has been able to mock and laugh off , '' Roy Agyemang said in an opinion piece in Britain 's The Guardian newspaper . Agyemang , who produced the movie `` Mugabe : Villain or Hero ? '' said the leader is unfazed by the characterizations. `` 'If standing for my people 's aspirations makes me a Hitler , ' Mugabe once said , 'let me be a Hitler a thousand times . ' `` Good ol ' days . Zimbabwe 's economy was strong in the early years of Mugabe 's rule . The country was known as the breadbasket of southern Africa because of its strong agricultural sector . But that changed in the 1990s , when the economy began a downward spiral and Mugabe 's government faced charges of elitism , cronyism and corruption . His liberation credentials brought him high regard during the early part of his leadership , with many seeing him as a unifying figure committed to the needs of the average person . Goodwill runs out . But the goodwill from his liberation struggle slowly ran out . In 2000 , he drew criticism for his land reform program that evicted white farmers and gave the land to poor black Zimbabweans , many veterans of the struggle for independence . Most were not as familiar with commercial farming . `` Zimbabwe belongs to the Zimbabweans , pure and simple , '' he said in a 2009 interview with CNN 's Christiane Amanpour . White Zimbabweans -- even those born in the country with legal ownership of their land -- have a debt to pay , he said . Soon after , agricultural output decreased sharply . 'One of Africa 's bad boys ' Despite his pariah status in the West , analysts say Mugabe 's anti-Western tirades have propelled his popularity at home . To some , he commands respect for challenging the status quo and retaining his image as a critic of former colonial powers , said Ayo Johnson , director of Viewpoint Africa , which sells Africa content to media outlets . `` Mugabe ... is one of Africa 's bad boys and wears his medal with pride , '' Johnson said in a past interview . `` He who stands up and shouts the most is usually revered . '' Few African leaders have as willfully and spitefully taunted the West , a major source of donor aid , as Mugabe has . His anti-West tirades especially target Britain and the United States , which he accuses of colonialism . `` Keep your pink nose out of our affairs , please , '' he told the United States last week in response to criticism of his push for elections without key reforms . Agyemang says Mugabe 's bold economic policies are moving the nation forward . `` Mugabe is more than just a politician , he leads a cause , or as his militant supporters would say , he has become the cause itself , '' Agyemang said in The Guardian piece . `` And the cause has something to do with giving back the African his dignity well beyond symbols of nominal independence . '' No longer a breadbasket . In recent years , political rivals have accused him of turning a nation once known as the breadbasket of southern Africa into one racked by hunger and once sky-high inflation . But Mugabe has clung to power at all costs . In 2008 , his party lost to his closest rival , Tsvangirai , who did not get enough votes to avoid a runoff . Opposition party supporters were beaten , tortured and killed , rights groups said , and Tsvangirai withdrew from the runoff in protest . The post-election violence left about 200 people dead and thousands injured . Regional leaders dismissed that election as a sham and pressured the two to form a power-sharing agreement , which led to a tense coalition in 2009 . Mugabe 's main opponent became his prime minister , and the squabbles continued . Former teacher . Born in February 1924 in then-Rhodesia to a carpenter father , Mugabe spent his early career as a teacher . His first wife died in 1992 , and he married his current wife , Grace , four years later . They have two sons and one daughter . Mugabe has university degrees in education , economics , administration and law from the University of London . In 2002 , the European Union imposed sanctions on Mugabe and his allies , including travel bans , accusing Zimbabwe of human rights violations . in 2008 , the United Kingdom stripped Mugabe of an honorary knighthood awarded by Queen Elizabeth II . Later that year , the nation plunged into post-election violence . The European Union eased the sanctions after a successful referendum on a new constitution in March of this year but called for credible elections . Inflation . As he has continued to lash out at the West , donors have distanced themselves , sending Zimbabwe on a downward economic spiral . By 2008 , the nation 's inflation had soared to 200 million percent . Food shelves were empty , and a loaf of bread cost about 300 billion Zimbabwean dollars . International isolation continued to hit the economy as corruption remained rife . Despite widespread poverty , the nation has made major strides in its economy in recent years , experts say . There is food on the shelves , schools and hospitals are open and farming is showing signs of recovery . Since 2010 , the nation 's gross domestic product `` has grown by an average of over 7 % and inflation has remained in the low single digits , '' the International Monetary Fund said last month . `` Government revenues have more than doubled from 16 % of GDP in 2009 to an estimated 36 % of GDP in 2012 , allowing the restoration of basic public services . '' Medical trips . Illness has come with Mugabe 's advancing age . He has reportedly made regular trips to Singapore for medical treatment amid growing concerns about his health . In 2011 , public documents showed he amassed a staggering $ 29 million in travel expenses . WikiLeaks released cables detailing party members ' reports that he is suffering from cancer , which he has denied . Despite the reports , a Freedom House survey last year showed that Mugabe 's party was regaining its popularity . Q & A : Why Zimbabwe elections matter . CNN 's Paul Armstrong contributed to this report .
He was once called a liberation hero , but some groups now accuse him of racism . Mugabe became a household name during a guerrilla war against white colonial rulers . He was Zimbabwe 's prime minister in 1980 , then its president two years later . Survey last year showed his party regaining power .