BREAKING NEWS: SADC calls for 14 day Zim election extension

http://www.swradioafrica.com/

Posted by admin on Saturday, June 15, 2013 in Elections

SADC calls for 14 day Zim poll extension
Regional leaders adopted an extension of elections in Zimbabwe by 14 days at
the extraordinary SADC summit on Zimbabwe in Mozambique. Political parties
in the inclusive government have agreed at the SADC Summit that the Minister
of Justice Patrick Chinamasa will approach the Constitutional Court and
request that the election be held on 14 August. If they succeed with the
court challenge it will mean the election will be held close to the United
Nations World Tourism conference set for August 24th.

The Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition said some of the SADC Heads of State and
Government who were present included Presidents Jacob Zuma, Hefikepunye
Pohamba, Joseph Kabila, Ian Khama and Deputy President Guy Scott.

“President Mugabe came through with the biggest entourage as compared to
other heads of State. We are informed that President Mugabe and his
delegation informed the summit organizers that they had come prepared for a
very short meeting, behavior which could be interpreted as somewhat bullish
as the Zimbabwe issue may need more time,” a statement by the Crisis
Coalition said.

Below are some of the comments made by the different stakeholders on their
Facebook pages during and after the summit:

MDC-T Secretary General Tendai Biti:
Good people, good good people, it has been an incredible and unbelievable
day here in this great beautiful coastal capital of Maputo. SADC rose to the
occasion and scuttled the evil and Machiavellian machinations of the chaos
faction of Zanu PF. The decision of summit was clear; all the
recommendations of the facilitator President Zuma were adopted with the net
effect that the Proclamation of elections made on Thursday is rendered null
and void. The key operative decisions of SADC are that:

1) Government through the ministry of Justice is ordered and directed to
make an application to the constitutional court following consultations by
all political parties, seeking to move the date of the election from the 31
July 2013

2) that the agreed amendments to the electoral act which had been
purportedly been made into law by the President using the Presidential
Powers (Temporal Measures) Act be brought to parliament this Tuesday for
debate and adoption.

3) that the SADC facilitation team and the troika team appointed in
Livingstone sit in Jomic and not merely receive reports as demanded by Zanu
PF

4) that an Inter Ministerial Committee be appointed to deal with
implementation of agreed issues on media reform and the monitoring of hate
speech in all media

5) that the security forces publicly state or restate their commitment to
the rule of law in particular their complete adherence to section 208 of the
constitution.

6) That within the time parliament has remaining the parties negotiate and
make the necessary amendments to POSA, AIPPA, the Broadcasting Act, section
121 of the Criminal Procedure and Evidence Act etc.…

7) that SADC observers be deployed immediately consistent with the SADC
Principles and Guidelines Governing Democratic Elections

8) that any other issue and the implementation of the above be overseen by
the facilitation team.

Theoretically SADC have therefore effectively ordered a return to
constitutionalism and not the current situation where hiding under the cloak
of compliance with a court judgment illegalities and atrocities were now
being committed.

I have been to all summits on Zimbabwe since 2007 and there have been many.
I want to thank and acknowledge the electric delivery of Dr. Morgan
Tsvangirai our party president, what a delivery. Simple straight forward
passionate and effective. I liked it when in his conclusion he asked
President Mugabe why it should be about power and not the people. Tsvangirai
you made us proud today.

Perhaps the most marvelous thing was the tag teaming and complementarity
between MT and Prof. Welsh Ncube. I have seen Welsh in court and on
countless times we have fought on opposite sides (of course he always lost).
Today the man from Vungu fought like a lion. Whilst MT was the godfather
speaking like a statesman Welsh was a bull terrier flooring Zanu with
erudite legal submissions.

As for Zanu PF, I think that the chaos faction of this party must take blame
for humiliating and embarrassing President Mugabe the way they did today. He
is clearly too elderly to be subjected to the barrage he faced today.
Fortunately he quickly wisened to the folly of the chaos faction’s
machinations and sclerotic schemes. He therefore quickly conceded to the
need of a court application ,thus saving summit of continuous further
debate.

I want to say that we Zimbabweans want an election yesterday. However it
must be legitimate and credible. The election must on the people s terms and
not on the bloody hands of a cruel and horrible faction of Zanu PF.

We are ready. Our primaries are almost done, JUICE and ART are out.

Trust me this winter we will finish it off.

Thank you SADC, thank you President Zuma, thank you Tsvangirai, thank you
Welsh.

Zikomu kwambili

MDC President Welshman Ncube
All the parties have agreed that the Minister of Justice will approach the
Constitutional Court and request that the election be held on 14 August. The
Summit also adopted the President Zuma’s report, which insists on the
implementation of the agreed roadmap before elections are held. Thank you to
SADC for standing firm.

MDC Spokesman Nhlanhla Dube:
For 30 to 40 minutes Prof. Ncube had the SADC leaders spell bound, punching
holes into Mugabe’s early poll case. To conclude he looked Mugabe in the eye
and said. We ask u to act as our President, Zimbabwe’s President, not a Zanu
PF President.

MDC Secretary General Priscilla Misihairabwi-Mushonga
Am sitting in this summit and so conflicted, I have listened to President
Mugabe, heard Prime Minister Tsvangirai, listened to Prof Ncube give a plain
and simple explanation on the unconstitutionality of the proclamation, I am
glad we can put our case but do we have to get here where a group of people
drag their leader here, advise him wrongly therefore embarrassing him in
front of his colleagues, how do people set their leader like this, I can’t
even look at him, but more so am so angry with this group who want President
Mugabe to end his career this way.

Prime Minister Tsvangirai’s legal adviser Alex Magaisa:
To colleagues who are asking for updates from Maputo, a Communique setting
out the recommendations of the special SADC Summit will be issued. Please
wait for that as it is the authoritative piece on what went on. We are
gracious in any circumstance.

The most important thing is not the dates but to ensure that we all, as a
collective, do what’s right to have a credible and legitimate election that
is free of contestation. We are sometimes too quick to judge SADC but on
this occasion, please take a bow …

But to move on, we need everybody working together for a free, fair and
transparent process, whatever one’s political affiliation. Today is a
reminder that inclusivity and consultative processes remain critical to
resolving what is essentially a political and not merely a legal challenge.

Commentator Maxwwell Saungweme:
I think this thing called SADC is just worsening the crisis in Zimbabwe.
What reform can be done by these parties in government in two week, which
they failed to do in five years. What is the difference between 31 July and
14 August as far as reforms and preparing for elections is concerned. If
SADC genuinely wanted an extension they should have extended the election
date by a much longer period. I don’t see this stupid decision as a victory
at all to anyone or any organisation. The decision takes Zimbabwe back. What
if Mugabe refuses to go back to court to seek extension? What if the courts
cling to their earlier ruling? This is just adding confusion to an already
existing crisis. There is really nothing to take home with this misguided
decision of SADC, methinks! A solution on Zimbabwe will only come from
Zimbabwe!

Delay polls by two-weeks, SADC tells Mugabe

http://www.newzimbabwe.com/

15/06/2013 00:00:00
     by Staff Reporter I Agencies

REGIONAL leaders meeting at a special summit on Zimbabwe want President
Robert Mugabe to delay crucial elections set for the end of July by at least
two weeks.

"What the summit recommended was, in recognizing that there was a need for
more time, that the government of Zimbabwe engage the constitutional court
to ask for more time beyond the deadline of July 31," Tomaz Salomao,
Secretary General of Southern African Development Community, said after a
meeting in Maputo.

The Crisis Coalition, an alliance of Zimbabwean pro-democracy and rights
groups in the Mozambique capital, said a summit communique was being
prepared that would urge Mugabe to ask the country’s highest court to
rescind a ruling ordering him to hold elections by July 31.

Mugabe was asked to seek at least a two-week extension of the ruling and
hold polls not before August 14, the group said.

Commenting on the development MDC legal affairs secretary and education
Minister David Colart said on Tweeter: “There are three reasons why SADC
resolution is critically important; Firstly, it is a victory for the respect
for the rule of law and the new Constitution;

"Secondly, it means that voter registration and roll inspection can be
completed before nomination day and, thirdly, it constitutes a major
political faux pas by Zanu PF hardliners and will be damaging and
embarrassing.”

The official communique has not yet been formally released. No confirmation
was immediately available from the secretariat of southern Africa’s
political and economic bloc, known as Southern Africa Development Community,
or SADC.

No comment was given by Mugabe or his delegation.
MacDonald Lewanika, the Crisis Coalition director, said in a Twitter feed
from the Maputo convention centre that regional leaders agreed the election
“is not time-driven but process driven” and more time was needed finalise
preparations and voting reforms.

Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai said on Friday that Mugabe’s unilateral
proclamation of the July 31 election date breached terms of the power
sharing agreement forged by regional leaders after the last violent and
disputed elections in 2008. That agreement required the coalition partners
to agree on policy decisions and the holding of elections, he said.

Tsvangirai, in a shaky coalition with Mugabe, said democratic reforms also
demanded in a new constitution and by mediators ensuring free and fair polls
cannot be completed by July.

Polls after August 14 would clash with one of the world’s largest tourism
gatherings, the United Nations World Travel Organisation summit, that
Zimbabwe is set to host on August 24.

South Africa President Jacob Zuma, the chief regional mediator on Zimbabwe,
started closed-door talks with Mugabe, Tsvangirai and other regional leaders
earlier Saturday, officials said.

Zuma said in a statement the leaders were to consider “a roadmap” to
elections in Zimbabwe. But a top Mugabe party official told South African
state radio Saturday the summit will only seek financial help from the
region to fund polls in July.

The Crisis Coalition said at the beginning of the talks that early elections
risked not being recognized regionally or by Zimbabweans themselves unless
reforms are in place and political violence and intimidation are brought to
an end.

“Conditions are not ripe for free and fair elections. The security situation
is not good ...we want SADC to ensure that violence is stopped and the media
is free to report without intimidation,” Lewanika told reporters.

A new constitution, overwhelmingly accepted in a referendum in March, has
demanded reforms to sweeping media and security laws along with reforms
within Mugabe’s loyalist police and military blamed for state orchestrated
violence in previous polls.

None of those reforms have been completed, Tsvangirai’s party says.
Mugabe’s party insists he was abiding by a ruling of the Constitutional
Court, the nation’s highest court, ordering him to hold presidential and
parliamentary elections by the end of July, linked to the automatic
dissolution of the Harare parliament on June 29, the end of its current five
year term.

Independent lawyers’ groups say that ruling does not follow provisions in
the new constitution and can only be rescinded by the same court on an
application from Mugabe.

Continuing amendments to electoral laws called for in the constitution and
by regional leaders were effectively blocked by Mugabe’s announcement of the
poll date on Thursday, said Veritas, a legal research group.

Mozambique President Armando Guebuza, current chair of the regional
grouping, said earlier Saturday that Zuma was scheduled to have presented a
report to the one-day summit on Zimbabwe’s readiness for elections.

Sadc won't accept Mugabe poll date

http://www.dailynews.co.zw/

Saturday, 15 June 2013 14:17

HARARE - President Jacob Zuma, the Sadc appointed mediator to the Zimbabwe
crisis says Zimbabwe’s ruling parties will have to secure consensus before
proclaiming election dates.

Reacting to President Robert Mugabe’s unilateral proclamation of an election
on July 31, Zuma’s international relations advisor Lindiwe Zulu told the UK
Telegraph that the regional body will not allow another sham election
reminiscent of the 2008 vote which according to rights groups claimed over
200 lives.

She spoke ahead of a crucial regional summit of the Sadc in Maputo today
convened to discuss a request to fund Zimbabwe’s forthcoming election and
the state of preparedness for the poll.

The bankrupt Harare administration has appealed for $132 million from the
regional bloc to bankroll the election.

“Sadc is concerned that there should be an election that is nowhere near
what happened in 2008,” Zulu said.

“At the end of the day, there are three parties in the coalition and Sadc
wants to see those three parties being in agreement rather than unilateral
decisions.”

Fireworks are anticipated at the Sadc summit where the poll date dispute is
expected to dominate the deliberations.

Mugabe invoked powers to sidestep Parliament in a move he claimed was meant
to meet a Constitutional Court deadline to go to polls by July 31.

Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai dismissed the proclamation, accusing Mugabe
of precipitating a constitutional crisis by turning into a “chief attacker”
of the Constitution instead of being the “chief defender” that he must be.

The MDC leader vowed to file an urgent constitutional court application to
scuttle Mugabe’s move and putting up a strong protest at today’s
extra-ordinary summit on Zimbabwe in Maputo.

Tsvangirai argues that there has to be reforms first which include media and
security sector and alignment of laws to the new constitution ushered in on
May 22 before any election could be held.

Tsvangirai wants Sadc heads of State and government to exert sufficient
pressure on the president to oblige him to rescind his decision.

The PM, who says he was not consulted about the election dates, has hinted
that he may boycott the election.

This would lead to an election which would have questionable credibility
within the country and even less outside.

Mugabe’s proclamation has caused a stir, with political parties ganging up
against his unilateral proclamation.

According to the position    paper signed by Tsvangirai’s MDC, Simba Makoni’s
Mavambo Kusile Dawn, Welshman Ncube’s MDC, Dumiso Dabengwa’s Zapu and Zanu
Ndonga, the parties have resolved that Mugabe breached the country’s supreme
law by unilaterally calling for elections without consulting his coalition
partners.

“The situation created by President Mugabe’s proclamation will
disenfranchise many people who are still registering to vote especially the
first time voters and so called aliens,” reads the joint statement.

“The President is also denying political parties and voters the opportunity
to exercise their right to inspect and agree on the voters’ roll. There
should be a mandatory minimum 30-day period for voter registration that
started on June 10. By invoking the presidential powers, the president
unjustifiably and unconstitutionally usurped the powers of Parliament whose
tenure subsides on June 29, 2013.”

Bulawayo East MDC Senator David Coltart Coltart said the regional body has
for the past four years invested time, money and energy in the welfare of
Zimbabwe therefore a free and fair election is a priority.

“The entire intention behind the Global Political Agreement was to resolve
the 2008 crisis. If they realise that we are likely to go back to the same
crisis, it is unlikely that they are going to be supportive of what is going
on,” Coltart told reporters in Bulawayo yesterday.

“I will be very surprised if they don’t adopt a very hard line stance on
this issue.

“What the region needs more than anything else is stability and what Mugabe’s
decision can only do is to destabilise not only Zimbabwe but the whole
region.

“I also believe this is not what Zimbabweans, Sadc and the AU need. We can
just hope and pray that sanity will one day prevail.”

Coltart, who is also the minister of Education, Sport, Arts and Culture said
this comes at a time the regional body has sacrificed its credibility on the
international community to be sole guarantors to the wobbly Zimbabwean
situation.

“A lot of time and money has been invested in this process, to draw a line
on violence, to give our country a chance of moving forward and we have made
amazing progress,” the minister said.

Coltart said the danger posed by Mugabe’s declaration on election date was
that everything the inclusive government worked so hard to save the nation
from further collapse is bound to be torn up.

“We could find ourselves going back to 2008 where we had an election that
lacked credibility that plunge the country into another crisis.”

The MDC senator said Sadc was well-versed with political events on the
ground.

“Sadc and AU have a good intelligence in Zimbabwe. They even know that in
Zanu PF there are people who don’t agree with this process,” he said. -
Mugove Tafirenyika, Xolisani Ncube and Jeffrey Muvundusi

MDC-T boast triggered presidential decree

http://www.newzimbabwe.com/

14/06/2013 00:00:00
     by Staff Reporter

PRESIDENT Robert Mugabe used a presidential decree to pass amendments to
electoral laws in order to ensure elections can be held on July 31after the
MDC-T threatened to block the changes, it was claimed on Saturday.

Nathaniel Manheru, a Herald columnist who is believed to be Mugabe spokesman
George Charamba, claimed that Mugabe decided to use the Presidential Powers
Act after Jameson Timba, a top adviser of Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai,
said the MDC-T would block the amendments in Parliament.

According to Industry and Commerce Minister, Welshman Ncube, the coalition
parties endorsed the amendments and agreed to put them before Parliament
during Tuesday’s Cabinet meeting.

Ncube however, accused Mugabe of turning his back on that plan after the
Zanu PF leader used the Presidential Powers Act to by-pass Parliament and
pass the changes.

“We sat in cabinet on Tuesday and agreed amendments to the Electoral Act, we
agreed to take those amendments to parliament next week … Then out of the
blue I woke up to receive a letter from Mugabe literally saying go to hell,”
Ncube lamented.

But Manheru said the deceit started with the MDC-T who pretended to go along
with the amendments in Cabinet while privately plotting to block them in
Parliament.

Diminutive minister
Manheru quoted a tweet by Timba, a Minister in Tsvangirai’s office, who
wrote: “We will negotiate with Zanu PF to make them see sense and the need
to do things properly in terms of realigning the laws (not only the
Electoral Act), and ensure a credible voter registration exercise and
(voters’) roll and all attendant reforms before holding an election . . . if
they refuse . . . we will see them in Parliament.

“Without us they cannot pass any law, including the electoral amendments and
as such cannot have a lawful election in terms of the new Constitution.
Democracy means rule by the majority … and we happen to be the majority
representatives.”

Manheru said Timba's brag had convinced Mugabe that the Parliament option
was out of the question since the MDC-T would not play ball.

“It was a fatal brag by the diminutive minister; a real threat to obstruct
law-making via Parliament. The President had been forewarned, and thus
forearmed himself. There were other corroborating pointers,” he wrote.

The MDCs have accused Mugabe of breaching the Constitution and acting
unilaterally when announcing dates for the new elections.
However, Manheru claimed that Tsvangirai deliberately avoided the usual
Monday meeting with Mugabe and deputy premier Arthur Mutambara in a bid to
ensure the amendments would go to Parliament where his party planned to
block them.

“The Prime Minister, who had left the country the previous Saturday, was
busy cuddling and lisping with his Rhodesians in South Africa, too happy and
engrossed to come back in time for the Monday meeting,” Manheru wrote.

“He only flew into the country after 9.30pm on Monday, making it well-nigh
impossible to meet the President and Deputy Prime Minister Mutambara, ahead
of the crucial Tuesday Cabinet as the three were wont to. It was a
well-calculated absence. The President would have been an absolute fool to
take the Parliamentary route so fraught with such intentioned dilations.

Court ruling
“Indeed, he would have been made to break the constitutional court ruling
and then face the music ALONE. So, the MDC formations made the normal
law-making route unavailable, in the process justifying the use of
Presidential powers.

“As it is, that instrument has made it possible for the country to proceed
with elections constitutionally, and without undermining a decision of the
ultimate court in the land. What shall puzzle historians for all times is
why parties with such copious legal minds never foresaw this.”

Mugabe said he had been forced to act in a bid to comply with a
Constitutional Court ruling ordering elections to be held before July 31.
Tsvangirai, has however dismissed the ruling as a political directive and
insists the polls must be delayed to allow the implementation of reforms
needed to ensure a credible vote.

But Manheru said the MDC-T leader, who has been Prime Minister since 2009
after agreeing to form a coalition with Mugabe, had four years to force
implementation of the reforms he now demands.

“These guys have been enjoying themselves for four good years, forgetting
their original reform mission,” said Manheru.
“Nice houses, nice benzes, nice servants, great fame, greater girlfriends,
boyfriends. They had time for sexual legends on the high seas. A real Alice
in Wonderland scenario!

“What is worse, they had three key opportunities to bite the reform cherry.
Amendment 18 provided them with an opportunity to effect changes to all the
laws that nagged them. And they did, principally Posa, BSA and Aippa.

“Next came amendment 19, and again they made changes, which is how we ended
up with ZMC and other constitutional bodies. And then next again came the
constitution-making exercise.

What reforms?
“They made far-reaching inputs to do with a raft of laws, including Defence
Act, Aippa, BSA, Posa and many others. Still after four long years, still
after three elaborate opportunities, they want more “reforms”! My goodness!”

Manheru also poured scorn on Tsvangirai’s plan to challenge Mugabe’s
election date in the courts and dismissed the MDC-T leader’s claim that the
country had been plunged into a “Constitutional crisis”.

He wrote: “It seems daft in my view to mount actions for the attention of
the same court you have derided. It boggles the mind, as also does the Prime
Minister’s claim that a disagreement between himself and the President
amounts to a ‘constitutional crisis’.

“He is not an arm of Government, merely an officer of it. A junior one at
that! A defunct one, too. When the Prime Minister stresses his official
title and predicates on it his response to a lawful act, he brings his post
and title up for discussion and comment.

“And he will be reminded, not so politely, that he loosely hangs on
transitional clauses and should thus speak with the humility of his tenuous
legal status. He is an interlude, a pause, a comma between past acts and
future actions. And commas allow the reader to catch breath; they are not
readers of the text itself!

“He is a fact not of the present and future, but one of a setting
constitutional dispensation. There is no need for him to wag his
premiership, hoping that makes him fly. It is amazing that it never occurred
to him that in celebrating the coming in of the new constitution, he was in
fact burying himself together with the ghost of Lancaster!”

Coltart: SADC appeals embarrassing

http://www.newzimbabwe.com/

14/06/2013 00:00:00
     by Staff Reporter

MDC secretary for legal affairs and education minister David Coltart has
told colleagues they are better off pursuing domestic solutions to the
bitter row over election dates instead of appealing to the regional SADC
grouping for help.

Coltart spoke as the top leadership of the MDC formations travelled to
Mozambique for a SADC extra-ordinary summit where they are hoping President
Robert Mugabe will be compelled to reverse his decision to hold elections on
July 31.

Addressing a public meeting at the Bulawayo Press Club Thursday evening
Coltart said: “It is not worthwhile to be running to SADC all the time.

“The irony of it is that when we take our problems to them we attract
criticism and embarrass ourselves.
“We are a sovereign country and I am a proud Zimbabwean. I do not believe
that as a nation we should be guided by any outside country in solving our
problems.”

The MDCs were left seething with anger on Thursday after Mugabe ordered
elections to be held at the end of next month.

The Zanu PF leader also used a presidential decree to circumvent Parliament
and pass the necessary amendments to the country’s electoral legislation.

Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa said going through Parliament would have
made it impossible to comply with a Constitutional Court ruling ordering
Mugabe to call the elections before July 31.

Prime Minister and MDC-T leader Morgan Tsvangirai has dismissed the court
ruling as a political directive although he plans to challenge Mugabe’s
proclamation before the same court.

Coltart however, said the court order, which followed an application by a
Harare-based political activist, was binding.
“I am not one of those who say we should ignore the Constitutional Court
ruling because it is binding. I also do not criticise the content of the
ruling,” he said.

“The correct procedure in my view would be to go back to the Constitutional
Court and say it would be difficult to comply with the ruling.”

Diamantaires set eyes on Zimbabwe rough diamonds

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/

Melvyn Reggie Thomas, TNN | Jun 15, 2013, 10.42 PM IST

SURAT: Concerned over the weakening rupee against the dollar and increasing
prices of rough diamond, diamantaires in the world's biggest diamond cutting
and polishing centre in Surat have once again set their eyes on the diamonds
produced in the controversial Marange diamond mine in Zimbabwe.

According to reports, diamond mining companies in Marange have been selling
their rough diamonds at 25 per cent less than the normal price due to
sanctions imposed on the country by the US for alleged human rights abuse in
the diamond mine and to lure Indian diamantaires.

Industry sources said Zimbabwe's Parliamentary Portfolio Committee (PPC) on
Mines and Energy has submitted a report stating that the diamond mining
companies operating in Marange are selling their rough diamonds at 25 per
cent less than normal prices in the world market. The report said the rough
diamonds are being sold through unconventional means because major
international banks, insurance companies and couriers do not want to be
associated with Marange diamonds subsequent to US sanctions.

A senior office-bearer of Gems and Jewellery Export Promotion Council
(GJEPC) said, "Zimbabwe's cheap diamonds are attracting Indian diamantaires,
especially small and medium buyers. They bring the diamonds to India paying
cash in order to keep their factories running."

Rakesh Patel, a diamond dealer in Mahidharpura diamond market, said, "The
industry is not in a position to buy rough diamonds sold by mining companies
like DTC and Alrosa as the value of rupee has depreciated against the
dollar. Zimbabwe diamonds have become the cheapest option now."

GJEPC leaders said companies operating in Marange in Zimbabwe are KP
compliant and thus the diamantaires face no technical difficulties in
bringing the diamonds to India.

Zimbabwe expects the diamond production at its Marange diamond mine to cross
16.9 million carats this year. The country has grown its diamond production
by almost 1,000 per cent in three years.

Dinesh Navadia, president, Surat Diamond Association (SDA), told TOI,
"Diamantaires will go wherever they get cheap diamonds. If Zimbabwe is
offering diamonds cheaper by 25 per cent, we do not have anything to lose."

Zimbabwean Farmers Adrift Amid Power Struggles

http://www.ipsnews.net/

By Busani Bafana

NKAYI, Zimbabwe, Jun 14 2013 (IPS) - For the past five years, farmer Melusi
Mhlanga has spent nearly 200 dollars each season for inputs, but the maize
yields have not matched his investment.

“With good rains I have been able to get more than 20 bags from my two
hectare field but now I barely manage 10 bags,” says Mhlanga, who spoke to
IPS at his homestead where he has diversified into livestock breeding.

"Our maize projections for the 2012/13 season are below three million
tonnes, yet our national need is at 1.8 million tonnes." -- Economic Analyst
Eric Bloch

“Good rains are important for farmers but so is knowhow, which has been a
challenge for me, and I decided to focus more on cattle breeding and running
a business than on growing crops.”

Mhlanga operates a general store, a bottle store and a grinding mill, which
he says are the new sources of income for him and his family since the maize
failed. He now grows sorghum and millet for subsistence.

Extension services, education and advisory services provided by local
technical institutions,  are critical in advising farmers on best agronomic
practices to boost productivity and food security. Farmers like Mhlanga are
potential role models under a well-funded agriculture sector.

However, state investment in Zimbabwe’s agriculture has been hijacked by
political priorities at the expense of long-term food and economic gains.
Once the top contributor to GDP, farming is now second to mining. Tobacco is
still the main agricultural export.

At the core of Zimbabwe’s agriculture success is its main asset – land.
Reforms availed more land to more people.

But without investment, there is no cheap finance to buy equipment and
inputs, and no adequately financed and resourced extension services.

“Agriculture and land has become a political football between the main
national parties, and with the donors,” Ian Scoones, an agricultural
ecologist and professorial fellow at the Institute of Development Studies at
the University of Sussex, UK who has extensively researched Zimbabwe’s
agricultural sector, told IPS.

“Neither ZANU PF [Zimbabwe’s ruling party] nor the MDC [the leading
opposition party] have a coherent agricultural and rural development policy.
Neither has thought through the implications of land reform.”

Scoones, co-author of the critically acclaimed book “Zimbabwe’s Land Reform:
Myths and Realities”, explains that historically, Zimbabwe has invested
massively in agriculture – in the pre-Independence period with the focus on
building white commercial farming, and the period immediately
post-Independence smallholder farmers in the communal areas.

“Since 2000, the land reform programme took precedence, and, for a period,
agricultural investment was run directly by the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe,”
said Scoones. “Much of this spending was inappropriate, corrupt and so
poorly focused. Since 2009, with the stabilisation of the economy, there has
been some limited investment, but not enough.”

Economic analyst Eric Bloch said Zimbabwe can restore its agricultural
fortunes but first needs to tackle its external debt burden, convert current
offer letters on land to transferable leases, and clarify the implementation
of the Indigenisation Act, which is precluding potential investors.

“We are in a food insecurity situation as we are still dependent on
international food aid and maize imports,” Bloch told IPS. “Our maize
projections for the 2012-13 season are below three million tonnes, yet our
national need is at 1.8 million tonnes. That is why we are importing 1.5
million tonnes from Zambia and other countries.”

The World Food Programme estimates that up to 1.6 million Zimbabweans will
need food aid after a poor harvest by smallholder farmers who contribute
about 50 percent of the national maize crop.

“The only times that the government has put a lot of resources into
agriculture is during election years for obvious reasons,” agricultural
economist and farmer Peter Gambara told IPS.

“This year, Minister [Tendai] Biti tried to put more resources into
agriculture because it is now accepted that the performance of the
agricultural sector is affecting the performance of the whole economy, and
he has been criticised by fellow ministers and the president for failing to
allocate adequate resources to such an important sector like agriculture.”

Unveiling Zimbabwe’s 2013 budget, Finance Minister Tendai Biti projected
that agriculture will grow by 4.6 percent, up from a negative 5.8 percent in
tumultuous 2008.

HOT SEAT: Madhuku, Coltart & Matyszak analyse constitutional crisis

Zimbabwe’s military: Who will guard the guardians in polls?

http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/

By Peter Kagwanja & Laureen Wesonga

Posted  Saturday, June 15   2013 at  14:19

The Zimbabwe Constitutional Court has ruled that a general election must be
held by July 31.

However, a decision by Zimbabwe’s Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai to reject
the order has deepened an electoral impasse.

The stand-off between Zimbabwe’s main political parties has increased the
prospect of using the country’s security forces to ensure stability and
peaceful elections.

Two views explain the likelihood of involvement by Zimbabwe’s security
forces in the coming election.

One view sees the military as the greatest threat to the Zimbabwe’s
democracy because of its overtly partisan role in politics.

This line of thought is expressed in the recent report by the New York-based
human rights lobby, Human Rights Watch, titled The Elephant in the Room:
Reforming Zimbabwe’s Security Sector Ahead of Elections.

Zimbabwe’s military, police and intelligence chiefs, the report says, have
been “clear, public and vocal” about their support for President Robert
Mugabe and his Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (Zanu-PF).

Nothing short of sweeping reforms of the security sector can deliver free
and fair elections in Zimbabwe.

The second view is that Zimbabwe’s military is the praetorian guardian of
the country’s nationalist revolution.

Since the defeat of the constitutional referendum in 2000, Zimbabwe’s
security forces have interpreted their role as that of preventing
“neo-imperialist agents” in the opposition, civil society and
internationally, from effecting regime change.

The armed forces are at the core of Zimbabwe’s crisis — mainly a systematic
assault on the rule of law, democratic elections and governance, and the
independence of the judiciary, media, civil society and academia.

Opposition pundits fear a repeat of the role that the military played in the
March 2008 election, during which 36 people were killed, 2,000 injured and
thousands beaten and displaced.

Although the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) narrowly won the
parliamentary polls that year, its leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, failed to
clinch the 51 per cent votes required to avoid a run-off against Mugabe in
the presidential ballot.

Mr Tsvangirai withdrew from the ensuing runoff vote, citing violence against
his supporters. Ahead of the 2013 elections, the military appears all set to
being used to tip the balance in favour of Mugabe and his Zanu-PF.

Zimbabwe’s Praetorians

The prevailing policy thinking is that Zimbabwe’s military should be
delinked from politics in order to stabilise the country and realise genuine
democracy.

But this is easier said than done.

The military-politics nexus was forged on the anvil of the country’s
nationalist struggle before Independence in 1980, making this involvement in
politics historical, unique and almost inextricable.

Zimbabwe is one of the few African countries where nationalist guerrilla
fighters ascended to power as a collective, thus blurring the line between
politicians and soldiers.

As such, Mugabe and his deputy, Joyce Mujuru, representing this
revolutionary heritage, reveal the thin line between the securocrats and the
political class in the ruling party.

As the 2013 election campaigns get under way, the ties that bind the
military and the political class are varied. The view of Zimbabwe’s armed
forces on democracy is heavily tinted by a nationalist outlook and a
militaristic mindset.

The military has interpreted the crusade for liberal democracy by the
opposition and civil society as an assault on the nationalist legacy and a
threat to stability. In the run-up to the election, Zimbabwe’s security
chiefs have publicly declared that they will back President Mugabe and
Zanu-PF.

In early May, security chiefs were irked by an article published by the
Zimbabwean newspaper, The Independent, claiming that they had met with Mr
Tsvangirai to discuss military reforms.

Police Commissioner General Augustine Chihuri stated that the security
forces would never meet Mr Tsvangirai, and warned that anyone who reported
on or raised the issue risked arrest.

In the same anti-opposition vein, the commander of the Zimbabwe Defence
Forces, General Constantine Chiwenga, said he would not meet with Mr
Tsvangirai, adding that: “We have no time to meet sell-outs. Clearly
Tsvangirai is a psychiatric patient who needs a competent psychiatrist.”

On May 7, the police arrested The Independent’s editor, Dumisani Muleya, and
its chief reporter, Owen Gagare. They were interrogated and detained for
eight hours before being charged with publishing or communicating false
statements prejudicial to the state.

President Mugabe has welcomed the support of the military chiefs. But he
advised them to be more tactical and to tone down their rhetoric.

Nationalist Rhetoric

The country’s 30,000 strong armed forces have gained total control of
political life in Zimbabwe, in the years after 2008, when MDC become the
majority party in parliament and Mugabe nearly lost the presidential docket,
forcing Zanu-PF to reluctantly enter into a power-sharing arrangement with
the opposition.

The military chiefs are deeply wary of Zanu-PF’s real vulnerability to a
united opposition.

Also worrying to the military chiefs is Zanu-PF’s failure to roll out its
campaign on time. The party has been slow to finalise its rules and
regulations to guide its primary elections.

The party’s election manifesto has three planks: land related grievances,
defending the nationalist legacy, and anti-imperialism.

Zanu-PF’s military strategists are aware that this time round, nationalist
rhetoric alone will not sell to Zimbabwe’s poor.

As such, the strategists have unveiled a high-profile indigenisation and
economic empowerment drive for 59 community share ownership schemes and
several employee ownership trusts across the country.

Even more worrying to the military is Mugabe’s advanced age of 89, which has
exacerbated Zanu-PF’s internal power wrangles and raised the stakes for
succession politics.

Intra-Zanu-PF factional power struggles pit the conservatives led by Defence
Minister Emmerson Manaangwa, against the moderates rallied around Vice
President and Mugabe’s de facto heir Joice Mujuru — the wife of the late
general Rex (Solomon) Mujuru.

However, Mugabe is the glue that holds the military and the party together.

Zimbabwe’s military and party elite are also united by a shared fear of an
opposition they accuse of being a neo-imperialist vehicle.

In recent elections in Zambia and Kenya, the victors — Michael Sata and
Uhuru Kenyatta, respectively — ran anti-Western campaigns.

Zimbabwe’s experts are silently writing Zanu-PF’s epitaph, hoping that this
time the country’s fractious opposition will see sense in strategic unity.
But the military elite dread the prospect of a united opposition.

Since its formation as a mass movement in 1999, Zimbabwe’s opposition has
been unable to overcome a crisis of leadership, vision and strategy.

MDC has failed to unite since it split into two parties ahead of the
formation of the 2005 parliament. The factions are led by Mr Tsvangirai
(MDC-T), and Professor Welshman Ncube and Arthur Mutambara (MDC-M).

In a paper titled The Prospects for Electoral Pacts and Democratic Progress
in Zimbabwe, the director of the Zimbabwe Democracy Institute, Pedzisai
Ruhanya, argues that a united opposition would have defeated Mugabe hands
down in 2008, having garnered 72 per cent of the vote in Harare against
Mugabe’s 19 per cent, and 88 per cent in Bulawayo against Mugabe’s 11 per
cent.

In contrast to Zanu-PF, Mr Tsvangirai has been first off the block in the
campaign, even as he calls for the postponement of the poll until the
implementation of reforms.

The opposition has already held party primaries, confirmed sitting
legislators, convened its policy conference, and kicked off a programme of
rallies on May 20.

However, Mr Tsvangirai and his MDC wing lost much of the grassroots support
they commanded in 2008, after they joined the power-sharing government.

Zanu-PF’s claim that MDC is a neo-imperialist agent has also exacted its
toll on the opposition’s popularity. Moreover, the opposition is still
struggling to develop a galvanising campaign message to counter Zanu-PF’s
nationalist rhetoric.

Strategy change

Party sympathisers within and outside Zimbabwe are calling for a change of
tack.

In an article headlined “How Morgan Tsvangirai Can Beat Robert Mugabe,” the
UK Guardian urged Mr Tsvangirai to adopt a campaign message “reminiscent of
Mugabe’s tone” if it is to stand a chance at the elections.

“If the opposition wants to succeed, they might as well embrace nationalism
and adopt a position where they argue that they are the best guarantor of
the Independence legacy that has been betrayed by Zanu-PF,” the paper says.

Specifically, Mr Tsvangirai will have to “convince some of Mugabe’s softer
supporters that he can secure the gains of the current regime, such as land
reform.”

But MDC and Mr Tsvangirai do not have the time to craft such a radical
strategy before the end of July.

President Mugabe’s party must ensure that the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission
(ZEC) delivers a credible result. So far, the electoral body has shown some
competence, having conducted a successful constitutional referendum on March
16-17, with the highest voter turnout in Zimbabwe’s history.

But the opposition and civil society are concerned about the neutrality of
ZEC, arguing that its current officials are the same ones who presided over
the controversial 2008 general elections.

Moreover, ZEC will conduct the election in the absence of major
legislations.

Despite the adoption of a new Constitution, there is not enough time, before
July 31, to conduct proper electoral reforms, conduct voter registration and
vet the electoral roll.

Parliament will be dissolved on June 29. The Grand Coalition Cabinet has
approved a 30-day voter registration exercise estimated to cost the taxpayer
$21 million.

The election will also be the most expensive in Zimbabwe’s electoral
history, tipped to cost $132 million.

The new Constitution does not allow Zimbabwe’s sprawling and largely
anti-Mugabe diaspora to vote. This has not only reduced the cost of the
election, it also augurs well for Zanu-PF, but sets back the opposition,
which enjoys overwhelming support from the diaspora.

Even as the election deadline draws near, Finance Minister, Tendai Biti has
admitted to the inability of the state to foot the bill of the election
process.

President Mugabe has rejected an offer by the UN and external players to
fund the polls. This follows a request by the UN to send an international
observers mission to monitor the election, which Zanu-PF saw as an excuse by
international forces to meddle in Zimbabwe’s affairs.

New Constitution

However, the adoption of the new Constitution in March, signed into law by
President Mugabe on May 22, has significantly levelled the electoral field
and increased the prospects of stability.

It has abolished the office of the prime minister.

Furthermore, the Constitution sets two-term limits on the presidential
position. But this clause is not applicable retrospectively, thus allowing
Mugabe to run for two more presidential terms.

The Constitution also strips the president of immunity upon expiry of his
term.

This fosters fear of Western pressure on the Hague-based International
Criminal Court to prosecute President Mugabe for alleged crimes against
humanity in his 33-year rule. President Mugabe is thus likely to seek to
remain in power at all costs.

In this regard, the Constitution has not resolved the crisis of Zimbabwe’s
politics.

The military and political elite in Zanu-PF do not view civil society as a
neutral arbiter in the transition. Rather, they see it as an arm of the MDC
and its external allies.

However, Zimbabwe’s civil society has played a pivotal role in civic
education on the new Constitution, and voter education ahead of the
election.

The country’s reform deficit is on the downside of the Southern Africa
Development Community (SADC), the principal guardian of the 2008 Global
Political Agreement (GPA).

Although the regional bloc established the Joint Monitoring and
Implementation Committee (JOMIC) to monitor and spearhead post-election
reforms, the committee has not been robust in monitoring the GPA.

Zimbabwean political parties have resisted efforts by JOMIC to transform
itself into an election monitoring group. After June 29, JOMIC’s mandate
will lapse at the same time the legal tenure of the GPA expires.

SADC could influence Zimbabwe’s election as the premier regional body and
the guardian of the GPA. On May 26, Zanu-PF spokesperson Rugare Gumbo said
Harare will respect SADC’s call for a peaceful ballot.

The election occurs at a time when the West appears to be warming up to
Harare.

Following the enactment of the new Constitution, Australia has partially
lifted sanctions against Zimbabwe. But it will only ease the sanctions
completely upon the conduct of free, fair and democratic elections.

The EU and Washington have also partially lifted sanctions against some
individuals in the Zimbabwean government.

But Zimbabwe is still wary of the West’s agenda. Zanu-PF national chairman
Simon Khaya Moyo has clarified that EU observers will not be allowed to take
part in the upcoming elections.

Only states that have been friendly to Zimbabwe, mainly African countries,
will be allowed to monitor the elections. Harare has also deepened its
“look-East” policy, particularly with China, as a strategy to counter
economic isolation by the West.

China, now Zimbabwe’s leading trading partner, has constructed a new defence
college valued at $98 million. The close relations with China have given the
military leaders in Zanu-PF extra political and economic leverage.

Ultimately, the neutrality of Zimbabwe’s security and police forces is
central to ensuring stability and a peaceful democratic transition in the
country.

Peter Kagwanja is the president of the Africa Policy Institute. Laureen
Wesonga is a policy analyst with the Africa Policy Institute. This article
is part of the institute’s African Citizen Security project.

Statement by David Coltart

Is Jonathan Moyo eligible for Zanu-pf primary elections?

Dr. Clifford Chitupa Mashiri, 15th June 2013.

While it is subject to confirmation, Jonathan Moyo seems not eligible to
contest all forthcoming Zanu-pf primary elections based on guidelines
published Friday 14th June 2013.

The rules and regulations were released by Zanu-pf Chairperson Simon Khaya
Moyo who is also the chairperson of the National Electoral Directorate at
the party’s headquarters on Friday.

Khaya Moyo is quoted by the state owned and major contender as the Zanu-pf
‘mouthpiece’ The Herald newspaper as saying that people wishing to contest
Senatorial elections on the party’s ticket should be registered voters, be
at least 40 years old and must have contributed to the country’s liberation
struggle or the development of Zimbabwe consistently and persistently.

A prospective candidate must have been a member of the party for more than
five years at district level with a clear and undisputed record. The primary
elections will be on June 24 (see The Herald, ‘Zanu PF releases primary
election guidelines’, 14 June 2013).

As if to plug all loopholes for any ‘undesirables’ from using the party
platform as a launching pad for their political careers, Khaya Moyo also
spelt out guidelines for those wishing to stand for House of Assembly seats
and local government (councilors)elections.

To be an MP candidate one must be a fully paid up member of the party, have
adequate economic, cultural, political understanding of the country to
debate effectively if elected, must have served as an office bearer in a
district for at least five years and have a deep understanding of the
objective of the Zanu-PF.

Those wishing to stand in local government elections should have the above
mentioned attributes of being 40 years and should also have held office at
branch or cell level of Zanu-PF.

People have already started to speculate whether Jonathan Moyo is eligible
to stand in Zanu-pf’s primary elections due on Monday 24 June 2013.

For instance, commentators on the Herald website were keen to know with
Porongi asking: “Jona Moyo haana kunyura here ? !!!!!!!!! zvingatyisa
vehama.” (Did Jona Moyo ‘drown’? that would be scary).

Chiwororo asked:  “Jonathan ****Moyo ari kukwikwidza here apa??????
Ndibatsireiwo ne information.”  (Is Jonathan Moyo contesting [in primary
elections ]?  Help me with information).

The answer appears to be NO because as regards senatorial elections,
although he is 56 years old - well above the  40 years minimum allowed,
since he was born on 12 January 1957, Jonathan Moyo did not contribute to
the country’s liberation struggle.

Contrary to his posturing as a “freedom fighter using a laptop” and his
longwinded hallucinating articles, Jonathan Moyo made 2 escape attempts from
Mgagao liberation war training camp in Tanzania of which the second one was
successful and took him back to Rhodesia where he made his way to the United
States in 1976-77, according to Wilfred Mhanda’s book , ‘The Making of a
Freedom Fighter’ (See Jonathan Moyo made 2 escape attempts’, The Zimbabwean,
10/10/11).

The five year party membership requirement also bars Jonathan Moyo from
standing in the primaries because he has been a member of Zanu-pf since 2011
to present according to his Wikipedia profile, which if it is wrong he
should have corrected by now.

He is also known more for his ‘three wars’ which appear on the same
profile - his “War with the Media”, “War at Home”, and “War with Foreigners”.
The obnoxious laws AIPPA and POSA are arguably Jonathan’s Moyo’s  babies and
nobody would envisage free and fair elections as long as they survive.

As far as contributing to the development of Zimbabwe consistently and
persistently, Jonathan Moyo’s record is a mixed bag. His profile talks about
‘much philanthropy including scholarship programs and support for sport over
many years’, which probably helped him win elections in Tsholotsho, his
family area  over 5 years ago as an independent before  applying to rejoin
Zanu-pf in 2011.

Jonathan Moyo is generally seen as a supposedly learned serial flip-flopper
or political turncourt who seems perpetually capable of abusing and throwing
unspeakable insults at all and sundry – from the Zanu-pf leader Robert
Mugabe to Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai among others.

As a result Jonathan Moyo hates his past and has attempted to gag the Daily
News and the Zimbabwe Independent from republishing articles attacking
Robert Mugabe.

It is the author’s strongest belief that the latest guidelines for Zanu-pf
primary elections were influenced by the party’s  ‘love-hate’ relationship
with Jonathan Moyo  having taken him back after accusing him of plotting a
coup and making him cry.

“We asked him whether he wanted to stage a coup…and tears started flowing
down his cheeks,” Mugabe said in Jonathan Moyo’s districts (see BBC, Mugabe
‘made spin-doctor cry’, 24/03/05).

Despite helping the party produce its jingles which some say are irritating
by being broadcast repeatedly on ZBC’s radio and TV channels more than
commercials, I think Zanu-pf  has not forgiven Jonathan Moyo for some of
those WikiLeaks disclosures.

According to a cable written by Eric Bost, the former US ambassador to South
Africa on 11 July 2007 and leaked by WikiLeaks Jonathan Moyo turned to
British businessman Virgin Group chairman, Sir Richard Branson for help in
unseating Mugabe.

Sir Branson reportedly agreed to a plan put forward by Jonathan Moyo to
offer Robert Mugabe US$10 million to step down (see The Telegraph, Sir
Richard Branson ‘discussed plan to remove Robert Mugabe from power’, 11
October 2011). In short, WikiLeaks might have claimed its first scalp in
Zanu-pf. Need we say more?

About the author:  Clifford Chitupa Mashiri is a London based political
analyst. He was recently awarded a Doctor of Philosophy in International
Relations degree by the Commonwealth Open University after obtaining ‘A’
grades  in all the programme’s  seven modules plus dissertation i.e. Power
Politics; The Foreign Policy Process; International Conflict; International
Organisation and Law; International Political Economy; The North-South Gap;
Birth of a New World and Dissertation (also called thesis). Clifford can be
contacted at zimanalysis2009@gmail.com

Unravelling four years

http://www.cathybuckle.com/

June 15, 2013, 10:12 am

Dear Family and Friends,

The old saying that a day is a long time in politics has never seemed to be
true for Zimbabwe. Year after year we’ve dragged through crisis after
crisis: longing, wishing, hoping that something would happen, praying that
the events of a day would somehow change the dark situation that we’ve been
trying to survive for such a long time.

This week the events of a day became a very long time in politics as they
unravelled four years of  hard work, painstaking diplomacy and tireless
efforts by so many. Four years of turning the other cheek and biting our
tongues for the good of the future of Zimbabwe were rubbed out with one
signature.

Using the Presidential Powers (Temporary Measures) Act, President Mugabe
proclaimed unilaterally that elections in Zimbabwe would be held on 31st
July.

It was ironic that on the same day as Mr Mugabe made his proclamation, the
daily independent press had front page banner headlines quoting
Constitutional Affairs Minister Matinenga telling parliament that elections
were only legally possible by the 25th August.

Zimbabweans  were confused: two completely different stories on the same
day. We hadn’t yet got our heads around the implications of a Supreme Court
ruling that said elections had to be held by the  31st July. That ruling
meant that stipulated time frames laid out for processes governing elections
could not be adhered to. We didn’t understand how the Supreme Court could
make such a ruling but the apparent contradiction became water under the
bridge when President Mugabe rode the tidal wave of confusion, used his
Presidential Powers and proclaimed a date.  Since 2010 Mr Mugabe’s been
promising, threatening and insisting on elections and now it looks like he
has put his foot down.

In an instant the unilateral proclamation by Mr Mugabe turned us upside
down. The reaction was fast and furious. Lawyers said the President couldn’t
make the election date proclamation without first consulting cabinet and
said Mr Mugabe “quite obviously did not do so” and therefore the
Proclamation was legally void.

Prime Minister Tsvangirai immediately issued a statement saying the
President’s actions were “a unilateral and flagrant breach” of both our new
constitution and the GPA. The PM said Mr Mugabe’s proclamation would
disenfranchise people; wouldn’t allow political parties time to inspect the
voters roll; wouldn’t allow stipulated  campaigning time after nomination
court sittings. The PM said that while the Constitution made the President
the “chief  upholder and defender of the constitution,” in fact the opposite
was happening; he said it was “regrettable that the chief defender and
upholder has become the chief attacker and abuser of the Constitution.”

Prime Minister Tsvangirai made some powerful and poignant promises to a
Zimbabwe that is tired and worn down by this never ending absurdity. “I will
not accept a situation where Zimbabweans will yet again be railroaded and
frog-marched to another illegitimate and violent election. The people of
Zimbabwe are suffering. Businesses are shutting down, workers are under
attack and the economy has frozen. A fraudulent and illegitimate election
will deepen the crisis and will not reverse this malaise.”

“Mugabe triggers war,” was a headline article in the weekly Zimbabwe
Independent newspaper and it sends chills down our spins to think that we
could be flung back into the same situation we had in 2008.  PM Tsvangirai
called on Zimbabweans to walk with him and stand by him in what he called
“this patriotic fight to defend the truth and the Constitution.” And so we
hold our breath waiting to see if the PM can do it this time. Until next
week, thanks for reading, love cathy.

To be or not to be?

http://www.cathybuckle.com/

June 14, 2013, 5:13 pm
To be or not to be? It may have been a deeply philosophical question for
Shakespeare’s Hamlet but in the Zimbabwean context it’s all about elections.
Are we or are we not going to have elections this year? Yesterday, Prime
Minister Tsvangirai said he would not agree to elections in July and warned
Mugabe not to ‘go it alone’. In contrast, Mugabe seems to want elections as
soon as possible, he can’t afford to hang about at his age. Having said he
would abide by the Constitutional Court ruling, Mugabe has widened the
splits within his Zanu PF party. The party knows it’s nowhere near ready for
elections with reports of factionalism coming in from across the country.
The hardliners in the party want elections as soon as possible but the
realists are only too aware of all the divisions within the party as they
squabble about who is going to succeed Mugabe.

It is not only the election date that is causing problems, the SADC Summit
on Zimbabwe has twice been postponed with African leaders, including Mugabe
himself,  saying they couldn’t find the time in their busy schedules. We are
told that the Summit will now take place on Saturday June 15th but even that
is not a certainty. What is clear is that Mugabe does not welcome a Summit
on Zimbabwe with all the close scrutiny that might involve. He has already
blasted SADC for interfering in Zimbabwe’s affairs, his old claim of
‘sovereignty’ has once again been aired. He denied that he has contempt for
SADC and initially claimed that he was ‘just too busy’ to attend the Summit.
As to the ‘reforms’ which were supposed to have been instituted before
elections, there is still no sign of them and the MDC’s threat to boycott
the elections unless those reforms take place sounds increasingly hollow.

Meanwhile there is evidence of increasing violence from both the main
parties; evidence surely of the inevitable frustration caused by all the
uncertainty in the country. Indecision appears to be the order of the day;
no one can make up their minds about anything! Zanu PF continue to dither
over the date for their primary elections. The Politburo meets today to sort
that problem out and while there’s no certainty about anything, Zimbabweans
in the diaspora, some 3.5 million of them are desperate to get passports so
they can go home to vote even though no date has been announced. It seems
very clear that all the parties are gearing up for elections and as always
teachers are in the frontline of violence because of their suspected links
with MDC. A pupil at an army school was recently expelled because his father
had links with the opposition party but it has to be admitted, the MDC also
have blood on their hands as journalists are apparently assaulted by young
activists. Fear of electoral violence is widespread and JOMIC has launched a
Code of Conduct for all political parties but it is unlikely to stem the
rising tide of violence that threatens to engulf the country as elections
loom.

Post Script, Friday, June 14th 2013 : Then came the bombshell! In
contravention of the GPA and the constitution and without consulting his own
Prime Minister, Robert Mugabe announced July 31st 2013 as the election date.
Morgan Tsvangirai received an early morning letter telling him the news and
the MDC immediately filed a court application challenging Mugabe’s
unilateral proclamation. Mugabe declared that he was acting within the law
as determined by the Constitutional Court. In short, just two days before
the Summit, Mugabe has again shown the world that no one is going to tell
him what to do. The question is: what will SADC do now to rein in Mugabe?

Yours in the (continuing) struggle, Pauline Henson.

Bill Watch - Parliamentary Committees Series 14/2013 of 14th June [Committee Meetings 17 to 20 June: Recent Committee Reports]

Bill Watch - Parliamentary Committees Series 15/2013 of 15th June [Public Hearings on ZESA Service Delivery 16 -18 June]