Tsvangirai: Personally I dont know Mugabe’s Intentions

New Zimbabwe – PRIME Minister Morgan Tsvangirai says he expects a constitutional referendum
to be conducted in October allowing general elections, which will end the
life of the coalition government, to be held in 2011.

Early this month, the MDC-T leader appeared to resist pressure by SADC
facilitator President Jacob Zuma that the country speeds up implementation
of GPA reforms in order to hold elections next year.

However, speaking to reporters in Switzerland, where he is attending the
World Economic Forum meetings, Tsvangirai endorsed Zuma’s time-line.

He said he expects the ongoing exercise to draft a new constitution to be
completed in time for a referendum over its adoption in October this year.

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ZANU PF: ‘No more GPA Concessions’ until Sanctions lifted

SW Radio - The inter-party negotiations were dealt another serious blow on Wednesday when ZANU PF’s supreme decision making body, the Politburo, said there will be no more Global Political Agreement concessions until the sanctions have been lifted.

Ephraim Masawi, ZANU PF Deputy Secretary for Information and Publicity, is quoted in the Herald saying remarks by British Foreign Secretary David Miliband that, ‘London would remove sanctions at MDC’s request exposed MDC-T’s treacherous role in the initiation and drafting of the illegal sanctions against Zimbabweans.’ The paper went on to say the party was a, ‘tool of Western imperialism, and that the hypocrisy of the MDC-T’s denial of its role in the evil saga of the imposition of illegal sanctions now stands exposed for all to see.’

Commentator Dr. Alex Magaisa said the statements made by the British official have added fuel to already burning embers in the context of Zimbabwe’s fragile political settlement.

He told SW Radio Africa on Thursday that Miliband’s statements were ‘unfortunate,’ and gave an indication that the MDC had the power to influence the lifting of sanctions, thereby giving ZANU PF a wonderful gift, which it is exploiting to the detriment of the GPA.

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A turbulent marriage

Photo: Flikr/Umsoto

Still at odds: President Robert Mugabe (left) and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai (right)

(IRIN) – Recent moves by Zimbabwe’s unity government to adopt several outstanding commitments to the Global Political Agreement (GPA), the basis of the current system, are encouraging, but genuine dedication to the necessary reforms is hard to come by.

It took months to broker the agreement between President Robert Mugabe’s ZANU-PF and the two Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) formations that made it possible set up a government and start resolving the challenges of Zimbabwe’s economic implosion and the violent elections in 2008.

In signing the GPA document on 15 September 2008, the main political parties agreed to “work together to create a genuine, viable, permanent, sustainable and nationally acceptable solution to the Zimbabwe situation and in particular to implement the [GPA], with the aims of resolving once and for all the current political and economic situations and charting a new political direction for the country.”

It has been a steep and rocky road, with MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai, who has been Prime Minister since February 2009, claiming that Mugabe has failed to respect the GPA deal.

Tsvangirai met with South African President Jacob Zuma – chair of the Southern African Development Community (SADC), which brokered and endorsed the GPA – in Johannesburg, South Africa, on 3 August and again accused Mugabe of frustrating efforts to implement the reforms required in terms of the GPA.

“The Prime Minister has briefed me that the majority of issues are moving forward, except for a few,” Zuma told local media. “I have said I will be contacting President Mugabe.”

Tsvangirai has stressed the need to deal with unresolved issues, including control of Zimbabwe’s security forces, and ZANU-PF’s unilateral appointment of Attorney-General Johannes Tomana and Governor of the Reserve Bank, Gideon Gono, which were contrary to the terms of the GPA.

“Clearly, there are signs of movement in terms of implementing some of the outstanding issues on the GPA, but these developments are linked to the upcoming SADC summit and the first anniversary of the signing of the power sharing deal,” political journalist and analyst Dumisani Muleya told IRIN.

The next ordinary SADC Summit is scheduled for the first week of September 2009 in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo. “Zimbabwean leaders obviously want to avoid being the centre of attraction by drawing criticism from regional leaders for failing to fully implement the provisions of the power-sharing pact,” Muleya commented.

Slight signs of commitment

“Freedom of Expression and Communication” is one aspect of the GPA that has recently seen change. On 30 July the government announced that international television stations such as the BBC and CNN had in fact never been banned from conducting business in Zimbabwe, and reports of a ban were “false”. The BBC immediately sent its correspondent to Harare, the capital.

“The Zimbabwe Government has told the BBC there is no ban on its operations and it can resume reporting, legally and openly, in Zimbabwe,” the BBC said on its website.

The Daily News, a pro-MDC newspaper that was shut down by the ZANU-PF government in September 2003, has also been re-licensed to operate, but its computers and archives were seized in the run-up to the elections in 2008, so the publication is not expected to appear on the streets anytime soon.

“While it is a welcome development to invite foreign media, and to issue a license to The Daily News, more still needs to be done in terms of repealing laws that have been used to prey on journalism,” said Matthew Takaona, president of the Zimbabwe Union of Journalists. “All cannot be well if the Prime Minister has to go to meet Zuma to appeal for the full implementation of the GPA.”

After years of cracking down in response to public demonstrations, the government has also described as “false” reports that Zimbabweans were not allowed to stage demonstrations, claiming all that was needed was to notify the police.

“The notification is not meant to be some form of application for permission from the police to proceed with intended gathering or procession – it is for creating a platform for consultation between the police and the convener of the procession on how best the procession or gathering can be best managed,” said Giles Mutsekwa, MDC Co-Home Affairs minister, who shares the portfolio with his ZANU-PF counterpart.

Parliament also recently announced that it would start interviewing members of the proposed Zimbabwe Media Commission, which will replace the Media and Information Commission, the ZANU-PF government media regulatory body that presided over the closure of independent newspapers, television and radio stations.

Interviews to appoint commissioners to the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission, the Anti-Corruption Commission and the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission are in the pipeline.

On 30 July the National Security Council met for the first time since the formation of the unity government in February to discuss the prickly issues of the armed forces and security services. The ministers and commanders of the security forces finally sat down with Tsvangirai, whom they had vowed never to work with or salute.

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How to get donor funds to the needy – analysis

(IRIN) – That Zimbabwe needs aid is a given – its battered population has experienced widespread food shortages, hyperinflation and a devastating cholera epidemic – but so far the stumbling block of trust in the institutions responsible for handling money has proved bigger than need.

The formation of a unity government in February 2009 between President Robert Mugabe’s ruling ZANU-PF and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) was welcomed by the country’s major donors, the United States and the European Union, but did not lead to their lifting targeted sanctions against the ZANU-PF elite, or open the floodgates to billions of dollars in aid.

Analysts say donor community doubt in Mugabe’s sincerity surfaced soon after the Global Political Agreement, which paved the way for the unity government, was signed in September 2008.

Within a few months, Mugabe re-appointed Gideon Gono as Governor of the Reserve Bank, despite protests from the MDC that this was in flagrant disregard of the agreement, which requires consensus on such appointments.

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Contending for Restoration of Democracy

By Kenneth Mawomo

The Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) is a Zimbabwean political party formed in 1999. It was formed to provide an alternative for the people of Zimbabwe to the ZANU PF dominated government in power since the country got independence in 1980.

Rule of Law

The MDC sought to address a number of problems facing the country. These included arresting a decline in the economy, rooting out wide spread corruption by the ruling elite and restoration of the rule of law. Over the years only the people with close links to the ruling elite had thrived. There was a deliberate and sustained effort to stifle freedom of speech and trample human rights. The ruling elite had a total disregard for the rule of law.

For ordinary Zimbabweans the standard of living was falling rapidly as unemployment rose due to companies closing down because of the adverse economic conditions. For a country once regarded as a bread basket of Africa food shortages and hunger were becoming the norm. A brain drain only made the situation worse as schools and hospitals staff and other skilled workers left the country for greener pastures. The MDC was determined to put an end to this. Zimbabwe once a respectable member of the International community had become a pariah state.

Since its formation the MDC has taken part in two presidential and three parliamentary elections and has increased its share of parliament seats and its popularity.  Zimbabweans had realised they had to be involved in order to change the status quo-hence the party slogan “Chinja Maitiro, Guqula Izenzo”.(Which literally translated means  “change your way of doing things”.)

Flawed Elections

As the MDC support base surged, violence escalated with the ruling elite intimidating the opposition in a bid to maintain the status quo. In the March 2008 election the MDC finally won a parliamentary majority. In addition the Party President Mr. Morgan Tsvangirayi got the most votes out of three participating candidates. His margin of victory was however not enough for him to be declared an outright winner according to Zimbabwean constitution.

A delay in announcing the final results by the Electoral Commission fuelled the suspicion that the results had been manipulated. Because of the dispute and the violence that followed the announcements of the final results the MDC decided to boycott the subsequent run off. The MDC did not want to legitimise a flawed process by participating in the run off. The only candidate in the “election” was declared the winner The result was rejected by the MDC, which led to a wave of more violence targeted at the MDC members.

Global Political Agreement

In a bid to resolve the situation the Africa Union (AU) led by South Africa mediated in negotiations for several months. After several months of tough negotiations and pressure from the AU the MDC decided to sign the GPA with Zanu PF which culminated in the formation of a Government of National Unity (GNU). As part of the agreement various issues were agreed which had to be implemented in the spirit of the GNU. One of them was that the MDC president was to become the Prime Minister of the country. The MDC made it clear that it was only going into the GNU in order to alleviate the suffering of the people but was not convinced of the other party’s sincerity. This has since been vindicated as some of the issues are still to be resolved four months after the formation of the GNU.

The MDC is now a well established political party with a lot of support up and down the country. Apart from membership in the country, the MDC also has members in the Diaspora. The members are based in countries such as the USA, UK and Australia and other countries. The party is divided into provinces for administrative purposes, with UK and Ireland being one of the provinces outside Zimbabwe. Provinces are further divided into districts and then branches.

MDC Leicester

Leicester is part of the Midlands north district. The Leicester branch is involved in various activities which include raising awareness of the MDC and also recruiting more members. Its objectives which include a fight for democracy and the restoration of the rule of the law in Zimbabwe has led to many more members joining the party.

Other activities include fundraising for various projects here in the UK and in Zimbabwe. One of the main projects the MDC is involved in is the twinning programme of branches overseas with constituencies in Zimbabwe. This enables the branches to channel their help more directly to individual constituents. MDC Leicester branch is twinned with Binga-South, Bubi, Lupani-East and Lupani-West.

Help in the past has been in the form money, clothes and books. This year there are plans to send agricultural inputs in time for the farming season. Fundraising activites are held regularly to raise money and include sale of MDC T shirts and other functions.

At the Leicester branch, meetings are held every fortnight at St. Peter’s Community Hall in Highfields. The last meeting was held on the Saturday the second of May 2nd 2009. At that meeting members had a chance to deliberate on among other things the progress made so far by the Unity Government. Although it was noted that some things are improving like the availability of the goods in shops members felt that a lot of issues remain unresolved.

Richard Jaramba said it appears the school fees were still high citing the example of Solusi College where he said the students are being asked to pay USD1200 per term. The Organising Secretary did however say that was probably because it is a private institution so not a good yardstick. Sheila Ndarukwa said she understood from her relatives back home that things were now more readily available in the shops. However another member Mary Muteyerwa felt this was not helpful since the people did not have money to buy the goods given that a lot of people still do not have jobs.

Another member Dominic Mugumbate was of the opinion that it is a bit misleading to attribute the availability of goods in shops to the government. He said the government‘s duty is to provide public services and should be judged on this basis. He went on to say as long as rubbish is not being collected, piped water not available all the time, electricity supply still being erratic, roads littered with potholes then  nothing much had changed.

The Secretary general Pelani Ziba outlined some of the issues still outstanding which include the of whereabouts of 5 missing MDC members, the appointment of the Reserve Bank Governor and the appointment of the Attorney General. There was a feeling that as long as these issues were not resolved there would cast doubt on the commitment of the other party to the GNU.

The next meeting is scheduled for the 16th of May at the same venue. New members are always welcome to join the party and help in the rebuilding of the country. For more details please call the Leicester Branch Chairman Tawanda Machakaire on 07919678788, or the Organising Secretary Pelani Ziba on 07903931659.

*Kenneth Mawomo is a Volunteer Citizen Journalist with HAT News

Also see related story: MDC Leicester Branch Meetings

Civil society opposes new constitution process

(IRIN) – The creation of a new Zimbabwean constitution is severely straining relations between Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) and its civil society partners, who are usually united by their opposition to President Robert Mugabe’s ZANU-PF.

A draft constitution was agreed by ZANU-PF, the MDC, and a break-away grouping led by Arthur Mutumbara, at a meeting in the Zimbabwean resort town of Kariba in September 2007.

What has become known as the Kariba Draft paved the way for the Global Political Agreement (GPA) between ZANU-PF and the MDC, signed on 15 September 2008, although the unity government it ushered in only came into effect on 11 February 2009 after months of political bickering.

The Speaker of Parliament, Lovemore Moyo, from Tsvangirai’s MDC, announced earlier this month that a 25-member parliamentary committee comprising legislators from the MDC, Mutumbara’s break-away MDC and ZANU-PF and would lead the process of writing a new constitution.

“The historic inter-party political agreement places the responsibility of leading the constitution-making process on parliament and, more importantly, provides an opportunity for the country to create a constitution by the people and for the people,” he said. The committee is expected to finish the process by 2010 and subject the new constitution to a referendum by July 2010.

Lovemore Madhuku, chairman of the National Constitutional Assembly (NCA), an organization of labour movements, churches, business, human rights and civic groups, said the process should be driven by civil society, not politicians, and that they would begin campaigning for a “No” vote in the expected referendum in protest.

“As the NCA, we reject the parliamentary committee that has been announced to lead the process of writing a new constitution. The process should be people-driven and not led by parliamentarians. We will campaign against it and ask people to reject the flawed constitution during the referendum,” Madhuku told journalists.

The NCA successfully thwarted Mugabe’s attempt to introduce a new constitution in 2000, giving ZANU-PF its first electoral defeat since coming to power after independence from Britain in 1980.

Constitutional and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Eric Matinenga told a recent meeting of civil society representatives that “the Kariba Draft is not, and will not determine, the final constitution. The draft will only serve as a point of reference.”

A people driven constitution

The Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU), the largest trade union federation and birthplace of the MDC, also condemned the fact that the new constitution would be written under the leadership of parliament.

ZCTU secretary-general Wellington Chibhebhe told IRIN: “We have always stood by the belief that a constitution-making process should be people-driven and led by an independent body of people, and that position has not changed.

“So far we have not lobbied for the rejection of the constitution when the referendum is done, the … [issue] is about the process of coming up with a new constitution. If the process is not adjusted so that it is people-driven, then we will be forced to come up with a position to say ‘No’ to the whole process and outcome,” he said.

Clever Bere, president of the Zimbabwe National Students Union and another MDC ally, told IRIN they were opposed to the “process of coming up with a new constitution [and it] should not be allowed to proceed.

“As civic society, we were expecting an all-stakeholders conference that would come up with an independent commission, which would take charge of coming up with a new constitution, and not politicians, as has happened.”

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