We, civil society organizations acting on behalf of the people of Zimbabwe, today reassert our commitment to the struggle for a transition to democracy.  In doing so, we stand firmly by the principles of democratic constitutionalism that are embodied in the People's Charter and which represent the birthright of every Zimbabwean.  

Given the present environment of fear and oppression, we declare that democratic reform must be preceded by the cessation of violence, restoration of law and order, and facilitation of humanitarian relief.  If such conditions are met, we are prepared to support the installation of a transitional government created after consultation with all stakeholders.

We believe that a transitional government would provide an appropriate vehicle for ushering democratic reform.  The transitional authority would have a specific, limited mandate to oversee the drafting of a new, democratic and people-driven constitution and the installation of a legitimate government.  We wholeheartedly reject the suggestion of a power-sharing agreement that fails to immediately address the inadequacy of the current constitutional regime.

The transitional government must be established in line with the following:

1. Leadership by a neutral body.  The transitional government should be headed by an individual who is not a member of ZANU-PF or MDC.

2. Broad representation.  Individuals from a broad sector of Zimbabwean society should be incorporated into the transitional government.  This should include representatives from labor organizations, women's and children's rights groups, churches, and various other interest groups.

3. Specific, limited mandate.  The transitional government should be tasked with facilitating the drafting and adoption of a new constitution and then holding elections under the new constitutional framework. It should only govern the country until such time as the government elected under the new constitution is installed.  The negotiating parties should provide a very clear timeframe for this process, with no more than 18 months of rule by the transitional government.

4. People-driven constitutional development.  The process of drafting a new constitution must include broad-based consultation with the public.  Interest groups such as women, labor, churches, and media should be given special opportunities to provide input.  The draft constitution should not be enacted until it has been ratified by the public in a national referendum.

5. Restoration of good governance.  State institutions such as the judiciary, police, security services, and state welfare agencies should be depoliticized and reformed.  Steps should be taken to fight corruption and promote accountability for public officials. Restrictions on press freedom should be lifted and access to state media outlets should be opened.

6. Transitional justice initiatives.  The transitional government should design and implement a system to bring to justice the perpetrators of gross human rights violations.  This framework for transitional justice should be embedded in the new constitution. In the event of the above conditions not being met, civil society commits itself to continue in actions that increase pressure on whosoever will be holding state power to embrace people-centered democratic process.

*This press statement was issued by civil society following the national civil society consultative meeting.

*Please send comments to or comment online at http://www.pambazuka.org/

In 1980 the Zimbabwean “povo” (people) celebrated a victory over settler colonialism and Western imperialism. We celebrated with them. For us, this was a step closer to Namibian sovereignty, even though the overwhelming victory of ZANU was time-wise a detour on our long road to Independence. The unexpected result had taught Western imperialism a lesson. It shattered its manic assumptions that one could orchestrate and manipulate an election, even if the people are allowed to cast a secret vote at the ballot. Without major intimidation the “povo” used the weapon of an electoral process, by voting for the cock (the symbol for Mugabe’s ZANU), and not the archbishop (Abel Muzorewa, who was considered the blue eyed boy of the West). The people knew what they wanted: a government of their own choice, which they had reasons to believe would represent their interests.

Almost three decades later, 18 years into Namibian Independence, we have to face the sobering realities: Mugabe and his loyal clique in ZANU/PF messed it up. By the end of the 1990s they had lost the “povo.” While they blamed Western imperialism for this, it was in the first place their own elitist neocolonial project, which betrayed the liberation gospel and thereby the people. From the start, the new rulers were not shy of ruthlessly violent practices. Remember the genocidal mass violence in Matabeleland shortly after Independence (“Gukuhurundi”). Tens of thousand innocent people were tortured, maimed, raped, mutilated and slaughtered between 1983 and 1985 by the North Korean trained Fifth Brigade. Only because being Ndebele they were considered guilty of being in support of Josuah Nkomo’s ZAPU, a competing liberation movement finally coerced into the ZANU/PF alliance. With a few exceptions (notably the Catholic church inside Zimbabwe), those who knew remained silent and thereby endorsed if not encouraged the perpetrators to further cultivate their dehumanizing version of “chimurenga” against the people.

9th July, 2008
The Office of the President
Cause Way
Harare
Zimbabwe

Your Excellency,

RE: WE STAND UP FOR DEMOCRACY IN ZIMBABWE

The African Women Development and Communication Network (FEMNET), a Pan- African Network working for the promotion and protection of the rights of women and children in the Africa Region is greatly disturbed by the unfolding events in this great African country Zimbabwe.

We note with concern the continued suffering of women and children in this country who have been victimized for no apparent reason or cause. Ironically their alleged crime is that they or their male relatives have participated in the democratic process of their country and expressed their choice of leadership for their country!!! The sham runoff election for presidency held on the 27th of June was marred with pre- and post election violence which has led to untold suffering for the people of Zimbabwe, loss of life (for example over 220 people linked with the opposition have died since March 2008), destruction of property and forced displacement of people majority of whom are women and children and in the process many have become victims of sexual abuse and other forms of violations of their body integrity.

Mr. Mugabe, you have a great history as one of the freedom fighters of Zimbabwe and you will always be acknowledged and remembered for the great contribution and sacrifice you personally made to bring freedom to all the people of Zimbabwe. We acknowledge the complexity of the situation in Zimbabwe. However, we believe that your continued unlawful stay in power as the President of Zimbabwe is not benefiting the majority of men and women of your country. Women and children of comrades in the opposition have been deliberately attacked, many have been forced out of their homes and fled the country, and others are currently in safe custody with embassies of foreign countries that still exist in your country. This is a real shame and a total mockery of democracy. We strongly believe that your autocratic leadership is a total disgrace to the people of Zimbabwe and the whole of Africa.

FEMNET joins the Presidents of Africa countries and other civil society organizations in Africa to condemn in the strongest terms the undemocratic elections that took place in Zimbabwe on the 27th of June 2008. Your political conduct is unacceptable and shameful to the entire continent of Africa.

We therefore call upon you Mr. Mugabe to do the following:

- To lead a process not exceeding six months, that will result into a peaceful hand over of power to new leaders that have credibility in the eyes of the people of Zimbabwe, the African people and the international community;

- To ensure that an environment of peace, free from intimidation and political violence is guaranteed by the Government of Zimbabwe for all people both supporters of the ruling party and those in opposition. This is an essential prerequisite for the peaceful process of transfer of power and authority to the new leaders of Zimbabwe. It is a constitutional right for citizens to have protection of their rights to personal security and not to be subjected to any form of abuse, torture, or inhuman treatment;

- To respect the rights of the people of Zimbabwe to associate and form political parties as part of the democratic process and to choose their leaders. These rights are guaranteed in Article 22 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Article 10 of the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights to which Zimbabwe is a party. The Constitution of Zimbabwe also guarantees these rights in Article 20 and 21.

- To ensure that women and children of Zimbabwe are protected from unscrupulous elements in society that are taking advantage of the unrest and uncertainty and are abusing and disregarding their rights and freedoms.

- To work towards a legacy of facilitating a peaceful transfer of power to new leaders in Zimbabwe by the end of 2008.

Note that in solidarity with the people of Zimbabwe especially the women and children of this great country, the women of Africa through FEMNET:

- Urge the African Union and its member states and also SADC countries to prevail upon you Mr. Mugabe to hand over power peacefully by December 2008 in order to transform the electoral and political crisis in your country into an opportunity for the development of a sustainable democracy.

- Demand for the immediate cessation of all acts of political violence and intimidation and all those engaging in acts of political violence, especially militia and youth groups supported by your party in power should be dealt with expeditiously in accordance with the law. We urge all political parties of Zimbabwe to exercise restraint and desist from employing intimidation and violent tactics.

- Call upon your Government to guarantee the safety and freedom of all people in Zimbabwe, especially women and children, irrespective of their political beliefs and choices.

- Are committed to stand with the women of Zimbabwe in and outside the country at this very precarious moment. We shall continue speaking out with courage against the undemocratic behaviour exhibited by different parties involved in this crisis.

- Will continue to strongly pressurize other leaders in the region to stand up against Mr. Mugabe and for democracy in Africa.

Democracy shall prevail.

*Norah Matovu Winyi is the executive director of FEMNET. This letter was written on behalf of the women’ rights movement in Africa.

*Please send comments to or comment online at http://www.pambazuka.org/

The World Association of Newspapers (WAN) and the World Editors Forum (WEF) this week wrote to Robert Mugabe calling on him to repeal to immediately a punitive "luxury" tax on newspapers that are imported into Zimbabwe. The WAN and WEF said the punitive tax regime was preventing independent newspapers such as The Zimbabwean from reaching their audience.

The tax was imposed in early June in the run-up to the widely condemned presidential election won by Mugabe after his opponent Morgan Tsvangirai quit the race in the face of escalating violence against his supporters. The tax aimed at newspapers printed in South Africa such as The Zimbabwean, the Mail and Guardian, and the Sunday Times and is targeted to limit the circulation of the publications.

“Restricting access to information by punitive taxation constitutes a clear breach of the right to freedom of expression, which is guaranteed by numerous international conventions, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,” the Paris-based WAN and WEF, which represent 18,000 newspapers world-wide, said in a letter to Mugabe.

The two organizations called on Mugabe to remove the illegal luxury tax on foreign publications and to end state intimidation of the independent media. The tax has already led to the suspension of The Zimbabwean on Sunday and the reduction in print run of The Zimbabwean from 200,000 copies a week to 60,000 – greatly diminishing access to information on the part of the majority of Zimbabweans.

In June alone The Zimbabwean was forced to pay SAR500,000 (£37,000) in punitive duties.

Wilf Mbanga

The Zimbabwean

The UN refugee agency said on Friday it was concerned that people fleeing political violence in Zimbabwe were not being properly screened at the South Africa border, raising fears that people with a genuine fear of persecution could be deported.

South African President and SADC mediator on the Zimbabwean crisis, Thabo Mbeki has been quoted by media as admitting that President Mugabe who won the one man presidential race boycotted by the opposition MDC party is an illegitimate leader and that is why a government of national unity was necessary.

Africa's only female President Liberian Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has urged world leaders to back targeted sanctions against members of Zimbabwe ZANU-PF Government. President Sirleaf was speaking to reporters in South Africa during her short visit to attend the 6th Nelson Mandela annual lecture at Walter Sisulu square in Kliptown, Soweto.

On Saturday 12 July 2008, following a call by CIVICUS: World Alliance For Citizen Participation, Amnesty International and the Global Call for Action Against Poverty (GCAP), citizens of Africa will unite to express their solidarity with the people of Zimbabwe who are suffering persistent violations of their rights. Saturday represents the launch of a Pan-African Campaign of Solidarity for Zimbabwe, and will be followed by events continent-wide.

The African Union Assembly, meeting in its 11th Ordinary Session held on June 30 to July 1, 2008 in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt,
DEEPLY CONCERNED with the prevailing situation in Zimbabwe;
DEEPLY CONCERNED with the negative reports of SADC, the African Union and the Pan-African Parliament observers on the Zimbabwean Presidential run-off election held on June 27, 2008;
DEEPLY CONCERNED about the violence and the loss of life that has occurred in Zimbabwe...

As a Zimbabwean it is really encouraging to see and hear fellow Pan -Africanists differentiate between Mugabe 's ideals and his actions and the quest for freedoms for African peoples.

The article, , is great but it really needed to show that cunning and foxy Mugabe only moves with the tide and does all this only to keep himself in power and for his own selfish interests. One only needs to look at the Mugabe who worked for and was a darling of Western interest soon after independence and went on killing not only the Ndebeles whose leadership was pro-Soviet Union at the times but also dumped every freedom fighter who fought for Zimbabwe' s independence.

He never attended any local cultural event but went into every cricket match and would go shopping in the UK I do not know how many times. It was only when the freedom fighters held him captive that he paid them the Z$50,000 gratuities. Even the land issue was not Mugabe idea but the freedom fighters. Mugabe only followed suit. Doing otherwise would have weakened him.

On Tsvangirai being labelled a puppet of the West, again Mugabe was always one good western puppet because he would come to the west to blackmail Nkomo and Zapu and accuse them being pro-communist and wanting to grab land. This is why Nkomo was called 'child of the soil.'

One would like to believe that is how Mugabe became a darling here and was awarded degrees and knighthoods. He then fell out with his western masters when he could not dance to their tunes and protect their interest. A close look at even the recent events would reveal some of Zanu' big financers are British.

So who is the really is a puppet here? Is Mugabe not just playing fox. Finally, liberators should not be sole owners of that liberation. Mugabe must understand that even my grandmother in Chipinge fought for the independence of Zimbabwe but she cannot hold on to it as if it is a private unlimited.

Pan -Africanist need a bigger, in depth discussion on such issues -otherwise the likes of Mugabe will hijack all this for their own selfish agenda. And to criticise or differ in views with Mugabe is still Pan African.

I stand to be corrected and if need be, to be humbled.

In response to : In 1999, I wrote an article published in The Namibian newspaper calling the Mugabe regime in Zimbabwe another chapter in Africa's narrative of dictatorship and murder. The others being the regimes of Nkrumah, Kenyatta, Kaunda, etc.

Leftist ideologues reacted with predictable horror. The problem why dictators like Mugabe will continue to thrive in Africa is because we make excuses for them. They are nationalists, socialists, or Africanists, etc. This kind of argumentation ridiculously suggests that it is okay for a leftist, nationalist or Africanist to murder and pillage. It is only wrong when the killing is done by an imperialist.

The Left, especially African Left, must reposition itself to help in creating Africa's future. As presently constituted, the Left has provided the philosophical and ideological justification for various murderous regimes.

The world’s attention has been riveted in 2008, by election crises in Africa, first Kenya, and now Zimbabwe. In both cases, challenges remain in converting electoral victory to political power. Can a victorious opposition come to power in the face of an obstinate incumbent? This question is particularly relevant when the incumbent regime controls the coercive apparatus of the state and the opposition only has the ballot in its corner. In the battle of the ballot vs. the bullet, can there ever be a fair match?

Historically the answer has been no. But new developments on the democratic front in Africa in the last decade have strengthened election support and monitoring by key regional bodies, the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the African Union (AU). In 2004, SADC adopted ‘Principles and Guidelines Governing Democratic Elections’ aimed at ‘enhancing the transparency and credibility of elections and democratic governance as well as ensuring the acceptance of election results by contesting parties”. The African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance adopted by the AU in 2007 to, among other things, ‘promote the holding of regular free and fair elections to institutionalize legitimate authority of representative government as well as democratic change of government”, consolidated gains on the electoral front. These developments have strengthened the electoral process on the continent, creating the space for opposition parties to compete fairly. At a minimum, international supervision through these protocols compels sitting governments to desist from outright repression and undemocratic practices.

There has been a lot of opprobrium directed at African leaders for lacking the political will to put in check if not end Mugabe’s misrule. However I have a different take on the outcome of the recent Sharm El Sheikh Summit of the Heads of State and Government of the African Union.

Media reports and public reaction both in Africa and outside of Africa have been highly critical and dismissive of the AU resolution. For many, this was yet another unprincipled stand by the African leaders, many of whom have no better democratic credentials than those of Uncle Bob’s. So what would you expect from such a group the cynics ask? As understandable as this position is, it fails to take cognisance of the changing dynamics of intra-African diplomacy. For that failure those holding this view become unwitting allies of President Mugabe whose tainted and stale reading of Africa convince him that no African leader can criticise him.

Mugabe said this much soon after his one-man presidential run-off and his hurried ‘swearing in – just in time to rush off Egypt. He claimed that none of the leaders had cleaner hands than his, which are certainly bloody. In a sense he was daring those with cleaner hands to cast the first stone. It was desperate bravado from a man who has lost all claims to moral or political integrity. He exonerates himself not by proclaiming his innocence but declaring that he is not the only one guilty. No doubt his fellow riggers and robbers feel uncomfortable.

SADC Council of NGOs (SADC-CNGO), Southern African Trade Union Coordinating Council (SATUCC) & Fellowship of Christian Councils in Southern Africa (FOCISSA), representing broad membership in all SADC member states, are deeply concerned that the developments in Zimbabwe grossly undermines the regional community’s efforts to achieve regional integration and go against the spirit and objectives of the SADC Treaty.

Presidential run-off elections and their outcome are illegitimate and cannot be the basis for any solution for Zimbabwe. These elections took place under the conditions of politically motivated violence, arrests & detention, brutality and intimidation, which resulted in one party, ZANU-PF, contesting against itself, and subjecting citizens into submissiveness through repression, torture, murder, detention and destruction of property. Our leaders have allowed the Zimbabwean situation to deteriorate to where it is today, despite the fact that President Robert Mugabe and the ruling ZANU-PF party violated, and continue to violate fundamental values and principles of the SADC Founding Treaty, African Union’s Constitutive Act and United Nation’s Charter in that:

ZANU-PF MACHINATIONS
It is common knowledge that the Movement of Democratic Change (MDC) party won the parliamentary and presidential elections earlier this year. Based on its performance, it would therefore be fair to say that the MDC would probably have also won last week’s presidential run-off had it not pulled out at the last moment. Yet, despite these facts, Zanu-PF still remains in power today. Robert Mugabe has once again outmaneuvered his opponents in Zimbabwe and abroad.

No surprises there then, given that the government had set in motion a chain of events that were designed to pre-determine the outcome of the elections in its favour. Indeed, the MDC cited the systematic harassment, torture and murder of its supporters and leadership as the main reason for its withdrawal from the election.

Given this state of affairs and as the Pan-African parliament observer mission reported, the elections could not have been conducted in a free and fair environment. African leaders meeting in Egypt last week called for a government of national unity to be established in Zimbabwe, thereby conferring semi-legitimacy to Mugabe much to the dismay of the MDC and others who were hoping for outright condemnation and ostracisation.

However, the MDC was right to contest the elections in March even though it was faced with insurmountable odds. By participating in a contest they knew would be pre-determined and still registering more votes than the government, the party won a moral victory in the eyes of many Zimbabweans. That moral victory would have been enough to carry the MDC through last week’s presidential run-off election, which was also preceded by the same unfavourable conditions of the March election.

Video footage which appears to show ballot-rigging taking place in Zimbabwe's recent presidential run-off election has been posted on the website of a British newspaper. The footage had reportedly been smuggled out of the country by Shepherd Yuda, an officer at a prison in Harare, Zimbabwe's capital.

Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe, defiant despite growing African condemnation of his re-election, said on Friday the opposition must drop its claim to power and accept that he was the rightful head of state.

The Zimbabwe Exiles Forum said on Friday the South African government needs to take responsibility not only for the number of Zimbabweans fleeing into the country, but also for the growing number of displaced Zimbabweans – a figure that is now estimated at a quarter of a million since the March elections.

While officials at the US Embassy in Harare took the day off to celebrate America’s Independence Day on Friday, almost 200 victims of political violence were still waiting outside the embassy gates seeking refuge and shelter. An estimated 260 people fled their homes to seek shelter at the diplomatic mission on Thursday, as the state sponsored violence against MDC supporters continued.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has criticized the outcome of Friday’s run-off presidential election in Zimbabwe – which went ahead despite international appeals for a postponement given the violence and intimidation that preceded it – as illegitimate. “The outcome did not reflect the true and genuine will of the Zimbabwean people or produce a legitimate result,” Mr. Ban’s spokesperson said in a statement issued today in Tokyo, where the Secretary-General is currently on an official visit.