USA will press Zanu PF for reforms - as long as assured MDC legitimacy, Zanu PF will ignore reforms N Garikai

 

“Zimbabwe was among some of the worst human rights offenders last year as President Emmerson Mnangagwa's regime continued to unleash violence on opponents and activists with impunity, an annual assessment by the U.S. State Department on global human rights said Tuesday,” reported Zimlive.

 

“The 2020 Human Rights Report that evaluated about 200 countries painted a grim picture across the world saying violations of liberties escalated with some countries using Covid-19 restrictions "as a pretext to restrict rights and consolidate authoritarian rule."

 

“Given the dire outlook, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said President Joe Biden's administration had "placed human rights front and centre in its foreign policy" and would continue to press for reform.”

 

Pressure for reform has accomplished very little in the case of Zimbabwe because Zanu PF has had help in defusing the pressure from Zimbabwe’s opposition. For all their song and dance as the champions of democratic change, MDC leaders are the ones working tirelessly to stop any meaningful democratic reforms.

 

The Americans and their western allies must wake up to reality that whilst their have been calling for democratic reforms for decades now it is the MDC that has helped Zanu PF ignore the reforms and still remain in power.

 

Morgan Tsvangirai and his MDC friends had many golden opportunities, the best of which were during the 2008 to 2013 GNU, to implement the democratic reforms to end the Zanu PF dictatorship. They failed to implement even one reform in the 5 years of the GNU.

 

Ever since the GNU debacle, Zanu PF cronies have continued to ride roughshod over the people denying them their freedoms and rights including the right to free elections and have got away with it because the opposition have participated

 

By participating in these flawed and illegal elections Zimbabwe’s opposition opportunists are giving credibility to the process and, by extension, giving legitimacy to the vote rigging Zanu PF regime. And these opposition opportunists know this!

 

“The worst aspect for me about the failure to agree a coalition was that both MDCs couldn’t now do the obvious – withdraw from the (2013) elections,” wrote Senator David Coltart, MDC A Treasurer General.

“The electoral process was so flawed, so illegal, that the only logical step was to withdraw, which would compel SADC to hold Zanu PF to account. But such was the distrust between the MDC-T and MDC-N that neither could withdraw for fear that the other would remain in the elections, winning seats and giving the process credibility.”

 

As we know, the three main MDC factions plus four other opposition parties formed the MDC A just before the 2018 elections. They participated in that year’s elections knowing fully well that the process was flawed and illegal. They were after the few gravy train Zanu PF was offering and greed prevailed.

 

The MDC A and the rest in the opposition camp are gearing for the 2023 elections and are once again ignoring calls for reforms to be implemented first! And as long as Zanu PF knows the opposition will participate guaranteed, the party too will ignore the calls for reforms!

 

It is all very well to condemn the Zanu PF dictatorship and say nothing about the MDC the party that has done more to keep Zanu PF in power than otherwise! It is futile to pressure Zanu PF to accept democratic reforms when MDC will give Zanu PF legitimacy regardless the vote rigging.

 

The Americans and their western allies have been pressing Zanu PF for democratic reform for the last 20 years and nothing has changed because MDC are the ones giving vote rigging Zanu PF legitimacy. Unless Nelson Chamisa and his MDC A sell-outs are themselves pressured to stop participating in flawed and illegal elections, then nothing will change.

 

Many people are asking whether the tragic events unfolding in Myanmar since the 1^st February 2021 military coup could have been avoided if Aung San Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy (NLD) had acted decisively in clipping the military junta in that country when she had the half chances. The debate will hinge on how good were those half chances.

 

There is no denying that Morgan Tsvangirai and his MDC colleagues have had excellent opportunities to end the Zanu PF dictatorship. They “were busy enjoying themselves during the GNU and forgot why they were there!” remarked one SADC diplomat is sheer exasperation at MDC leaders’ failure to implement even one reform in 5 years of the GNU.

 

There is no denying that MDC A and the opposition’s participation in these flawed and illegal elections is undermining all local and foreign effort to get the democratic reforms finally implemented! If Zimbabweans are happy to have rigged elections, it is for Zimbabweans alone to decide.

 

Outsiders can only add their voice to call for reforms if this is what the locals themselves want. Of course, the ordinary Zimbabweans want reforms it is Zanu PF and the opposition sell-out alone who are benefiting from the status quo.

 

Zanu PF will continue to ignore demands for democratic reforms and good governance as long as the party is assured of the opposition’s participation in flawed elections giving the party legitimacy.