Zimbabwe Social Democrats PRESS STATEMENT
SADC and AU leaders must judge Zimbabwe 2023 elections to international democratic standards and not to some compromise one-foot long yard stick.
In a year from now, July 2023, Zimbabweans will be going to the poll to elect a new government. Already there are signs these elections will not be free, fair and credible, which is not surprising since they are just a repeat of the rigged past elections.
If we used the 2008 elections as the benchmark; everyone including SADC and the AU who until that year had always turned a blind eye to Zimbabwe’s rigged elections, agreed the 2008 elections were a farce following the blatant cheating and use of wanton violence by Zanu PF. Both SADC and AU refused to give Zanu PF political legitimacy and forced the party to sign the 2008 Global Political Agreement (GPA).
The GPA called for the implementation of a raft of democratic reforms to restore the rule of law, restore the individual freedoms and rights and to stop the repeat of the blatant cheating and wanton violence that had marred the 2008 elections. A Government of National Unity (GNU); comprising of Zanu PF led by Robert Mugabe, MDC T and MDC M led by Morgan Tsvangirai and Arthur Mutambara respectively; was established and tasked to implement the reforms. SADC led by South Africa was the guarantor of the GPA.
Not even one meaningful reform was implemented throughout the 2008 to 2013 GNU. The main culprits for this failure were Morgan Tsvangirai and his MDC friends who took their eyes off the reforms ball. Mugabe bribes them with the trappings of high office and, with their snouts in the feeding trough, they forgot about the reforms.
SADC and we, the ordinary Zimbabweans, could and should have done a better job of ensuring MDC leaders implemented the reforms. We did not!
SADC made a last-minute concerted effort to get the electoral reforms, at least, implemented before the 2013 elections. “If you go into the elections next month, you will lose! The elections are done!” SADC leaders told Morgan Tsvangirai and his MDC friends to their faces.
As we know, MDC leaders ignored SADC leaders’ warning and participated in the 2013 elections only to complain that Zanu PF had rigged the elections. SADC ignored MDC’s complains, endorsed the election as “substantially free and fair” and thus granted Zanu PF legitimacy.
Of course, Zanu PF had indeed blatantly rigged the 2013 elections, as the SADC leaders had rightly predicted just a month before the voting. The only rational explanation for the regional leaders’ volte-face to endorse the rigged elections is because SADC leaders were disappointed with MDC leaders’ failure to implement reforms during the GNU and for ignoring the advice not to participate in the elections without implementing reforms.
So, disappointed they gave up the fight for reforms and free and fair elections in Zimbabwe. And they decided to grant Zanu PF legitimacy to punish the MDC leaders.
The tragic reality is by endorsing rigged Zimbabwe elections SADC and AU have not only punished MDC leaders but the ordinary Zimbabweans too, who have borne the brant of the Zanu PF tyranny and the consequences bad governance.
“The electoral commission (ZEC) lacked full independence and appeared to not always act in an impartial manner. The final results as announced by the Electoral Commission contained numerous errors and lacked adequate traceability, transparency and verifiability,” stated the EU Election Observer Mission final report.
“As such, many aspects of the 2018 elections in Zimbabwe failed to meet international standards.”
The EU Election Observer Mission final report made 23 recommendations which, if implemented, would bring Zimbabwe 2023 elections to international standards. Sadly, not even one of the recommendations have been implemented.
Both SADC and AU election observers judged Zimbabwe’s 2018 elections as “substantially free and fair”. With not even one token reform implemented since the last elections it is already evident that Zanu PF is rigging the 2023 elections too!
It is outrageous, that 42 years after independence Zimbabweans should still be fighting Zanu PF and the sell-out opposition to secure their basic right to a meaningful say in the governance of the country.
Indeed, both Zanu PF and MDC/CCC have ignored demands for implementing reforms before elections content in the knowledge that both SADC and AU will endorse the rigged elections giving Zanu PF legitimacy. It is therefore clear we, in Zimbabwe, must fight Zanu PF, MDC/CCC, SADC and AU to have reforms implemented. So be it!
Zanu PF is blatantly rigging the 2023 elections, “the elections are done!” as SADC leaders aptly put back in 2013. The prospect of SADC and AU once again declaring the rigged elections “substantially free, fair and credible” is real.
We will question SADC and AU’s basis for declaring rigged elections “substantially free and fair”; especially those nation with a history of holding free, fair and credible elections. Zimbabwe elections must be judged against the internationally accepted democratic standards and not some one-foot long yard stick!
Signed
Wilbert Mukori
ZSD Secretary General.
Email:zimbabwesocialdemocrats@gmail.com
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