Zimbabwe - Elections 2000 - Sustainable Democracy

June-Results of Zimbabwe’s fifth parliamentary elections generally reflect the will of the people, observer missions from the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Parliamentary Forum and the regional Electoral Commissions, said today.

The SADC Parliamentary Forum said in a press briefing that the large voter turn-out and the acceptance of the result by political parties, indicated the outcome was representative of the electorate’s wishes.

The Forum, a regional body whose membership includes 12 parliamentary structures in southern Africa representing 1800 MPs, noted in its conclusions that the people “ turned out in large numbers to vote and elect leaders of their choice”.

“This is also evidenced by the fact that by and large all the stakeholders have accepted the results of the election,” said Nora Schimming-chase, head of the SADC-Parliamentary Forum observer mission.

The SADC Electoral Commission’s Forum echoed this position in a separate press briefing, saying despite the violence that claimed 30 lives, the voting process and the results “are legitimate and reflect the will of the people”.

But both organizations have stressed the need for Zimbabwe to set up an independent electoral commission to improve confidence in the electoral process.

Schimming-chase said the electoral management authority was operating as a government department and there was duplicity in the running of elections in Zimbabwe with three bodies all charged with seemingly over-lapping roles.

The Parliamentarians had made recommendations to Zimbabwean authorities on the need for an independent body, a practice that an increasing number of countries in the 14-member economic bloc are now embracing.

Mostly, the Registrar-General ran Zimbabwe’s elections, but the Elections Directorate and the Electoral Supervisory Commissions both have assigned roles. The Electoral Supervisory Commission, noted Schimming-chase, even went to court for what it felt was the usurping of its function of accrediting observers by the Registrar-general.

The Forum said while voting proceeded in a “smooth and peaceful manner”, the high incidence of pre-election violence “imposed limitations on the ability of political parties to campaign freely”.

“The mission also observed that the fact that there was pre-election violence was not denied by any of the political parties in the country. Incidents of violence were also confirmed by the police in their media reports”, she said.

Flanked by Secretary-General of the Forum, Dr Kasuka Mutukwa and three members of the observer mission, Schimming-chase said the mission deplored the violence that characterized the pre-election phase and called for a culture of tolerance.

“There should be no room for violence in the political processes in the SADC region. The SADC Parliamentary Forum calls upon all the political leaders in the region to ensure that violence does not occur before, during and after elections”, she said.

The mission found the public and private media too polarized and politically inclined to play a significant role in voter education, she said. The Forum noted the restrictions on political advertising on public broadcasting station and recommended to the Zimbabwean government that clear-cut policies on access to the media during elections be put in place.

There was lack of communication between the electoral authorities and the electorate regarding the process which resulted in a large number of bona-fide voters not being able to participate in the June 24,25 poll. She added however that counting process, though slow and tedious, was transparent and polling staff was professional.

“There were widespread claims of misinformation regarding the secrecy of the ballot. For example, some people were told that there is a way of knowing how people would vote through a ‘super computer. However massive civic and voter education by election authorities, church organizations and NGOs reassured voters”.

In the closely contested polls, the ruling Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) narrowly beat the labour-based opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), winning 62 seats against 57. The small opposition, ZANU party, won a single seat.

The SADC Electoral Commission Forum, an association of regional electoral management bodies, acknowledged the “high levels of violence’ before the polls and that the situation improved with the arrival of international observers.

The elections were well conducted but took note of the problems presented by the voters’ roll, from which several thousands of potential voters names were left out.

“The omissions, however regrettable, do not seem to have fundamentally affected or undermined the electoral process and the election results.

The Electoral Forum recommended to Zimbabwe’s government and electoral authorities, the development of a code of conduct for all stakeholders, the avoidance of last minute changes to the electoral regulations and establishment of clear procedures for the accreditation of domestic monitors and international observers early in the process.

The Commission’s Forum also called for the establishment of an autonomous and independent election management body, development of inter-party dialogue and conflict management and resolution mechanisms to deal with election-related conflict.

The Commonwealth Observer Group, in an interim statement by Chairperson General Abdulsalami Abubakar, said the mission was greatly encouraged by the voter turn-out, adding that the response was a turning point in the development of democracy in Zimbabwe. But the Group found what it called “Shortcomings in the election preparations and arrangements”.

They raised similar concerns about pre-election violence, exclusion of sections of the electorate because of registration problems, inconsistencies in polling day procedures, last-minute changes to the electoral law and late accreditation of domestic monitors.

It was the regional observers however, who made their point of setting their own norms and standards, to be able to observe elections within a SADC context.

The Parliamentary Forum stressed that it had an “obligation of empowering the region with the capacity to deal with issues pertaining to electoral systems and processes -- so that standards are not set by others” (SARDC).