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Editor’s
Introduction
We regret to report six
'political' deaths this month, and offer our condolences to the bereaved. Felix
Mazava (headmaster of Umboo School and part of the MDC leadership in
Chikomba) was stabbed and bludgeoned to death ahead of the by-election
poll there; Fanuel
Madzvimbo
and Alexio Nyamadzawo died in a
fracas with workers on Bita Farm, Hwedza; two unnamed members of Zanu-PF
from Solario Farm were assaulted at the Epworth home of an MDC supporter
and dumped in the bush, where they were later found dead; and a burned
corpse (thought to be one of two MDC men abducted by Zanu-PF supporters
before the poll) was found close to a polling station in Nkulumane,
Bulawayo.
We
say these political killings must stop.
Political rights are part of the ‘first
generation’ of human rights – the ones that matter most to men and
(unfortunately much less frequently) women competing for political power.
Although the Human Rights Monitor
came into existence during the worst political violence of our recent
past, it has not yet assessed the state of political rights in Zimbabwe.
Now is a good time to do so.
Political
Rights
Our Constitution is
relatively silent on what our political rights are. It follows the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights in (conditionally) upholding the
'fundamental freedoms' of thought, opinion, expression, communication,
assembly, association and movement. But s21(2) does note specifically that
freedom of association 'shall include the right not
to be compelled to belong to an association'. In other words, if
anyone tries to force you to buy a party membership card, that infringes
your constitutional rights. Even to buy one simply for protection, without
being forced, is an infringement of your political rights.
Schedule 3 lays down the qualifications to stand for election as a
Member of Parliament and to vote. To vote one must be 18 years or older and
a citizen or a legally permanent resident of Zimbabwe.
These are relatively weak provisions, especially in Zimbabwe's
current anarchy. Unlike others in the region, our
Constitution does not explicitly guarantee any of us the right to vote.
So if we are prevented from voting, for example by kidnapping and
detention, or because our names have been removed (accidentally or
deliberately) from the voter's roll, or because we have been chased out of
our constituencies, we cannot turn to our present Constitution for
redress.
Most importantly, the rights enshrined in Article 21 of the UDHR
are not
included in our Constitution, although the sentiments of 21(3) are in our
Electoral Act.
‘Article
21(1). Everyone has the right to take part in the government of his
country, directly or through freely-chosen representatives.
(2)
Everyone has the right of equal access to public service in his country.
(3)
The will of the people shall be the basis of the authority of government;
this will shall be expressed in periodic and genuine elections which shall
be by universal and equal suffrage and shall be held by secret vote or by
equivalent free voting procedures.’
Recent
elections
In February 2000,
Zimbabweans voted to retain our existing defective Constitution in
preference to the alternative offered by the government’s Constitutional
Commission. In June 2000, we had a Parliamentary election. Most monitors
and observers, local and international, refused to endorse it as free and
fair.
Since then, we have had five very violent by-elections (Marondera
West, Bikita West, Bindura, Makoni West and Chikomba). Of the two mayoral
elections (Masvingo and Bulawayo), the first was also violent. The partial
but largely peaceful municipal elections in Bulawayo were held at the same
time as their mayoral poll. However, there was much violence in earlier
local government elections to fill ward vacancies around the country. In
these various polls, some electoral candidates as well as some voters were
assaulted, threatened, kidnapped and had their properties damaged or
destroyed.
Various municipal and mayoral elections, most importantly in
Harare, are still pending. They have been recurrently delayed by executive
action as two ministers have rolled over the dubious mandate of the Harare
interim administration. The Registrar-General has not yet complied with a
High Court order given in May by Justice Chinhengo to hold a new
nomination court for the Chegutu mayoral election, deferred since 1999.
However, the poll is expected to be in December 2001.
The
2002 Presidential Election
Next year, under our
defective Constitution, we also face the prospect of electing an executive
president. The Legal Resources Foundation has identified the precise
timing requirements laid down by the Constitution and the Electoral Act
for this election. The requirement to hold this election is not affected by any possible
declaration of a state of public emergency. The 2002 timetable is:
1 January:
start of the 90-day period during which the Constitution requires
the election to occur;
2
January: first working day available for the Registrar-General to publish
notices calling for nominations and fixing polling dates;
10 January:
last day permitted by the Electoral Act for these notices to be
published;
16 January:
earliest day permitted by the Electoral Act for the Nomination
Court to sit;
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