Elections could plunge Zim into chaos: UN

Minister challenged OCHA to provide proof that there were 36 000 victims of political violence

By Charles Tembo

Harare - Fresh elections expected in 24 months time could plunge Zimbabwe back into political turmoil and violence as the country's political parties compete for power, the United Nations (UN) said Monday. A power-sharing government between President Robert Mugabe and former opposition leaders Morgan Tsvangirai and Arthur Mutambara has eased political tensions in Zimbabwe and allowed the African country to begin work to rebuild the economy. But Tsvangirai – Prime Minister of the unity government – last Sunday gave a depressing description of the administration that has been in office for more than three months now, saying it had not been able to fully enforce the rule of law and that political intimidation and rights abuses continued in Zimbabwe. The UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) yesterday said the situation could deteriorate further once a new election is called and the three rival parties in the unity government begin contesting for power. “Politically, general elections expected in 24 months may result in internal competition and renewed violence and human rights abuses as the parties to the inclusive government try gaining popularity by discrediting their rivals," said OCHA, while announcing a revised US$718 million consolidated appeal for humanitarian support for Zimbabwe.

The OCHA echoed Tsvangirai's bleak summary of the situation in Zimbabwe, noting that the unity government had neither compensated victims of past political violence nor punished the perpetrators, in the process creating a culture of impunity. The UN humanitarian arm said in some cases aggrieved parties have taken the law into their hands, particularly in rural areas where there had been reports of retributive violence. “There continues to be reports of retributive violence, mainly in rural areas, particularly where attempts at reconciliation through traditional forms of justice have failed,” said OCHA. The UN organ also noted continuing and disturbing “instances of abuse of police powers such as arrest and political interference with the work of the Attorney General's Office”. It added: “Recent months have seen a number of politically-motivated abductions and related abuse of court process by state officers, invoking powers for further detention without lawful grounds.”

The views expressed by OCHA in the main appeared to dovetail with Tsvangirai's assessment of the unity government's performance to date. However, a senior official of the Harare administration disputed some of the humanitarian organ's assertions and challenged it to back up its claims with evidence, according to UN humanitarian coordinator in Harare, Agostinho Zacarias. Zacarias said Regional Integration and International Co-operation minister Priscilla Misihairabwi-Mushonga had written his office to raise Harare's objection to some of the points and views raised in the appeal for humanitarian support. “The government of Zimbabwe feels that there are some assertions in the document that have not been accurately presented and/or substantiated . . . for the record the government of Zimbabwe disassociates itself from the unsubstantiated assertions until such a time that they are substantiated,” Misihairabwi-Mushonga said in the letter.

The Zimbabwean minister challenged the OCHA to provide proof to back up its claims that there were at least 215 000 mobile and vulnerable persons and about 36 000 victims of political violence and internally displaced persons in the country who were being assisted by humanitarian organisations. Misihairabwi-Mushonga also said OCHA should submit evidence of retributive violence mentioned in its humanitarian aid appeal document. Under the power-sharing agreement between Zimbabwe's three largest political parties, the country will draft a new and democratic constitution over the next 18 to 24 months after which fresh presidential, parliamentary and local council elections will be held. The new constitution is expected to ensure the new elections are free and fair without the blood and violence that has accompanied Zimbabwe's every election since the emergency of Tsvangirai and the MDC as the biggest threat to Mugabe and his Zanu PF's stranglehold on power.

Original Source: Zim Online (SA)

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