By Ntama Bahati , Published May 30, 2008

To this day Robert Mugabe is determined to remain in power at all cost.   His strategy is to rule by force, particularly with violence against those who supported his opponent Morgan Tsvangirai during the first presidential election round on March 29, 2008.   As June 27, the run-off day approaches, he continues using intimidation to discourage people from exercising their right to vote.   Mugabe’s ruling party, the Zimbabwe National African Union- Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) restricts people’s freedom of expression and the information available to them whereby people have no access to printed newspapers or objective electronic media coverage other than the pro-Mugabe’s.  Like any dictatorial regime, controlling public life of the citizens is central to keeping power in the hands of a few.   ZANU-PF has extended its violence against the opposition supporters to the countryside, causing massive displacement of the people in order to prevent them from reaching the polling stations where they are registered to vote.  In some cases people are told, without any explanation, not to show up to polling stations; a warning about what to expect on election day and after if Mugabe loses.  Additionally, while the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) is supposed to run the election process, members of the army have been enrolled as election officers, the same army that is spreading fear countrywide in favor of Mugabe.   Some of election officers who served on March 29 have been detained and are waiting to face charges, others have been forced to leave their homes or have been killed. 

Another significant challenge faced in the run-off is finding both election officers and observers .  A process of reaccreditation of every observer, local and foreign even those who served on March 29, has been required by the government, a process that has been denying accreditation to many election observers.  This raises concerns about the transparency and the fairness of the election.  The only observers who have been approved are those from the Southern African Development Community (SADC).  Compared to the number of polling stations across Zimbabwe, SADC observers alone cannot provide the monitoring needed to ensure fairness and transparency.  

Posted on May 14, 2008

Issued by Fr Chris Townsend, Information Officer of the SACBC, on behalf of Archbishop Buti Tlhagale OMI, President of the SACBC. Pretoria – May 13, 2008

 'A run-off election in Zimbabwe will not be possible without an immediate end to intimidation, violence and torture and the deployment of reliable international election observers.'

Out of concern for the people of Zimbabwe, the Bishops of the Catholic Church in Southern Africa appeals for international and regional pressure to end the systematic intimidation, violence and torture in Zimbabwe. The current environment is not conducive to free and fair run-off elections.

Cardinal Wilfred Napier, Archbishop of Durban, and I visited Zimbabwe recently and were told first-hand accounts of systematic intimidation, violence and torture. The victims identified the perpetrators as agents of the Zimbabwe Armed Forces, the Police, the Central Intelligence Organization (C.I.O), War Veterans, Youth Militia and plain thugs.

These human rights abuses are visited not only on those who are thought to have voted for the opposition, but also on those who assisted the Election Process, such as Polling Officers.

This 'reign of terror' has seen many deaths, savage beatings and flight from family, homes and communities. Human dignity is intrinsic to every human being, regardless of political affiliation and must be respected. I call on all political parties to reign in their supporters and end this horror.

I question whether a 'free and fair' run-off election is possible unless there is a will to stop this violence. International Election Observers should be deployed immediately to assess both the remote and immediate preparation for the run-off election.

I call on all Zimbabweans to remember the hope with which they entered the March elections so well expressed in the call by civil society in the document 'The Zimbabwe we want' and to do all in their power to restore Zimbabwe to its rightful place in the family of Nations.

Archbishop Buti Tlhagale OMI,

Archbishop of Johannesburg.
President of the Southern African Catholic Bishops' Conference (SACBC).

Statement by SACBC on Zimbabwe
(Issued by Fr. Chris Townsend, media officer, SACBC, 10th April 2008)
The deteriorating situation in Zimbabwe calls for credible mediation.
The situation in Zimbabwe is of regional, continental and international concern. As President of the Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference and on behalf of the Catholic Community in Southern Africa, I call on the leaders of the Southern African Development Community and the African Union to act swiftly to diffuse this tension by mandating a mediator of sufficient international repute, such as Kofi Annan, to ensure a solution that is acceptable to all Zimbabweans.
I urge President Mbeki, the leaders of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and African Union leaders to use all of their influence and skill to intervene for the release of the Zimbabwean election results.
The apparent impunity and lack of respect for the democratic process that has allowed this delay is a cause for grave concern. The postponement of the release of the results has only fuelled tension and fear in Zimbabwe. The credibility of a peaceful vote has been undermined by this delay and the posturing by political parties. This time of uncertainty has created an opportunity for lawlessness.
I trust that the concerns and future of the people of Zimbabwe will be placed first.
Archbishop Buti Tlhagale OMI.
Archbishop of Johannesburg.
President of the Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference.