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World Assembly workshop on Zimbabwe urges continued advocacy
CIVICUS
June 22, 2006

http://www.civicus.org/csw/WA-Zim_workshop_report.doc

High level advocacy on Zimbabwe must continue in order to break the political stagnation in the country, agreed the participants of a workshop organised by Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR), Amnesty International South Africa (AISA) and CIVICUS, during the World Assembly, held 21- 25 June 2006, in Glasgow, Scotland.

The workshop, Strengthening Civil Society Engagement in the Crisis in Zimbabwe, highlighted the successes, challenges and areas of opportunities civil society operating within and outside Zimbabwe, specifically on campaigns regarding civic space, and humanitarian and human rights issues.

Advocacy efforts by organisations such AISA and CIVICUS were acknowledged as highly appreciated and urged to continue. The workshop suggested organisations focus on the opportunities to interact with regional and sub-regional mechanisms such as the SADC organs, which have been to a large extent indifferent about the prevailing situation.

There was consensus among the participants that there is great potential to advocate for change in Zimbabwe through the use of "father figures." Such individuals should be of the highest and best caliber to inspire confidence of the "warring parties", to avoid a repeat of emissaries being snubbed, such as the African Union’s attempt to appoint the former president of Mozambique as mediator.

The workshop canvassed some of the economic, social and political challenges being experienced in Zimbabwe. It discussed the high unemployment rates of around 80%, the highest inflation rate in the world pegged at 1200%; negative social indices such as GDP and negative economic growth rate; one of the lowest life spans in the world (37 for men and 35 for women), followed by countries like Afghanistan (a country at war).

Zimbabwe also has one of the highest internal and external mobility rates in the world, with over 3 million citizens believed to have left the country over the last few years. Over 2,000 Zimbabweans are deported from South Africa every week as undocumented or illegal migrants. Over 7,000 Zimbabweans have filed applications for asylum protection status in South Africa and less than 86 have been granted refugee status since 2000.

To compound the situation, the government of Zimbabwe remains adamant that the current crisis is a creation of the Western powers following the ill-fated and violent land redistribution exercise, which has contributed to food insecurity and economic regression. Organisations involved in human rights are labeled as tools of imperialists and running dogs of the west. Even the Minister of Justice of Zimbabwe made such a statement at a recent meeting of the Human Rights Council.

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