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Pre-election atmosphere peaceful - Ambassador
Michael Appel, Bua News (Tshwane)
February 26, 2008

http://www.buanews.gov.za/view.php?ID=08022615451005&coll=buanew08

Zimbabwe's Ambassador to South Africa Simon Khaya Moyo has described the atmosphere in the country ahead of the much-anticipated presidential election on 29 March 2008, as peaceful.

"The parties have started campaigning in earnest ... [And] the atmosphere is peaceful with the exception of a few minor skirmishes involving youths from either side of the political divide who engage in acts of provocation," said the Ambassador at a briefing in Pretoria, Tuesday.

President Thabo Mbeki was mandated by the Southern African Development Community (SADC) in March 2007 to facilitate talks between ruling Zanu PF and the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) in the run up to the March 2008 elections.

"In my opinion, President Thabo Mbeki undertook the talks to the best of his ability.

"The government and people of Zimbabwe owe it to President Mbeki for such a courageous and fruitful effort.

"There are four presidential candidates who will do battle on 29 March 2008. Only the people of Zimbabwe can through the ballot tell the world who they think has their interest at heart," said Mr Moyo.

He said from outside of Zimbabwe, the picture being portrayed was a bad one, which should not be allowed to continue.

Independent presidential candidates include Simba Makoni and Langton Towungana, whilst Morgan Tsvangirai will stand for the MDC, and President Robert Mugabe was recently endorsed as the candidate from the Zanu PF.

"The idea is to wage a massive media campaign against Zimbabwe and with the economic hardships, the people will be expected to vote out the President [Robert Mugabe] and Zanu PF," he said.

When the MDC lost the general elections in 2002, the call from the West was that President Mugabe had stolen the elections and was heading an illegitimate government.

Mr Moyo, however, countered this saying that the African Union (AU), Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), SADC and a host of other countries had declared the elections free and fair.

"It would seem that they cannot be fair unless Washington DC and London say so," he said.

Mr Moyo indicated that the voter population as at the date of finalising the delimitation report was about 5.6 million on 4 December 2007.

The Zimbabwe constitution allows for 20 percent above and below the average number of registered votes per House of Assembly constituency.

As a result of the Constitutional Amendment (Number 18) Act, which was co-sponsored by both Zanu PF and the MDC, both Senatorial and House of Assembly constituencies were increased.

The senate will now consist of 93 members, six form each province directly elected by the voters, 10 provincial governors, the president and deputy president of the Council of Chiefs, 16 chiefs and five senators appointed by Mr Mugabe.

Members of the House of Assembly have been increased from 150 to 210, all of whom are directly elected.

In his address, the Ambassador gave a brief background to the situation which had led to Zimbabwe's Land Reform Programme in 2000, in which white-owned farms were occupied by local chiefs and veterans of the colonial independence struggle.

"In 2000, chiefs moved into occupy, not seize, but occupy some of the nearby farms. The war veterans were landless also, but it was never the war veterans who started the occupying land, it was the chiefs.

"It was done to rid the country of an evil system. Our war was never against color, but against evil.

"Imagine that 70 percent of the most productive land was in the hands of 1 percent of the people, mostly our white colleagues. Some land was owned by absentee landlords who would come back to Zimbabwe once a year to hunt," he reiterated.

Mr Moyo concluded by saying it was time for political parties in Zimbabwe to "start campaigning and stop complaining - as the election was only four weeks away."

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