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Report on the March 2005 Parliamentary Elections in Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR)
April 06, 2005

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Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) applied for, and was granted, permission by the Ministry of Justice, Legal & Parliamentary Affairs to observe the March 2005 parliamentary elections as accredited local observers. A total of 44 members were approved for accreditation. The ZLHR observers were drawn from Harare, Bulawayo, Gweru, Kadoma, Norton, Chinhoyi, Mutare and Chipinge.

Observations were made on a continuous basis and a pre-election report was produced and submitted to the Electoral Supervisory Commission as was required by Ministerial directive after the close of polling and before counting began on 31 March 2005. In terms of the same Ministerial directive a final report is required to be submitted within 14 days of the counting. What has been released today forms the basis of this report, although several outstanding issues await official clarification from the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission.

The report makes the following findings:

• Zimbabweans participated in an election in which the result was already tilted in favour of the ruling party due to the 30 non-constituency seats which the President is entitled, in terms of the Constitution, to award to his supporters at his discretion without the need for an open, democratic process involving the affected electorate. This provided the ruling party with an unfair advantage before the elections had even commenced.
• The Constitution of Zimbabwe in its present form cannot ensure that Zimbabweans are able to assert their rights and fundamental freedoms and have them protected during the electoral process. This has adversely affected participation by the electorate in the political process.
• The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission failed in its mandate to provide adequate, impartial and informative voter education. This contributed to an unacceptably high number of voters being turned away from polling stations and also an unacceptably high number of spoilt ballot papers throughout the country but especially in rural constituencies. Change in constituency boundaries were not sufficiently made known to affected voters and this failure directly impacted on the number of voters turned away on polling day.
• The Registrar-General's Office, under the supervision of the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission, failed to carry out a transparent and efficient voter registration and voter inspection exercise. This is borne out by the high number of voters turned away from polling stations on grounds of invalid registration documentation, names not appearing on the roll, and voters attending in the wrong constituency following boundary changes. The voters' roll used in the March 2005 elections was in disarray and officials failed to address legitimate concerns by participants. As in previous elections the voters roll has been a tool used to disenfranchise the long-suffering victims of the Registrar-General's Office.
• Through the unrelenting and selective use of repressive legislation which impacts negatively on fundamental rights and freedoms, as well as unequal access to the state media, Zimbabweans were restricted in their right to receive and impart information and to freely assemble and discuss electoral issues, critique candidate and party policies and thus benefit from and contribute to a culture of informed voter choice at the polls.
• Political tolerance has been higher and reported organised violence lower in these elections than in the 2000 and 2002 polls. Nevertheless it is necessary to bear in mind the pervasive effect of several years of aggressive and organised state repression through legislative and other means, which has led to a situation of popular disengagement for fear of being targeted or victimised. Apathy and non-participation have the effect of decreasing negative effects on the surface and providing an incorrect picture that all is well and participation is free in Zimbabwe. This is not the case.
• Not all Zimbabweans have been able to freely exercise their right to vote or be voted for in the March 2005 elections. The elections have produced a situation of selective rather than universal suffrage, which is to be condemned. Particular disenfranchised groups include Zimbabweans in the Diaspora, those affected by improperly applied citizenship laws, victims of the Registrar-General's Office, and polling officials deployed to participate in the electoral process outside their constituencies.
• The impartiality of electoral institutions is questionable. They have failed during the electoral period (especially the counting of votes phase) to exhibit full transparency and assistance to those observing the process. In light of the serious questions raised in respect of the inconsistent statistics provided by the ZEC, it is to be hoped that answers are forthcoming sooner rather than later to deal exhaustively with all concerns. As long as the ZEC fails to deal publicly and decisively with the allegations made, it continues to be seen as an ineffective institution with something to hide.
• The law enforcement authorities have failed to act decisively with outstanding allegations of torture and organised violence. Although their presence has been more publicly felt during this electoral period the culture of impunity remains and negatively impacts on the light in which they are seen by various sectors of society.
• The Electoral Court has been found susceptible to executive manipulation and ZLHR is unable to express full confidence that it will be able to deal effectively, independently and timeously with any and all cases lodged with it.

ZLHR makes the following recommendations in light of the findings:

• The Constitution of Zimbabwe is in urgent need of review. ZLHR believes that this is a process which must involve all sectors of society and address issues of serious civil and political, social, economic and cultural concern. Any attempts to make cosmetic changes through a Parliament which is currently perceived as illegitimate and which will only act to secure the interests of a privileged few must be resisted for the sake of peace and the development of our nation.
• Measures must be put in place to ensure that an efficient, adequate and impartial system of voter education is provided to the electorate, including youth who will be participating in future elections. The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission Act should be revisited and reviewed to ensure that well-equipped non-governmental organisations are provided with help, not hindrance, in carrying out such a mandate.
• The process of voter registration needs to be overhauled. ZLHR calls for a new voters' roll to be prepared, for the process to be effected transparently, in a manner which is facilitative to all sectors of the electorate, and for access to the roll to be drastically improved and made available in electronic as well as hard copy forms. Technological advances have made this a reality and a necessity and with a computerised system already allegedly in place at the office of the Registrar-General, there is really no justification for the withholding of such public information in whatever format is most accessible.
• ZLHR calls for the immediate repeal of all repressive legislation in force in Zimbabwe today. Only in this way will we build a true culture of democracy, respect and openness so required in our society today.
• Authorities must provide avenues for the entire Zimbabwean electorate to participate in parliamentary and presidential elections. Arbitrary exclusions cannot be tolerated and are a direct affront on the overriding principle of universal suffrage which was one of the pillars driving the liberation struggle in our country.
• The electoral institutions need to be revisited. Only one body must exist in Zimbabwe dealing with all electoral issues. Anything else leads to confusion and the possibility for non-transparency and suspicion. Such a body should be composed of persons selected in a public process and should report directly to the Parliament of Zimbabwe, and no other state official. Only in this way will Zimbabweans rebuild their faith in the electoral process.
• The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission is urged to deal publicly and transparently with all queries that have arisen in respect of the statistical discrepancies that have emerged in these elections. Until such time as it is able to provide credible information as to the shortcomings of the counting and verification process, as well as the huge disparities that appear in many of the constituencies claims of electoral fraud will remain legitimate and the authenticity of the parliamentary election outcome will continue to remain in dispute.
• It is recommended that in future the process of accreditation be decentralised to allow for smoother processes which are less time-consuming.
• The Executive and Legislative arms of government should publicly state their commitment to the doctrine of the separation of powers and undertake to refrain from any utterances and/or activity which could be perceived as an attempt to influence the proceedings and impinge on the independence of the Judiciary.
• The Electoral Court needs to be revisited and form a separate structure with its own administrative and substantive personnel. Without such resources it will never be able to satisfy its mandate in terms of the Electoral Act.
• The media environment has to be freed to allow for easy operation of independent electronic and print media. In particular, the newspapers that have been forcibly shut down by the state-controlled Media and Information Commission must be immediately reopened as it is impossible to build democracy without the full enjoyment of the right to freedom of expression by the people of Zimbabwe. Any restrictions on media freedom have to be reasonably necessary in a democratic society.
• The operating environment of human rights defenders has to be opened up to allow for full compliance with the requirements of the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders of 9 December 1998. To this end it is strongly recommended that the NGO Bill be abandoned as it an affront to all accepted international standards and norms governing the work and environment of human rights defenders.
• To show commitment towards rebuilding our ailing democracy and a mark of support for African regional initiatives, it is strongly recommended that the government scrupulously complies with the recommendations made by the fact-finding mission of the African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights and adopted by the AU Assembly of Heads of State in Abuja Nigeria on 30-31 January 2005.

In conclusion

"The authority to govern derives from the will of the people demonstrated through elections that are conducted freely, fairly, transparently and properly on the basis of universal and equal suffrage exercised through a secret ballot"

This lofty principle is drawn from no other source than Zimbabwe's own Electoral Act. ZLHR believes that not enough was done and not enough political will was shown to reassure the people that their will remained central at all times in the electoral and political process. For the sake of the progress of Zimbabwe, for its peace and development, ZLHR has involved itself in an attempt to constructively point out the shortcomings and act in some small way as the protector of fundamental rights and freedoms on behalf of the people of Zimbabwe.

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