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Zanu
(PF), MDC agree on poll delay
Dumisani Muleya, Business Day (SA)
November 02, 2007
http://www.businessday.co.za/articles/world.aspx?ID=BD4A603286
ZIMBABWE's ruling
Zanu (PF) and the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC)
have agreed to postpone next year's crucial elections from
March to June during ongoing talks in Pretoria.
This comes after President
Robert Mugabe signed into law the recent amendment of the constitution
to introduce limited political and electoral reforms supported by
both parties in parliament. The amendment allows Mugabe to use parliament
to choose his successor instead of his divided and faction-ridden
party.
Analysts said Mugabe,
under international pressure to adopt democratic reforms or step
down after 27 years in power, may use the law to handpick a loyalist
as his successor and retain a large measure of power himself.
Well-informed sources
close to the negotiations which resumed in Pretoria on Tuesday said
yesterday the two parties agreed that the polls would now be moved
to June to allow for more thorough preparation. The agreement shows
Southern African Development Community mediator President Thabo
Mbeki's growing influence at the talks.
Although the elections
are supposed to be held in March, delimitation of constituencies
now done by the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission instead of the ad
hoc Delimitation Commission has not yet started. Voter registration
also is incomplete.
The government is also
scrambling to mobilise enough money to finance the elections, which
will almost certainly leave the virtually bankrupt fiscus empty
and fuel the worsening economic meltdown.
About Z$3,5-trillion
($3,5m) is needed before the end of the year to print the voters'
roll. The registrar- general's office has received only Z$110bn
so far.
The police force is also in dire straits. Deputy police commissioner
Levy Sibanda said this week their Z$1,5-trillion budget was now
almost exhausted, with only Z$85bn remaining.
Sources said Zanu (PF)
and the MDC, which on September 30 agreed on a draft constitution,
have also agreed to amend sections of the repressive Access to Information
and Protection of Privacy Act under which four private newspapers
were closed.
This week Information
Minister Sikhanyiso Ndlovu reorganised the state-controlled media
and information commission to reconsider the case of the closed
private Daily News newspaper.
The sources
said the two parties yesterday debated the amendment of the Public
Order and Security Act. While the parties agreed that every
country needs security laws, they differed on the type of legislation
needed in Zimbabwe. The MDC wants sections of the security law used
to ban its rallies and arrest its members to be removed.
The parties
are also discussing the last item of the agenda, the political climate.
Yesterday they
were focusing on targeted sanctions imposed on Mugabe and his cronies.
Zanu (PF) wants the sanctions
removed, but the MDC is reluctant.
Under this item, the
parties are also expected to discuss issues such as the demilitarisation
of state institutions, the role of traditional chiefs in politics,
use of state and donor food relief for political gain and foreign
broadcasts.
When the parties resumed talks on Tuesday — the day of their
deadline for the conclusion of the talks — they had only agreed
on the draft constitution, but they are now moving on electoral
laws, security legislation and media laws.
After missing the October
30 deadline, the parties now expect to finish the talks on Wednesday
and sign the main agreement by November 15.
"Zanu (PF) is clearly
on cloud nine. It is getting into the electoral ring with an opponent
whose tendency to self-destruct has severely diminished its punching
power," said Eldred Masunungure, a political analyst at the
University of Zimbabwe.
- With Reuters
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