Elections are the symbol of and key to the democratic system, but in Zimbabwe this key doesn’t fit. The war-torn sub-Saharan nation’s parliamentary elections on March 31 will only prove one thing: President Robert Gabriel Mugabe has absolute control over the Zimbabwean majority. The alarming truth is that the only votes that count will be those of Mugabe’s sycophants and his entourage of Zanu PF party members.
Newly established electoral laws have limited the accessibility for citizens to register to vote in the fast-approaching elections. Persons with dual citizenship must revoke their citizenship to countries besides Zimbabwe in order to cast their ballots. Although women technically have the vote, women’s voting access has been effectively stripped by the new law that persons must demonstrate property rights or land deeds, and women are not entitled to ownership of property or land in Zimbabwe.
Moreover, the ruling regime forbids any sort of public gatherings or rallies by anybody who is not of the Zimbabwe African National Union (Patriotic Front)(Zanu PF) party. Not surprisingly, since most citizens reside in the larger cities such as Bulawayo and Harare, campaigns by the opposition Movement for Democratic Change are at more of a risk for interception. Conversation between more than three people about anything deemed as “political” is forbidden unless the police are informed about the content to be shared between the individuals, according to the 2002 Public Order and Security Act. The Zanu PF has even redrawn Zimbabwe’s 120 constituencies to better reflect the rural areas where Mugabe has an iron grip. Although the MDC, under the guidance of Morgan Tsvangirai, constitutes a bare-bones opposition party, campaigning has ceased to exist. Especially since Mugabe has reduced 50 per cent of the urban polling stations in which MDC supporters reside as part of his re-zoning activities.
Elections will be futile next month, since Mugabe will, as always, sway democratic choice (to put it lightly) in order to keep his 24-year-old ruling regime in power. The power of the 81-year-old is still a force to be reckoned with, as opposition supporters will tell you-if they’re still alive. Violence pre- and post-election is common in all territories of the country, especially the MDC strongholds. In the 2002 elections alone, there were an estimated 497 cases of torture and 10 deaths.
Without a change in both the governing party and personnel, Robert Mugabe will continue to dig the hole in which Zimbabwe will be buried. It is no secret that Mugabe has evaded his responsibility to adhere to any election norms and standards set up in the South African Development Community. His defiance in implementing political safeguards has denied both candidates and voters the freedom to associate and express their political views during election time.
Mugabe’s presidential powers are beyond grasp, squeezing the life out of every Zimbabwean. The job of Zanu militias is to torture, beat, or abduct any political activists not promoting the interests of the party. International journalists are not just given the cold shoulder, but threatened by Zimbabwe’s secret police if they attempt to fill in the details of what Mugabe is really up to.
It is implausible that if Mugabe wins the March elections he will govern with the consent of the governed, especially with the support of Vice President Joyce Mujuru, nicknamed “Spill Blood.” The voice of the people cannot be heard, and that is why international intervention is absolutely necessary. Although the main topics of political debate continue to be the Iraqi War and the Palestinian Israel conflict, one must wonder why the US has hinted heavily that Zimbabwe has become the “outpost of tyranny” in Sub Saharan Africa.
