NEGOTIATING THE IMPASSE: OTHER RESEARCH REPORTS IN THIS SERIES Challenges and prospects for NO. 1: ELECTORAL SYSTEM REFORM, DEMOCRACY AND STABILITY IN THE SADC democratisation in Zimbabwe REGION: A Comparative Analysis by Khabela Matlosa NO 2: FROM MILITARY RULE TO MULTIPARTY DEMOCRACY: Political Reforms and Challenges in Lesotho. Edited by Claude Kabemba No 3: SWAZILAND’S STRUGGLE WITH POLITAL LIBERALISATION. Edited by Claude Kabemba No 4: GENDER AND ELECTIONS IN LESOTHO: Perspectives on the 2002 elections. By Puleng Letuka, Mats’eliso Mapetla, Keiso Matashane-Marite NO 5: GOVERNANCE QUALITY AND GOVERNMENT COMMITMENT TO THE NEPAD AFRICAN PEER REVIEW MECHANISM. Grant Edward Thomas Masterson No 6: ELECTIONS AND DEMOCRACY IN ZAMBIA. Edited by Claude Kabemba NO 7: DILEMMAS OF POLITICAL TRANSITION: Towards Institutionalisation of Multiparty Democracy in Tanzania. Edited by Shumbana Karume NO 8: GENDER, WOMEN, AND ELECTORAL POLITICS IN ZIMBABWE. Rudo Gaidzanwa ––––––––––––– ❑ ––––––––––––– Published with the assistance of NORAD and OSISA ISBN 1-919814-88-4 Edited by Wole Olaleye 9781919 814889 Order from: [email protected] EISA RESEARCH REPORT No 9 EISA RESEARCH REPORT NO 9 i NEGOTIATING THE IMPASSE: Challenges and prospects for democratisation in Zimbabwe ii EISA RESEARCH REPORT NO 9 EISA RESEARCH REPORT NO 9 iii NEGOTIATING THE IMPASSE: Challenges and prospects for democratisation in Zimbabwe EDITED BY WOLE OLALEYE WITH CONTRIBUTIONS FROM CLAUDE KABEMBA SHUMBANA KARUME WOLE OLALEYE 2005 iv EISA RESEARCH REPORT NO 9 Published by EISA 2nd Floor, The Atrium 41 Stanley Avenue, Auckland Park Johannesburg, South Africa 2006 P O Box 740 Auckland Park 2006 South Africa Tel: 27 11 482 5495 Fax: 27 11 482 6163 Email: [email protected] www.eisa.org.za ISBN: 1-919814-88-4 EISA All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of EISA. First published 2005 EISA is a non-partisan organisation which seeks to promote democratic principles, free and fair elections, a strong civil society and good governance at all levels of Southern African society. –––––––––––– ❑ –––––––––––– Cover photograph: Yoruba Beaded Sashes Reproduced with the kind permission of Hamill Gallery of African Art, Boston, MA USA EISA Research Report, No. 9 EISA RESEARCH REPORT NO 9 v CONTENTS List of Acronyms vii Preface ix Executive summary xi Introduction Wole Olaleye 1 1. The political background 5 Wole Olaleye 2. An assessment of Zimbabwe’s election administration 9 Claude Kabemba Election management: A unique structure 10 Electoral Supervisory Commission and Registrar General 11 Lack of independence of both the ESC and RG 15 Lack of resources impacts the ESC’s independence 16 Election Directorate 17 Delimitation Commission 18 Presidential powers and the management of elections 20 Registration of voters 21 Citizenship of Zimbabwe Amendment Act 23 Delimitation of constituencies 23 Number of polling stations 23 Decision to hold multiple elections in Harare and Chitungwiwa 24 Use of state resources: The land 26 Parliamentary and presidential election timetable 26 Post-election period 26 3. An assessment of the impact of democratic assistance 28 Shumbana Karume Current levels of democratic assistance 29 Donor interventions: Civil society, the political opposition and the media 31 Donors’ politicisation of civil society 32 A case study: The National Constitutional Assembly 37 Donors and the political opposition 37 Donors, opposition media and Mugabe’s reaction 40 vi EISA RESEARCH REPORT NO 9 Western response to Zimbabwe’s democratic crisis: Additional interventions 41 Conclusion 44 4. Political parties and their contribution to the democratisation process 46 Wole Olaleye The history of political parties in multiparty politic in Zimbabwe 50 Intra-party politics within Zanu–PF and the MDC 56 Women’s representation in party politics 58 Party funding 61 Conclusion 62 5. An assessment of civil society in the electoral process 63 Claude Kambeba and Wole Olaleye Historical perspective 63 Civil society and elections 65 Legislation and civil society 67 6. Conflict and democratisation in Zimbabwe 72 Wole Olaleye Sources of conflict: Santa Claus legacy? 72 Home-grown solution: Failed? 75 7. Recommendations 78 Electoral management and administration 78 Democratic assistance 79 Political parties 80 Civil society 81 Conflict 81 Postscript 82 References 85 Notes 88 List of respondents 95 About the editor 97 About EISA 98 EISA RESEARCH REPORT NO 9 vii LIST OF ACRONYMS AIPPA Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act ANZ Associated Newspapers of Zimbabwe AU African Union BSA British South Africa Company CSO Civil society organisation DC Delimitation Commission DFID Department for International Development ED Election Directorate EISA Electoral Institute of Southern Africa ESAP Economic structural adjustment programmes ESC Electoral Supervisory Commission EU European Union FPTP First-past-the-post GDP Gross domestic product GSI Governance and Strategic Initiative IMF International Monetary Fund MDC Movement for Democratic Change MISA Media Institute of Southern Africa MP Member of parliament NCA National Constitutional Assembly NDU National Democratic Union NEC National Executive Committee NEPAD New Partnership for Africa’s Development NFZ National Front of Zimbabwe NGOs Non-governmental organisation Osisa Open Society Institute for Southern Africa POSA Public Order and Safety Act PVO Private Voluntary Organisation RF Rhodesia Front RG Registrar General SADC Southern African Development Community UANC United African National Council UDI Unilateral Declaration of Independence UK United Kingdom viii EISA RESEARCH REPORT NO 9 UN United Nations UNDP United Nations Development Programme UNFP United National Federal Party UPAM United People’s Association of Matabeleland US United States USAID United States Agency for International Development WFD Westminster Foundation for Democracy Zanu Zimbabwe African National Union Zanu–PF Zimbabwe African Nation Party – Patriotic Front Zapu Zimbabwe African People’s Union ZBC Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation ZCTU Zimbabwe Confederation of Trade Unions ZDERA Zimbabwe Democracy and Economic Recovery Act ZDP Zimbabwe Democratic Party ZESN Zimbabwe Electoral Support Network ZimRights Zimbabwe Human Rights Association ZIP Zimbabwe Integrated Party ZNWVLA Zimbabwe National War Veterans’ Association ZUD Zimbabwe Union of Democrats ZUJ Zimbabwe Union of Journalists ZUM Zimbabwe Unity Movement EISA RESEARCH REPORT NO 9 ix PREFACE EISA has undertaken various initiatives, which have been aimed at facilitating the nurturing and consolidation of democratic governance in the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) region. One such initiative is the first phase of the democratic consolidation research programme. Covering almost all the SADC countries, this research programme focuses on the following key issues: • Elections; • Good governance; • Gender and democracy; • Determinants of democratic consolidation; • Electoral systems; • Electoral administration; • Political parties; • Conflict and elections; and • Democratic assistance. This first phase of the project has generated an enormous stock of knowledge on the dynamics of democratic governance in the region over and above the intricacies of elections per se. It has demonstrated beyond any shadow of a doubt that indeed there is more to democratic governance than just elections and electioneering. In a word, with hindsight, it is abundantly clear to us today that an election, in and of itself, does not necessarily amount to democratic culture and practice. Put somewhat differently, an election is not tantamount to a democracy, in the strictest sense of the term. Various other determinants are critical too including, inter alia, multipartyism, constitutional engineering and the rule of law, gender inclusivity in the governance process, electoral system designs and reforms, transparent and accountable management of national affairs including elections themselves, responsive and responsible conduct by political parties, constructive management of various types of conflict and the form and content of external assistance for democracy. All these issues are explored in a fairly rigorous and refreshing fashion in this monograph to come out of the programme, although a deliberate focus x EISA RESEARCH REPORT NO 9 is given to electoral engineering in the form of reviews and reforms required in the SADC region in order for the selected countries to achieve the difficult goal of democratic consolidation. This monograph will be followed in due course by various others that are country-specific exploring a broad array of challenges for democratic consolidation in the SADC region. I would like, on behalf of EISA, to acknowledge, with gratitude, the invaluable financial support that EISA has received from the Norwegian Embassy through Norad and the Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa (Osisa) for this first phase of the programme and without which this monograph and subsequent others would not have been possible. I would also like to thank the authors for their enormous contributions to this project. All said and done, the views and opinions expressed in this and subsequent monographs do not necessarily represent an official position of EISA. Any possible factual, methodological or analytic errors in this and subsequent monographs