Bulletin Spring 2008 No. 79 Special Issue on the 2008 Zimbabwe Elections Page Introduction Timothy Scarnecchia and Wendy Urban-Mead, Guest Co-Editors _________________________ 1 Can Elections End Mugabe’s Dictatorship? Norma Kriger __________________________________________________________________ 2 Methodism and Socio-Political Action in Zimbabwe: 2000-2007 Jimmy G. Dube ________________________________________________________________ 6 An Analysis of the Emerging Political Dispensation in South Africa -- Parallels Between ZCTU-MDC and COSATU’s Relationship to ANC Augustine Hungwe _____________________________________________________________ 15 Reaping the Bitter Fruits of Stalinist Tendencies in Zimbabwe Sabelo J. Ndlovu-Gatsheni _______________________________________________________ 21 An Academic’s Journalism in the Zimbabwean Interregnum David Moore __________________________________________________________________ 32 Operation ‘Final Solution’: Intimidation and Violence Against White Farmers in Post-Election Zimbabwe Amy E. Ansell _________________________________________________________________ 42 Zimbabwe: Ndira Body Found Peta Thornycroft _______________________________________________________________ 46 “Letter from Harare--May 8, 2008” Anonymous ___________________________________________________________________ 48 An Open Letter to South African President Thabo Mbeki Wendy Urban-Mead ____________________________________________________________ 50 Editorial: In Zimbabwe Today, Politics is Violence Timothy Scarnecchia ___________________________________________________________ 51 Guide to On-line Resources Augustine Hungwe _____________________________________________________________ 53 ISSN 1051-08442 ACAS Bulletin, No. 79, Winter 2008 Introduction Timothy Scarnecchia and Wendy Urban-Mead, Guest Co-Editors This special issue on the 2008 Zimbabwe candidates, including Mugabe, Morgan elections introduces the issues surrounding the Tsvangirai, and others provide a window into elections and the current political violence the national and regional meaning of leading up to the June 27th Presidential run-off. “Zimbabwe nationalism”, and the difficulties The first article, by political scientist Norma that reliance on a historicized ultra-nationalism Kriger, provides a helpful analysis of what took presents for any candidate attempting to place during the March 29th elections, the confront the militarized state under ZANU-PF’s subsequent fallout and reworking of the results, control. and the decision to establish a run-off election for president. Political scientist, historian, and journalist David Moore provides insights into the often The goal of this special issue is to help inform difficult task of reporting on the Zimbabwe scholars and students about the events leading elections from Harare and South Africa. up to, during, and after the elections, and help Moore’s honest assessment of this difficult task, inform concerned scholars of the details and and the insightful articles he has included from analysis often left out of the mainstream news the last month’s coverage, particularly his sources. One such contribution comes from The attempt to inform North American and South Rev. Dr. Jimmy Dube, who teaches theology African readers of the complexities involved and ministers in the Harare area. His article beyond the headlines, shows how an engaged highlights the difficulties Methodist church scholarship can enter into the journalistic world. leaders and their congregations continue to face, and calls on the Methodist church leadership to Amy Ansell, Department of Sociology, Bard take a more prophetic and courageous stance vis College, begins with a succinct review of the a vis the current crisis than it has up to now. relationship between white commercial farmers Dube’s article was written prior to the election, and the state since 1980. The piece then details but it gives readers a clear indication of the crisis how the March 29 elections ushered in an in Zimbabwe. Another article written before the intensified series of attacks and intimidation election comes from political scientist against white commercial farmers, whom the Augustine Hungwe, who details the tensions in government views as a particularly threatening southern Africa over the continued support by source of potential opposition plots. The post- key leaders, especially South African president election violence against white farmers was Thabo Mbeki, for Robert Mugabe and the dubbed by Mugabe as a “Final Solution” against ZANU-PF (Zimbabwe African National Union- those the government has deemed in need of Patriotic Front). Hungwe’s perceptive analysis eradication in order that Zimbabwe might “never foreshadowed the regional crisis the election be a colony again.” results created, and highlights the roadblocks to any meaningful intervention of regional leaders Peta Thornycroft, a well-known and very on behalf of the Zimbabwean people. courageous Zimbabwean journalist, has spent the last few weeks investigating first the Historian and political analyst Sabelo J. disappearance and then the tragic torture and Ndlovu-Gatsheni provides an in-depth analysis death of MDC-activist Tonderai Ndira in Harare. of Robert Mugabe’s continued efforts to use the Thornycroft’s lead story of the discovery of his rhetoric of anti-imperialism and the liberation body, dumped unceremoniously at the morgue in war to defend his hold on the leadership. Harare’s central hospital, shows the brutal nature Ndlovu-Gatsheni’s insights into the presidential of the violence being carried out by the state and 1 ACAS Bulletin, No. 79, Winter 2008 its paramilitary groups before the run-off We would like to thank Jesse Benjamin, the elections. editor of the ACAS Bulletin, for his assistance and patience in putting together this special The issue concludes with a brief summary of issue. recent political violence in a letter written by an American NGO worker from Harare on May 8th- We would also like to thank the contributing -just as news of increased violence against MDC authors for what they have shared; much of it supporters began to arrive in the capital. This is had to be written under rushed conditions. We followed with an OPED on political violence believe they share our concern for the people of before the presidential run-off election. Finally, Zimbabwe, our desire to see a more fully thanks to Augustine Hungwe, we offer a listing accurate picture of what is happening there be of on-line resources for further research. distributed widely, and we know that this bulletin's contributors who remain based in The original idea for this special issue came out Zimbabwe are courageous people. of the first meeting of the Zimbabwe Scholars Group. The ZSG was formed at the African Timothy Scarnecchia Studies Association Meeting in New York City, Kent State University on October 19, 2007. The ZSG seeks to provide [email protected] a better understanding and awareness of the challenges the Zimbabwe situation presents to Wendy Urban-Mead an international community. Anyone interested Bard College in joining the ZSG should email the editors [email protected] below or contact us at our blog: http://zimbabwesg.blogspot.com/ Can Elections End Mugabe’s Dictatorship? Norma Kriger Zimbabweans’ experience of elections, MDC-T was increasingly bedeviled by youth especially since 2000 when the MDC first violence, problems of leadership transparency challenged ZANU PF rule, has made them and accountability, and interest in positions for cynical about elections as a mechanism to the material rewards they provided. Its political transfer power. They have learned that ZANU culture had begun to mimic the organization PF will do whatever it takes to win elections. which it sought to remove. 2007 was rated the worst year in terms of the number of human rights abuses since 2001, most When Simba Makoni, who had been a ZANU perpetrated by ZANU PF state and paramilitary PF politburo member, announced that he would forces, and aimed at decimating the top and run for the presidency, it injected a refreshing lower level leadership of the opposition in uncertainty about his impact on the elections. advance of the anticipated 2008 elections.1 For opponents of ZANU PF, Makoni’s Also, there was growing disillusionment with candidacy signaled the ruling party’s internal the opposition. The March 29 2008 presidential, unraveling. There was also a palpable shift in parliamentary, and local government elections the political environment during the campaign, initially aroused little interest among dejected especially in ZANU PF’s rural strongholds. On voters. The MDC had split into two bickering brief visits to Chibi in Masvingo province and to factions in late 2005, the majority faction led by the area in Manicaland province where powerful Morgan Tsvangirai (MDC-T) and the minority ZANU PF government minister, Didymus faction by Arthur Mutambara (MDC-M). The Mutasa, and Simba Makoni both own farms, I 2 ACAS Bulletin, No. 79, Winter 2008 saw MDC supporters fearlessly wearing MDC-T Prior to the March 29 2008 elections in shirts, moving freely, and organizing and Zimbabwe, historical precedent suggested (at attending rallies. least to me) that President Mugabe would find a way to “win” the presidential election despite For the first time since 1980, ZANU PF lost the inauspicious context – economic collapse control of the house of assembly. The MDC-T and a three-way race in which the vote would be won 99 seats, the MDC-M 10 seats, ZANU