Mdc Policy Statement On The Way Forward.
Remarks By The Mdc President, Mr. Morgan Tsvangirai At A Meeting With The G8 Ambassadors.
Harare, May 27 2003.
Your Excellencies, you are all aware of the new dimensions of the economic crisis that has gripped the country over the last few weeks:
· There is virtually no fuel in the country;
· There supply of electricity has become even more erratic;
· Industry is now on its knees;
· In an attempt to stave off the crisis, the Mugabe regime has become the largest dealer in foreign currency on the black market.
· The black market is obviously incapable of meeting the national needs in terms of hard currency requirements.
It is common knowledge that the Mugabe regime has neither the imagination, the capacity nor policy package to get out of the crisis.
Poverty, hunger, joblessness and disease are destroying the social fabric of this nation. Urban poverty has reached dangerous levels. For obvious reasons the regime does not publicize statistics on the specific impact of these problems, but death from malnutrition, which in many parts of Africa signals the arrival of a full-blown catastrophe is already occurring.
For instance the Bulawayo City Health Department in an MDC-run local authority has now revealed that between January and February 2003 about 40 people have already died from malnutrition in that city. Statistics for subsequent months are being compiled and are likely to reveal a deteriorating situation.
The social anger born out of these economic hardships has reached levels never seen in this country before. Nobody can foretell how and under what circumstances this social anger is going to subside.
Even at this late hour we still believe that the only viable solution to end this crisis and give the country a chance to recover must go through a process of serious and sincere dialogue. Therefore, the urgency of international pressure being exerted to bring Mugabe to the negotiating table cannot be overemphasized. It is the only way to avert a catastrophe. A culture of democracy and political tolerance in Zimbabwe can only take root if all of us accept the principle of dialogue without preconditions, as a way out of political problems.
Your Excellencies will recall that since the run up to the presidential poll, several regional and international delegations have been to Harare in an effort to broker dialogue, but Mugabe squandered those precious overtures in an endeavour to buy time, wishing that somehow, the crisis will go away. In particular, Mugabe and ZANU PF have never taken any initiative to resolve the crisis. This is a clear demonstration that the regime has never been sincere about dialogue to resolve the crisis.
The current African initiative by Malawi, South Africa and Nigeria is welcome but it needs to be complimented by a broader international effort. We certainly hope that this initiative is not yet again one of those short-lived diplomatic efforts, such as what happened in 2002, ahead of the G8 meeting and the marketing of NEPAD, and will soon lose momentum afterwards.
It would be a tragedy if efforts to resolve the Zimbabwe crisis were routinely linked to the calendar of multilateral summits and are then allowed to wither after every such summit.
It is with these qualitative changes to the crisis in mind that I felt the need to put you in the picture on where the MDC stands regarding the way forward.
Our position is quite clear and consistent. We are ready to resume talks at any time. As I said before, and contrary to what has been reported in certain sections of the local and international media, we have never put any preconditions on the resumption of dialogue between the MDC and ZANU PF. It is the Mugabe regime, which introduced preconditions in April 2002 when dialogue had already started and an agenda had already been set and agreed to.
We have not set any preconditions for the resumption of dialogue. What we have simply done is to remind the Mugabe regime of its governance responsibilities in restoring the rule of law; respecting human rights; putting a stop to state-sponsored violence; disband and disarm the militia and in general ensuring that peace and tranquillity returns to the country so that meaningful dialogue can take place. The agreed agenda had made provisions for the discussion of all these issues.
These issues were never set out as preconditions because dialogue had already started when the agenda was agreed to. They are routine matters of administration. They are obligations by any de facto authority that claims to be the government of the day.
The issue of Mugabe’s legitimacy was an agreed item for discussion on the agenda. It is therefore insincere and dishonest for Mugabe or anybody else for that matter, to demand that the MDC recognizes him as head of state as a precondition for dialogue.
The legitimacy of the present regime is the root cause of the crisis and the demand that Mugabe be recognized as legitimate ahead of any dialogue is therefore incomprehensible. Pronouncing Mugabe as legitimate will not resolve the crisis because the MDC does not confer legitimacy; it is the people of Zimbabwe who do through the mechanism of a free and fair poll.
The MDC will never accept the illegitimate responsibility to usurp the role of conferring a mandate or governmental legitimacy from the people.
There are historical precedents in our country and in the region. For instance, when the patriotic front went to Lancaster House the issue of recognising the illegal and illegitimate Smith regime was never the issue. The illegitimacy of that regime and the mechanisms for the restoration of legitimacy were the thorny issues for discussion.
Similarly in South Africa, when the ANC engaged the illegitimate apartheid regime in dialogue, the recognition of the minority regime was out of the question. The dismantling of the racist regime and the movement towards democracy and legitimacy were the core issues of the dialogue.
In Zimbabwe today we find ourselves confronted by a similar set of circumstances. The Mugabe regime is irretrievably illegitimate and can never be salvaged. Recognising the illegitimate regime is out of the question. It is precisely the illegitimacy of the Mugabe regime and the strategies to return to democracy and legitimacy that constitute the agenda for dialogue. The agenda prepared and agreed to by both the MDC and ZANU PF during the aborted April 2002 dialogue recognised this.
In our view, the starting point in the resolution of the crisis of legitimacy and governance in Zimbabwe must be Robert Mugabe’s immediate and unconditional exit from the office of the President. This will pave the way for interim arrangements to be put in place for the holding of presidential polls that will result in the installation of a legitimate government and usher in a new political dispensation that will restore democracy, peace, stability and prosperity to Zimbabwe.
We understand that Mugabe is only prepared to relinquish his illegitimate power if he is guaranteed what he calls a safe and dignified exit. The position of the MDC on that issue is quite clear.
First, the MDC has never preached or practiced the politics of vengeance and retribution. On several occasions, the leadership of the MDC have stated, quite unequivocally to local and international audiences that we are determined never to allow the horrors of the past to haunt and influence the future of our country. That position has not changed.
Second, we recognize Mugabe’s role in the politics of the liberation of this country from the yoke of colonial rule and we do not wish to ignore or minimize the significance of that contribution.
Third, in Zimbabwe there is already a precedent for handling the outgoing political leadership in a post-conflict situation. That precedent has served the country well in the past and the lessons learnt will guide the future to ensure peace and stability in the country. The only guaranteed safe exit for Mugabe and his cronies is through a restoration of the rights of the people, the restoration of the legitimacy of government and the opening up of democratic space.
Fourth, the manner and circumstance of Mugabe’s immediate exit from power should not be a precondition for engaging in dialogue towards a restoration of legitimacy. Mugabe is now a clear liability to the country, the region and internationally.
Fifth, we shall never accept the linkage of the dialogue towards the restoration of legitimacy to Mugabe’s succession plans within his own political party ZANU PF. The MDC cannot reasonably be expected to be part to the reorganisation, renewal and or restructuring of the ZANU PF leadership.
Sixth, the essential goal of the negotiations therefore must be to put in place irrevocable measures leading to and facilitating the holding of free and fair presidential polls, ushering in a legitimate government expressing the will of the people of Zimbabwe.
Seventh, MDC will not be part to any negotiation process, which simply seeks to incorporate us, as junior partners, into the structures of illegitimate power dominated by Mugabe and his cronies. This will only serve to expand that illegitimacy and ultimately to sanitize the Mugabe regime.
We will neither be part to a dubious process that seeks to expand and sanitize ZANU PF’s illegitimate rule nor will we accept a secondary role in any so-called transitional arrangement. We do not crave and will not accept executive responsibilities in partnership with what is clearly an illegitimate regime.
THE SO-CALLED TRANSITIONAL GOVERNMENT.
Those within ZANU PF and outside of it who talk about the need for a transitional government clearly recognise the need to transit from the violent illegitimacy of the Mugabe regime to a legitimate and democratic political dispensation and we agree with their diagnosis of the regime entirely.
However we do not believe that the transition should go through a so-called transitional government. Under the prevailing circumstances, a transitional government will be an illegitimate arrangement, which does not carry the mandate of the people.
Such a transitional administration would lack the legitimate authority and the mandate of the people to put in place and steer viable programmes necessary for national revival, renewal and healing. In short it would be merely a face serving formula for the Mugabe regime and therefore a dangerous, cruel and cynical waste of time for Zimbabweans.
Our position and that of the majority of Zimbabweans is that the political arrangements that are necessary after Mugabe’s announced departure must religiously adhere to and be guided by the provisions of the Constitution of Zimbabwe.
INTERIM ARRANGEMENTS.
In accordance with the Constitution of Zimbabwe, interim arrangements in the event of a sitting President vacating office are clearly articulated and well provided for. An interim/acting President, logically from the ruling party, would take over the Office of the President and the presidential polls shall be held within a period of 90 days to choose a new and substantive President.
This is a cast iron constitutional provision and there are no compelling reasons to deviate from it.
The issue of a constitutional amendment to enable the formation of a so-called transitional government therefore does not arise. Certainly, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) will not be part to any process that seeks to modify or tamper with the constitutionally defined route to presidential succession. In a parliamentary system such as that in Zimbabwe, this provision is a self-triggering constitutional mechanism, which generates its own momentum. It should not be a subject for a constitutional amendment, debate or negotiation among political parties.
“Accommodating” the MDC.
This is a myth that has to be dispelled once and for all. We have not sought and will never seek to be accommodated by anybody outside our democratic entitlement, the rule of law and indeed the constitution.
The negotiations must not be used as a strategy to diffuse ZANU PF’s responsibility for the national ills confronting the nation. Dialogue must focus specifically on the implementation of agreed measures necessary to return the country to legitimacy, democracy, peace and stability.
We in the MDC fervently believe in the unfettered free and fair expression of the people’s sovereign will. We are ready and comfortable to live with any result of the people’s electoral judgement. If we lose in a free and fair presidential electoral contest we will eagerly play our role as a loyal, patriotic and constructive political opposition party in a democratic society. Similarly if the electorate confers its mandate on us, we are ready to take up the challenge of governance.
Democracy in Zimbabwe would be in mortal peril if, each time when the ruling party is confronted with a legitimate electoral challenge, it refuses to provide for and recognize the genuine expression of the people’s sovereign wish. This has happened in the past and it must never be allowed to happen again by deliberate design.
Governments of national unity, coalitions and such other administrative formulae must not be used as antidotes to vaccinate against and forestall the emergence of a democratic government that expresses the free will of the people.
We therefore envisage no prospect and totally reject any form of “accommodation” during the interim period apart from what must be a common endeavour, by all well-meaning and patriotic Zimbabweans, to put in place irrevocable measures to guarantee a free and fair presidential poll in conditions of peace and general political stability.
THE WAY FORWARD.
This is the greatest challenge that confronts all patriotic Zimbabweans during the interim period. The only way to resolve the current crisis and salvage what remains of the nation is through a process of serious and sincere dialogue between the MDC and ZANU PF. Such a process can only start in earnest if the Mugabe regime commits itself to the creation of a peaceful environment in the context of which a meaningful political engagement can be undertaken.
Serious negotiations towards the restoration of legitimacy, national reconciliation and national healing cannot be meaningfully held in the context of lawlessness, violence and civil strife. The irreversible restoration of law and order, stability and peace is therefore a non-negotiable issue for progress on substantive issues in the negotiation process. There is therefore an absolute imperative for the immediate implementation of concrete measures designed to guarantee a free and fair presidential poll.
As a demonstration of its sincerity and commitment to a peaceful and negotiated end to the current crisis of governance, the Mugabe regime must immediately implement the following fifteen (15) measures:
1. Put a stop to all forms of state-sponsored violence that has engulfed the nation over the past three years.
2. End all political persecutions and prosecutions.
3. All ZANU PF militias must be disbanded; their training must stop immediately.
4. The so-called war veterans must be disarmed. There must be guarantees that they will not be rearmed and that they will not engage in political activities as an armed group operating above the law, but only as ordinary Zimbabweans.
5. Repressive and anti-democratic laws such as the Public Order and Security Act (POSA) and Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA) must be immediately repealed.
6. An undertaking not to grant amnesty for perpetrators of murder, rape, torture, political violence and other serious crimes.
7. An immediate stop to on-going human rights abuses of all kinds.
8. An end to selective and biased law enforcement. The Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) should be non-partisan in the execution of their duties.
9. An end to the use of the Central Intelligence Organization (CIO) for partisan political activities.
10. A stop to the use of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces (ZDF) in civilian policing duties and political activities of any kind.
11. Respect and impartial enforcement of the rule of law.
12. An end to the use of the state controlled print and electronic media as partisan media instruments.
13. A commitment to stop the legislative use of Presidential powers in all the above areas.
14. A commitment to humanitarian ethics in food relief distribution on the grounds of need, without partisan or adverse distinction of any kind whatsoever.
15. Depoliticise the distribution of food relief.
All the above fifteen (15) stipulated confidence building measures must be met and expeditiously implemented before any progress on negotiations on substantive issues can be made.
Again as I said before, these are not preconditions. Instead, they are simply the administrative responsibilities of any de facto authority and the Mugabe regime has deliberately reneged on them, thereby creating the chaotic and dangerous situation in which the nation finds itself.
These are the minimum conditions that would create a peaceful political environment that would enable serious dialogue to take place.
It is only in the context of such an environment that negotiations towards a transition to legitimacy and democratic governance can take place.
The constitutionally mandated interim period must not be varied or tampered with in any way and there must be guarantees for an unimpeded progress towards democratic legitimacy. There must be a deliberate effort to harmonize the state structures and personnel with the reality of the people’s sovereign wishes and this can only be achieved through the creation of institutions that recognize and guarantee democracy and multi-party electoral politics.
Adequate security guarantees would have to be agreed to and corresponding arrangements would have to be implemented to guard against the possible regression to the use of state institutions for partisan political purposes.
Negotiations must be sincere and in good faith. It will be foolhardy for Mugabe or anybody else in ZANU PF to delude themselves and think that the interim period will present an excellent opportunity for them to dissolve the unity of purpose of the MDC or force us to become secondary players in the whole scenario. We are unshakeable in our conviction that the interim period must be used to break the mould of tyrannical politics in Zimbabwe and create a new democratic culture with underpinning political institutions in the country.
I thank you.
|
|
You can make a difference
|
|
 |
Make a donation |
|
Support Zimbabwe at an event |
|
Lobby your local Government member |
|
Become a member of the ZIC |
|
