Zimbabwe Victims of Organized Violence Trust (ZIVOVT) has already started facilitating meetings between the countrys main political parties in Bulawayo on the setting up of the peace liaison committees aimed at dealing with politically related cases before, during and after elections.
Bekithemba Nyathi, the ZIVOVT coordinator, said the formation of the multiparty liaison committees followed reports last week of changes to the countrys electoral laws.
The special police liaison and investigation committees in provincial centres would work with the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission to deal with cases of intimidation and violence during elections.
But the focus of ZIVOVT and the liaison committees should be to force Zanu (PF) to comply with democratic principles to ensure violence-free elections. The committees should address the Zanu (PF) culture of violence and intolerance, said Effie Ncube, a Bulawayo based analyst.
Zapu spokesperson, Methuseli Moyo, noted that the ZIVOVT agenda is a plausible move that should be supported to stop election-related violence.
Spokesperson for the Arthur Mutambara faction of the MDC, Edwin Ndlovu, said: The idea is noble and any sane person would support it to stop Zanu(PF) violence.
ZIVOVT was formed last year with an aim of assisting victims of politically motivated violence in Zimbabwe. The organisation is chaired by Patience Nabanyama, the wife of the Patrick Nabanyama who was abducted in 2000.
Post published in: Politics