Foreign Affairs Minister, Simbarashe Mumbengegwi, recently issued a statement that Zimbabwe would bar U.S. and European Union observers because of sanctions imposed on Mugabe and his inner circle for alleged human rights abuses.
Earlier this month, Vice President Joice Mujuru said Zimbabwe will only invite African observers for the next elections Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai said contrary to these sentiments, the government of Zimbabwe has not yet reached consensus on the issue.
In a statement soon after meeting President Robert Mugabe, Tsvangirai said the presence of international observers should not be a problem considering that the country has its own internal mechanisms to monitor elections.
“There is no agreed position as yet regarding international observers.
While they can express their own political party’s opinion, one party’s policy does not represent government position concerning international observers,” he said.
Tsvangirai said while people have a right to express their opinion regarding elections, “it is wrong for people to make public announcements regarding government position.”
He said “Any observers from anywhere should not be a problem for us because we have our own interior mechanisms to monitor elections. But I cannot confirm the exact dates when we will reach a consensus because it is a process.”
Tsvangirai said that government has made a position that the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission should accredit all civil society organizations wishing to observe the elections.
He said it is a violation of the Bill of Rights to deny CSOs accreditation on the basis that they are under investigation “because everyone is innocent until proven guilty”.
“As principals, we have agreed that ZEC must not prohibit anyone interested in getting accreditation on the basis that they are under investigation,” he said.
On election dates, Tsvangirai said it is impossible to predict the exact dates considering that there are legal processes involved prior to the declaration.
Post published in: News
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