Dear MT,
We need you to give our views respect“No way will elections kick out zanu pf. They cheated in 2000 and 2002. They will rig these elections. And when they do, I hope that people get so disillusioned that they really organise against this government and kick them out by a non-violent, popular mass uprising.” - Archbishop Pius Ncube
We would like to take this opportunity to share some of our thoughts with you.
We firmly believe that the MDC, and civil society, cannot possibly accept the results of this forthcoming election. More than that, they cannot simply reject the election results through legal challenges, or press statements, or observer briefings. We need a unified, well-led, coordinated protest regardless of the outcome of these elections. Anything less would be an insult to the people of Zimbabwe and a betrayal of democracy.
Unless the MDC wins 101 seats to zanu pf’s 19 (enough to be able to rewrite the Constitution), Zimbabwe will remain in the political deadlock it is currently experiencing. Even if the MDC won a Parliamentary majority, the ministers and commissions which are appointed by mugabe will remain in force, and the MDC’s effectiveness would be largely compromised.
We understand that the MDC is constrained by the protocols associated with being a political party in Parliament. For this reason it is essential that civil society be encouraged to spearhead the people's protest against another rigged election. Civil society's voice needs to be supported with the people power the MDC is able to mobilise. Without MDC's active collaboration to commit and mobilise its rank and file in support of these protests, civil society's efforts will be all bark and no bite.
Like the MDC, civil society is not free of dissent and discord. However, we can take strength from the knowledge that we all wish to see the end of mugabe's destructive reign. There is very little time left, so it is imperative that the right strategy is employed to co-ordinate and combine resources. All possible partners need to be lobbied in these last few days before the election to co-operate and co-ordinate as equal partners in the struggle for a democratic Zimbabwe.
We believe that waiting for 2008 for a change of government is a dangerous strategy. After 8 years of supporting an opposition party, Zimbabweans may well feel fatigued. zanu pf might have listened to some of its reformists and convinced mugabe to accede to a younger, more vibrant successor. There is little doubt that the General Election 2005 will have given zanu pf a sharp wake up call. We can expect them to improve on their governance so that they don’t reach the 2008 Presidential Election as bankrupt as they currently are. The MDC will have spent 3 more years trying to raise funds, build and maintain structures and quell internal power struggles. It will have to yet again print material, campaign, deploy polling agents and monitor elections in a hostile environment. And it will yet again have to confront another rigged election with the “new zanu pf” intent on keeping power at all costs. All this while trying to promote democracy under a dictatorship that aligns the MDC with the likes of Osama Bin Laden!
At no other time in zanu pf’s history have they been more unpopular. Surely this is the time to move in and end zanu pf’s tyranny? We do not doubt the MDC’s capacity to meet the many challenges ahead. Indeed, you have consistently demonstrated that you can contest flawed elections. What we question is the usefulness of allowing three more years to pass as a contained parliamentary opposition while waiting for the 2008 election.
No matter how you look at it, accepting the results of Thursday’s election through occupying Parliament, or even contesting them through “traditional,” legal structures does not deliver the transformation that the Zimbabwean people are depending on the MDC for. The only way to achieve that transformation is to flatly refuse to accept the election results in the most public and active of ways. The MDC must take a unified stance and refuse to take up its seats in Parliament - be they 5 or 95 seats.
In the recent examples of Serbia, Georgia, Ukraine and most recently Kyrgyzstan's Tulip Revolution, civil society and opposition parties have united against a dictator to declare “enough” to dictatorship, repression and subversion of the people’s will. The situation in Kyrgyzstan mirrors ours in many ways:
“If unchallenged, last month's elections would have cemented
(Kyrgyzstan President) Akayev's hold on power. With the voting
rigged, his son and daughter both won seats in the new Parliament,
along with a phalanx of corrupt cronies.” (Another People’s
Revolt, Frank Brown, NBC, 27 March 2005).
It will take courage, strong leadership, and creative mobilisation to challenge this dictator in ways other than Parliamentary grand standing. But we know that if the MDC can rise to this challenge, civil society and the majority of Zimbabweans will be behind you.
The time is now. Stand UP and take it. We are behind you.
We wish you strength and wisdom in the time ahead.
Solidarity
Zvakwana - news at zvakwana.org - www.zvakwana.org Sokwanele - sokwanele at sokwanele.com - www.sokwanele.com
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