The latest report from Human Rights Watch, Race against time: The need for legal and institutional reforms ahead of Zimbabwe’s elections, paints a sobering picture of the absence of reforms during the past four years of Zimbabwe’s Government of National Unity.

The report discusses a range of reforms which would be needed for there to be genuinely free and fair elections in Zimbabwe, and highlights the consistent absence of a willingness by Zanu PF to engage in any of these reforms.

Paragraphs like this are telling:

Genuine and comprehensive institutional reform to end the pro-Zanu PF partisanship of key state institutions such as the security forces, electoral management bodies and public broadcasters are necessary to level the playing field and create an environment conducive to the holding of credible elections. Zanu PF has not embraced such reforms in the name of promoting a more democratic Zimbabwe, but has actively resisted them.

The absence of meaningful institutional reforms to facilitate full restoration of the rule of law increases concern for human rights protections ahead of Zimbabwe’s next elections. The GPA noted that state organs and institutions do not belong to any political party and should be impartial in the discharge of their duties. This declaration remains wholly unimplemented.

With or without a new Constitution, Zimbabwe needs to hold new Presidential and Parliamentary elections by the end of October this year, if it is to respect the term length of the current office holders. But in an environment of continued harassment of human rights workers, there is no prospect of meaningful reforms. To change the environment of fear, intimidation and harassment, these changes would need to have happened already. They would need to be demonstrated through actions on the ground, not just paper laws and policies. International attention will hopefully mean that the 2013 election is less overtly violent than the 2008 one was. But there is little to suggest it will be any more free and fair, or that Zimbabweans themselves will feel any more confident in the electoral conditions and human rights environment than we were five years ago.

Zimbabwe government continues harassment of NGOs. The new year hasn’t brought a new attitude to the Zimbabwe government about human rights and freedom of expression, if the recent harassment of ZimRights is anything to go by. Read this statement from Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR):

Police charge Machisa with publishing falsehoods as government steps up onslaught against NGOs

Zimbabwean police on Monday 14 January 2013 charged Zimbabwe Human Rights Association (ZimRights) Director, Okay Machisa with publishing falsehoods, fraud and forgery as authorities intensify the onslaught against non-governmental organisations.

Machisa will be a guest in the police cells of the coalition government of President Robert Mugabe and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai after detectives at the Law and Order Section at Harare Central Police Station detained him at Rhodesville Police Station following the recording of a warned and cautioned statement from him.

The police charged Machisa with contravening Section 31 of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act for allegedly publishing or communicating false statements prejudicial to the State. The ZimRights director was also charged with committing fraud and forgery in contravention of Section 136 and 137 of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act. Faith Mamutse, who is employed as a secretary at ZimRights was released after the police interrogated and recorded a statement from her.

Machisa, who is also the Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition chairperson handed himself to the police on Monday morning, accompanied by his lawyer, Beatrice Mtetwa, who is a member of Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR). The police also raided and searched the ZimRights head office in Harare, where Mtetwa and Gift Mtisi, another ZLHR member lawyer were present during the search.

Meanwhile, ZimRights programme manager Leo Chamahwinya and three others, who were arrested in a raid on the ZimRights offices last year, remain in police custody, with their bail appeal having been denied last week.

Well as the New Year begins not many people have a clear picture of what the year holds for them and I am one of them. Social and political problems of 2012 continue to haunt our faltering government of national unity (GNU) in 2013 but the big question is, is it gonna be referendum or elections or maybe pay increase for the civil servants?

The issue of a new constitution for Zimbabwe drags into 2013 unresolved and it could be a blessing in disguise for the legislators who are currently faced with end of term in office. Faced with fear of leaving office empty-handed some of the legislators are already demanding what’s due to them before the term expires. With an unimpressive record to show for the time they got elected into office some political parties have blocked conducting primary elections to avoid embarrassing the so-called “top brass”.

Such a move killed my hopes of aspiring to be a politician of some sort. Maybe next time when democracy is not just a bar talk.
 
Election manifestos full of development promises from both parties were washed down the drain as political entrepreneurship took center stage. As people continue to wallow in poverty the only hope they have is in the next ballot which will be held this year. On the New Year’s eve civil servants issued an ultimatum to the government to engage them in salary negotiations. Not much was yielded from last year’s negotiations with the government. Good timing indeed to bargain, maybe this year will be the year for the “servants” as parties in the GNU will be trying to please the electorate. A popular prophet saw gold for Zimbabwe in 2013 but the prediction also had death and turmoil. Whether you believe in prophecy or not let’s just sit back watch as the events of 2013 start to unfold.

Gender activist Betty Makoni describes how women face war in their homes and how she feels about leaving Zimbabwe because of persecution from the State:

The last thing any human rights defender wants to do is to leave her home, work and settle in a foreign country. This was my last option during my time of despair and persecution in 2008; only the man I shared my home with knew as I grabbed my handbag and sped out of the door to run for safety.

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Zanu-PF declared at its recent annual conference that latest technology gadgets and wireless telephone applications embraced globally are the work of detractors out to get Zanu-PF. In resolutions passed at the close of the 13 Zanu-PF annual people’s conference in Gweru at the weekend the party appears petrified by the spread of social media which has hooked the young generation.
– Daily News, Thursday December 13, Pg 5

ZANU PF’s 13th National People’s Conference held in Gweru pulls the curtain down on some of the major political highlights of 2012. The conference, which was declared a resounding success, came up with resolutions, setting the tone for elections in 2013.

Among some of the resolutions which may come as sweet to music the ears of those who have been carrying illegal mining activities is the resolution to decriminalize gold panning.

At the People’s Conference, the party has resolved to “spearhead the decriminalisation of mining operations undertaken by the gold panners (“makorokoza”) and implores Government to give them mining licences so that they operate lawfully”.

This resolution falls under National Economy Indigenising & Empowerment. Call it electioneering strategy or whatever you like but soon running battles with the police under “Operation Chikorokoza Chapera” will be a thing of the past as panners will be awarded with licenses to legitimize their operations.

Recently MDC came up with JUICE for the electorate. Since JUICE is just on paper ZANU PF was not to be outdone with paper strategies of the other parties but promised real papers to legitimatize the illegal activity of gold panning. Well to a young person with the potential to put an X in the next ballot maybe the resolution fell short of also decriminalizing diamond panning.