Originally posted by the Voice of America.
Voice of America content is produced by the Voice of America,
a United States federal government-sponsored entity, and is in
the public domain.


         Zimbabwe Poll Date in Flux After Regional Body Calls for Delay

   by Anita Powell

   Regional leaders have requested that Zimbabwe's government delay
   upcoming elections to give the troubled nation time to make sure the
   vote is free and fair.
   President Robert Mugabe set elections for July 31, saying he was
   complying with a ruling of the Constitutional Court.  The request from
   the Southern African Development Community (SADC) supports the argument
   of Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, who says more time is needed for
   democratic reforms to be implemented under the country's new
   constitution.
   The 15-member Southern African Development Community said it has asked
   Zimbabwe's government to ask the Constitutional Court to extend the
   poll date beyond July 31. SADC did not specify a new election date, and
   there has been no clear date from Zimbabwean officials.
   "What summit recommended was in recognizing that there was a need to
   give more time," said SADC Secretary-General Tomaz Salomao, speaking at
   Saturday's summit in Mozambique's capital. "It was agreed that there is
   a need that the government of Zimbabwe engage the constitutional court
   to request for more time beyond the deadline of 31st of July."
   But it remains to be seen whether President Mugabe, who is well-known
   for his trenchant opposition to being told what to do, will heed the
   request.  The 89-year-old is the only leader that Zimbabwe has known
   since independence in 1980, and has said he plans to run for another
   term.
   He's also repeatedly said he wants to end the uneasy coalition that
   SADC forced him to form with Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic
   Change, or MDC after the violent and disputed 2008 poll.
   Mugabe's spokesman did not answer calls seeking comment.  But
   Tsvangirai has said he will challenge any date that comes before
   reforms for electoral laws and laws that limit freedom of expression
   and association are made.
   Spokesman Douglas Mwonzora, an MDC spokesman, says he's confident the
   needed reforms can be completed in two weeks.
   "We are happy that the SADC has now, at last, reined in on Mugabe," he
   said. "Because Mugabe is acting unilaterally.  He is acting as if he
   has bought the court because he made the law, he made the electoral law
   by decree.  We want elections in Zimbabwe as soon as possible, but we
   want elections under conditions that will guarantee a good result."
   But, Mwonzora noted, the former opposition party is not leaving
   anything to chance with a president who he compares to Adolf Hitler.
   Mugabe has been accused of using his security forces to intimidate and
   punish those who oppose him, and rights groups have said his forces
   have used torture against dissidents.
   "It's not an unfair comparison, actually.  He has said himself that he
   is a Hitler three-fold, or ten-fold," he said. "But I am just
   explaining this to show that appeasement does not work.  There is no
   reason why the world should ignore a dictator who is abrogating the
   rights of his people left, right and center.  We have a constitution
   that must be followed.  And Mugabe is simply not following the
   constitution."
   For that reason, he says, the party has asked Mugabe to follow SADC's
   request, but has also had the prime minister approach the court to do
   the same.
   More importantly, Mwonzora says, the extra two weeks will allow a
   critical constituency to register to vote: Zimbabweans living abroad.
   Some 1.5 million Zimbabweans are thought to have relocated to
   neighboring South Africa, and many here say they left home because they
   oppose Mugabe's regime.  If they are allowed to vote, they could make a
   big impact on the outcome of the elections.
     __________________________________________________________________

   [1]http://www.voanews.com/content/zimbabwe-election-date-sadc-delay-mug
   abe/1683571.html

References

   1. http://www.voanews.com/content/zimbabwe-election-date-sadc-delay-mugabe/1683571.html