Maravi

Zim refuses to entertain UN western observers

Zim refuses to entertain UN western observers
By George Chellah and Kingsley Kaswende in Harare, Zimbabwe
Tuesday May 13, 2008 [05:01]

THE Zimbabwean government has said it will not invite international or western election observers for the presidential runoff unless economic sanctions are lifted. And the ruling ZANU-PF has expressed disappointment with President Levy Mwanawasa's alleged failure as SADC chairperson to call on Britain and its western allies to lift the sanctions against Zimbabwe.

Addressing the press in Harare, justice minister and ZANU-PF media sub-committee chairman Patrick Chinamasa said the Zimbabwean government would not give in to pressure from the opposition MDC to invite the United Nations (UN) and western countries to monitor the presidential run-off.
"We will not allow them. We will think favourably of them if they lift sanctions," Chinamasa said.

He said it would not be possible to meet the MDC's demand that the UN be invited for the presidential runoff because the UN never monitored the country's elections in 1980.
Chinamasa said MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai continues to play victim on a number of matters.

"He wants the UN to observe the elections yet the UN did not observe the 1980 elections. We will act in accordance with electoral laws as negotiated in our SADC dialogue," Chinamasa said. "Tsvangirai seeks to introduce new rules in a game that has already started. Tsvangirai should stop acting like a spoilt child."

He also justified the announcement by the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) that the presidential runoff may not take place within the 21-day period from the announcement of official results as stipulated by the law.

"The law provides that ZEC could extend the election date," he said.
Chinamasa said the recent conditions set by MDC lacked merit. He claimed that the playing field was tilted against the ruling ZANU-PF party with the international media reporting in favour of MDC.
"Even the local and regional private media were covering the opposition positively," he said.

Addressing journalists in Pretoria recently, Tsvangirai set a number of conditions as a pre-requisite to his participation in the presidential runoff.
Among the conditions set were the cessation of the post-election violence currently taking place, especially on the countryside, SADC to deploy peacekeepers and that the Zimbabwean authorities permit international election observers in the country.

In the March 29, 2008 harmonised presidential, parliamentary and council elections, Zimbabwe invited election observers from 47 regional and sub-regional countries including countries from Africa, Asia, with Russia being the only country representing Europe.
The MDC leader also demanded that ZEC be reconstituted because its current composition was pro-ZANU-PF.
On the lifting of economic sanctions, Chinamasa said SADC had an undertaking to urge the West to lift sanctions against Zimbabwe though the current chairperson has not done so yet.

He said it was President Mwanawasa's obligation to implement the resolution issued at the SADC extraordinary summit in Tanzania.
"We haven't heard him calling for the lifting of the sanctions," he said.
Chinamasa said the regional bloc should protect weak states and not advance foreign agendas.

At the last SADC extraordinary summit in Tanzania, which was convened specifically to discuss Zimbabwe's political and economic situation, the regional body expressed concern over that country's economic situation and appealed for the lifting of all forms of sanctions.

Labels: UN, ZIMBABWE

posted by MrK @ 11:08 AM