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(TALKZIMBABWE) Britain leads Zim constitutional exercise in the UK

Britain leads Zim constitutional exercise in the UK
By: Our reporter
Posted: Tuesday, August 10, 2010 10:00 am

THE Zimbabwe "constitutional reform initiative" in the United Kingdom is not wholly independent and the final communique that will be submitted to Copac in Zimbabwe might not represent the views of the majority of Zimbabweans in that country, a source has told the Zimbabwe Guardian.

Last week we published a story saying the process, spearheaded by a group called the Zimbabwe Diaspora Development Interface (ZDDI), has been compromised as activist groups like the Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition (CZC) have been allowed to take a leading role in that exercise.

CZC does not represent Zimbabweans in the UK.

It has now emerged that the Foreign and Commonwealth Office of the United Kingdom (FCO) is also involved in that process. Members of ZDDI and some Zimbabwean activist groups have had at least one meeting with the FCO, according to our source.

"The constitutional exercise is not, and has never been, driven by Zimbabweans in the Diaspora," said our source, preferring to remain anonymous.

"The facts are that Mr Mark Canning, UK ambassador to Zimbabwe, convened and chaired a meeting on 21 October 2009 to selected Zimbabwe Diaspora groups among them ZDDI, SW Radio Africa and the MDC-T party led by Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai.

"These organisations do not, in any way, represent the generality of the Zimbabwean community in the UK. There has never been any consultation that included Zimbabweans and we do not know whose views they represent.

"In any case, Zimbabweans did not even know that such a meeting had taken place and what its outcome was."

According to our source, the meeting was held at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London and one of the agenda items was: "How the FCO can work together with Zimbabwean groups towards electoral and constitutional reforms in Zimbabwe".

Our source believes that the meeting was "solely Mr Canning's initiative".

ZDDI held a meeting at the London Metropolitan University last Saturday which was advertised as a "consultative meeting" but involved presentations by "anti Zanu-PF elements", according to our source.

"This was not a consultative exercise, but a one-sided campaign to discredit what is going on in Zimbabwe. This is an initiative of Musekiwa Makwanya and a few individuals who support the MDC-T."

The source added that it is difficult to classify this initiative as a constitutional reform exercise, or consultative meeting as it has "no semblance of a consultational process".

"Among the presenters at that meeting were CZC activists Dhewa Mavhinga and Pedzisayi Ruhanya who dismissed the reform exercise in Zimbabwe as a farce and openly campaigned for the MDC-T, rather than find ways in which Zimbabweans can contribute their ideas to the process."

Zimbabwe is in the final stages of nation-wide outreach programme canvassing public views on what the new Zimbabwean Constitution should include.

The Diaspora has always lobbied to be included in that process. An estimated 2.5 million Zimbabweans are believed to be living outside the country.

The UK and South Africa contribute the largest share of Zimbabweans abroad.

Zanu-PF has dismissed the involvement of foreigners in the constitutional reform exercise.

Justice and Legal Affairs Minister Patrick Chinamasa told a Press Club in Harare last month, “If the outcome of any constitutional exercise does not faithfully reflect what the people have said, you can be sure that Zanu-PF will say no.

"If people seek to manipulate what people are saying, you can almost decide what our position would be."

Zanu-PF publicity secretary Rugare Gumbo on Monday told the Zimbabwe Guardian that the FCO cannot own the constitutional reform exercise in Zimbabwe.

"The constitutional reform exercise should be an initiative of Zimbabweans, not the UK or EU."

The FCO met with Education Minister David Coltart when he visited London at the end of July. The Office has not met with Zanu-PF ministers in the inclusive Government.

The FCO has also been instrumental in helping "British Nationals resident, either permanently or temporarily, in Zimbabwe ... to register with the British Embassy" so that they can repatriate them to the UK or to "help in crisis situations".

The UK, through the European Union mechanism, still maintains illegal sanctions against Zimbabwe.

The Labour Party of former prime minister Mr Tony Blair imposed the sanctions and mobilised the international community to follow suit, over a bilateral dispute with Zimbabwe.

The US today maintains a raft of declared and undeclared sanctions under the banner of the so-called "Zimbabwe Democrcacy and Economic Recovery Act". These have dealt a huge blow to the Zimbabwean economy.

Labels: CONSTITUTION, CRISIS IN ZIMBABWE COALITION, ZDDI

posted by MrK @ 6:00 PM