The Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe issued a statement instructing the police to arrest all perpetrators of political violence amid heightened tensions ahead of elections. However, the question that needs to be posed is how much influence is Mugabe now asserting, and if his rhetoric will make any difference on the ground.
President Mugabe’s statement follows the double gruesome murders in the Manicaland province. The murders have been depicted by analysts in various statements as a real depiction of Zimbabwe’s true heart.
The President’s calls also come in the face of increasing international pressure. For instance, on 27 February 2013, in Geneva, three United Nations Special Rapporteurs urged the Government of Zimbabwe to respect international human rights norms and standards pertaining to freedoms of association, of peaceful assembly and of expression in the run up to the constitutional referendum on 16 March and subsequent elections which may take place next July.
In a joint Press Statement, the experts stated that, ‘As Zimbabwe is entering a critical electoral period, the three international human rights experts have received increasing numbers of reports about acts of intimidation and harassment, physical violence and arrests against civil society actors, mostly working on human rights issues’.
In a related story, albeit in Kenya, the UN Secretary General called on all the Kenyans to work to ensure upcoming polls are peaceful and credible. He also said that he was encouraged by the recent statements made by all the presidential candidates to reaffirm their commitment to a peaceful and tolerant campaign and to appeal to their supporters to do the same, and to reject inflammatory rhetoric, violence or fraudulent actions.
It will be interesting to see how the Kenyan elections turn out and if they out well as it is widely anticipated, whether they can be used to benchmark Zimbabwe. We will be working on a full comparative analysis once the Kenyan elections are over and done with.
Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum