Zimbabwe must reform security now

International Crisis Group, the Brussels-based think-tank on current global affairs, says Zimbabwe needs urgent security sector reform to create a conducive environment for free and fair elections.

In an incisive report titled "Zimbabwe: The Road to Reform or Another Dead End", released this week, ICG says there is a critical need for reform within security sector to ensure the army, police and intelligence services adopt professional ethics in their administration and operations.

ICG says this has been made more urgent by the recurring political violence which has raised the spectre of assaults and killings during elections, as well as disputed election results and illegitimate governments.

"Intensified violence against those deemed to be Zanu-PF enemies has exposed the limitations of Zimbabwe's much-delayed reform process and threatens to derail the Global Political Agreement.

"President (Robert) Mugabe's call for early elections has increased fears of a return to 2008's violence," ICG says.

"Prime Minister (Morgan) Tsvangirai has appealed for help from the region. Eventual elections are inevitable, but without credible, enforceable reforms, Zimbabwe faces another illegitimate vote and prospects of entrenched polarisation and crisis."

The upsurge of violence, ICG notes, indicates security sector reform should be a priority. "The worsening climate of fear and violence means security sector reform (SSR) should be the most immediate challenge.

"In addition, important institutions need to be strengthened, including parliamentary committees and the human rights, media and electoral commissions. These measures should be supplemented by continued support for civil society to engage with those bodies as set out in the GPA. Until the draft constitution is produced, however, it is unlikely that even the limited SSR contained in the GPA will be meaningfully addressed," it says.

It also says the SA-Zimbabwe Joint Permanent Commission on Defence and Security must undertake an assessment of defence and security conditions in Zimbabwe and their related implications for South Africa.

For Zimbabwe to successfully walk the road to reform, ICG recommends that the inclusive government and stakeholders must adopt a series of measures, including doing the following:

    - Co-operate fully with the recommendations in the communiqu√ɬ© of the March 31 2011 Southern African Development Community summit of the troika on politics, defence and security co-operation.
    - Make finalisation of the constitution-making exercise a priority, including by identifying and utilising available resources and support from the GPA guarantors and the wider international community, so as to enable a process that allows Zimbabweans to campaign for or against the draft constitution without fear or persecution.
    - Pursue constitutional reform and other legislative measures that advance rule of law and overcome the legacy of political violence and impunity, including by promoting professional and accountable policing, removing the military's involvement in internal policing and promoting effective parliamentary oversight of all security and intelligence structures.
    - SADC and AU must endorse, at head of state level, the March 31 SADC troika communiqu√ɬ© calling for constitutional reform before elections and a road map to enable credible elections to take place.
    - Initiate, including by deploying an AU exploratory mission, a comprehensive assessment of violence and related matters in Zimbabwe to determine whether conditions are conducive for free and fair elections, as envisaged under the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance and the SADC "Principles and Guidelines Governing Democratic Elections".
    - Make recommendations to assist in the achievement of such conditions, including with respect to the need to ensure that the country's security forces are not undermined by renegade elements.
    - Support the constitution-making process and broader GPA reform initiatives through technical and financial assistance, as well as the deployment of personnel from the region where feasible; and review, in co-ordination with the political parties, the existing legislative agenda to identify GPA reform priorities that have not been addressed, with a focus on conditions for credible elections.
    - Ensure that the SA facilitation team's roadmap recommends a revision of the GPA's internal monitoring and review mechanisms,
    - Affirm that participation of civil society organisations is necessary to provide full legitimacy to the COPAC and other GPA reform processes and to this end establish a channel for direct access to the SADC facilitator for civil society actors to raise concerns about implementation of the GPA.
    - Seek to use the SA-Zimbabwe Joint Permanent Commission on Defence and Security to undertake an assessment of defence and security conditions in Zimbabwe and their impact on South Africa.