Zimbabwe welcomes AU assessment on poll preps

JUSTICE and Legal Affairs Minister Patrick Chinamasa yesterday said Government welcomed the African Union's assessment that the prevailing situation in the country was conducive for a free and fair election and called on all political parties and candidates to maintain the prevailing environment to ensure credible polls on July 31.

Minister Chinamasa said this in an interview following the AU Peace and Security Council meeting held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, last week where the continental body's long term observer mission that has been in the country since June 15 presented it's report.

"They held the meeting to consider the report from the long-term observer mission and also to hear from us to what extent we agreed with that report.

"The report from the observer group was favourable in that it correctly pointed out that the prevailing atmosphere here in Zimbabwe was peaceful and that the environment is conducive for free and fair elections," Minister Chinamasa said.

Minister Chinamasa said he also clarified to the Peace and Security Council issues surrounding the security sector in the country after the observer mission report noted allegations raised by the MDC formations and their allies in the Western-funded non-governmental organisations that Zimbabwe was a "securitised State".

"The allegation was that Zimbabwe is a securitised State and my response to that one issue was that it had come as an allegation and not a finding and I clarified that issue to the satisfaction of the Peace and Security Council.

"I clarified that the perception that our country is a securitised State is just a perception and not reality and that the Peace and Security Council should take note of our history.

"I told them that we embarked on an armed struggle to liberate ourselves, which we did in 1980, and that at the conclusion of the war we had in excess of 120 000 militarily trained cadres from the two liberation movements.

"I also told them that after the amalgamation of these forces including the Rhodesian army into one army, the ZNA, the core of the army was formed by the former liberation movements," he said.

Minister Chinamasa, however, said a number of these former combatants who were in the army were retiring and venturing into civilian life.

"In the coming elections some of them are local authority candidates, parliamentary candidates, women's quota candidates or provincial authority candidates.

"I also pointed out that some of these are now running our industry and commerce and as they run these businesses they retained their ranks," he said.

The minister said to some outsiders this would appear as if the military were involved in civilian and political life of the country when that was not the case.

"To outsiders that may create an impression that we have serving military people in our political life - which is clearly not the case.

"This is what I explained and I was happy that they appreciated, accepted and acknowledged that Zimbabwe was ready for the forthcoming elections and wished us to maintain the peaceful environment we are enjoying now," he said.

Minister Chinamasa said the AU acknowledged that Zimbabwe was a critical member of the continental body and would not want it to fail.

The Peace and Security Council meeting also discussed forthcoming elections in Mali, Togo and Madagascar.