Exiles to take their voting case to the African Union

By Tichaona Sibanda
12 June 2007

A meeting of Zimbabweans in the diaspora held in London on Monday resolved to take its case to the African Union’s Court of Justice, if the government insists on denying them the right to vote in next year’s elections.

The regime has removed the right to vote in the country’s parliamentary and presidential elections next March from the estimated 25 to 30 per cent of the population now living outside the country.

Approximately 3,5 million Zimbabweans live in exile and almost all have been effectively disenfranchised by a regime which fears above all, that the will of the people may prevail in the election. Luka Phiri, a member of the MDC London Forum that hosted the meeting, said it was also agreed that there is a need to lobby South African President Thabo Mbeki on the issue.

‘The meeting came out with two options-- to lobby Mbeki so that our issue be included in the mediation talks and secondly if that fails, to approach the African Union to hear our case,’ said Phiri.

Phiri added; ‘As a part of the huge and intricate process set up by Mugabe to conceal the will of the people and to rig the elections, he has decided without a referendum to deny us our basic constitutional right to participate in the election.’

Monday’s meeting was to show that Zimbabweans in the diaspora were not willing to accept this blatant theft by the regime. The majority of them were forced to leave the country through political repression and the years of Zanu (PF) misrule that has completely destroyed the economy.

Three months ago the Zanu (PF) led regime set it’s rigging machinery in motion by announcing that it will deny the 3,5 million Zimbabweans living in exile the right to vote in next year’ presidential and parliamentary elections. Zimbabwe Election Commission spokesman Utloile Silaigwana told the state controlled Herald that only those on official government duty outside the country would be eligible to vote in the elections. He said those living in exile will not vote, because the country’s electoral laws have not changed.