MDC set to brief UN as world body condemns Zim violence

By Tichaona Sibanda
29 April 2008

MDC secretary-general Tendai Biti was set to address a closed-door session of the United Nations Security Council in New York on Tuesday, amid an escalation of attacks against party supporters by Zanu-PF militia.
In the past two weeks, 15 MDC supporters have been killed in the political violence in the aftermath of Zanu-PF’s election defeat by the MDC.

Nqobizitha Mlilo, the MDC regional officer, spoke to us from Johannesburg and told us what Biti would say to the UN. ‘It’s a two-pronged approach. There would be a briefing of what transpired before the elections and events that have happened after the elections,’ Mlilo said.
The deputy chief representative of the MDC in the US, Ralph Black, told us that after Biti’s briefing, the Security Council will determine what action needs to be done. He said he expected there to be very ‘frank and blunt discussions’.

‘Usually after such a briefing the Security Council will table a resolution and a formal vote takes place to determine the next course of action. But for any action to be taken you will need all members of the Security Council to agree on the resolution,’ Black said.

UN experts in Geneva have expressed grave concern about ‘organised and co-ordinated’ attacks, including torture, against opposition activists following elections on the 29th March.

In a joint statement released on Tuesday the experts said they had received reliable information that people or groups suspected of having supported the opposition party had been subjected to abuses. The statement was issued by a group of senior UN human rights rapporteurs, including specialists on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions; on violence against women; on torture; and on freedom of expression.
‘Acts of intimidation, violence and torture are occurring as a form of retribution against, or victimisation of people or groups suspected to have backed the MDC,’ the statement said.

The group expressed concern that the attacks had been organised and co-ordinated and urged the authorities to end the violence. They described as ‘particularly worrying’ the fact that the state-controlled media was airing programmes and songs encouraging violence.

The country has been in crisis since the elections, with opposition and rights groups accusing the authorities of launching a campaign of violence to intimidate voters.

The results of the March 29 presidential election have still not been announced, but the MDC has wrested control of parliament from Zanu-PF.

The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission has invited presidential candidates to verify the long-delayed results of the vote from Thursday, state radio reported on Tuesday.

It said ZEC would commence the verification on the 1st of May at 2 pm. All candidates who participated in the 2008 presidential election, or their chief election agents, are urged to attend as this exercise will pave way for the announcement of the result of the presidential election.

One month after the election it remains to be seen how credible these results turn out to be.

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