Zimbabwean election 2013: briefing by Deputy Minister of International Relations and Co-operation; Israel & Palestine Study Tour Committee Report

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International Relations

21 August 2013
Chairperson: Mr T Magama (ANC)
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Meeting Summary

Zimbabwean Harmonised Elections
The Department of International Relations and Co-operation gave a briefing on the Zimbabwean Harmonised Elections which were held on 31 July 2013. It said the holding of the Zimbabwean election was a direct product of the implementation of the Global Political Agreement (GPA), which was an agreement that was guaranteed and facilitated by SADC, the African Union, and South Africa. The agreement had a three tier focus, namely, the formation of the Inclusive Government, adoption of the new constitution, and the holding of elections. As part of the Guarantors of the GPA, SADC sent 573 election observers as part of their Election Observer Mission (SEOM), who were deployed for close to a month in all ten provinces of Zimbabwe. It was observed by the mission that the pre-electoral period was characterised as being peaceful and politically tolerant. Election Day saw a voter turnout of over 50% with ZANU-PF obtaining at 2/3 majority with 160 seats. The post-election atmosphere was observed to be peaceful following the announcement of the results, although the MDC-T filed an application to the Constitutional Court challenging the election outcome citing irregularities. However, on 16 August 2013, the MDC-T withdrew its court application, enabling the swearing in of the elected president, Robert Mugabe.

Members asked clarification on the requirements SADC had before deploying its observer mission and asked whether those requirements had been met. Certain Members stated they were concerned about the fairness and credibility of the elections. Although it was noted that the elections were free and peaceful the word 'fair' had been consistently left out in the report presented by the Department. Most Members felt the report presented by the Deputy Minister was a true reflection of the electoral outcome in Zimbabwe and needed to be accepted. Members said when addressing the issue of fairness it was important to note how global forces dictated and influenced the perception of fairness.

On the issue of fairness, the Ministerial Advisor said SADC did reflect on that matter, and a meeting was held where SADC members countries discussed election fairness and credibility. That information would be presented in the final report.

Committee Reports on Study Tours to Israel and Palestine
The Committee discussed its Reports on the Study Tours to Israel and Palestine/West Bank as well as to Gaza (that took place during the Committee's earlier visit to the region in 2011). Members said both reports presented were comprehensive and concisely objective and pushed for the ratification of both reports. However, a Democratic Alliance member objected and stated that the Gaza report was not an objective representation of what transpired during the course of the study tour in 2011 as it had not had input from Israel. Therefore the reports needed to be discussed separately. The rest of the Committee said that the reports did not need to be discussed separately because they were reflective of what Members were briefed on and the Chairperson ruled accordingly. The ANC presented a draft resolution on how to address the issue between Israel and Palestine. Members were to discuss the proposal extensively with their parties so the Committee could have a single consolidated proposal after the constituency period.

Meeting report

The Chairperson initiated noted the Committee initially had three items on the agenda but due to time constraints it would only have the briefing on the Zimbabwean Elections and the consideration of the Draft Committee Reports on the Study Tours to Israel and Palestine, after the constituency period it would discuss the Quarterly Report. He noted that the continent of Africa was undergoing interesting developments and African leaders were stepping up to the plate and taking responsibility in ensuring stability within the continent. He said the African Union (AU) who had previously been criticised for its slow response to continental issues was taking responsibility and swift action in addressing the crisis in Egypt, a country he hoped would return to normalcy.

Zimbabwe election 2013: briefing by Deputy Minister of International Relations and Co-operation
International Relations and Co-operation Deputy Minister, Marius Fransman, presented the briefing on the Zimbabwe Harmonised Elections and said the holding of the Zimbabwean election was a direct product of the implementation of the Global Political Agreement (GPA), an agreement that was guaranteed and facilitated by SADC, the African Union, and South Africa. The three key milestones identified by the GPA initially were the formation of the Inclusive Government, adoption of the new constitution, and the holding of the elections. These elections were therefore conducted under a new constitution and an amended Electoral Act as stipulated in the provisions of the GPA. As part of the Guarantors of the GPA, SADC sent 573 election observers as part of their Election Observer Mission (SEOM), who were deployed for close to a month in all ten provinces of Zimbabwe. The pre-election phase in the country was characterised by an atmosphere of political tolerance and a peaceful environment where party supporters were able to attend political campaigns and rallies without intimidation or harassment. The SADC Observer Mission met with various stakeholders, including political parties, civil society and the Zimbabwean Electoral Commission (ZEC) who were able to raise their concerns about the challenges associated with previous elections.

During Election Day on 31 July 2013, voters were able to vote in a peaceful environment and observers indicated that the election process was conducted in a transparent and smooth manner and the secrecy of the ballot was ensured. The SADC preliminary statement by its SADC Observer Mission concluded that elections were peaceful and free, and furthermore SEOM called upon all political parties to respect the election results and refrain from resorting to violence post the electoral results. The preliminary statement also raised issues that needed to be addressed in the future such as ensuring that the media reform was consistent with Chapter 12 of the constitution; continuous updating of the voters’ roll, availing of the voters’ roll on time for inspection and the timely release of funds to the Electoral Commission. It was observed that out of 6.4 million registered voters, just over 3.4 million registered voters managed to cast their ballots and parliamentary results announced ZANU-PF obtained a 2/3 majority with 160 seats. The ZEC announced the presidential election results and Robert Mugabe obtained 2,110,434 votes amounting to 61,09% and Morgan Tsvangirai obtained 1,172,349 (33,94%) of the total votes cast. The ZEC announced the following categories: Assisted Voters who amounted to 206,901 of the voters and Turned Away Voters who amounted to 304,890 of the voters.

Observers noted that the peaceful environment was maintained post- Election. Following the announcement of the results, the MDC-T filed an application to the Constitutional Court challenging the election outcome citing certain irregularities, etc. However, on 16 August 2013, the MDC-T withdrew its court application, enabling the swearing of the elected president whose inauguration ceremony took place on 22 August 2013.

The SADC Summit held on 17-18 August 2013 in Malawi resolved that Zimbabwe was successful in holding a free, peaceful and harmonised election on 31 July 2013, It commended the Government and people of Zimbabwe for the peaceful manner in which the elections were conducted. It congratulated the ZANU (PF) party and President Robert G. Mugabe for winning the harmonised elections. It reiterated its call for the lifting of all forms of sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe and commended H.E. President Jacob Zuma and his team for their job in facilitating the successful completion of the Global Political Agreement.

Discussion
The Chairperson thanked the Minster for his succinct briefing and gave the Committee a chance to interact.

Mr B Elof (DA) thanked the Minister for his presentation but requested clarification on the requirements SADC had beforehand. He asked what those requirements were and if they had been met.

Mr I Davidson (DA) said that it was imperative the Committee reflect on the words used to describe the Zimbabwean harmonised elections. He said although it was noted that the elections were free and peaceful the word 'fair' had been consistently left out. A past Committee meeting found second Deputy Minister Ebrahim Ebrahim expressing his unease about certain aspects of the non-implementation of the Global Political Agreement where the containment of the Zimbabwean security forces was a concern. This was because it was noted that security generals had stated that they would not allow the MDC-T to win the elections which he said raised fear amongst the general population that a repeat of the violence in 2008 could erupt. The Minister had also raised concerns about the lack of free and fair access to media which Mr Davidson noted did not exist. The Minister also reflected on the Zimbabwean Action Group and their analysis of the voter’s roll, and noted that the voter’s roll during the election was flawed which was problematic because the cornerstone of a democracy was the voters' roll. He asked the Committee at large whether under such circumstances the IEC would have given the go ahead for an election. He said that that would not have been the case. The Committee needed to note that after the announcement of the electoral results, one of the members of the Zimbabwean Electoral Commission resigned because that individual did not believe in the fairness of the elections. Mr Davidson said that although SADC had noted the free and peaceful nature of the elections, he did not believe in its fairness.

Mr M Booi (ANC) said the report presented by the Deputy Minister was a true reflection of what transpired during the electoral process in Zimbabwe and since the MDC-T withdrew its application challenging the electoral outcome, Mugabe should be allowed to govern.

Ms M Kubayi (ANC) stated that as a representative member of the SADC Observation Mission, the report presented by the Deputy Minister was a true reflection of the electoral outcome in Zimbabwe. She said it needed to be acknowledged that this was the first time in the Zimbabwean electoral process where election results were posted immediately after they were announced and campaigning was made open to everybody. She stated that the perception of the antigovernment media was false and that an environment accepting of all political parties was instead what she witnessed. She said one need not discredit the well-produced outcome of the Zimbabwean elections and as a nation South Africa should not expect the perfect outcome of another country’s election when it, itself, is not perfect.

Mr S Ngonyama (COPE) stated that the report presented should be accepted and did not require further discussion since the MDC-T had withdrawn its court case. Even if questions needed to be raised they held no merit because there was no longer a case challenging the legitimacy of the elections. He asked why SADC was not addressing the question of fairness and what this omission meant for the integrity of the South African democracy.

Mr E Sulliman (ANC) suggested they ratified the acceptance of the report.

Mr S Njikelana (ANC) said when addressing the issue of fairness it was important to note how global forces dictated and influenced the perception of fairness and the role international players played in determining the outcome of electoral fairness in certain countries. It was important to understand the dynamics of power within the context of global fairness. One needed to ask the question of how entrenched global interests challenged and defined fairness.

The Deputy Minister agreed saying the contradictions presented by the global inequality of power, needed to be discussed amongst Committee members and one needed to ask whether a balance could be established internationally and domestically in the face of entrenched global interests. Breaking down the definitional issue was challenging because often times national interests determined the perspectives of definitions. During Zimbabwe’s electoral period, information reported by the AU, SADC and South Africa were aligned in their representation of the peaceful and free nature of the elections. There were long term observers and short term observers who were present in the region prior to the elections and were able to track the atmosphere leading up to the elections, finalising that the pre-electoral period was peaceful. In response to the anti-government media claims, although the state and private media were polarised, this electoral period saw a much better coverage of all political parties. The ZTC informed the observer team that a media monitoring committee provided by the law had been set up which was monitoring the conduct of all media outlets. It was recognised that the voter’s roll was flawed and recommendations had been made to address that particular issue. Through SADC guidelines the outcome of the electoral process was determined under the utilisation of those guidelines.

Mr Ambassador Jerry Matthews Matjila, Director General: Department of International Relations and Co-operation, stated that the SADC summit’s decision on the outcome of the Zimbabwean elections focused in ensuring that the violence of 2008 was not repeated in the 2013 elections. Another focus area of SADC was to ensure the drafting of a new constitution and ensure that there was consistent communication amongst the various political parties and important stakeholders. Zimbabwe needed to be congratulated on its efforts of holding a peaceful and free election. The final report concluding the electoral process would be tabled at the next summit which was to take place at a later date in August.

Mr Edima Maloka, Ministerial Advisor: Department of International Relations and Co-operation, said that SADC did meet the requirements it sought to achieve during the elections in Zimbabwe. The GPA had three key targets it wished to achieve which were establishing a functioning government of national unity, the adoption of a new constitution and the holding of elections which all took place. Once the election date was finalised, an observer mission was sent over to the region and members within that group were active participants in the resolution of differences and interacting with the various sectors. It was within their view that SADC targets were met and the holding of the elections concluded the GPA process. On the issue of fairness, SADC did reflect on that matter, and a meeting was held where SADC members countries were present and discussed the issue of election fairness and credibility. That information would be presented in the final report and the information would be made available. Zimbabwe now had a proper dispute mechanism in place which can safely be explored, and it was conclusive that the elections did confer legitimacy.

Mr Edward Xolisa Makaya, Chief Director: Southern Africa, DIRCO, thanked the Members of Parliament that were part of the mission and stated that the focus moving forward was to enhance South Africa’s relationship with Zimbabwe.

The Chairperson thanked the presenters.

Mr Ngonyama stated the issue of fairness needed to be addressed and should not be left unattended. As a nation, South Africa should not be comfortable with leaving such questions attended because this would result in lowering the bar in one's expectations of democratic elections.

The Chairperson said that the issue of fairness would be dealt with in the final report. It was in order for South Africa to congratulate Zimbabwe on its electoral success and the level of voter participation of above 50%. He congratulated the role South Africa played as a member country of SADC and the AU in facilitating the smooth transition of the elections. South Africa needed to support the lifting of all sanctions on Zimbabwe which indirectly affect South Africa and he was looking forward to the consolidation of relations between both countries.

Consideration of Draft Committee Reports on Study Tours to Israel and Palestine
The Chairperson said the Committee would be discussing the adoption of the Draft Reports on the Study Tours to Israel and Palestine/West bank and the report on Gaza which outlined the discussion and briefings which took place during the Committees visit to the region in 2011. Both reports presented an objective reflection of discussions and comments that were made during the duration of both trips.

Ms C Dudley (ACDP) said the report presented was comprehensive and concisely objective. Certain areas of the report needed to be organised in a much more coherent manner in the Gaza report. None of the accusations raised in the Gaza report were brought up during their most recent study tour to Israel where there was opportunity to engage in dialogue with Israeli officials and gauge their comments on the accusations raised.

Mr Davidson said the report was an accurate representation of the comments and discussions made during the Study Tours to Palestine and Israel. During the trip he noticed a sense of solidarity amongst member countries where there was a communal understanding of the issues at stake and which needed to be addressed which was the adoption of two state solution. With respect to the Gaza report, as a Committee member who was not present during the trip which he felt was a delegation overly representative of ANC members, he did not think the Gaza report needed to be part of the most recent report outlining the Committee's visit to Israel and the West Bank because it would not present an objective view of what transpired during that visit since Members were only able to get the viewpoint of the political authorities in Gaza and not Israel.

Mr Booi stated that during the Committee's most recent trip to Israel and Palestine, Israel denied South African political members entry into Gaza, which spoke to Israel's stance on whether it wanted the conflict between Palestine and itself resolved.

The Chairperson said Members needed to focus on the issue at hand which was the ratification of the reports. He clarified to Mr Davidson that the trip to Gaza was open to all political members, but prior to the trip other political parties chose to withdraw - which was not merit enough for one to disown the report. The Gaza report was an accurate briefing of what Members witnessed during the Gaza trip.

Ms Kubayi said the Gaza report did not need to be discussed separately because it was reflective of what Members were briefed on. As a Committee what was most important was for Members to either agree with the reports and adopt them or make corrections if need be.

The Chairperson asked the Committee if there was enough consensus in favour of both reports being dealt with inclusively.

Mr Davidson said he did not agree with treating both reports inclusively because as a member who was not present during the Gaza trip he could not agree or verify the accuracy of the report.

The Chairperson asked the Committee if the majority of Members were in consensus about the briefings reflected in the Gaza report.

Ms Dudley clarified that although the credibility of the Gaza report could be challenged because during that particular trip dialogue only occurred between the South African delegation and the Gaza delegation, she proposed the ratification of both reports because they were presented in an objective manner which she felt was reflective of the briefings that took place.

Mr Sulliman said he was concerned about the time it would take to deal with technical corrections.

The Chairperson ruled that the reports would be adopted and the technical corrections would be dealt with.

Mr Ngonyama stated that South Africa needed to have an important presence in pushing forth for the two state principle between Israel and Palestine. It was important for South Africa to explore its participation in such matters because South Africa’s national interests must come to play in that region.

Ms Dudley proposed each party come back with a proposed resolution on how to address the issue between Israel and Palestine.

Mr Booi stated that the ANC had already drafted a resolution which he presented to the Committee.

Members stated that the proposed resolution expressed views which they could agree on and requested time to take the proposed resolution to their party members for further discussion.

The Chairperson asked Members to discuss the proposal extensively and make corrections if need be so the Committee could have a single consolidated proposal, which would be dealt with after the constituency period. He thanked Committee Members and presenters for their input

The meeting was adjourned.

[Apologies: Mr B Skosana (IFP) and Mr B Holomisa (UDM)].
 

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