Africa's own observers brand the electoral process as flawed

Extracts from the report on the Zimbabwe elections of the observer mission of the Southern Africa Development Community Parliamentary Forum.

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The political and security climate

"... the political and security climate in which the elections were conducted ... was characterised by high levels of polarisation and political intolerance, lack of communication ... and lack of free flow of information to the electorate".

Violence and intimidation

The campaign was marred by violence in all provinces. Evidence indicated the majority of those affected were supporters of the MDC or those perceived to be opponents of the ruling party and government.

Police conduct

The use of riot squads to disperse potential voters in some Harare constituencies raised questions about the impartiality of the police.

Voters' roll

A voters' register is a basic condition for a successful election. The voters' roll ... was made available only three days before the polls. As a result of this, a large number of people were unable to vote.

Freedom to campaign

The ruling party's campaign was uninterrupted, [but] some of opposition party meetings were cancelled ...

Polling stations

Information on the location of polling stations was not available to enable the electorate to make informed decisions. The reduction of polling stations in urban areas had a major impact.

Access to public media

The slanted coverage of the state-owned Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC) and the Zimbabwe Newspapers deprived the electorate of an opportunity of an informed choice.

Conclusion

The climate of insecurity ... was such that the electoral process could not be said to adequately comply with the norms and standards for elections in the SADC region.