2008 Zimbabwean General Election

General elections were held in Zimbabwe on 29 March 2008 to elect the President and Parliament. Because of Zimbabwe's dire economic situation, the elections were expected to provide incumbent President Robert Mugabe with his toughest electoral challenge to date. Mugabe's opponents were critical of the handling of the electoral process, and the government was accused of planning to rig the election. Human Rights Watch said that the election was likely to be "deeply flawed.""Mugabe accused of election-rigging plan"
CNN, 23 March 2008.

No official results were announced for more than a month after the first round.MacDonald Dzirutwe
"Zim heads for run-off"
Reuters (''IOL''), 2 May 2008. The failure to release results was strongly criticised by the opposition Movement for Democratic Change, which unsuccessfully sought an order from the High Court to force their release. An independent projection placed its leader Morgan Tsvangirai in the lead, but without the majority needed to avoid a second round, whilst the MDC declared that Tsvangirai won a narrow majority in the first round and initially refused to participate in any second round."Zimbabwe opposition rejects run-off"
, Al Jazeera, 10 April 2008. After the recount and the verification of the results, the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) announced on 2 May that Tsvangirai won 47.9% of the vote and Mugabe 43.2%, necessitating a run-off, which was to be held on 27 June 2008."Zim run-off set for 27 June"
Sapa-Associated Press (''IOL''), 16 May 2008. Despite Tsvangirai's continuing claims to have won a first round majority, he decided to participate in the second round.
, Al Jazeera, 10 May 2008."Tsvangirai to run in second round"
BBC News, 10 May 2008. The period following the first round was marked by political violence. ZANU–PF and the MDC each blamed the other's supporters for perpetrating the violence; Western governments and prominent Western organisations blamed ZANU–PF for the violence. On 22 June 2008, Tsvangirai announced that he was withdrawing from the run-off, describing it as a "violent sham" and saying that his supporters risked being killed if they voted for him.Angus Shaw
"Zimbabwe opposition leader pulling out of election"
Associated Press, 22 June 2008. The second round of elections went ahead with Mugabe as the only actively participating candidate, although Tsvangirai's name remained on the ballot.
Al Jazeera, 28 June 2008. Mugabe won the second round by an overwhelming margin and was sworn in for another term as president on 29 June."Mugabe begins new term as criticism of one-man election mounts"
AFP, 29 June 2008.
''The Zimbabwe Guardian'' (allAfrica.com), 29 June 2008.
''The Herald'' (allAfrica.com), 30 June 2008.

In the parliamentary elections, ZANU–PF lost its majority in the House of Assembly for the first time since independence in 1980, as the two factions of the MDC won most of the seats; a month after the election, the MDC factions merged.
, SABC News, 28 April 2008."Opposition reunites in Zimbabwe"
BBC News, 28 April 2008.

Background

In late 2006 a plan was proposed that would have delayed the elections to 2010, at the same time as the next parliamentary election, which was said to be a cost-saving measure. This would have lengthened President Mugabe's term by two years. However, there was reportedly dissent within the ruling ZANU–PF regarding the proposal, and it was never approved. In March 2007, Mugabe said that he thought the feeling in the party favoured having the presidential election in 2008, and moving the parliamentary election up by two years instead. He also said that he would be willing to stand for another term if chosen by the party. On 30 March 2007, it was announced that the ZANU–PF Central Committee had chosen Mugabe as the party's candidate for another term in 2008, that presidential terms would be reduced to five years instead of six, and that the parliamentary election would also be held in 2008. Later, information was leaked from the same meeting that ZANU–PF had adopted the position of making Mugabe president-for-life.

On 25 January 2008, the date of the election was announced as 29 March. A spokesperson for the faction of the MDC led by Morgan Tsvangirai denounced this as "an act of madness and arrogance","'Mugabe has slapped Mbeki's efforts'"
Sapa-AFP (''IOL''), 25 January 2008."Zimbabwe sets March date for poll"
BBC News, 25 January 2008. while the leader of the other MDC faction, Arthur Mutambara on the same day,"'Why secret talks with Zanu-PF failed'"
''Cape Argus'' (''IOL''), 18 April 2008, page 1. Tsvangirai claimed that presidential envoys had approached the MDC on 30 March, immediately following the election, and proposed the formation of a government of national unity."Zimbabwe party 'was offered deal'"
BBC News, 18 April 2008. According to Tsvangirai, the MDC had been willing to consider this and had also been willing to guarantee that Mugabe and other leading members of ZANU–PF would not be prosecuted; however, he said that the resistance of ZANU–PF hard-liners caused the talks to collapse after a few days. Furthermore, Tsvangirai said in the interview that, if he became president, Mugabe could be placed on trial, either by the regular courts or by a potential "justice and truth commission". He said that, although he was staying outside the country for the time being, he was not in exile and planned to return to Zimbabwe.

On 18 April, High Court Judge Guvava dismissed the MDC's application to stop the recount that was requested by ZANU–PF, ruling that the application was without merit and requiring the MDC to pay court costs.
, Reuters/Associated Press (newzimbabwe.com), 18 April 2008. On the same day, in South Africa, the ANC backed SADC's decision to keep Mbeki in his role as mediator, despite Tsvangirai's call for him to be replaced.

Allegations of violence, further international response

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said on 17 April that, if a second round was held, international observers should be present. On 18 April, the foreign ministers of the G8 released a joint statement calling for the results "to be released expeditiously and in accordance with the due process of law" and for "a speedy, credible and genuinely democratic resolution to this situation". Biti met with former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan on 18 April, and on 19 April Annan suggested that African leaders should be doing more to help resolve the situation.Angus Shaw
"Zim is a war zone – Biti"
Sapa-Associated Press (''IOL''), 21 April 2008.

In a report on 19 April, Human Rights Watch alleged that ZANU–PF members were "setting up torture camps to systematically target, beat, and torture people suspected of having voted for the MDC", both to punish them and to pressure them into voting for Mugabe in a potential second round. The group asserted that there must be high-level complicity in this and criticised SADC and Mbeki for inaction. According to Human Rights Watch, it interviewed over 30 people who had suffered injuries in the camps.

Biti, speaking at a press conference in Johannesburg on 20 April, described Zimbabwe as a "war zone" and urged the mobilisation of UN organisations in the country, saying that the situation was no longer merely a political crisis, but a humanitarian crisis as well. According to Biti, 500 MDC supporters had been attacked,
''The New York Times'', 21 April 2008. 400 had been arrested, he also said that 3,000 families had been displaced. Between March and June 2008, at least 153 MDC supporters were killed. Because key members of the administration of the MDC had been arrested, the party was unable to function, according to Biti. Like Tsvangirai, Biti was staying outside of Zimbabwe, expressing fear of arrest. On 21 April, Deputy Information Minister Matonga dismissed the allegations of violence against the opposition as "lies that are being peddled by the MDC". He said that the purported ZANU–PF vigilante groups were "imaginary".

On 21 April 2008, Enos Nkala, one of the founders of the Zimbabwe African National Union and a former Defence Minister, appealed to Mugabe to retire because he had been rejected by the people. "I have information from very reliable sources that on 1 April, everyone had the results including those of the presidential elections," he said. "The President wanted to go but there are people surrounding him who have committed heinous crimes against the people of Zimbabwe and they are afraid of a change of guard... Zanu PF was formed in my house in Harare and what is happening now is not one of the reasons why it was formed... It has been hijacked by criminals and people who can not be employed if they leave government. They are also holding Zimbabweans to ransom." Meanwhile, Dabengwa, who had backed Makoni, said that Makoni's campaign had accomplished its mission by preventing either Mugabe or Tsvangirai from winning a first round majority; he opposed holding a run-off and favoured the formation of a transitional government of national unity followed by a new election.

Also on 21 April, UK Foreign Secretary David Miliband, speaking in the British Parliament, described the situation as a "constitutional crisis" and said that Mugabe was trying "to steal the election"; he also said that Mugabe and ZANU–PF had "unleashed a campaign of violence" against opposition supporters. He furthermore described the pace of vote counting as "ludicrously slow" and said that the recount could not be trusted. Meanwhile, Zuma, who described the delay in results as unacceptable, called for African leaders to "move in to unlock this logjam" by sending a mission to talk to the parties and the Electoral Commission; he said that, while Mbeki was the mediator, the "gravity of the situation" made it desirable to send other leaders to assist in resolving the situation.

On 21 April, the East Africa Law Society called an emergency Pan-African Citizens consultative meeting to be held in Dar es Salaam. It was to urge the African Union to take action on the election crisis in Zimbabwe. It brings together representatives of civil society, the legal fraternity, trade unions, academia and others.

Tsvangirai met with UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon at a meeting of the UN Conference on Trade and Development in Accra, Ghana, on 21 April, and he urged intervention by the United Nations and African Union.

In a joint statement on 22 April, the Evangelical Fellowship of Zimbabwe, the Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops' Conference, and the Zimbabwe Council of Churches called on SADC, the AU, and the UN to act to prevent the situation from deteriorating further, warning of the possibility of "genocide" if they did not. The statement alleged that "organised violence" was being employed against those suspected of supporting the MDC and that MDC supporters were being forced to repeat ZANU–PF slogans; it appealed for an end to voter intimidation.

At a press conference in Accra on 22 April, Tsvangirai asked African leaders to acknowledge his claimed victory and said that Mugabe needed to make a "graceful" and "honourable" exit. ''The Herald'' published an opinion piece by Obediah Mukura Mazombwe on 23 April that called for negotiations mediated by SADC that would lead to the establishment of a transitional government of national unity, including both ZANU–PF and the MDC. Mazombwe argued that the political and economic situation made holding a second round unrealistic, and that the best solution would be the formation of a national unity government that would organise an entirely new election, with Mugabe remaining President during the transition. Chinamasa said, however, that Mazombe's article did not represent the position of ZANU–PF or the government, and he reiterated that ZANU–PF was opposed to a national unity government.

Also on 23 April, Zuma said that there were other countries urging South Africa to use force in Zimbabwe, but that South Africa believed in resolving the situation through "quiet diplomacy" and negotiations. He also said that a national unity government was something worth considering and that it was not premature to discuss it as an option. In London, Zuma and Brown issued a joint statement in which they described the situation in Zimbabwe as a crisis and called "for an end to any violence and intimidation and stress dthe importance of respect for the sovereign people of Zimbabwe and the choice they have made at the ballot box." Brown, along with Amnesty International, additionally said that an arms embargo should be imposed on Zimbabwe, but Zuma said that he did not think that was necessary. Meanwhile, Joaquim Chissano, the former President of Mozambique, said that he and the Africa Forum, of which he is chairman, would be willing to get involved to help resolve the situation if regional leaders requested it.

Various attacks on farmers have been reported; in one instance, 10 farm workers were reportedly ambushed and beaten by ZANU–PF supporters, and in another instance a farmworker was reportedly stabbed to death. One farmer said that his family was held hostage on 23 April by war veterans seeking to force them off their property. Zimbabwean officials, however, alleged that activists of the MDC, disguised as ZANU–PF members, had perpetrated violence against the population, mimicking the tactics of the Selous Scouts during the liberation struggle. They alleged that there was a "predominance" of Selous Scouts in the MDC."UN Blocks British, U.S. Attempts to Halt Run-Off
''The Herald'' (allAfrica), 25 June 2008. The ''Sunday Mail'' published an article which claims that former Selous Scouts are training MDC youth activists in violent tactics, at locations near Tswane (Pretoria) and Pietermaritzburg in South Africa.

On 24 April, Jendayi Frazer, the US Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, said at the beginning of a tour of Zimbabwe's neighbouring countries that Morgan Tsvangirai was the "clear victor" of the election. However, she also said that a "negotiated solution" might be necessary. Chinamasa described Frazer's utterances as "patently false, inflammatory, irresponsible and uncalled for". In Zambia on 27 April, Frazer said that if a government of national unity was formed, it should be led by Tsvangirai.

MDC headquarters raid

Police raided the MDC headquarters, Harvest House, and the offices of the Zimbabwe Elections Support Network (ZESN) in Harare on 25 April."Police swoop on MDC-T HQ nets 215"
''The Herald'', 26 April 2008.Godfrey Marawanyika
"Zim election observers hit"
Sapa-AFP (''IOL''), 25 April 2008.
, ''Sky News'', 25 April 2008. ''The Herald'' reported that 215 people had been arrested in the raid on Harvest House. Bvudzijena, the police spokesman, said that the police were looking for individuals who had engaged in violence following the election, specifically referring to arson attacks on "four homesteads, tobacco barns and fowl runs belonging to Zanu-PF supporters in the Mayo resettlement area in Manicaland on 16 April"; he said that those responsible for the attacks were suspected to have taken refuge in Harvest House. According to Bvudzijena, the police were screening the arrested individuals and those who had not committed a crime would be released. The MDC said that the raid involved about 250 policemen and that about 300 people in Harvest House were taken away,"Cosatu speaks out on MDC raids"
Sapa (''IOL''), 25 April 2008. including people who were taking refuge from violence committed by ZANU–PF supporters and people who were seeking medical treatment at Harvest House. The party also alleged that its supporters were beaten during the raid, and, according to the MDC, the police said that they were searching for "the documents that the party has that form the basis of our claim that we won the election... Further they have taken all computers and equipment that was used by the MDC at the MDC's election command centre." Chamisa said that the police had no search warrant and that the "victims of violence" taken away by the police included women and children; he also said that MDC staff at Harvest House were arrested. Regarding the ZESN raid, ''The Herald'' reported that the police were searching for evidence that Electoral Commission officials had been bribed through ZESN to manipulate the election results. ZESN chairman Noel Kututwa said that the police "had a search warrant which stated that they were looking for subversive material which is likely to be used to overthrow a constitutionally elected government", and he said that they had seized computer equipment and files.

On 28 April, the Harare High Court ordered that all of the people arrested at the MDC headquarters be released. The police did not immediately do so, but Bvudzijena said that 29 people had been released, most of them women, the elderly, and infants; he also said that the police had asked those who had suffered from political violence to identify the individuals who were responsible for the violence. The police released the remainder of those who were arrested at the MDC headquarters on 29 April, in compliance with the High Court's order,"Nearly 200 Zimbabwe opposition supporters released"
Associated Press (''International Herald Tribune''), 29 April 2008.Tichaona Sibanda

SW Radio Africa (allAfrica.com), 29 April 2008. without charge, although it continued to hold three others. Meanwhile, US President George W. Bush criticised Mugabe, saying that he had "failed" Zimbabwe, and accused the Zimbabwean government of intimidating the people; Bush also said that it was the responsibility of other countries in the region to "step up and lead" with regard to Zimbabwe.

UN Security Council meeting

The United Nations Security Council held a session on the situation in Zimbabwe on 29 April. Reportedly, the US, European and Latin American members of the Security Council wanted to send a special envoy to Zimbabwe; however, South Africa, the current holder of the Presidency of the Security Council, opposed this.Cris Chinaka
"Sources say Tsvangirai wins vote"
Reuters (''International Herald Tribune''), 30 April 2008. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon was said to have not yet reached a decision on the issue. Biti was present at the U.N. headquarters, hoping to convince the Security Council to send a special envoy, but the Council met without hearing his appeal. According to Biti, the "humanitarian concern" made the problem more than merely a regional or sub-regional matter, and it was something the U.N. should handle. The Zimbabwean government denounced the U.N. session as "sinister, racist and colonial", and Deputy Information Minister Matonga called it "a sign of desperation by the British and their MDC puppets".

Parliamentary elections

According to the MDC candidate for Makoni South, Pishai Muchauraya, ballot papers in wards 29 and 30 of Makoni South, which is strongly pro-MDC, ran out after two hours of voting. Muchauraya said that 300 people had voted by that point, with another 1,000 still waiting.

In Chitungwiza, a dormitory town of Harare, clashes occurred between supporters of MDC candidates from the rival factions on 30 March. This came after supporters of Marvellous Khumalo claimed victory over Job Sikhala, began celebrating, and engaged in provocations towards Sikhala. Five people were reported injured, and Klumalo and Sikhala were both arrested, along with 13 MDC activists.

Results

President

Chiweshe said on 26 April that he expected the recount to be complete by 28 April. At that point, according to Chiweshe, the presidential candidates or their agents would be invited "to a verification and collation exercise, leading to the announcement of the results of the presidential election". Chief Elections Officer Lovemore Sekeramayi and the candidates agreed that during this exercise both the MDC and ZANU–PF would collate their own figures, which would be compared afterwards; if there were discrepancies, the figures would be cross-checked."Presidential Poll Results Verification Begins Tomorrow"
''The Herald'' (allAfrica.com), 30 April 2008.

The verification and collation of presidential results was scheduled to begin on 1 May at the Harare International Conference Centre. On 30 April, Agence France-Presse reported that "sources close to the electoral commission" claimed that Tsvangirai had received about 47–50% of the vote, but not a majority. On the same day, the MDC alleged that the number of people killed in post-election violence had risen to 20, while Human Rights Watch's Africa director, Georgette Gagnon, alleged that "the army and its allies... are intensifying their brutal grip on wide swathes of rural Zimbabwe to ensure that a possible second round of presidential elections goes their way".

CNN reported on 30 April that a "unidentified senior official" credited Tsvangirai with 47% and Mugabe with 43%. Matonga said on 1 May that the government had its own results, and that according to these results a second round would be necessary, although he gave no specifics. A spokesman for Tsvangirai, speaking in Johannesburg, stated again that Tsvangirai would not participate in a second round: "If Robert Mugabe cannot accept the real results now, what's the guarantee he'll accept the real results after a runoff?" He said that the claims that a second round would be necessary were part of a government strategy to steal the election.Angus Shaw
"'There is going to be a run-off'"
Sapa-Associated Press (''IOL''), 1 May 2008. Meanwhile, Tsvangirai said that he would return to Zimbabwe after the verification exercise is complete.

At the collation meeting on 1 May, the MDC presented their figures, which gave Tsvangirai 50.3%, thus avoiding a run-off; the ZEC tally, however, showed him with 47.8% to Mugabe's 43.2%."Tsvangirai 'wins' Zimbabwe vote"
BBC News, 1 May 2008."Deadlocked election talks to resume in Zimbabwe"
, AFP, 1 May 2008. Emmerson Mnangagwa represented Mugabe at the meeting and Chris Mbanga represented Tsvangirai;"Zimbabwe rivals seek vote consensus"
, Al Jazeera, 1 May 2008. Makoni was present in person. Talks were to continue on 2 May. MDC spokesperson George Sibotshiwe said that the MDC wanted the Electoral Commission to account for 120,000 votes which, according to the commission, went to Mugabe, although Sibotshiwe said that ZANU–PF had not claimed those votes. According to Sibotshiwe, if Tsvangirai was credited with these 120,000 votes, he would have a first-round majority.

Senegalese Foreign Minister Cheikh Tidiane Gadio met with Mugabe on 1 May; afterwards, he said that Mugabe would participate in the second round and that Mugabe had pledged to "unhesitatingly accept the results of the second round and urged the opposition to take the same approach." Tsvangirai said in an interview with France 24 on the same day that a second round could not be held in an atmosphere in which Mugabe was "unleashing violence, death squads and violence against our structures".

Announcement of results, run-up to the second round

On 2 May, Chief Elections Officer Lovemore Sekeramayi announced that Tsvangirai had received 47.9%, Mugabe had received 43.2%,"Zimbabwe announces poll results"
BBC News, 2 May 2008. Makoni had received 8.3%, and Towungana had received 0.6%. According to Sekeramayi, a second round would be "held on a date to be advised by the commission"."Zimbabwe opposition chief wins election, no overall majority"
, AFP, 2 May 2008. The MDC denounced this as "daylight robbery". Biti, speaking from South Africa, alleged that the Electoral Commission had taken 50,000 votes from Tsvangirai and added 47,000 votes to Mugabe's score; he said that "Morgan Tsvangirai is the president of the republic of Zimbabwe to the extent that he won the highest number of votes" and that Tsvangirai must "be declared the president of Zimbabwe". While not entirely ruling out Tsvangirai's participation in a run-off, Biti reiterated the MDC's view that conditions in Zimbabwe did not allow for one to be held. He said that "Tsvangirai should be allowed to form a government of national healing that includes all Zimbabwean stakeholders", but said this was conditional on Mugabe immediately conceding defeat. Meanwhile, Mnangagwa said at a press conference in Harare that ZANU–PF felt "aggrieved" and had been "greatly prejudiced by the attempt by the MDC and its sponsors to tamper with the electoral system", but he said that Mugabe nevertheless "accepts the result as announced" and confirmed that Mugabe would be a candidate in the run-off.
, AFP (newzimbabwe.com), 2 May 2008.

On the same day, US State Department spokesman Tom Casey expressed scepticism regarding the potential for a free and fair second round under the circumstances, alleging that "the government has done everything it can to both delay and obscure the results" and that it was intimidating and abusing the opposition. Similarly, British Foreign Secretary David Miliband demanded an end to "violence and intimidation" and said that "any second round must be free, fair and open to international monitors". Meanwhile, Makoni said that Zimbabwe could not afford to hold a second round and that "the way forward for this country is for the political leaders to work together".

Mbeki met with religious leaders on 2 May and expressed displeasure with what he described as interference by the United States and the United Kingdom that he said was subverting his attempts at mediation. On 4 May, the US embassy and the British High Commission in South Africa expressed their support for the role of Mbeki and SADC in mediating the situation.

At a meeting in Harare on 3 May, the MDC leadership did not make a decision on whether to contest the second round;"MDC stalls over Zimbabwe run-off"
Al Jazeera, 3 May 2008. Tsvangirai participated in the meeting from Johannesburg through video link-up. On the same day, MDC Vice-President Thokozani Khupe described a run-off as "unlikely", but vowed that if one took place, the MDC would win "by an even bigger margin".

On 4 May, the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace said that the Electoral Commission could not be relied upon to handle the second round, and it called on the UN and the AU to supervise it instead. Meanwhile, the Progressive Teachers Union alleged that violence was being directed at teachers because they often served as election officers, with the intent of deterring them from acting in that role in the second round, and threatened a strike."Zimbabwe's opposition leader won't say if he'll take part in runoff until election date set"
Associated Press (''International Herald Tribune''), 5 May 2008. Jean Ping