Foreign Affairs official Jonathan Wutawunashe told a United States embassy official that Zimbabwe only accepted invited election observers, so observers should not foist themselves onto the electoral process.
He was responding to queries from the embassy official on why a team from the United States’ International Foundation for Election Systems had been expelled.
The team had not notified the government of its visit.
Wutawunashe said there was a certain psychology and paranoia prevailing in the government that there was a connection between conferences in foreign capitals calling for President Robert Mugabe’s departure and the pressure from groups wanting to monitor elections.
Zimbabwe was due to hold its presidential elections in 2002.
Full cable:
Viewing cable 01HARARE2743, DISCUSSION OF IFES EXPULSION WITH MFA
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CONFIDENTIAL PTO2894
PAGE 01 HARARE 02743 181640Z
ACTION AF-00
INFO LOG-00 CIAE-00 CPR-02 DODE-00 SRPP-00 VC-00 H-01
TEDE-00 INR-00 L-00 AC-01 NSAE-00 NSCE-00 OMB-01
PA-00 PM-00 PRS-00 ACE-00 P-00 SP-00 SSC-01
SSO-00 SS-00 TRSE-00 T-00 USIE-00 PMB-00 DRL-02
G-00 SAS-00 /008W
——————2108C4 181640Z /68
FM AMEMBASSY HARARE
TO SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 9748
INFO NSC WASHDC PRIORITY
SOUTHERN AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY
AMEMBASSY NAIROBI
C O N F I D E N T I A L HARARE 002743
SIPDIS
NSC FOR SENIOR AFRICA DIRECTOR JENDAYI FRAZER
LONDON FOR GURNEY
PARIS FOR NEARY
NAIROBI FOR PFLAUMER
E.O. 12958: DECL. 09/17/11
SUBJECT: DISCUSSION OF IFES EXPULSION WITH MFA
REFS: A) HARARE 2710 B) HARARE 2690
CLASSIFIED BY DCM ROBERT WHITEHEAD. REASONS: 1.5 (B) AND (D).
¶1. (C) IN A SEPTEMBER 17 MEETING WITH MFA DIVISION DIRECTOR FOR
EUROPE AND THE AMERICAS JONATHAN WUTAWUNASHE, CHARGE ROTH RAISED
U.S. CONCERNS ABOUT THE EXPULSION OF THE TEAM FROM THE
INTERNATIONAL FOUNDATION FOR ELECTION SYSTEMS (IFES — REF B), AND
PROVIDED A COPY OF THE EMBASSY’S SEPTEMBER 13 DIPLOMATIC NOTE ON
THIS MATTER. THE CHARGE ACKNOWLEDGED THAT ELECTION OBSERVATION
IS A SENSITIVE ISSUE AND ASKED FOR A CLEARER SENSE OF THE GOZ’S
POSITION ON WHETHER INTERNATIONAL OBSERVERS WOULD BE PERMITTED IN
THE RUN-UP TO THE 2002 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION.
¶2. (C) WUTAWUNASHE REPLIED THAT THIS WAS THE FIRST HE HAD HEARD
OF THE MATTER; HE HAD NOT PREVIOUSLY SEEN A COPY OF OUR DIPLOMATIC
NOTE. TOLD THAT THE TEAM HAD NOT NOTIFIED THE GOZ PRIOR TO ITS
VISIT, WUTAWUNASHE SAID THAT WAS LIKELY THE CORE OF THEIR
DIFFICULTIES. ELECTION OBSERVERS, HE INSISTED, SHOULD BE INVITED
INTO ZIMBABWE, NOT “FOIST THEMSELVES” ONTO THE ELECTORAL PROCESS.
WUTAWUNASHE SAID ZIMBABWE HAS ALWAYS HELD ELECTIONS “ON TIME.” HE
ACKNOWLEDGED THE ZIMBABWE HAD EXPERIENCED ELECTION-RELATED
PROBLEMS SUCH AS VIOLENCE AND INTIMIDATION, BUT HE EMPHASIZED THAT
ZANU-PF SUPPORTERS ARE NOT ALWAYS THE PERPETRATORS. THE “OTHER
GUYS,” HE INSISTED, “ARE NOT HELPLESS.” THAT, ROTH RESPONDED, IS
WHY IT IS IMPORTANT TO HAVE CREDIBLE INTERNATIONAL OBSERVERS HERE,
SO THAT THEY CAN DOCUMENT PROBLEMS AND WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR
THEM.
¶3. (C) THERE IS A CERTAIN “PSYCHOLOGY” AND “PARANOIA” PREVAILING
WITHIN THE GOZ, WUTAWUNASHE REPLIED, THAT LEADS MANY OFFICIALS TO
CONCLUDE THAT THERE IS A CONNECTION BETWEEN “CONFERENCES” IN
FOREIGN CAPITALS CALLING FOR MUGABE’S DEPARTURE AND THE PRESSURE
FROM GROUPS WANTING TO MONITOR THE ELECTIONS. THERE IS A
CONFIDENTIAL
PAGE 03 HARARE 02743 181640Z
PERCEPTION AMONG MANY, WUTAWUNASHE POINTED OUT, THAT THE MDC WAS
NOT FORMED IN ZIMBABWE BUT IN THE UNITED KINGDOM, AND THAT THE
OPPOSITION’S ACTIVITIES ARE NOT “HOME-GROWN.” THE CHARGE SAID HE
WAS AWARE OF THAT PERCEPTION. THAT IS WHY THE UNITED STATES WANTS
TO FOLLOW ZIMBABWE’S RULES AND WHY WE WERE SEEKING CLARIFICATION
ON HOW TO PROCEED. WUTAWUNASHE RESPONDED ONLY THAT “A LITTLE BIT
OF PATIENCE ON THE PART OF THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY WOULD BE A
GOOD THING.”
COMMENT
——-
¶4. (C) IT WAS APPARENT THAT WUTAWUNASHE WAS NOT INTERESTED IN
PROVIDING CLARIFICATION ON THE GROUND RULES FOR INTERNATIONAL
ELECTION OBSERVERS. HIS DESCRIPTION OF PARANOIA WITHIN THE
GOVERNMENT AND RULING PARTY, HOWEVER, IS SPOT ON. WE ARE BECOMING
INCREASINGLY CONVINCED THAT THE GOZ WILL USE PROCEDURAL AND OTHER
ROADBLOCKS TO PREVENT VISITS BY OBSERVER MISSIONS WHOSE
ASSESSMENTS OF THE ELECTORAL PROCESS MIGHT NOT BE FAVORABLE,
LIKELY UNTIL JUST BEFORE THE ELECTION ITSELF. SEVERAL DAYS AFTER
IFES’S EXPULSION, A SIMILAR — BUT MUCH LARGER — EU TEAM
SCHEDULED TO ARRIVE ON SEPTEMBER 23 WAS TOLD IT COULD NOT COME
UNTIL IT HAD RECEIVED AN INVITATION FROM THE GOZ (SEPTEL). THE
GOZ, NOT SURPRISINGLY, DECLINED TO PROVIDE ANY DETAILS ON WHEN
SUCH AN INVITATION MIGHT BE FORTHCOMING.
ROTH
CONFIDENTIAL
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