The Southern African Development Community observer mission had already decided that the best way forward for Zimbabwe was a government of national unity before the presidential elections run-off from which Movement for Democratic Change leader Morgan Tsvangirai pulled out a week before the polls.
The Head of Mission, Angolan Youth Minister Jose Marcos Barrica, said the mission had witnessed a spiral increase in political violence which did not allow free and fair elections.
He said the withdrawal of Tsvangirai had created a new fact in the political scenery that had created concerns and even panic.
Barrica said that regardless of the results of the June 27 election, which SADC intended to monitor, both sides would need to work together for the future of Zimbabwe.
He called on political leaders and electoral authorities to utilise the “wisdom of Africa to find a platform for mutual understanding that will drive toward a conclusion of the process”.
Full cable:
Viewing cable 08HARARE552, SPIRAL OF POLITICAL VIOLENCE”: SADC OBSERVERS
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VZCZCXRO4080
OO RUEHDU RUEHMR RUEHRN
DE RUEHSB #0552/01 1781558
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 261558Z JUN 08
FM AMEMBASSY HARARE
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 3093
INFO RUCNSAD/SOUTHERN AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY
RUEHAR/AMEMBASSY ACCRA 2093
RUEHDS/AMEMBASSY ADDIS ABABA 2213
RUEHRL/AMEMBASSY BERLIN 0751
RUEHBY/AMEMBASSY CANBERRA 1490
RUEHDK/AMEMBASSY DAKAR 1848
RUEHKM/AMEMBASSY KAMPALA 2269
RUEHNR/AMEMBASSY NAIROBI 4700
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RUZEJAA/JAC MOLESWORTH RAF MOLESWORTH UK
RHMFISS/EUCOM POLAD VAIHINGEN GE
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHDC
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 1359
RHEHAAA/NSC WASHDC
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 HARARE 000552
SIPDIS
AF/S FOR S. HILL
ADDIS ABABA FOR USAU
ADDIS ABABA FOR ACSS
STATE PASS TO USAID FOR E. LOKEN AND L. DOBBINS
STATE PASS TO NSC FOR SENIOR AFRICA DIRECTOR B. PITTMAN
E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/26/2018
TAGS: PGOV PREL ASEC PHUM KDEM ZI
SUBJECT: “SPIRAL OF POLITICAL VIOLENCE”: SADC OBSERVERS
SPEAK OUT
REF: A. MBABANE 189
¶B. HARARE 546
Classified By: Ambassador James McGee for reason 1.4(d).
¶1. (C) SUMMARY: Following the withdrawal by opposition
candidate Morgan Tsvangirai from Zimbabwe’s June 27
presidential run-off, the Southern African Development
Community (SADC) observer mission held a June 25 press
conference to comment on the current electoral environment.
SADC Head of Mission and Angolan Youth Minister Jose Marcos
Barrica confirmed widespread politically-motivated violence,
condemned it, and inferred that it was perpetrated by
government forces, but also suggested that Zimbabwean
“authorities” should and could address the situation by June
27, the date of the scheduled election. In what appeared to
be a reference to a government of national unity, Barrica
stated that regardless of the outcome of Friday’s contest,
both sides would need to work together. When asked about
the discrepancy between the mission’s intent to proceed with
monitoring the election and the SADC Troika’s call for the
election to be delayed (reftel A), Baricca suggested that the
Troika had superseded Zimbabwean authority. Emboffs also
spoke earlier in the day with Tanki Mothae, SADC Director of
the Organ on Politics, Defence, and Security, who has served
as the SADC Mission’s administrative head and who has also
participated as an observer. END SUMMARY.
¶2. (U) At a June 25 press conference, Mission head Barrica
confirmed through an interpreter that SADC had deployed about
400 observers throughout Zimbabwe’s ten provinces and that
observers were regularly meeting with stakeholders, including
government officials, opposition leaders and civil society.
Barrica noted SADC’s “limited” mandate to observe the
election based on the SADC Principles Governing Democratic
Elections with the “objective of building a common view of
the process.”
¶3. (U) Barrica stated that since arriving on June 1, the
observers, including Mission leadership, had been put in an
“uneasy position” and witnessed a “spiral increase of
political violence” resulting in “no political tolerance and
a situation which can endanger human rights and destroy
property of citizens.” He confirmed that as a result of
“political tension, some SADC observers had become victims of
psychological and emotional threats.” Barrica blamed the
violence on “political leadership,” and said that “whether it
was a result of direct guidance by the State or independent
incidents, acts of violence had been perpetrated by uniformed
people…This is a political crisis.” When asked if the SADC
mission supported this week’s UN Security Council statement
on Zimbabwe, Barrica retorted that “every person with mental
health should condemn violence; therefore we condemn it just
as the UNSC did.”
¶4. (U) As a result, Barrica stated that the Mission was
using its “one weapon, the word” to “intensify our position
through statements to the ruling party and main opposition
figures.” He reported that the Mission was also appealing
to the “Zimbabwean authorities who have the task of
protecting the lives of the people for them to use all the
mechanisms at their disposal to ensure the security of
citizens and rule of law.” Calling Tsvangirai’s withdrawal a
“new fact in the political scenery that has created concerns,
even panic,” Barrica highlighted the Zimbabwe Electoral
Commission’s (ZEC) role as “managers” of the election
process. He stated that ZEC had the responsibility to act
with “justice and fairness to decide the correct way forward
with regard to democratic principles, while safeguarding
national interest and expectations.”
HARARE 00000552 002 OF 002
¶5. (U) In what may have been a veiled reference to a
government of national unity, Barrica stated that regardless
of the results of the June 27 election, which SADC intended
to monitor, both sides would need to work together for the
future of Zimbabwe. He called on political leaders and
electoral authorities to utilize the “wisdom of Africa to
find a platform for mutual understanding that will drive
toward a conclusion of the process.” Barrica relayed his
belief, stemming from meetings that day, that there was a
“light at the end of the tunnel for the disagreeing parties
to come together” and that “elections or not, Zimbabwe will
open a new page of its history” on June 28.
¶6. (U) When asked about the discrepancy between the SADC
mission’s intent to proceed with monitoring the June 27
election and news of the June 25 statement by the SADC
Troika’s emergency summit calling for the election to be
delayed (reftel A), Barrica suggested that the Troika had
superseded a report from the Mission and ZEC’s authority, and
that Mbeki’s absence from the summit, as the SADC negotiator
on Zimbabwe, raised questions as to whether it was a
legitimate SADC meeting.
¶7. (C) Earlier on June 25, polchief and poloff met with
SADC Director of the Organ on Politics, Defense and Security
Affairs who has been responsible for administrative aspects
of the Mission and who has observed as well. Mothae candidly
stated that despite ZANU-PF efforts to influence the
observers’ opinion, there was a general consensus amongst the
various member-state mission heads that made up the SADC team
that a free and fair election was not possible under current
conditions, including government-sponsored violence targeting
the opposition. However, Mothae indicated that Barrica might
be under significant political pressure from Angolan
leadership to refrain from condemning the election process
outright. Mothae stated that given the Mugabe regime’s
violation of both SADC election principles and domestic
election law (Zimbabwe being one of the few member states to
codify the SADC election principles into its Electoral Act),
SADC observer mission members would “not allow Minister
Barrica to defeat the mission of the observation” and
publicly obscure the reality on the ground, even if it
resulted in “serious fractures” within the delegation.
Mothae stressed the importance of the Mission’s mandate to
focus on Zimbabwe’s conformity, or lack thereof, to the SADC
election principles, regardless of rumors of international
influence or domestic politicking.
¶8. (C) COMMENT: Barrica’s welcome condemnation of the
violence was somewhat surprising in light of Mothae’s
skepticism that he would be objective about violence and the
electoral environment. We note that the press conference
represented an interim evaluation; what will be most
important is SADC’s final report. In that regard, Mothae
told us that he and other observers would not support a
report that did not accurately portray the lectoral
environment that made it impossible to old a fair election.
Key will be pressure by theAngolan government on Barrica to
support an objecive report. END COMMENT.
McGee
(24 VIEWS)
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