"I'm not opposed to re-admission of Zimbabwe into Commonwealth" - for what, work visa for a few W Mukori

The EU send a 246 strong Election Observer Mission to the Zimbabwe 2018 elections. The team condemned the elections as a farce.

“Notably, major shortcomings in the pre-election environment impacted on the free expression of the will of electors, state resources were misused in favour of the incumbent and coverage by state media was heavily biased in favour of the ruling party,” stated EU Observer Mission in their final report.

“Further, the electoral commission lacked full independence and appeared to not always act in an impartial manner. The final results as announced by the Electoral Commission contained numerous errors and lacked adequate traceability, transparency and verifiability.

“Finally, the restrictions on political freedoms, the excessive use of force by security forces and abuses of human rights in the post-election period undermined the corresponding positive aspects during the pre-election campaign. As such, many aspects of the 2018 elections in Zimbabwe failed to meet international standards.”

Stephen Chan OBE, an author and Professor of World Politics at SOAS, University of London, who too was in Zimbabwe during the elections, said the Commonwealth Election Observer team was on the verge of giving the 2018 elections a thumbs up and recommend that Zimbabwe be readmitted into the Commonwealth was it not for the 1^st August 2018 shooting of protestors.

In other words, the Commonwealth team was so eager to get Zimbabwe readmitted they would have ignored the country’s failure to produce something as basic as a verified voters’ roll, etc. and lower the international election standards, just to get Zimbabwe readmitted!

One of the main reasons why Zimbabwe going to be booted out of the Commonwealth in 2003, Mugabe pre-empted the move by withdrawing the country’s membership, was the failure to hold free, fair and credible elections. The application to be readmitted was turned down because Zimbabwe failed to hold free and fair elections in 2018. The regime has not implemented even one token reform since 2018 and it is already clear Zanu PF is rigging the 2023 elections.

Therefore, there is no reason why the Commonwealth should be reassess Zimbabwe’s preparedness to re-join the club when there has been no progress and ahead of the 2023 elections. Why is the Commonwealth jumping the gun?

Guess what? A new Commonwealth team, headed by Professor Luis Franceschi, Commonwealth Assistant Secretary General, is back in Zimbabwe to reassess Zimbabwe’s suitability for re-joining the grouping. They are jumping the gun because they know Zanu PF is rigging 2023 elections and would rather readmit Zimbabwe now before the deed is done.

If Professor Franceschi and his team did not have to fear being asked why their assessment is jumping the 2023 elections gun or any such searching and relevant questions, at least, not from Hopewell Chin’ono, one of the Zimbabweans who testified before the team. Chin’ono wanted Zimbabwe readmitted yesterday!

“I started by telling them that my life was turned around through a 2 year Commonwealth Visa that allowed me and many others to work in Britain,” he testified.

“I added that this is 1 of many Commonwealth benefits to ordinary Zimbabweans that were denied to them when ZANUPF petulantly and arbitrarily pulled the country out of the Commonwealth simply because it didn’t want to adhere to its constitutional prescriptions of Rule of Law.

“I however added that there is nothing to be gained from shutting the door against Zimbabwe as a country of over 15 million in order to punish an incorrigible political party, ZANUPF, and its regime in power.

“I added that dialogue remains the only viable option on the table.”

The 15 million Zimbabweans have suffered directly and indirectly from the 42 years and counting of Zanu PF corrupt and tyrannical rule and over 40 000 were murdered by the regime in cold blood. The principal reason Zimbabwe was booted out of the Commonwealth was to pressure the regime to adhere to the democratic values and rule of law as the only way to end the dictatorship and the tragic human suffering and deaths.

The regime has done absolutely nothing to dismantle the corrupt and tyrannical dictatorship. Indeed, the economic situation is a lot worse now than in 2003 and the regime has responded by increasing the political repression.

If Zanu PF is readmitted back into the Commonwealth with all its dictatorial powers this will send a clear message the regime has won and can keep its powers. After 42 years of this dictatorship the people are desperate to end the dictatorship not to surrender to its whims.

The benefits to all Zimbabweans of ending the Zanu PF dictatorship outweighs the inconveniences the few have suffered by not having Commonwealth 2-year working visas, etc. Indeed, only a fool will even compare the two much less suggest keeping the dictatorship for even one day!

“I suggested that there must be reform benchmarks to which Zimbabwe’s admission must be tied to, like the release of all political prisoners, and dropping of ALL trumped-up charges against the political opposition and Government critics.

“This will measure ZANUPF’s sincerity,” continued Chin’ono.

It is when one hears such trash, from one who claims to be “Award winning International Journalist| Film Maker | 2 Time African Journalist of The Year | Africa Leadership Fellow I Nieman Fellow| Harvard educated”; that one truly appreciates why Zimbabwe is in a serious mess.

Of course, it is idiotic that Zanu PF should be earning brownie points from releasing innocent people the regime are arrested illegally in the first place. You do not thank the thief for his generosity in giving back what he stole from you in the first place, especially one who gives with one hand, make a big song and dance about it, and steals even more with the other! It is bad enough that a peasant in the rural back waters should be so easily conned, but not a Harvard educated and award winning journalist too!!!!!

The truth is Zimbabwe is in a serious economic and political mess and the country is not getting out of the mess as long as the country remains a pariah state ruled by corrupt and tyrannical thugs who rig elections to stay in power. Zimbabwe needs all the tools at its disposal to pressure Zanu PF to accept the need to implement democratic reforms and hold free, fair and credible elections.

The sanctions imposed by Western is one such tool and being kicked out of the Commonwealth is another. Lifting the sanctions and readmitting Zimbabwe will only embolden Zanu PF and all the hardships and sacrifices in the fight for democracy, justice, rule of law and human dignity would all have been in vain. And what will we have gained – a few Zimbabweans getting a Commonwealth 2-year working visa! How sickening!

“Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety,” said Benjamin Franklin, one of America’s statesman and the nation’s founding fathers!

We, in Zimbabwe, are in this economic and political mess because we only care about me, here and now; we are even welcoming the political system that has denied us freedom, human rights and even the right to life! We are trading sold gold in exchange for fool’s gold, pyrite, iron sulfide and it is none other than one of our own socialites who is selling it to the nation!

“Over & above other issues discussed that will remain off the record, I said that I was not opposed to the re-admission of Zimbabwe into the Commonwealth,” concluded Chin’ono.

“Doing so as a recipient of Commonwealth arrangements would be no different to kicking the ladder to stop others climbing.”

Whatever else people can say about Hopewell Chin’ono, no one should ever say he is naïve. He knows that readmitting Zanu PF into the Commonwealth when the regime has not implemented even one democratic reform will help keep the regime in power! He knows that he is pedalling the people’s liberty for fool’s gold!