Thursday, March 28, 2024
The National Constitutional Assembly (NCA) is leading an alternative constitutional process under the banner “Take Charge”. The NCA is a coalition which brings together women’s organisations, churches, opposition political parties, labour and student movements and other civic groups. In 1999, it worked with the MDC to reject a government draft constitution in a referendum handing President Mugabe his first defeat at the ballot box.
A 25-member parliamentary constitutional committee is leading the government process, which begins with four months of consultation, after which a draft will be produced. The draft will then be presented to a second All-Stakeholders Conference, followed by a month of debate in parliament. A referendum on the new constitution is expected in July 2010, and if it is approved new elections will then be held under Zimbabwe’s new constitution.
“We unreservedly reject the government led process for constitutional reform as outlined in Article 6 of the Global Political Agreement and strongly recommend that the current process being led by parliament and the inclusive government be immediately stopped and an independent, democratic constitutional reform process be initiated,” NCA Chairperson, Lovemore Madhuku, told IPS.
He further argued that it is not the job of politicians to write a constitution. “We did not vote for our MPs to write the constitution for us. For how long do we want our politicians to treat us like fools?”
In a draft resolution of civil society’s constitutional conference held Monday in Chitungwiza, just outside Harare, participants undertook to start an education campaign in August to encourage citizens to reject the constitutional process led by politicians.
“We resolve that we shall undertake and expand our civic education programme to explain to the people of Zimbabwe why they should reject a parliamentary-driven process,” read one of the resolutions.
The organisations also said if the government does not heed their call to abandon the parliamentary led process they will start a “No” vote campaign.
“We will actively seek a rejection of any draft constitution produced by the same process through campaigning for a No vote should that draft be brought to a referendum,” read one of the resolutions.
NCA has for years campaigned for a new and democratic constitution for Zimbabwe. Wellington Chibebe, secretary general of the country’s biggest labour federation, the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions(ZCTU), told IPS that the government process is not representative enough.
“The process is hugely flawed it is hardly representative and does not recognise the civic society as active participants,” Chibhebhe said.
“The Select Committee is made up of only three political parties and we don’t know how that is global.”
Three of the country’s political parties signed a Global Political Agreement (GPA) IN September 2008 which led to the formation of a coalition government between Zanu PF and the two MDC parties. Article 6 of this agreement provides for the drafting of a people-driven constitution.
Takura Zhangazha, a Harare-based political analyst believes the process is heavily influenced by politicians.
“The parliamentary process is directly under the influence of the political parties and is therefore not as independent a process as democratically expected. It requires the setting up of an independent commission chaired by an independent person. This basically means that the parliamentary process is simply unacceptable,” Zhangazha told IPS.
Farai Maguwu, director of the Centre for Research and Development, is following both the government and civic society processes. He told IPS that the situation is healthy for the country’s democracy.
“Both processes are healthy for our democracy. We believe in what the NCA is doing but also want to get the truth. The government has a right to hold its view but does not have the right to write a constitution on behalf of the people but at the same time its process must be given a chance,” Muguwu told IPS.