Thabo Mbeki

President Thabo Mbeki said this week that he has every confidence in Zimbabwe’s ability to hold free and fair elections, and that the country’s new electoral law is the first to adhere to SADC’s principles and guidelines governing democratic elections.

As President, not only of the most powerful nation within the SADC group, but also the nation which chairs the SADC organ on defence, security and politics, and which for this reason is to head the observer mission to Zimbabwe, his comments deserve the most serious attention.

President Mbeki is quoted as saying: “I have no reason to think that anything will happen … that anybody in Zimbabwe will act in a way that will militate against the elections being free and fair.” Asked how this was possible given that Zimbabwe was already contravening SADC’s new electoral regime, he said: “I don’t know what has happened in Zimbabwe which is a violation of the SADC protocol. As far as I know, things like an independent electoral commission, access to the public media, the absence of violence and intimidation … those matters have been addressed.

Zimbabwe's parliamentary elections are now a matter of weeks away. The country is in "election mode" with a final decision still awaited from the MDC whether to participate, and all manner of fraud, violence and behind-the-scenes machinations going on in the ZANU (PF) camp as contestants battle it out through their primaries.

"Mauritius Watch" provides a regular and objective, non-partisan assessment of Zimbabwe's compliance with the SADC Protocol - Principles and Guidelines Governing Democratic Elections. This protocol was adopted by SADC leaders in Mauritius on 17th August 2004 and signed by Zimbabwe. In the run-up to the 2005 Parliamentary Elections we note any significant failures to adhere to the SADC standards.