OPEN LETTER TO THE WHITE HOUSE
Mr President Obama
There are two critical issues
The election does not meet SADC Guidelines. It is a sham election that does not reflect the will of the people.
I write this open letter, in order to
shed some light on the illegal activities that are happening to my people in
Harare, as we hold our elections. We, the people of Zimbabwe deserve a free and
fair election, yet the grip of the dictator has proven insurmountable. It is
the hope and dream of every Zimbabwean which today, has been compromised. This
country will never be the same again! We the people of Zimbabwe have suffered
untold hardships under the dictator Robert Mugabe, who has inflicted pain on my
people with great relish! Yet he wants to prolong that time in order to cause
more suffering to my people. We the people, look up to the USA, to speak out against
these crimes being committed right as we speak. Votes are being inflated to
give Mugabe an unjustified victory. Below is the statement from my Prime Minister,
we hope and trust you will be able to help my people.
(Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai)
This election has been a huge farce. Its
credibility has been marred by administrative and legal violations which affect
the legitimacy of its outcome.There are two critical issues
The election does not meet SADC Guidelines. It is a sham election that does not reflect the will of the people.
- Voters’
Roll
- Thousands
failed to register and were disenfranchised
- Not
delivered timorously as required by law
- No proper
inspection of the voters’ roll to verify Authenticity
- Duplication
of names on the voters roll
- Unauthorized
movement of voters from their wards (leading to almost 40% voters being
turned away and disenfranchised)
- Manipulation
of voters’ choice - Voters forced to plead
- illiteracy
and resort to “assistance”.
- Use of
traditional leaders (chiefs and headmen) to intimidate voters.
- Unauthorized
voter migration - Voters bussed into
- constituencies
to vote e.g Harare South, Epworth
- Unaccounted
for voters especially in farming areas
- Abuse of
the facility to use Voter Registration Slips as proof of registration
- Militarization
of the electoral process – electoral processes under the effective control
of security personnel
- Lack of
transparency in the printing of ballots
- Non-compliance
with section 51 of the Electoral Act.
- Over-printing
of ballots (more than 35%) and lack of accountability for ballots.
- Lack of
transparency and double-voting in the use of the Special Vote
- Lack of
transparency in the use of the Postal Voting system
- Media
reform
- Security sector
I have met with the chair of the AU observer mission,
former Nigerian President Obasanjo, head of the SADC observer mission, Minister
Mmembe and I have given a diplomatic briefing. The message we have given is
that this is not a credible election. It does not reflect the will of the
people of Zimbabwe. For the above reasons, the election has been heavily
manipulated. In our view, the outcome of this election is illegitimate. But
more importantly, the shoddy manner in which it has been conducted and the consequent
illegitimacy of the result will plunge this country into a serious crisis. We
therefore call for SADC and the AU audit teams to look into this process, in
particular the voters roll, the ballots and the manner in which the whole
process was conducted. In our view this election does not meet the SADC, AU and
international standards for a credible, legitimate, free and fair election.
Thank you Sir!
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