Zimbabwe elections could spell end of fragile power-sharing

Zimbabwe elections could spell end of fragile power-sharing

Zimbabwe's elections could mark an end to the power-sharing government that emerged after bloodshed at the polls in 2008 and was seen as untenable from the outset.

Tsvangirai and Mugabe.jpg
Zimbabwe's elections could mark an end to the power-sharing government that emerged after bloodshed at the polls in 2008 and was seen as untenable from the outset.
   
Morgan Tsvangirai, the prime minister and Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) leader, is making his third attempt to unseat the long-time president, Robert Mugabe, who heads the Zanu-PF party.
   
The two are among five presidential candidates. Some 6.4 million people are registered to cast their ballots for a new parliament and president at 9670 polling stations across the
Southern African country. Mugabe drew international condemnation and sanctions from the West over the violence and intimidation of the last presidential race.
   
Some 200 supporters of the-then rising opposition MDC were killed. Hundreds more were detained, with some allegedly tortured. Former black liberation hero Mugabe had already earned the status of pariah for stripping whites of their farms to the detriment of the economy.
   
After months of post-election wrangling and at the behest of the Southern African Development Community (SADC), Mugabe and Tsvangirai formed a unity government - one that would remain too fragile to pull Zimbabwe out of its economic misery.
   
"The coalition has failed. Our president cannot work with Tsvangirai. The West will be ashamed when their puppet loses," one Zanu-PF supporter, who identified himself only as Comrade Tongai, said.
   
"After that I am sure the agriculture sector will start getting money," he told dpa. Erica Nhambwe said she turned to selling fruits and cellphone credit on the streets of the capital Harare after the beef company that had employed her as a clerk went out of business in 2007.
  
 "All I want is elections get past and we resume our normal lives. I hope peace remains whoever wins. I hope to get a decent job if Tsvangirai wins. I am tired of this," said Nhambwe.
   
Mugabe has allowed only African election observers into the country, much to the chagrin of his opponents. On the campaign trail, the 89-year-old leader who came to power
first as premier after independence in 1980, urged his supporters to return him to office.
   
Tsvangirai, 61, has expressed concern that the Zimbabwe Election Commission is biased in favour of Zanu-PF, which holds sway over
the security forces. In 2008, the former trade union leader came out ahead in the first round of voting but failed to secure the 50 per cent needed
to avoid a run-off. This was the first time that Zanu-PF lost its dominance in parliament.
 
Tsvangirai, however, withdrew from the second round, citing high levels of violence. He was himself badly beaten and arrested. Mugabe, as the only presidential candidate, subsequently sailed back into the top job.
   
The MDC has accused Zanu-PF of violating the power-sharing deal by running a parallel administration that moves state funds into
the private coffers of Mugabe and his inner circle. Mugabe unilaterally called the poll date for July 31, despite Tsvangirai's appeal for more time to prepare. 
 
The SADC called on Zimbabwe to delay the vote by two weeks, but the High Court inHarare ruled in Mugabe's favour.
   
Human rights groups warned that sufficient reforms were not carried out to ensure a legitimate vote. When South African envoy Lindiwe Zulu voiced strong concerns
that the vote was not properly organised, Mugabe lashed out, calling her a "street woman".
 
Pretoria, seen as the key mediator in Zimbabwe, is frequently criticised for failing to openly condemn its rogue leader. In 2003, following widespread criticism of the previous year's election, Mugabe pulled out of the Commonwealth. This time around, he threatened to withdraw from SADC.
   
Despite its record of having sent the economy into a decade-long tailspin, with hyper-inflation, poverty and an exodus of skilled workers, Zanu-PF appears to enjoy broad support.The MDC, meanwhile, faces dwindling support, in part because of concern over its partnership with Mugabe. 
 
Tsvingirai's private life - including failed marriages - have tarnished his reputation in the relatively conservative country. In western Matebeleland, a traditional MDC stronghold, residents hold a deep grudge against Mugabe. They hold him accountable for the massacre in the 1980s of an estimated 20,000 people, many of them supporters of his then political rival Joshua Nkomo.
   
"Here in Matebeleland, we hope the next government will address our issues of Gukurahundi," said Zenzele Matsche of the atrocities
committed by the military under Mugabe rule.
   
"We want industries back so that there is employment," the 44-year-old former teacher added.
   
Polls are open from 7 am (0500 GMT) to 7 pm, with results expected within five days.
   
- Sapa-dpa
 

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