Zimbabwe’s
ruling
party,
Zanu-PF,
is
pushing
the
reforms
after
publishing
them
in
February
and
holding
public
consultations
at
the
end
of
March.
They
would
extend
presidential
and
parliamentary
terms
from
five
to
seven
years,
and
scrap
the
direct
popular
vote
for
the
presidency,
instead
giving
members
of
parliament
the
power
to
choose
the
head
of
state.
“The
changes
will
morph
the
country
into
a
one-party
state
system
of
governance
which
former
President Mugabe attempted
to
do,”
Blessing
Vava,
head
of
a
regional
civil
society
coalition
on
democracy
and
accountability,
told
RFI.
Mnangagwa,
83,
who
has
been
serving
his
second
term
since
2023,
would
also
gain
a
two-year
extension
beyond
his
current
2028
mandate
if
the
changes
are
approved.
Rushed
consultation
The
way
the
reforms
have
been
handled
has
also
drawn
criticism.
Under
Zimbabwe’s
2013
constitution,
amendments
must
go
through
a
90-day
public
consultation
period
before
being
formally
introduced
in
parliament.
But
in
this
case,
public
hearings
were
delayed
and
then
compressed
into
just
four
days,
from
30
March
to
2
April.
“It’s
delayed
weeks
and
weeks
and
weeks.
And
then…it
has
confined
the
hearings
to
a
period
of
four
days…
from
Monday
through
to
Thursday.
It
has
been
wholly
inadequate,”
said
David
Coltart,
mayor
of
Bulawayo
and
a
founding
member
of
the
opposition
Movement
for
Democratic
Change
party.
Coltart,
who
is
also
a
human
rights
and
constitutional
lawyer,
pointed
to
reports
of
intimidation
and
violence
around
the
process.
He
cited
the
arrest
of
Tendai
Biti,
leader
of
the
Constitutional
Defenders
Forum,
last
month
in
Mutare.
He
also
referred
to
the
case
of
his
son,
Doug
Coltart,
who
was
beaten
during
a
hearing
in
the
capital
Harare,
and
to
opposition
leader
Lovemore
Madhuku,
who
was attacked
and
hospitalised
earlier
in
March.
Violence
and
power
Supporters
of
the
reforms
say
the
changes
could
reduce
election-related
violence.
Zimbabwe has
a
history
of
political
violence during
elections,
including
incidents
in
2018
and
2023.
A
United
States
government human
rights report on
the
2023
elections
said
journalists
reported
attacks
on
opposition
members,
foreign
diplomats
and
journalists,
and
manipulation
of
online
debate.
“The
reason
I
am
in
favour
of
the
Constitutional
Amendment
Bill
3
is
that
we
are
facing
serious
challenges
every
time
elections
take
place,”
said
Edith
Matsambi,
a
supporter
from
Mashonaland
Central,
speaking
at
public
hearings
on
the
reforms.
“So
the
president
should
continue
in
office
for
longer,
even
up
to
10
years.”
Another
supporter
told
the
news
channel
Al
Jazeera
that
indirect
elections
could
help
reduce
tensions.
“Every
time
we
have
presidential
elections,
there
is
a
lot
of
violence.
However,
if
we
elect
the
MPs
and
the
MPs
elect
the
president,
it
will
help
us
a
lot,”
the
supporter
said.
But
critics
say
the
changes
could
instead
concentrate
power.
“I
have
absolutely
no
doubt
that
Zanu-PF
would
use
its
majority,
and
the
MPs
who’ve
been
infiltrated,
to
get
a
two-thirds
majority,”
Coltart
told
RFI.
Civicus,
a
global
civil
society
alliance,
also
criticised
the
proposed
voting
changes,
saying
they
would
remove
democratic
legitimacy
from
the
presidency.
Safeguards
at
risk
The
reforms
would
change
key
protections
introduced
in
2013.
That
constitution,
approved
by
94.5
percent
of
voters
in
a
referendum,
limited
presidents
to
two
five-year
terms
and
aimed
to
prevent
long-term
rule.
It
followed
the
end
of
Robert
Mugabe’s
37-year
presidency
by
a
military
coup
in
2017.
While
celebrated
for
leading
the
country
(then
called
Rhodesia)
to
independence
from
the
United
Kingdom
in
1980,
Mugabe’s
rule
was
marked
by
tyranny
and
corruption,
the
crushing
of
political
dissent
and
policies
that
ruined
the
country’s
economy.
Since
then,
critics
say
some
of
those
safeguards
have
been
weakened.
Zanu-PF
has
already
removed
public
interviews
for
senior
judicial
appointments.
A
further
amendment
in
2021
removed
interviews
for
judicial
promotions
and
for
the
prosecutor
general.
Coltart
said
the
latest
proposed
changes
would
go
further.
“These
amendments
have
the
effect
of
consolidating
power
in
the
hands
of
the
president.
He’s
now
given
additional
powers
to
nominate
judges,
to
nominate
those
who
prepare
the
voters’
roll
to
nominate
senators,”
he
said.
“And
there
are
a
variety
of
other
provisions
going
beyond
the
mere
extension
of
the
term
of
office
which
go
back
to
the
very
darkest
days
of
Mugabe’s
rule
in
the
1980s
and
1990s.”
Referendum
doubts
Under
the
constitution,
changes
affecting
a
sitting
president’s
term
require
a
national
referendum
after
passing
parliament.
Coltart
said
he
does
not
expect
one
to
be
held.
Vava
said
the
ruling
party
may
still
proceed,
but
warned
of
the
risks.
“Firstly,
Zanu-PF
is
trying
all
systems
out
to
evade
the
referendum
but
they
also
know
that
doing
so
will
be
a
tough
hurdle,
they
may
succeed
but
their
legitimacy
will
be
on
the
wire,”
Vava
said.
If
the
reforms
are
approved,
Coltart
said
opponents
could
challenge
them
in
the Constitutional
Court.
“That
will
have
to
come
before
the
Constitutional
Court,
and
it
is
the
only
means
that
we
have
at
our
disposal
to
contest
it.”