It is easy to fault the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) for boycotting next year’s parliamentary elections in Zimbabwe. Critics, including some of the younger MDC members, fear that conceding every parliamentary seat to Zanu-PF will merely force the party to the margins and prevent it from yellow-carding the ruling party over electoral abuses. It has also been argued that the MDC should lend support to South Africa’s behind-the-scenes bid to marshal other regional states behind democratic reform in Zimbabwe. On this view, the Southern African Development Community’s electoral guidelines for the region, recently adopted in Mauritius, are a key departure that the Zimbabwe opposition should embrace — in part, to monitor compliance by President Robert Mugabe’s government.
At the same time, one should not fall into the error — common among South African officials — of victim-blaming. The MDC is not the principal culprit in Zimbabwe’s democratic crisis. It is undeniable that conditions do not exist for free and fair elections, even if Mugabe keeps his promise to amend electoral procedures. The problem is the broad political context, where freedom of assembly, organisation, expression, canvassing and monitoring have been drastically curtailed by the state.
The Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act, under which newspapers have been banned and journalists prosecuted, is a potent bar on the flow of information vital for informed voting. While independent newspapers are hobbled, the state-owned media and their tame hacks pour out a daily flood of disinformation and ideological venom against the opposition. The Public Order and Security Act requires police permission for meetings and rallies, which is routinely withheld from the MDC and civil society. Unlicenced protests and gatherings are savagely dispersed by the security forces, while voters are assaulted, abducted, tortured and intimidated by the young thugs of Mugabe’s militias. And just as President Thabo Mbeki manages to coax the region into an electoral protocol, Mugabe cocks a snoot at his neighbours by preparing legislation that will cripple the independent non-government sector and effectively bar it from educating voters and monitoring the poll. Since the high-water mark of the 2000 constitutional referendum, the Zimbabwean opposition has been repressed almost out of existence — much as the South African Congress of Trade Unions was smashed in the 1960s without ever being banned.
Given the context, it is not enough for Mbeki simply to press for electoral reform — he runs the risk of legitimising a process that for other reasons will remain deeply unfree and unfair. South Africa, and the region, should make it clear to Mugabe that they will not endorse any election in Zimbabwe until the wider apparatus of repression in that country is dismantled.
At the same time, the MDC must recognise that an election boycott on its own will achieve very little. If it is to relinquish its hold on the official organs of power, it must operate like a true extra-parliamentary opposition.
This means mass mobilisation among its natural constituencies’ workers, the urban unemployed, church members, university students and the youth. It means a return to extra-parliamentary forms of resistance, such as street protests and general strikes, and a resolute adherence to such tactics in the face of state violence.
The lesson from South Africa in the 1950s is that a dignified stand of principle will not serve to dislodge a stubborn and despotic regime.
Home brew
It is Proudly South African week, which challenges South Africans to drop their fascination with things foreign. For those who doubt such fascination exists, stroll down any main road. Count the number of cafés called “Chez” this or “Casa” that. Spot the Balduccis, Cornuccis and Mastrantonios.Â
There may be a good culinary reason for this, but sometimes we take our love affair with the rich world to ridiculous levels. Why import bottled water from Italy, for example?
There is a growing appetite for new flavours — now you can eat an East African fish curry or pap and mnqushu at Wandi’s in Soweto. And there is an appetite for new apparel. Stoned Cherrie, featured in our new series, Home Brew, has redefined fashion away from an imported aesthetic.Â
Proudly SA seeks to foster a retail revolution. Last year 23% of shoppers surveyed said the campaign had influenced them to buy an article labelled Proudly SA, and over half said they would do so in future.Â
The campaign cannot be an excuse for high prices and poor quality — if it is, it will fail. Already, some industries are using the Proudly SA badge to push for protection for struggling industries like clothing and textiles. The government is unlikely to be swayed by this — the approach should rather be to move up the value chain.
Of course, in the age of globalisation it is often hard to tell what is local. When American cotton is used to weave Asian cloth in Maseru to make GAP clothing destined for the European market, the lines begin to blur.
Ultimately, the efficacy of the logo must be judged on its impact on jobs — there can be no more laudable measure in these times. So, ditch the Gucci, sister. Hang up the Hugo, brother.