The Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) is almost desperate for a chance to dialogue with Zimbabwe’s ruling Zanu-PF and believes the acquittal of its leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, on treason charges ”provides that opportunity”.
MDC Secretary General Welshman Ncube said that had Tsvangirai been jailed, it would have created ”numerous obstacles for nation-building”. The MDC leader said the ”judgement may have set a good basis for a national solution to the crisis”.
But the party’s enthusiasm has been dampened by repeated public derision in the hours and days following his acquittal.
In the state-run Sunday Mail, Lowani Ndlovu, widely believed to be Information Minister Jonathan Moyo’s psuedonym, described Tsvangirai as a British ”puppet”, and ”idiot”, ”silly”, and a ”sell-out”.
Determined to crush celebrations, the government gave another master class in intimidation. The Herald warned on its front page that police would deal with any ”MDC hooligans” who disturbed the peace.
Several hundred supporters had responded to the MDC’s call to rally at the court, but they were ringed by police wielding batons and guns.
After the verdict, aides rushed Tsvangirai away, not daring to savour the moment for cameras waiting outside the court.
Since the trial ended in February Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe has been discreetly lobbied by other African leaders to spare his opponent to bolster the legitimacy of elections in March, according to Western diplomats.
And those who have followed Tsvangirai’s predicament say the tortuous legal process has played into 80-year-old Mugabe’s hands. The trial sapped the opposition leader and his party of funds and energy. Tsvangirai was, in effect, hobbled. A guilty verdict was of secondary importance to Mugabe, according to legal specialists.
In fact, said John Makumbe, political science lecturer at the University of Zimbabwe, the government had calculated that a guilty verdict would bring more international criticism and pressure than it was worth. ”The case was essentially political harassment and the government achieved its aim.”
Makumbe said ”the Mugabe regime is just trying to cleanse its image. It needed to project itself as a legitimate regime. I would say we may be seeing the effect of pressure from the international community … All the reports to the African Union and the European Union about human rights abuses and the breakdown of the rule of law are paying off. The government is responding to this pressure.”
Tsvangirai’s lawyer, George Bizos, wept with relief at what he said was a victory for justice. Amnesty International said confidence in the judiciary had been restored.
Mugabe’s spokesperson, George Charamba, refused to comment, but other supporters of the Zanu-PF party said the acquittal proved that an independent judicial system was still alive in Zimbabwe.
But exiled Zimbabwean Judge Michael Majuru said the case should never have gone to trial since ”there was no case to answer … Much more than this verdict is needed to repair the integrity of Zimbabwe’s judicial system. The entire system is sullied and operates as an appendage of the ruling party.” Majuru fled Zimbabwe earlier this year after being threatened by the minister of justice.
MDC secretary for legal affairs David Coltart points out that several electoral petitions filed in 2000 were still being held up in the courts; it took 18 months for a challenge to the 2002 presidential election to be heard in the high court; seven months later a one-page judgement dismissed the application and, to this day, no reasons have been supplied.
The registrar general was compelled by the high court to produce the voters’ roll to support the MDC election petition, but simply did not comply.
Zimbabwe does not have a parliamentary justice committee to compel the chief justice to explain delays.
Professor Heneri Dzinotyiwei of the University of Zimbabwe said: ”Once you have an environment where there are delays, there is an opportunity to exploit such a situation. If you accuse them, they will tell you of pending criminal cases that have also taken longer.”
Makumbe warned that Tsvangirai’s acquittal was a tactical retreat before Mugabe launches a new offensive. ”They are sharpening their claws for the next kill. Tsvangirai must face another treason trial under the Public Order and Security Act. Even though the charge is very flimsy, another court case will continue to weaken his ability to function as a force-ful opposition leader.” — Â