Zimbabwe Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai has laid out an ambitious reform programme that will be a key test of just how much change President Robert Mugabe is willing to allow in the government of national unity.
A week after President Jacob Zuma instilled some urgency into talks aimed at the full implementation of the power-sharing agreement, an emboldened Tsvangirai has presented a plan – the government work programme (GWP) – to Cabinet. Over the next nine months the plan would introduce legislation that would repeal a raft of laws Mugabe has used over the past decade to stifle dissent.
“The total sum of the impact of the integrated options under the GWP should provide resolutions that ultimately lead this country to peace, stability, sustainable growth and prosperity for all in the shortest possible time,” Tsvangirai writes in his document.
In talks mediated by Zuma last week Mugabe pledged cooperation in the full implementation of the agreement. But many within his Zanu-PF remain opposed to change and Tsvangirai’s plan will test the resolve of both sides.
The plan lists his reform priorities as: economic growth, the provision of basic services and infrastructure, the restoration of the rule of law and property rights, the legislative reform to ensure basic freedoms, and the “normalisation” of international relations.
It would see a freedom of information Bill brought to Parliament, repealing the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act, under which four newspapers have been banned. Last week a new commission tasked with leading media reforms said it was ready to begin work to open up the media, but a state-owned weekly complained Tsvangirai was trying to “hurry” the process.
A general laws amendment Bill would repeal legislation such as the Criminal Law and Codification Reform Act, a raft of rules that Zanu-PF has used to stifle opposition.
There will also be amendments to laws governing elections. Tsvangirai says his plan would take “a decisive lead to create urgent reforms that form the foundations to the process of a free and fair election”.
New battle
His push for a “comprehensive and transparent land audit” to root out people holding on to more than one farm is likely to start a new battle with Mugabe, who has made land seizures the cornerstone of his past election campaigns. Many of his supporters believe the audit is meant to drive them off resettled land to make way for white previous landowners.
But Tsvangirai has been careful to win Zanu-PF support for his plan, addressing Mugabe’s key concern on sanctions. A joint committee of ministers will lobby the European Union, Canada and Australia to end Zimbabwe’s isolation. A tough task will be lobbying the US Congress to repeal the Zimbabwe Democracy and Economic Recovery Act, a sanctions law that bars US companies from dealing with Zimbabwe and effectively bans international credit to the country.
Tsvangirai deliberately steers clear of detailing his plan to reform the security forces, for long a pillar of Mugabe’s power. Instead, he proposes that this be discussed within the National Security Council, a joint body of the country’s top security figures, in which Tsvangirai also sits.
Zuma claimed progress in the talks towards the full implementation of the power-sharing agreement. No details were given, but there is speculation that much of the discussion was about the fate of central bank governor Gideon Gono, attorney general Johannes Tomana and Roy Bennett, Tsvangirai’s nominee for deputy agriculture minister, whose treason trial has raised tensions.
Zuma took a direct approach, meeting all three men. Zuma’s spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said he had taken this step to “create understanding on how to make matters move forward”.
There is talk that negotiators are discussing the possibility of promoting Tomana to the Bench and naming a mutually agreed replacement. Gono is believe to be staying, because part of the legislation agreed to by both parties significantly whittles down his clout. Zanu-PF views Bennett’s appointment to agriculture as provocative and wants the Movement for Democratic Change to appoint him to another portfolio.
Zuma’s intervention appears to have emboldened Tsvangirai. Even as Mugabe continues gradually to undermine his authority in government, Tsvangirai appears confident enough to order that ministers report to him monthly on the progress of implementing his plan.