It is now a year since Zimbabwe held the second election round of the disputed presidential election between President Robert Mugabe from the ZANU-PF (the
party in power) and the opposition’s candidate, Morgan Tsvangirai, from the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC).
It was an election round which in reality only offered people one
candidate to vote for as Tsvangirai withdrew after extensive violence and intimidation of both him and members of his party.
In spite of many obstacles and hardships it actually looks as if things are
moving forwards in Zimbabwe.
However, the country has first had to go through a very difficult time. An almost complete collapse of the country and massive pressure from outside were necessary before
the two candidates together with a splinter group from the MDC, headed by Arthur Mutambara, finally sat down at the negotiation table. Inflation and its
consequencesDuring 2008 Zimbabwe experienced an escalation of the inflation to such an extent that it finally reached the enormous 89.7 sextillion (1021) per cent. Frequently the Zimbabwean dollar had
10 zeroes cut off, and the printing press for bank notes never stood still.
Bank notes of up to 100 trillions were printed up to three times with the same serial numbers: One set for the public, one
set for the party and one set for the military. The few shops that were still open closed several times a day in order to double the prices to the customers’ and
employees’ great frustration.
All public service stopped. The trains came to at standstill, the hospitals were empty, schools and universities were closed and the roads were flooded
because of burst water pipes and blocked sewers. People experienced power cuts of up to several days and permanently empty water taps.
On top of that â€" or perhaps because of that
â€" there was a widespread cholera epidemic with, according to UNIEF, 100,000 infected and 4,000 dead and an extensive shortage of food supplies, which made more that 60 per cent of the
population dependent on food aid, according to WFP.ChangesSince the three party leaders signed an agreement and eventually formed a coalition government with no
less than 71 ministers, a good deal of positive changes for the country and for the common Zimbabwean has taken place.
There are also some things which have not changed, and which still make people
suffer, and the western donors are not quite willing to give massive support directly through the government administration again.
Thus the country continues to be on the verge of a breakdown
â€" only held together by the belief in a new and better future, or maybe just by the belief that the situation could be like before year 2000 when the invasions of the farms really gained
speed.
It has now become legal to trade in foreign currencies, normally South African rand or American dollars. The Zimbabwean dollar is no longer used in the country. The inflation has totally
disappeared. Many shops have re-opened and are full of goods â€" both in the towns and in the countryside. At the same time the prices have decreased by approximately 50 per cent since
January. Zimbabwe now experiences a proper deflation, especially on food and household articles.
The fact that there are goods in the shops means that most people have easy access to the most basic
things, and the poor in the countryside also benefit from this. During the time with hyperinflation many cynical businessmen from the cities made the most of their knowledge and bought agricultural
products for money that already was worthless when it changed hands.
Now the stable currency means that farmers can get a proper price for their products and not be cheated; at the same time they can
perhaps save a little money to buy seed grain or fertilizers for the next agricultural season. Agriculture
One year's corn harvest of a farmer.
The manner of speech
â€What you sow, you shall reap†also holds true in Zimbabwe, and unfortunately, this year it is again by far not enough. Yet, the yield became 170 per sent better this
season than last year’s disastrous harvest.
But it is still only 2/3 of what Zimbabwe needs. In spite of the generally good harvest, only one fourth of the country’s
farm land is cultivated, and according to the UN’s latest food research this is due to the lack of seed grain and fertilizers, among other things. The good harvest seems to reduce the
period of time when food aid is needed; but the humanitarian organizations do not doubt that food aid will be needed, also in the coming season. Political
changesAlready on the day after Tsvangirai had been sworn in as Prime Minister, he was referred to as â€the Honourable Prime Minister†in the government controlled
media â€" a radical shift after his being referred to as Bush’s and Blair’s henchman, a parasite or terrorist.
The example is only one among several that
the MDC has obtained legitimacy which was not possible earlier, legitimacy which cannot lightly be taken away from the party again. Everyone, incl. the government controlled media, recognizes that the
party is capable of governing and is a real alternative to the ZANU-PF.Human rightsBut not everything in Zimbabwe proceeds as agreed. According to independent
organizations in Zimbabwe, which follow the process, hardly any of the political objectives set in order to measure whether Zimbabwe in realty changed its course have been attained.
Recently the
General Secretary of Amnesty International stated after a six-day-long stay in Zimbabwe that the coalition government has done far too little to put an end to the massive, daily human rights
violations.
There are still no free media, and by routine journalists are harassed and imprisoned if their criticism of those in power is a little too sharp. The same holds true for peaceful
demonstrators who try to draw attention to common and poor Zimbabweans’ hard lives.
A new wave of expulsions of the last remaining 300 white farmers has begun, primarily headed by
leading members of the ZANU-PF. The wave started after Mugabe in a speech stated that the expulsions were final. The MDC keeps saying that the country must return to a state of law and order; but
leaders within the police and military do not seem to agree as the expulsions are allowed to continue.
Presumably they still hope that it will be possible to secure the ZANU-PF a victory at the next
election in 18 months. According to “The Zimbabweanâ€, a London-edited newspaper critical of the ZANU-PF, the tactics aims at obstructing the coalition government as
much as possible in order to make the MDC appear incapable. Lately certain politicians have suggested that the newspaper is prohibited as they consider its activities injurious to the state. A new constitution Before the election can be held, the country must have a new constitution; the present is an inheritance from the Rhodesian era, and after the
agreement on the distribution of power it does not mirror the present situation in the country.
The process seems to become rather long and difficult, and many observers doubt that the election can
be held at the point of time agreed on. For the moment consultations with the citizens have been proposed. Yet, it is still not clear who actually will be chosen for participation and by whom.
The
atmosphere in the street is positive, but also a little hesitant. Yet, it is as if a breath of fresh air has entered the country. In conversations people no longer sit back, but say what they mean.
Public and quasi-public authorities are no longer as suspicious as they were earlier, and an any rate the humanitarian organizations can move freely around the country.
But, of course, there are
still limits to what can be said and not said. Independent media report that the police frequently arrest peaceful demonstrators who express their dissatisfaction with the situation in the country. Ever since the massacre of 20,000 Ndebeles as part of an internal power struggle in Zimbabwe in the mid-1980’s there have been an open wound in the soul of the people â€" a
wound which has sprung open over and over again at each presidential or parliamentary election.Reconciliation According to Zimbabwe Christian Alliance most
Zimbabweans think that in order for the population to become one people it is time for a reconciliation process across political and ethnic affiliations â€" a process in which every stone is
turned and in which both victims and offenders appear.
People both in the cities and in the countryside find it difficult to relate to a better future with development when people who beat them up
and stole their domestic animals at the latest election are walking around among them. It is predicted that the churches will play an important part in the process, both locally and generally.
There
are church networks everywhere in Zimbabwe and they are mostly considered impartial. It was further stressed by Tsvangirai, who during his latest visit to Denmark stated that he expects the churches
to lead the way and be at the head of the process.
Christian Care and the local authorities ensure that all children are registred.
Most Zimbabweans do not understand why their country has to go through such a decline. But if you look into African history books, you will find that Zimbabwe is far from being a special case; the development of the country is more the rule than the exception â€" they are just
20 years behind.
Most African countries got their independence in the 1960’s, and typically it was the country’s freedom fighters who came into power.
Zimbabwe did
not obtain majority rule until 1980 and has still a group of freedom fighters as the powerful elite of the country. Most countries in southern Africa have gradually got rather solid democracies after
the first generation of leaders have retired â€" a process which also Zimbabwe now has begun, a process which certainly will lead the country on the right course again. The question is only
how much time it will take and how much the population will suffer in the process.
[ Any views expressed in this article are those of the writer and not of Reuters. ]
A protester holds a banner as she takes part in a hunger strike to protest against Iran's government, on the Global Day of Solidarity for Iran, in Berlin July 25, 2009. ...
