US
pro-democracy groups have urged Zimbabwean authorities to take steps to ensure
a free and fair election in July and break from a history of flawed elections
under long-
time ruler Robert Mugabe.
“Changing
Zimbabwe’s electoral trajectory will require pro-active and concerted efforts
to instil public confidence,” the International Republican Institute and the
National Democratic Institute said in a statement late Friday after a week of
pre-election observation.
Zimbabwe
holds a general election on July 30, the first without Mugabe who was forced
out of office after a brief military takeover last year.
David
Dreier, a former United States Congressman and member of the IRI-NDI monitors,
told reporters in Harare that while the observers have “found several notable
improvements in the political environment and electoral preparations as
compared to prior elections, a number of significant opportunities to break
with the past have been missed.”
“As a
result, we still have concerns about the fairness of the process.”
The group
said while Zimbabweans welcome President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s public
commitments to hold credible elections there were concerns whether the military
will accept the outcome of the presidential polls.
They called
on senior military officers to make “public and unambiguous statements” that
the army will loyally serve whoever wins the elections.
The
statement came days after the main opposition staged street protests to
pressure the authorities to adopt a slew of reforms to ensure a fair poll.
The Movement
for Democratic Change (MDC) party wants to observe the printing of ballot
papers, that Zimbabweans based abroad be allowed to vote and the removal of
military personnel seconded to the electoral commission.
Mnangagwa
will square off with former student activist Nelson Chamisa leading a coalition
of opposition parties under the MDC-Alliance.
A new
pre-poll survey by Afrobarometer published this week showed the ruling Zanu-PF
would attract 42 percent of the vote compared to 31 percent for the MDC,
meaning the election could go to a run-off.
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