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The Democratic Alliance (DA) calls on President Jacob Zuma, as the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) appointed mediator in the Zimbabwean political crisis, to take the lead in pushing for an end to the Zimbabwean political stalemate during this weekend’s SADC summit in Johannesburg. In particular, President Zuma needs to ensure that elections do not go ahead in Zimbabwe until progress has been made in a number of key areas.
The roadmap to democratic elections in Zimbabwe is not yet clear, and President Robert Mugabe has thus far failed to implement the necessary political reforms. South Africa needs to play a central role in taking a decisive stand against ongoing political repression in Zimbabwe as reports of intimidation, violence and voter fraud continue.
Given Zimbabwe’s current political climate, and the fact that basic preconditions for a fresh election- such as the drawing up of a new constitution- have not yet been met, SADC should steadfastly oppose President Mugabe’s attempts to push for early elections. Under the current conditions, it is likely that voting would be neither be free nor fair, and would, in all likelihood, lead to the political instability that saw the troubled Government of National Unity (GNU) established in the first place. 

The DA supports a communiqué released by SADC earlier this year following a summit held in Livingston, Zambia. In this report, SADC leaders called on Robert Mugabe to end the ongoing political turmoil in Zimbabwe and to implement immediate political reforms. 

Further action is now imperative. On Saturday, SADC delegates will be presented with an ideal opportunity to take a decisive stand against President Mugabe’s despotic regime, and to push for concrete changes. Both President Jacob Zuma and SADC need to use Saturday’s summit to present a united front against President Mugabe’s authoritarian rule, for reasons of both national and regional importance.