SANF 06 No 79
Teams from the Southern African Development Community (SADC), African Union (AU), European Union and SADC Parliamentary Forum (SADC PF) will observe Zambia’s fourth multiparty democratic elections set for 28 September.
A 41-member SADC Electoral Observer Mission (SEOM), which was launched on 21 September, has deployed teams to observe the conduct of the electoral process in Zambia’s nine provinces.
The teams will assess whether the political parties and electoral administrators are adhering to the SADC Principles and Guidelines Governing Democratic Elections, a regional instrument for assessing polls that was adopted by SADC leaders in 2004.
The Zambian polls will be the fifth to be conducted using the SADC electoral guidelines after Mauritius, the United Republic of Tanzania, Zimbabwe and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The SADC electoral guidelines are a non-legally binding electoral tool that was approved by Heads of State and Government at the regional body’s summit in Mauritius in 2004.
Under the guidelines, SADC Member States have agreed to guarantee the full participation of all their citizens in their country’s political processes.
This includes, among others, the need for political tolerance; regular intervals for elections as provided for by the respective national constitutions; equal opportunity for all political parties to access the state media; and equal opportunity to exercise the right to vote and be voted for.
The SADC observer mission is led by the United Republic of Tanzania’s Minister for Good Governance, Philip Marmo. The United Republic of Tanzania is the current chair of the SADC Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation, which rotates on a yearly basis.
The AU observer team is being led by Mninwa Johannes Mahlangu, chairperson of the National Council of Provinces of the South African Parliament. It arrived in Lusaka on 17 September.
The AU team will be guided by provisions of the Declaration on the Principles Governing Democratic Elections in Africa, which was adopted by the Heads of State and Government in Durban, South Africa, in 2002.
“The AU is assured that as Zambia embarks on this renewed process of democratisation, the presence of its team and other international observer groups and monitors in Zambia will further ensure credibility and transparency of the election process,” said Mahlangu in a statement released on 24 September.
The AU team will remain in Zambia until 5 October when it is expected that the results will be ready and winners are declared by the Electoral Commission of Zambia.
The SADC PF election observer mission is confident that Zambia’s forth multi-party democratic elections since 1991 will be smooth.
Head of the parliamentary delegation and Speaker of the Mauritian National Assembly, Rajkeswur Purryag, said his team has so far been impressed by the peaceful campaign environment that has characterised the Zambian polls.
The team will be interested in the procedures and transparency of the counting, reconciliation and verification of the ballots and the announcement of the results.
“An assessment of the impartiality and facilitative role of security forces in the forthcoming elections will form an integral part of the observation process,” Purryag told the media in Lusaka.
President Levy Mwanawasa is facing stiff challenge from veteran politician, Michael Sata, and wealthy business tycoon, Hakainde Hichilema, who is leading a three-party alliance.
Former vice-president, Godfrey Miyanda, and lawyer, Ken Ngondo, are also in the race for the presidency.
Mwanawasa took over presidency from Fredrick Chiluba during the 2001 elections. Chiluba has backed Sata for president.
Mwanawasa has described Chiluba’s backing of an opposition candidate as revenge for his arrest and prosecution on allegations of corruption. Chiluba has been appearing in court for corruption but has denied all the allegations.
