OPPOSITION parties under the banner of the National Electoral Reforms Agenda (Nera) are readying for a fresh round of protests to push President Robert Mugabe and the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) to implement electoral reforms.
by Everson Mushava
Nera held nationwide protests in July and August, which ended in violence, mostly in Harare and Bulawayo, when police tried to block them.
The momentum was, however, brought to a skidding halt after the police banned the protests through Statutory Instrument 101a, which temporarily prohibited demonstrations in Harare’s central business district for a month.
But Nera yesterday said it had lined up a series of nationwide protests to push for electoral reforms as the 2018 polls draw near.
“Nera national transitional working group (NTWG) has agreed to start a second wave of electoral reforms agenda push to make sure that reforms are not overtaken by events,” Nera NTWG chairman, Joelson Mugari said yesterday.
“Recently, the parliamentary committee on electoral reforms has faced massive resistance and disturbances from Zanu PF thugs. As Nera, we believe that if injustice becomes law, then resistance is our duty. We, therefore, call for a spate of marches on November 9, 16 and 23, 2016.”
He added: “We are calling on you, all national organisers, to convey this message to all provinces immediately and ask all Nera NTGW teams to start massive mobilisation for the peaceful marches.”
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Mugari called on all provincial working groups to notify the police of the protests by tomorrow”.
Nera last month said despite the ban on demonstrations by the police, they had decided to halt the protests to provide for time to consult provincial structures cascading down to ward level so that the protests would be massive.
The opposition parties also wanted to work on modalities of dealing with victims of police brutality during the demonstrations.
Mugari said their negotiations with Zec were moving at a slow pace when, in fact, elections were drawing closer and, hence, the decision to go back into the streets to ratchet up pressure on the Mugabe regime.
Nera last week participated in the nationwide consultations by Parliament and the private election lobby group, Election Resource Centre, but most of the meetings were disrupted by suspected Zanu PF youths.
