| Muhammad Yussuf |
Dear Friends,
An
Observatory Meeting and LEAD Curriculum Development Workshop sponsored by
European Centre for Electoral Support was conducted in Gaborone, Botswana from
14 through 18 December 2015 with the objective of identifying drivers or
triggers of violence associated with electoral process in the SADC region and
recommending ways and means of containing the possible occurrence of electoral
related violence.
Among the
Participants who attended and contributed significantly to the work of the
workshop, included representatives from the SADC countries, such as Botswana,
Zimbabwe, South Africa, Namibia, Tanzania, Swaziland, Zambia, Malawi,
Mozambique and, of course, Zanzibar.
Representatives of each partner state
were required to make presentations on the situation of their countries. Since
there were three participants from Zanzibar, we decided to divide our
presentation into three different but complementary parts.
I began
by giving a brief historical background of the electoral conflict in Zanzibar
during the colonial period, the 1963 independence, the revolution and its
aftermath.
On his
part, Dr Mohammed Hafidh talked about the role of religious leaders/clerics in
advocating peace and stability during and after the elections; whereas Mzuri
Issa gave an elucidative presentation on the role of women and the media in the
electoral process.
Among
other important issues that were deliberated extensively during the workshop,
the ongoing political crisis in Zanzibar triggered by the infamous
nullification of the elections, figured prominently in the discussion that had
ensued.
Indeed,
it was the views of most participants that ZEC Chairman's unilateral and
illegal decision to nullify the elections, which all domestic and international
observers believed to have been conducted in an atmosphere of increasing
freedom, peace and fairness, was unfortunate and uncalled for.
If
anything, such decision on the part of ZEC Chairman was seen by most
participants as nothing more than a deliberate attempt to disrespect the will
of Zanzibari people in exercising their fundamental right to elect the leaders
of their choice.
In the
common quest to find a speedy and peaceful resolution to the conflict, most
participants expressed their support for the ongoing dialogue between the
Zanzibari leaders with the hope that the talks will subsequently culminate in
achieving a speedy and peaceful settlement of the conflict.
The few
photos below illustrate the identity of the participants and what had transpired
during the workshop.
Enjoy the
view.
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