Zimbabwe elections
The South African Government joins the entire international community in expressing its congratulations to the people of Zimbabwe for the peaceful environment in which the recent elections for the Presidential, House of Assembly, Senate and Local Government were held.

In this regard, we join the international community in expressing our congratulations to President Thabo Mbeki for the work done, under the SADC mandate, to help create a climate conducive for the holding of these elections (through facilitation of discussions between ZANU-PF and the two MDC factions) to create conditions to ensure that the outcomes would not be contested.

Accordingly, an in response to the official announcement of the House of Assembly, Senate and Local Government elections, we congratulate all political parties for their performance in these elections.

South Africa has noted the Preliminary Report of the majority of the members of the SADC Observer Mission that "Despite the concerns raised before the elections, the mission evaluated and observed that the basic conditions for a free, peaceful and credible election were there and that the results of these elections were a credible expression of the will of the majority of the people of Zimbabwe."

In this regard, we take cognisance of the recommendations of the SADC Observer Mission that "there is need for some changes in the electoral process in Zimbabwe so that there is equal access to state media by all political parties, voter education and the decisions made must be published.

Accordingly we express the hope that the relevant Zimbabwean authorities will indeed act upon this and other recommendations, as part of efforts to strengthen institutions of democracy in their country."

The results available to date are:

House of Assembly:
ZANU-PF: 97 seats
MDC (Tsvangirai): 99 seats
MDC (Mutambara): 10 seats
Independent: 01 seat
[There are a total 210 seats in the House of Assembly].

Senate:
ZANU-PF: 30 seats
MDC (Tsvangirai): 30 seats

Local Government elections:
Still awaiting the results.

Presidential elections:
Still awaiting the results.

It is important that the expressed will of the people is respected. The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) should explain the delay in the announcement of the results. This will calm the situation and ease the tensions. The MDC has gone to court to get the ZEC to release the results of the presidential ballot and judgement has been reserved until Monday, 14 April 2008.

ZANU-PF is contesting the results in several wards and some ZEC officials have been arrested. Mr Tsvangarai's visit to South Africa (he met with the President of the ANC and Minister Mufamadi). He also visited Botswana, Mozambique and Zambia. There is a growing concern that the delay in announcing the results of the Presidential elections.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon:

"Nine days ago, the people of Zimbabwe voted in a responsible and peaceful manner. Concerned that presidential results have yet to be released in spite of the constitutional deadline. Urge the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission to discharge its responsibility and release the results expeditiously and with transparency. Calls upon all actors to act responsibly, exercise restraint and calm, and to address all issues regarding the elections through recourse to legal means and dialogue as necessary for the good of all Zimbabweans."

President of the ANC's comments on 8 April 2008

"I think once people have cast their votes and you have counted; whatever the results are, I think the commission is supposed to announce the results. I think keeping the nation in suspense and as you know the Zimbabwean issues has become an international issues, it's almost keeping the international community is suspense. I don't think it augurs very well."

Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) and Zimbabwean Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) speak out on Zimbabwe elections Combined statement issued 8 April, 2008

"The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission is not obliged to announce the council, parliamentary and senate elections as they are counted at polling stations, with results posted at each of the polling stations and announced at constituency command centres. The ZEC is however compelled by law to announce the presidential results.

It should be noted that all political parties including the ZANU (PF) and the MDC had party agents in all polling stations. These party agents signed for the results before these were posted in the polling stations. In addition to this ZCTU and other non-governmental organisations (NGOs) had monitors who witnessed the counting and the signing in most polling stations.

The ZANU-PF is also challenging the results in 16 parliamentary wards, just enough, if they succeed, to reverse the results in their favour and give them a majority of seats.

For that reason the ZCTU is urging all its members to remain calm, as the situation is a cliff-hanger and the popular mood is explosive. The ZCTU is however extremely concerned that in the context of divisions in the uniformed forces and even amongst the war veterans a possibility looms that people may lose patience."

Farm invasions

On 4 April 2008 the President of the Commercial Farmers' Union, Mr Gifford had a meeting with Ambassador Makalima and the 1st Secretary (Political). Mr Gifford was accompanied by three farmers.

Mr Gifford conveyed the following:
* Since the end of last week many farms have been invaded.
* Most of these farmers were about to harvest their crops. As a result, Zimbabwe risks losing food worth millions of American dollars. Dairy farmers are not allowed to milk cows with devastating consequences.

On 8 April 2008 the South African Embassy received news that two South African farms near Chinoyi had been invaded. In the case of Mr Neels van Heerden of Sinoia Drift farm, the Embassy called the local police. The Embassy was only informed at a later stage about the trouble on Mr Kooy's Mungwe farm.

The Embassy forwarded a diplomatic note to the Zimbabwean Foreign Ministry on 8 April 2008 to plead for the protection of South African farmers. An Extra-Ordinary Summit of SADC will be held in Zambia on Saturday the 12th of April 2008 to deal with developments in Zimbabwe.

Questions and answers

Question: Minister will President Thabo Mbeki be attending the summit in Zambia on Saturday? And what is on his mind, what are the considerations in terms of deciding in the next few hours whether or not to meet Morgan Tsvangirai. Are there conditions under which he won't meet him?

Answer: The President was travelling when the announcement of the meeting was made and he arrived very early this morning. We are scheduled to meet after this briefing to discuss the summit. Of course he is a facilitator for SADC. If his programmes allow, as I said he is going to Mozambique tomorrow, it is our view that the President should attend the summit if his programme allows. It is a very important summit. I'm sure there have been consultations at various levels for the summit to be called.

Well there are no conditions re meeting with Mr Tsvangirai. As you know when he came, the President was already on his way out of the country. And therefore, it's only this morning that we've been made aware of the MDC request to President Mbeki. We will convey this to him today and it is our view, if Mr Tsvangirai is in town and before the President leaves for the next meeting and his programme allows it, it is important to hear what Mr Tsvangirai has to say.

Question: Deputy Minister, at the SADC meeting, it seems clear now that there is going to be a run-off, even ZANU-PF is saying so, will South Africa insist through SADC that if there is a run-off that election guidelines will be followed quite strictly during that run-off. And the ZEC says that, its excuse is that it's a complicated process that is why there are no results yet. Are you suggesting today that that excuse is running thin as far as the South African government is concerned?

Answer: No, the key thing about the run-off, it's clear that everybody has come to the conclusion about the run-off, and of course as we've tried to do during the elections of the 29, we will try to ensure that there is strict adherence to the guidelines of SADC. And indeed it is my view that South Africa's and Sac's and indeed the AU, the other regions like Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) etc but indeed the international community as a whole must work together to ensure that whatever we do creates conditions for these run-offs to take place in the same atmosphere of peace and stability. Because otherwise as you know there is no hope that you will be able to deal with the situation in Zimbabwe. Given that people are watching the situation so closely we must make sure that this run-off is held under the best conditions possible.

No, I don't know about excuses. I just read the Secretary-General's statement, he also calls for calm. Suddenly the word calm has become a swear word. Calm by its very nature means don't resort to any unconstitutional means to try to resolve any concerns one has. Infact in Zimbabwe and anywhere else you need a situation of calm despite concerns and tensions. You don't want any resort to violence which can only be disastrous for Zimbabwe.

So there is a court case going on while they are contesting many wards. And we do hope that this does not delay the processes of announcing for too long because to take any meaningful action, you have to wait for the results in order to plan what should be happening next.

Question: Minister you've said it's not time to lose patience, the MDC is warning that there will be violence if there isn't any intervention. And you yourself have said that there are farm invasions. The international community has called for the results to be released. When will the South African government lose its patience?

Answer: It's not a question of losing patience. Government has to work within certain frameworks, all governments. And I keep saying this, NGOs, including the ruling party which when it's speaking on behalf of the party can work within a framework that is not how governments have to work.

Our allies COSATU have also made their statement clear. Church leaders have made their positions clear. Non-governmental organisations (NGOs) can say things and express their views differently from how governments have to act. We have to consult at every level including within SADC. And indeed this summit that SADC has called will be an opportunity for the region as a whole to assess the situation and consider what we can do to help the Zimbabwean people resolve any outstanding problems we have.

So it's not a question of losing patience. In diplomacy, you can't lose patience because when you lose patience, you go to war. And we are not about to go to war.

Question: I just want your comments on Ms Helen Zille's call for the Zimbabwean question to be put by South Africa to the Security Council. Another question is whether there is any legal timeframes for the results to be announced? How long are we supposed to wait for them? Another question is what do you think South Africa can do more about this situation to be resolved?

Answer: I don't know of Zille's call for Zimbabwe to go to the Security Council. It's clear she doesn't understand the processes of issues that can get onto the Security Council agenda. And therefore calls like this that are not based on any realistic understanding of processes are just meaningless, I think.

Yes the presidential elections according to the law should have been announced 21 days after the elections. There is some debate on that. I believe it was 21 days after the election polling stations have closed. 21 days was a maximum period within which the presidential elections should have been announced.

What more can South Africa do? I think I did indicate that there is a facilitator who did, I believe, very much in terms of trying to create conditions for the elections. I believe the results are a reflection of this situation. We with SADC will continue to see what we can do to ensure that the will of the people is reflected and that the way the Zimbabweans solve their problems will be without any resort to violence, and indeed must be done in a peaceful way. Therefore, we will continue to argue as I've said so many times that we will do everything to ensure that the will of the people must be reflected. And once these election results come, we will then act accordingly.

Question: Minister, there's not been a statement from the South African government expressing a worry that there is a contest of certain constituencies or polling stations, yet the results are not out in terms of the presidential elections. And yet there is a number of polling stations that are said to be contested by ZANU-PF. Why is there no expression at all of concern that the results are being delayed, they are being contested and there is also talk of a rerun? There just seems to be confusion here, even the SADC principles would have surely preferred otherwise.

Answer: As I tried to express earlier, there is contestation of election results. The results have not been given. They've gone to court to get the election results announced urgently. It's very difficult as government to announce on any of these matters because of the procedures that are being followed through the courts and elsewhere.

And as I tried to explain as government we have to tackle such delicate issues as the Zimbabwean one, there are many more, in a way that helps contribute to finding a solution rather than creating conditions for greater problems in any country, in this case Zimbabwe. So we are actively involved through our various missions, through the presidency itself.

As I said Minister Mufamadi met Mr Tsvangirai a few days ago. The president of the ANC met Mr Tsvangirai. They have not made public what was discussed. I think that in itself reflects the sensitivity and delicacy of this period.  Even the MDC has felt that at this stage it is not proper for them to reveal the nature of the discussions that they've been having with the various leaders in South Africa.

I think it is those circumstances that guide us as government on how to handle this particular period in the Zimbabwean history. It is a very crucial period in the Zimbabwean history. What we as government do can either help the Zimbabweans to find a solution or create conditions for greater problems in Zimbabwe. As government we have taken the view that there is a facilitation team that is under Minister Mufamadi and the presidency. And we will at all times when they think it is appropriate give more elaborate reading of the situation. We will expect then to do that. As Foreign Affairs we can only talks of the situation as we see it, which is not fully in tune with what is happening at the Facilitation level.

Question: Minister Pahad I just wanted to check with you that there is also talk of Mr Tsvangirai trying to seek asylum in Botswana. Are you aware of this? Have you heard anything to this effect?

Answer: The one thing about Zimbabwe at the moment is that rumours and counter rumours are penny by the dozen. I don't know why Mr Tsvangirai would want to seek asylum in Botswana. We have not heard of any such rumour. We believe he is confident that the elections results that were being announced were according to what they had predicted. He is confident that if there is a rerun the opposition would be successful. And so there is no need for him to seek any asylum. We don't know anything of that sort.

Question: Minister you said that you have to tread carefully because unlike NGOs, you are government. But Jose Manuel Barosso in Brussels is not an NGO, Washington is not an NGO. They've called for results to be published as soon as possible and they are not NGOs.

Answer: We have called for the votes to be announced as soon as possible. Even today you'll see that I'm calling for that.

Question: About the SADC mandate, you've said the goal was to lead to free and fair elections and a system that would ensure that the results are not contested by any of the parties. Has the mandate, has the mission failed?

Answer: No. It is my considered view, and I believe it is everybody's view, including the opposition in Zimbabwe and the international community generally, that in the short period of the facilitation getting the conditions created for the government and the two factions of the MDC to meet collectively, led to a situation of agreement on many issues including Amendment 18 which dealt with all the aspects of the media, freedom of expression etc. And other amendments to the constitution which created conditions for nobody to challenge that on the day, although the turnout was exceptionally low, but that's nothing new to Zimbabwe and many countries, that although the turnout was low we are convinced that the people were able to express their will through the secret ballot.

So I don't believe that the facilitation has failed. I think it created the conditions for people to go and vote. People went to vote. The results are reflective of the people's will. The only problem is the delay in announcing the presidential elections.

So in the totality of what has been achieved I want to believe that the facilitation, supported by all of SADC, has been a success.

Question: Minister you've talked about appealing for calm. Is there any direct appeal from South Africa to the Zimbabweans?

Answer: Yes, in several of our speeches we've called on all Zimbabweans to obey the law and to remain calm and patient understanding that there's growing tensions, allegations of vote rigging etc. So in this context and now there are new allegations of violence against MDC by what is termed war veterans.

So we are calling on everybody to obey the law, including on farm invasions, not to carry out any actions that are against the law. And therefore it is in the interests of Zimbabwe to sustain this situation where Zimbabweans have shown tremendous seriousness. Many sectors have been angry at the delay. They've not resorted to violence. And that I think is a very good thing for Zimbabwe.

And we've always and will continue to call on the people of Zimbabwe to await the election results and not to resort to any unconstitutional means. This is a message to all sides.

Question: There were shortcomings reported by all missions, including those you mentioned by SADC. Do you hope that before the run-off that those shortcomings would be addressed? Things like the access of more observer groups, more independent observer groups, and access for independent journalists to oversee those elections. And then the basis for these farm invasions is allegations by ZANU-PF that white farmers had returned and threatened to reclaim the land that they had been dispossessed of. Has your intelligence sources indicated whether there is any truth or any substance to this at all?

Answer: If you read the SADC, the AU and the other preliminary findings you will find that all refer to certain shortcomings. I just read out a few of them. I don't know whether in the run up to the elections there's going to be enough time to deal with all those shortcomings.

I do hope that the resources will be there for the observers to return for the run-off, because the run-off will be crucial. We hope that SADC will take a decision to return the observers at the appropriate time. All this will depend on whether we will be invited to go to the run-off. We have no reason to believe that we will not be invited to the run-off.

But it will be important that we have substantial observers to really be confident at the end that the will of the people was expressed. So we will continue to argue for SADC observers to return to Zimbabwe for the run-off.

These allegations of white farmers, personally I cannot take them seriously. It will be foolhardy for any white farmer to go around reclaiming land when they don't even know what the results of the elections are. I don't know where they would come from, who would bus them and from where. So in the absence of any substantial proof on this matter, I would treat them not that seriously.

Question: Minister, there were reports last week about diplomatic efforts, secret diplomatic efforts to try to get President Mugabe to concede defeat and step down. Was South Africa involved in any efforts of that nature? And also we don't publicly call for results to be released soon. Is South Africa applying any pressure on Zimbabwe to release the results immediately?

Answer: No we are not a government that asks other presidents to step down. We hope nobody will tell when our presidents must step down. It is the will of the South African people; it is not the will of any government. And we will never, while we are in government, ever allow a situation where we ask other presidents to step down.

What basis will we have to do that? We are not Zimbabweans. They are not the tenth province of our country; therefore we will never do that.

Through the facilitation process and through our interactions at various levels, we are in constant touch with all sectors of the Zimbabwean society. The opposition, two oppositions, Simba Makoni, the government the Zimbabwean NGOs to discuss with them what is their assessment of the situation.

As the Deputy President (Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka) said on her visit to the Netherlands, people are overestimating what South Africa can do. We are not a hegemonistic power in the region that on the whim of South Africans can impose its will on any country.

We can't take on the weakest countries and we don't intend to do that. Within the framework which is wrongly classified as quiet diplomacy. There is no other diplomacy; diplomacy by its very nature is done in various ways. Every government knows how diplomacy works. And so in that way we've been engaged with the Zimbabwean situation for well over ten years in terms of assisting the Zimbabweans find a way of solving their problems. We've been doing that bilaterally, through SADC and through any other multilateral efforts that are made.

I want to stress what the Deputy President has said, if we South Africans suddenly go into an illusionary frame of mind that what we think can happen, must happen then we are living in very dangerous times. There is no South African government that will try to impose its will or force, and that will never happen.

Extract from: Notes for Deputy Minister Aziz Pahad briefing to media, Thursday 10 April 2008, Union Buildings, Pretoria. Issued by the Department of Foreign Affairs April 10 2008