Abstract:
The defining moment of Zimbabwean constitutional reform came in 2008 after the disputed and violence riddled elections of 2008 when the three main political parties entered into a transitional Government of National Unity and were tasked with the establishment of a new constitution which was ultimately adopted in 2013 following a protracted and turbulent process which began in 2009. Some segments of the civil society however argued that the concerned political parties had ‘captured the constitutional project and narrowed it to a short-term struggle motivated by the pursuit of party political interests at the expense of the will of the people and nation’s broad long-term interests’, and thereby subverted and/or negated the aspirations of the people. It is against this background that the study therefore assesses the participation, role and significance of the rural populace in the drafting of the 2013 Zimbabwean Constitution. The study traces the history of constitutional reform efforts in Zimbabwe, beginning with the colonial Lancaster House Constitution of 1979, to the protracted exercise of 2009 to 2013 which gave birth to the current Constitution. It focuses on the 2009-13 constitution making process as a case study. The study employs an interdisciplinary approach by adopting both doctrinal and empirical research approaches. The study employed the doctrinal research approach to provide for a doctrinal analysis of the relevant global, regional and domestic legislation and case law. The empirical research approach, through interviews, was used to collect qualitative data from the general members of the rural populace and key institutions such as political parties and human rights organisations from three selected rural districts, namely Bulilima, Makonde and Mutasa. The study indicated that while a significant number of the rural populace participated in the constitution making process, the legal environment which subsisted during the constitution making process did not allow for the unfettered flow of information and ideas, as a direct result of repressive legislation such as AIPPA, Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act, Interception of Communications Act and POSA, among others similar laws, and as well as the deeply polarised political environment owing to the nature of the relationship between the ZANU PF-led government and the opposition political parties. The study further showed that the process was heavily dominated by the political parties to the Global Political Agreement and all the political parties wanted to ensure the adoption of a constitution that best reflected their preferences and partisan views rather than the will of the masses, making the 2013 Constitution an elitist negotiated document, contrary to the provisions of Article VI of the GPA which provided for the right of Zimbabweans to make a constitution for themselves and by themselves.
