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ZIMBABWE-CONSTITUTION Jul-15-2009 (600 words) xxxi
Catholics in Zimbabwe work to get citizen input into new constitution
By Bronwen Dachs
Catholic News Service
CAPE TOWN, South Africa (CNS) -- Catholic officials in Zimbabwe said they are working to involve ordinary Zimbabweans in a constitutional consultation, although many people fear retribution.
"People are apprehensive about taking part in discussions about the constitution but, while there is fear, this process has to happen," said Father Frederick Chiromba, secretary-general of the Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops' Conference.
Through its parishes and other structures, the church "is well-positioned to reach people and bring them into the process" of drafting the constitution, Father Chiromba said in a July 13 telephone interview from Zimbabwe's capital, Harare.
Under the deal that brought President Robert Mugabe's Zanu-PF party and the opposition Movement for Democratic Change into a coalition government in February, Zimbabwe is to draft a constitution that will go before voters for approval in a referendum in 2010, clearing the way for new government elections.
Noting that "we are doing our best to get the widest possible contribution," Father Edward Ndete, parliamentary liaison officer for the bishops' conference, said "the political environment is uneven" in rural Zimbabwe, with residents fearful of violent retaliation if they are seen to be critical of Mugabe.
Brutal state-sponsored violence targeting the opposition after disputed March 2008 elections left more than 80 people dead and 200,000 displaced, human rights groups said.
In Zimbabwe's cities, supporters of different political parties "are learning to co-exist" and there is "far less tension" between them, Father Ndete said in a July 14 telephone interview from Harare.
"We have invited people from rural areas to Harare so that they can see that people here are able to speak their views without negative consequences," he said.
Father Ndete, who is coordinating the church's participation in the constitution-making process, said the Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace in each diocese, "with the help of priests and parishioners," will gather people's ideas and views on the constitution.
Where necessary, civic education will be provided "to make it possible for everyone to have their say in what they want in a constitution," he said.
"It's important that people know why the constitution matters and that they feel ownership of it through their participation," he said.
A parliamentary committee to start the process of drafting a constitution organized a meeting in Harare July 13-14, and Father Ndete said "different viewpoints were heard and useful discussions held" among participating churches, civic groups, trade unions and lawmakers who will form teams to canvas Zimbabwe in public consultations until November.
The talks were disrupted by militants who pushed the speaker of the Parliament off the stage while singing anthems to Zimbabwe's 1970s liberation war. The talks resumed the next day under tight security, following a rare joint press conference by Mugabe and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, who condemned the violence.
Father Ndete, who is on the committee responsible for drafting the position paper of the country's churches, said, "We are calling for broad-based inclusion in the drafting of the constitution, openness and transparency, freedom of expression and receptiveness to different opinions."
Father Chiromba said that among the churches' main concerns are that the constitution has a strong bill of rights, strengthens Parliament, limits presidential powers and guarantees the independence of the judiciary.
Zimbabwe's current Constitution was written in Great Britain before the African nation gained independence in 1980.
In 2000, in his first electoral defeat since 1980, Mugabe lost a referendum on a constitution that would have expanded his already extensive presidential powers. Weeks later, state-sponsored invasions of white-owned farms began, setting off a spiral of political and economic turmoil that has left the country impoverished.
END
Copyright (c) 2009 Catholic News Service/USCCB. All rights reserved.
This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed.
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