HARARE – Civil society groups have urged Zimbabwe’s three governing political parties to jointly engage security commanders to reassure them about their future in return for guarantees that the military will not block the country’s democratic transition process.

 Zimbabwe’s hardliner generals are widely seen as wielding a de facto veto over the country’s troubled transformation process and likely to block transfer of power to the winners of elections expected next year should the victors not be President Robert Mugabe and his ZANU PF party.

 The 55 non-governmental organisations working to promote democracy and human rights in Zimbabwe said ZANU PF and the two MDC formations of Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai and his deputy Arthur Mutambara should open talks with the commanders to look at “the interests and fears of the security chiefs”.

 The groups that met a week ago to discuss a constitutional referendum and elections penciled in for next year said in a statement: “Parties in the inclusive government should look at the interests and fears of the security chiefs and open negotiations with them with a view of making sure that they do not interfere with electoral processes.”

The NGOs did not specifically say whether they believed security commanders – who have been behind political violence and human rights abuses in Zimbabwe for the past three decades of Mugabe’s rule – should be granted amnesty as way to buy their cooperation. 

 But the security chiefs are known to oppose transfer of power from ZANU PF to especially Tsvangirai’s MDC party chiefly because they fear the former labour leader could order their prosecution for political violence and human rights abuses over the past 10 years, as well as the 1980s army atrocities against the minority Ndebele ethnic group.

  Tsvangirai -- who is and himself a victim of police brutality -- in September said, “discussions were taking place” with the military and other key stakeholders to ensure a successful democratic transfer of power.

 But the Prime Minister did not elaborate what exactly the discussions were about neither has he given an update on the matter since then.

 The ruling parties have not responded to the call that they make a joint effort to calm the fears of security commanders and ensure successful conclusion of the transition process. 

 The security chiefs are Mugabe’s staunchest allies and are credited with keeping the President in power after waging a ruthless campaign of violence in 2008 to force then opposition leader Tsvangirai to withdraw from a second round presidential poll that analysts had strongly tipped the MDC leader to win.

Tsvangirai had beaten Mugabe in the first round ballot but failed to achieve outright victory to avoid the second round run-off poll.

The security chiefs have previously vowed to never salute a president who did not take part in Zimbabwe’s 1970s liberation struggle, in what was seen as a clear warning they would topple any government led by Tsvangirai who did not take part in the independence war.

By Zimonline