Voting for those in the Diaspora

Voting in the Diaspora

In 2000 Zimbabwe (Mugabe) stripped those living in the diaspora the right to vote. Their main reason for this was they had been corrupted by foreign media, so in their eyes this was going to be the “Swing Vote”, so how else to avoid a defeat. They withdraw that right and Zimbabwean Nationals abroad are refused to take part in choosing their own Leadership and Government. As long as you are a citizen of Zimbabwe you should have the right to vote regardles of where you are in the world, what happens in Zimbabwe affects Zimbabweans all over the world if not directly then via their families.

Over the years those in the Diaspora has contributed immensely to the Zimbabwean economy through various ways and has kept the country going during the dark days. The Zimabwean government recognised the power and the contributions of those abroad and decided against them taking part in the country’s elections.

After withdrawing the right to vote for those overseas the government was not quiet about the issue, their response was “Come back home and Vote”, a typical bully way of ZANU dealing with such issues. Most Democratic governments will simply allow all their citizens all over the world the right to vote with out being difficult because that is what happens in a democracy.

Zimbabweans overseas have been accused of being influenced by the “oneside” foreign media and how this can affect the way they vote. These are really shallow statesments on the government’s part as those in the diaspora are in contact with family and friends back home and do not have to rely on the media for current affairs. Foreign media does not know about my cousins not going to school or my great-aunt dying from lack of proper healthcare and my family suffering from human rights injustices. Those overseas are affected so surely they should have the right to decide who they employ. If those in the Diaspora are not backing ZANU PF or the new diluted formation it is not because of the BBC, NBC, CNN, ABC or Al Jazeera it is because of the way they are handling the country’s affairs. The government should not forget that they work for US, the people of Zimbabwe.

I urge the GNU to revisit this issue, we cannot rebuild a nation leaving out some of its citizens you can’t ignore the number of Zimbabweans who are living outside of Zimbabwe. Diasporeans are an important part of this jigsaw. As funny as it may Sound ZANU PF has “supporters” in the Diaspora and I am sure they would like to to be included in the electoral system (or maybe not as they know the outcome).

 If Justice Gorge Mutandwa Chiweshe (Zimbabwe Electoral Commission - ZEC Chairperson) wants his organisation to contribute to rebuilding Zimbabwe in a democratic way the Diaspora Electoral Bill should be revised.

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