Johannesburg — Members of parliament in Zimbabwe, who were up all night locked in a marathon 12 hour session, adjourned early Thursday, continuing a debate on controversial security legislation. The opposition argues that, if passed, the bill will give President Robert Mugabe carte blanche repressive powers to stifle his opponents, ahead of upcoming presidential elections in March.
The government had hoped to push through the security bill in the house overnight. It failed, but with a majority 93 out of 150 seats in parliament, Mugabe's governing Zanu-PF party is likely to succeed in making the bill law in time for the landmark presidential poll.
The MPs finished at 2h10 GMT Thursday and are set to resume at 12h30 GMT to vote on the bill which has been strongly condemned by the opposition.
The parliamentary session came after an announcement by the Zimbabwean authorities, earlier Wednesday, that the presidential election would be held on March 9 and 10.
Shortly before, Zimbabwe's defence forces' commander, General Vitalis Zvinavashe, signaled that the army would not accept an opposition victory in the poll. He warned that the military would back only national leaders who had fought in the war of liberation against white minority rule.
That would effectively exclude Mugabe's main rival Morgan Tsvangirai, the leader of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC). The president has accused his rival, and the MDC, of being puppets of white Zimbabweans and of Britain, the former colonial power in then-Rhodesia. Mugabe has described his opponents as enemies of the liberation struggle.
In his statement, the military commander said: "We wish to make it very clear to all Zimbabwean citizens that the security organisations will only stand in support of those political leaders that will pursue Zimbabwean values, traditions and beliefs for thousands of lives lost in pursuit of Zimbabwe's hard-won independence. Any change designed to reverse the gains for the revolution will not be supported".
Tsvangirai, a former trade unionist, is posing the toughest challenge to the political career of Mugabe, 77, after more than twenty years in power. The Zimbabwean leader has seen his popularity plummet over the past two years, as the country has lurched from one political crisis to another, exacerbated by a failing economy.
Having set the presidential polling date for March 9 and 10, Mugabe's bid for re-election appears unlikely to be affected by any plan to suspend Zimbabwe from the Commonwealth. This proposal, backed by Britain and Canada, could be put before the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting (CHOGM) in Brisbane, Australia, the week before Zimbabweans vote.
On Tuesday, the British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw called some of the planned measures in the new legislation "preposterous". He warned that "if the situation in Zimbabwe continues to deteriorate, Britain will argue for Zimbabwe's suspension from the Commonwealth at the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in March".
There has been vocal international criticism, especially from Britain, of Mugabe's human rights' record, government policies and controversial land reform programme. This has seen the violent occupation of white-owned farms by government-backed groups calling themselves war veterans, who are committed Mugabe loyalists.
The Zimbabwean president says the plan is needed to right the inequities of colonialism and ensure the redistribution of the properties to landless black people. But observers say the poor are profiting less than some already wealthy people who are in, or close, to the government.
Flanked by airforce, police and other security chiefs, General Zvinavashe also warned journalists not to cause "instability". Targeting the media, the Defence Forces' commander said they should not "generate profits out of false reports that discredit the leadership and membership of security organisations".
On Tuesday, the government failed to pass part of its controversial package of legislation in parliament, because of a low turnout by ZANU MPs in the house after the recess. But Mugabe's party has made it clear that the defeated bill -- and two other equally tough pieces of legislation, which observers say are designed to silence the media and increase police powers -- will become law.
Almost everything, says the opposition, could be criminalised in Zimbabwe with what it calls Draconian new legislation.
The security bill being debated overnight would give the authorities the powers to "protect public order and security and to deal with acts of insurgency, banditry, sabotage, terrorism, treason and subversion". The penalties are life imprisonment or death.
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The opposition MDC says it has won some important amendments to the public order and security bill, and that a clause has been dropped that would have allowed the authorities to detain civilians, without charge, for seven days without bringing them to court. This will remain at 48 hours.
But the concessions are minimal. Legislation that would ban unauthorised gatherings and require Zimbabweans to carry identity documents is expected to become law after parliament reconvenes Thursday.
It would still remain an offence in Zimbabwe to criticise the president, "to undermine the authority of the president by making statements or publishing statements that provoke hostility". The bill would also outlaw publishing "false statements prejudicial to the state or that incite public disorder, violence, affect defence and economic interests of the country or undermine confidence in security forces".
Tough fines and jail sentences await journalists who publish or communicate news "likely to cause alarm and despondency".
Also scheduled to come before parliament Thursday is a controversial media bill that bans foreign journalists and obliges local reporters, approved by the government, to comply with strict regulations.
