In a recent pastoral letter published on Thursday, the Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops Conference (ZCBC) called on the government and the opposition to put their differences aside and work together to free Zimbabwe from its current economic shackles and international isolation.
The influential bishops said a precedent of working together between government and opposition was set when the Government of National Unity (GNU) was formed by former President Robert Mugabe and former Prime Minister the late Morgan Tsvangirai under similarly difficult circumstances in 2009.
The Bishops wrote:
“Zimbabwe’s economy and prospects were positively revived and only began to regress yet again from the time the GNU expired in 2013…we call upon government to consult broadly and desist from unilateral imposition of policies that exacerbate the people’s suffering and to have policy consistency in order to instil confidence in investors, especially foreign investors.
We call upon government to desist from heavy-handed handling of dissent and expression of rights and grievances by the people and to desist from denying people their rights, including the barring of access to social media communication imposed on January 15, 2019.”
The Catholic clerics also called on all people to exercise tolerance towards each other and to express their constitutional rights in a peaceful and non-violent manner.
“Peaceful protest is provided for in the Constitution. Regrettably, citizens’ protests and acts of civil disobedience degenerated into violence, destruction of property, injury and loss of life. We urge you to always shun violence and be mindful to respect everyone’s rights, especially those who do not agree with you,” the letter said.
“Even in the midst of current tensions and disturbances, there are new opportunities to rebuild hope, trust, confidence and stability in our country. The task at hand requires our collective responsibility in upholding everything that is good and right, to promote unity, reconciliation, and national cohesion.
We wish to state our firm belief that Zimbabwe would easily become one of the best countries to live in on earth if only all of us, it’s people, committed to living and working with each other in harmony, tolerance and peace, putting the interests of the country before selfish and political party interests.”
The call for national dialogue to resolve the unfolding crisis and political gridlock between President Emmerson Mnangagwa and Advocate Nelson Chamisa following last year’s July 30 disputed presidential poll results, have, as of late, been advocated by both analysts and the clergy.
Among them being Dr Rev Kenneth Mtata (Zimbabwe Council Of Churches General-Secretary) and Prophet Blessing Chiza.
Even so, Zanu PF and MDC have set preconditions for dialogue of that sort; stalling any prospects for a quick breakthrough in what the Zimbabwe Council of Churches say does not bode well for the country.
Mr Chamisa, who initially refused to recognise Mnangagwa’s victory and thus triggered serious legitimacy issues with contagious effects on the economy; has of late offered himself for dialogue,
“for the sake of the suffering masses”.
Zanu PF spokesperson Simon Khaya Moyo welcomed the Churches proposition to have a dialogue between the two political protagonists, but not without challenging them to come up with parameters for the proposed engagement.
“In any case, the church has been praying for these problems that we are facing as a country, and if they think dialogue is the solution, they must lead the process in earnest. They have an edge over us because they are church leaders and it is their duty to lead the process, but with a clear agenda and roadmap,”
he said.
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