United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has expressed concern over the recent developments in the country following the August 23 harmonized elections.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa was recently re-elected President amid allegations of a flawed process by the opposition and some observer missions from the international community.
In a statement, Guterres’ associate spokesperson Florencia Soto Nino-Martinez highlighted several troubling issues that have arisen in the lead-up to and during the elections.
“The Secretary-General is closely following developments in Zimbabwe’s elections. He is concerned about the arrest of observers, reports of voter intimidation, threats of violence, harassment and coercion. The Secretary-General calls on political leaders and their supporters to reject any and all forms of violence, threats of violence, or incitement to violence, and to ensure that human rights and the rule of law are fully respected.
“The Secretary-General calls on political actors to peacefully settle any disputes through established legal and institutional channels, and urges the competent authorities to resolve any disputes in a fair, expeditious, and transparent manner to ensure that the results are a true reflection of the will of the people,” said Gutteres
Gutteres’ comments also come in the wake of the arrest of 41 independent local -election observers from the Zimbabwe Electoral Support Network (ZESN) and the Electoral Resource Centre (ERC).
The forty-one were arrested on allegations of attempting to post the general election results and appeared in court on Friday.
They were granted US$200 bail each with stringent reporting conditions which will see them reporting to the police thrice a week.
They will be back in court on September 28.
