Zimbabwe: Elections

Mr. Swire
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking to encourage the next presidential and parliamentary elections in Zimbabwe to be free and fair.

Meg Munn
We believe that if the forthcoming elections in Zimbabwe are to be held in line with international standards, including those adopted by Southern African Development Community (SADC), there need to be significant changes in the way the elections are currently being organised. These include the removal of all military personnel from the election management process; all parties able to hold rallies, campaign freely and have free access to the media; voting rights for the substantial Zimbabwean diaspora; and a fairer and more transparent voter registration process. We also believe that international election observers should be given access to Zimbabwe at the earliest opportunity, since preparations are already under way. We will work with EU, SADC and other African and international partners to encourage these changes.