Monday, February 2, 2009

MUAFAKA Negotiations

THE MUAFAKA NEGOTIATIONS.

INTRODUCTION.

MUAFAKA is a Swahili word which means ACCORD in English.Muafaka is the term which was commonly used to refer to the commonwealth brokered accord. The Muafaka Negotiation followed increased tension in Zanzibar on parties, CUF and CCM that had resulted from domestic and international aftermath of the 1995 elections in the awake of the state brutality and repression against the opposition. The first muafaka was signed on June 9th, 1999 while the second was signed on the October 10th, 2001.

The negotiations was in essence an agreement to cooperate in the spirit of reconciliation, democratization, the promotion of human rights and the quest for good Governonce.The dialogue that eventually resulted in the accord was formally initiated by among others Brigadier General Hashim Mbita, Ambassador Abbas Syskes, Ambassador Sued and Hon Joseph Warioba in their individual capacities in 1996 out of concern for the stalemate that followed the 1995 elections.

The secretary general of Commonwealth at that time Chief Emeka Anyoaku joined in the mediation in February 1998.Dr Moses Anafu from the Commonwealth was assigned the specific task of mediating the tensions between the two parties. This papers content will continue giving out the strength and weaknesses of negotiations since its establishment and finally I will give recommendations on the way forward for peaceful transfer of power in Tanzania.


STRENGTH OF THE MUAFAKA NEGOTIATION.

•The Negotiations led to reform of the electoral laws.

The introduction of two important constitutional amendments, namely the 8th and 9th these provided for review of the electoral laws and a reform of the composition of ZEC that is Zanzibar Electoral Commission , hence generating more confidence in the process by the opposition. In amending the electoral laws Muafaka 2 made the following stipulations:

(a)The powers of the Director of Elections were reduced, such that the directorate was made to work upon the instructions of the ZEC.

(b)The previously absolute powers of the sheha (village leader) over voter registration were reduced. The importance of this reform lies in the fact that shehas are political appointees and as such staunch ruling party supporters.

(c)The residence requirements law enabling a person to participate in elections after moving into a new area was reduced from 5 to 3 years, thus enabling more Zanzibaris who changed residence to participate in the elections.

•Reform of Zanzibar electoral commission (ZEC).

One of the most important reforms introduced by Muafaka negotiation was the reconstruction of ZEC from its original composition. Thus, ZEC was reconstituted to provide the following:

(i)The inclusion of two members appointed upon the advice of the official opposition.

(ii)Two members were to be appointed upon the advice of the leader of government business in the house.

(iii)The Director of Elections was to be appointed by the president on the advice of the ZEC.

(iv)The ZEC was empowered to appoint its own returning officers.

•Establishment of the office of Director of prosecutions (DPP).

This appointment was informed by the need to separate the government and the ruling party from the DPPs office, as well as to improve upon the expeditious and fair administration of the system criminal justice. The DPPs office was removed from the Attorneys Generals chambers and established an independent department, under the ministry of constitutional affairs and Good Governance. In this case the DPP can execute his assignment with competence and impartiality.

•The leadership of two parties has developed a cordial relationship through the mechanism of the inter-party commission. This ensures that any grievances between the parties are amicably resolved.

•Muafaka negotiation stimulated a spirit of good neighborliness among zanzibaris.This minimizes the hatred that was developed between political affiliation members.eg before negations talking to person from different party was deemed treacherous, to such extent that a brother could not attend a social cultural gathering, such as the wedding of another if he belonged to a different party affiliation. The interaction between the parties has certainly resulted in decreased political tension, evidenced by the minimization of clashes between the different party members and the reduction of political cases in court.

Other strengths are:-

•The compilation of a credible voters register.

•The institution of a program of civic education as well as a review of the constitution.

•Recruitment procedures and training of the police has commenced.

WEAKNESSES OF MUAFAKA NEGOTIATIONS.

•There was articulated opinion that the agreement has not substantially addressed the bitterness amongst the people accrued from the history of political hostilities that led to the signing of the agreement. In other words, MUAFAKA has remained so exclusive that it has not been effectively translated down to the Grassroots communities.

•The grassroots have not been sufficiently involved in the debates about reconciliation, nor in the progress towards its achievement. In other words while the authority of the political elite was useful to stop the many tensions that existed in Zanzibar society at the time the process of reconciliation was commenced. There is no institutional framework to ensure the involvement of the people. Neither was ZEC given the mandate to disseminate the essential principles and understandings that make up MUAFAKA. Since Muafaka is not embedded in the minds and hearts of the people, it is easy for the principles of the agreement to be abandoned, at best, or even for an incitement to violence, at worst.

•The non involvement of other political actors.

While it is appreciated that initially MUAFAKA had to mainly target CCM and CUF being the two parties that had contribute most to the existing political crisis, the agreement should have embraced the other parties that operate on the Zanzibar political scene. This would have broadened the debate to embrace different point of view, as well as to expand the political arrangement beyond the two most important actors.


•Personalization of MUAFAKA.

On the other hand the commitment of the two secretariats General CUF (Seif Sharif Hamad) and of CCM (Yusuf Makamba) was commended as an illustration of the topmost commitment of the party. Process should be institutionalized in order to involve the party organs and demonopolise the control of the process by the two main actors, rather than continuing to depend on the goodwill of only a few prominent personalities in the party bureaucracies. In sum, the process, the impression that has been created is that without them, the process would come to naught.

•CCM participation in the accord.

CCM is much more visible as government, than it is as party. According to this point of view, the fact that CCM representatives are busy elsewhere (especially in government) has affected their participation in the MUAFAKA.e.g The co chairperson of CCM is also CCM general secretary, member of Parliament as well as member of the National executive committee of the ruling party. It is also recognized that the CO- chair from the CUF is the leader of the opposition.

Other weaknesses are:-

•Lack of popular participation in the process, being restricted to CUF and CCM.

•With the exception of the political party branch levels, there is no institutional framework to ensure the involvement of the people in the debates about reconciliation, nor in the progress towards its achievement.

•MUAFAKA is specifically tied to the electoral process and its outcome.

•No provision was made for monitoring the agreement.

•There was no mechanism for the implementation of the compact; instead the agreement largely depended on the good will of the parties, with the interparty, committee having only an advisory status.

•Commonwealth was merely a moral guarantor of the accord; nothing was done from the organ to enforce the implementation of the agreement as an external agent.

•Thus the accord remains dead letter due to lack of political commitment.

WAY FORWARD TOWARDS PEACEFUL TRANSFER OF POWER IN TANZANIA.

•There is the need to address those historical questions that continue to affect the political situation in Zanzibar and particularly the fundamental issues of the union, democracy, human rights and the relationship between Unguja and Pemba.

•Mechanisms for civic and political education and especially for the promotion of greater citizenship participation/multiparty democracy need to be put in place in Zanzibar.

•The independence of the judiciary should be entrenched in the constitution, through ensuring security of tenure and the creation of a credible and independent of judicial service commission.

•CUF and CCM need to be more tolerant and appreciative of each other as political competitors. There is an acute need in Zanzibar to move away from “the winners take all” attitude.

•It is essential to have a frank, candid and comprehensive discussion of all aspects of the union between Tanganyika and Zanzibar with a focus not only on what the union was intended to be, but also on what it has actually evolved into and in which direction the peoples of Tanzania and Zanzibar want it to develop.

•There should be stern strategies to develop the extreme underdevelopment in certain areas especially Pemba and remove selfish interest.

•Competent forum for political parties should be initiated to discuss and solve their problems through dialogue.

CONCLUSION.

•Muafaka is not well constituted as a forum for wide constitutional public debate. There is particular problem with MUAFAKA regarding its representative ness and inclusiveness. In short, there is a need to establish amore embracing mechanism that covers a wider spectrum of opinion and interest.

•MUAFAKA deals mainly with political (especially the electoral) dimensions, but there are many issues that are the cause of tensions on the island.However, it is limited to the two main parties who certainly cannot be viewed as representative of all Zanzibar’s, whether politically or otherwise. In other words the constitutional dialogue should encompass varied interests and be conducted in an open environment to stimulate free discussion over the controversial and emotional issues.

REFERENCE.

Joseph Oloka Onyango&Maria Nassali (2003): Constitutionalism and Political Stability in Zanzibar: The Search for a New Vision. A report of the fact finding mission organized under the Auspices of Kituo Cha Katiba.

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