THE recent dramatic events in the political sphere spawned many suggestions of how to resolve the political impasse as the drama was unfolding.
By Miriam Tose Majome
The political events highlighted the role of the law and the Constitution in politics. What happened before and thereafter which resulted in the installation and inauguration of the country’s third President showed an interesting and admirable respect of the law.
There was a palpable eagerness of all the players who were controlling and masterminding the events to remain within the confines of the law.
There was a definite restraint and unwillingness by the military to settle the political impasse using illegal means which they could very easily have. There was a strong desire to avoid giving the impression that whatever it was that had happened was a coup.
All the processes that happened thereafter were followed by legal endorsements as stated in the Constitution. The events and power take over were most intriguing and inspired this short overview piece on democracy, politics and the influence and implication of the law on political processes.
Spoliation
If the law can be broken down to one simple concept, it is simply that the law exists to avoid acts of spoliation. Spoliation is quite simply taking the law into one’s hands and helping oneself to achieve justice or one’s version of justice.
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Acts of spoliation include ruining or destroying things through the use of violence. People are violated, beaten up and punished and property destroyed in the course.
Acts of spoliation cause disorder and chaos in society because without the law and legal mechanisms nothing stops the powerful people in society from overrunning and abusing the weak members of society because the weak have no means to protect themselves.
The law through various processes provides mechanisms through which all people regardless of rank and status are enabled to seek and find protection and justice. An inherent and admirable regard to the law and due process is what prevented the military from storming in and shooting the former president dead.
They knew they would only have created more problems than they had set out to solve.
Whatever opinions people have and whatever name they may call the military operation which saw soldiers appearing on TV and riding into town in tanks and armoured vehicles and occupying certain strategic locations, what all must agree on is that they showed respect for legal processes.
The military showed a strangely encouraging determination to keep things legally acceptable in the handing over of power to the new president.
Democracy Worldwide
There are various forms of government and democracy is considered as the most ideal political arrangement.
Forms of democracy vary from country to country. As is increasingly clear much to the chagrin of the United States and European countries the poignant examples Somalia, Iraq, Libya and Afghanistan show there is no one size fits all democracy.
In a democracy people contribute to the power sharing and determine how they are governed and who governs them.
They have chances of expressing themselves through various systems such as elections, referendums and polls. The system of elections is the most popular means through which members of society express their views and make choices.
Leaders are installed by consensus through peaceful means and not by force through coups. The world is moving away from power grabbing and coups so it was important for Zimbabwe to be seen to be transferring power from the former president to the new president in a legally accepted manner through strict constitutional procedures.
Any other way would have made Zimbabwe a pariah state and the country would have been isolated by the international community no matter how tired and weary everyone had become with the former president.
Autocracy
It is believed that human societies have always had democratic systems of governance even from before the caveman era.
Democracy existed since the inception of human life around 200 000 years ago. As human beings evolved from more primitive primate forms and settled in small communities it was important for them to cooperate with each other and live in harmony.
It was vital to their survival to agree on how to run things in order to fend off wild animals and other threats as a united force. They formed small protective communities and practised simple primitive forms of democracy.
Things changed gradually as societies continued evolving and became more complex. The smaller communities and human settlements expanded and with that evolved newer forms of governance.
Without a formal legal structure rogue elements grew and took advantage of the weaker members of society. Wars between tribes and groups of people erupted over land and resources.
The victors enslaved those they had defeated and so monarchies began. Kings and Queens were made by declaration and subjugation of the weaker masses. Monarchies started when otherwise very ordinary people who for whatever reason were more powerful managed to defeat the weaker members. They declared themselves and their families as Kings and Queens to rule for generations thereafter.
Their assistants and those whom they favoured were appointed to powerful positions and they became land owners and noblemen. They helped the kings and queens consolidate power while they amassed great wealth at the expense of the ordinary masses. Very little has changed though.
Modern Democracy
A few developed countries like the United Kingdom, Spain, Netherlands and Sweden even though they are parliamentary democracies have still kept their tradition of having monarchs.
The Kings and Queens are merely titular and ceremonial and are not necessary for the running of governments.
They are kept as it seems for the mere amusement of the people like cute pets caged up in plush palaces. They are occasionally taken out for walks to wave to the people, cut ribbons and host fancy dinners.
In earlier centuries monarchs and the Catholic Church ruled with a firm grip and allowed no dissent. Even the smallest dissent meant brutal punishment, banishment or death.
There were no elections or any other meaningful participation from citizens except to obey the rules no matter how oppressive they were.
They had to work for the nobility and pay taxes and tithes. These autocratic systems of government were oppressive and people eventually got tired of the oppression and corruption of the ruling elites.
The history of people uprisings and revolutions such as the French Revolution, October Revolution, Glorious Revolution and numerous others were all attempts to fight for democratic systems of government.
All the revolutions ever mounted by people throughout history serve to show that democracy is the natural state of governance for humanity and for which they yearn.
The earliest forms of recorded modern democracy were in ancient Greek and Rome. Democracy is a very long and painful process and the fight for it never ends as there will always be powerful people who take advantage of the weak if they can get away with it.
Hence legal systems always have to be in place and enforced to prevent that happening or minimising it.
It takes a considerably long time for a country to achieve an acceptable semblance of democracy. It took Britain almost a thousand years to achieve full parliamentary democracy.
The Magna Carter written in England in 1215 is the first known recorded human rights and political charter. It contains many of the democratic principles in use worldwide today.
Even then, democracy is never totally achieved as more always needs to be done for the rights of minorities and less politically connected groups.
Democracy in Zimbabwe
Zimbabweans have been fighting for democracy from before colonisation in 1890. The tribal conflicts and fights against subjugation by other more powerful tribes attest to the constant desire for democracy.
The country has had its fair share of popular uprisings in modern times dating from the First Chimurenga, the war of liberation to more recent protests against the former president.
There would have been more protests and uprisings over the years for democracy had they not been heavily quashed by the police. Democracy is not a destination and is an ever ongoing process.
People will always have to fight for freedom from suppression by the powerful elite who never seem to learn from history.
Always, almost without fail even leaders with the best of intentions become corrupted absolutely by power and before long the masses start agitating again to go onto the streets.
One thing for sure is that every nation must go through its own fights for democracy. As has been proved, time and again, it is not possible to learn from the histories of other countries.
A country must chart its own course towards democracy and fight its own battles. As the battles and fights go on, it is vital that they remain within the confines of the law and follow due process as set out in the Constitution.
For now, some of us are pleased to note that by hook and crook our country appears to have acquitted itself well in that regard.
Miriam Tose Majome is a lawyer and a teacher. She can be contacted on [email protected]
