Open Society Initiative of Southern Africa (OSISA)

There has been a lot of talk in Zimbabwe recently about constitutionality and constitutionalism – about how to ensure that the country’s new Supreme Law is not co-opted and corrupted by the powers-that-be as the current constitution has been and that Zimbabweans enjoy the rule OF law not rule BY law. Nothing could have highlighted the importance of this debate as acutely as the wrongful arrest and illegal detention of renowned lawyer, Beatrice Mtetwa – the day after the country’s constitutional referendum.

More than three years after the inauguration of Zimbabwe’s Inclusive Government (IG) in February 2009, the piecemeal and painfully slow transition process is finally gathering some speed. It now seems as though the referendum on the new Constitution will take place before the end of 2012, followed by elections in the first half of 2013, which will once again pit President Robert Mugabe and his ZANU-PF party against Prime Minster Morgan Tsvangirai and his MDC.

Zimbabwe is often viewed – and certainly reported – as a country in which things are pretty black and white. But every now and then something happens that makes everyone wonder what is going on. Like this week’s decision by the High Court to give the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC) the authority to search the offices of three very powerful ministers from President Mugabe’s ZANU-PF party in connection with the biggest scandal in recent Zimbabwean history.