The report was tabled at a meeting of foreign ministers at the Third African Union summit held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia early in July 2004, but was stopped from being presented to the heads of state after Zimbabwe’s Foreign Minister Mudenge claimed that it had never been properly furnished in advance to the Zimbabwe Government. In fact it had been sent months before. The executive summary is highly critical of the Zimbabwe Government. It states: “The Mission is prepared and able to rule, that the Government cannot wash its hands from responsibility for all these happenings… By its statements and political rhetoric, and by its failure at critical moments to uphold the rule of law, the government failed to chart a path that signaled 4 a commitment to the rule of law.” The significance of the Commission’s report cannot be over-emphasised. The Zimbabwe Government has responded to the report with unrestrained fury, branding the African Commission as a tool of the West and blaming local civil society organisations for the submissions they made to it. Ironically, the very things which the African Commission has recommended, such as opening space to create an environment conducive to democracy and human rights, has galvanized the Government into doing precisely the opposite. Thus the Commission called for the review of “legislation that inhibits public participation 5 by NGOs in public education, human rights counseling.” Within days the Government made clear it was going to rush through parliament law that will effectively outlaw local NGOs from carrying out human rights activities, with any foreign funding of local NGOs to be made a criminal offence. Non-governmental Organisations Bill This legislation will be used as a weapon against non-governmental organisations the Zimbabwean Government does not like. The main target of this legislation is organisations that have been critical of the human rights and democratic governance record of the Government. These organisations will either be closed down or subjected to such stifling restrictions that they will not be able to operate. 4 Appendix p. 17, para 5. 5 Appendix p.18. 3