Substantive Content of Electoral Law: Your petitioners appeal to this August House to take into account in detail below the issues raised above for the democratic overhaul of Zimbabwe’s Electoral Law. 1. Independence of ZEC: Section 235 of the Constitution provides for the independence of all constitutional commissions, amongst them the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC). Your petitioners respectfully submit that, in the light of section 235 of the Constitution, section 192(6) and (12) of the Electoral Act, to the extent that it tends to undermine the guaranteed independence, is patently unconstitutional, and should be repealed from the Act. 2. Political Environment: Your petitioner is cognisant of the fact that some of the issues relating to elections are housed outside the Electoral Law. It is critical that the 8th Parliament urgently addresses the political environment, which is critical for the conduct of the next Harmonised Elections in 2018 as a matter of urgency, to ensure that the results are not subject to contestation. This it can do by attending to the following: • • • • Repealing legislation that hampers free lawful political activity, such as the Public Order and Security Act (POSA), the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA), and also instituting media reforms, and access to information; Legislating for an enforceable electoral Code of Conduct for chiefs and other traditional leaders as a schedule of the Electoral Act; Incorporating an electoral Code of Conduct for members of the security sector, who have been at the centre of political disputes on elections, in terms of their objectivity and neutrality; Ensuring that the enforcement mechanisms in respect of obligations created by law enable the ZEC to hold transgressors to account; 3. Voter Registration and the Voters' Roll: In line with the principles underpinning voter registration, the legal framework must: • • • • • Enhance principles of voter registration Ensure that voter registration is continuous Ensure accessibility of the process to people living with disabilities and the blind Outlaw the use of voter registration slips Guarantee readability and timely accessibility of the voters' roll. Lack of clarity in the Electoral Law on this matter has resulted in complaints by stakeholders, who must be enabled to access to the voters roll in a readable format. 4