circumvent these requirements through programming that purports to be otherwise than it actually is. The public broadcaster may for example have current affairs culture or lifestyle programmes during which political discussions are held, even though the programme may not be described as such. Participants may be drawn from members of a single political party. Such platforms may be used to disproportionately favour the coverage of one party over the others. Such attempts to circumvent the rules set forth in this part must be specifically prohibited. Then again, unless there are clear and effective sanctions against such circumventions, the prohibitions will be merely salutary as are most of the present rules that are not backed up by sanctions. XVI ELECTORAL COURT Electoral Court’s Exclusive Jurisdiction • Clause 35 will amend Section 161 of the Act by extending the powers of the Electoral Court so that it will have all the powers of the High Court in relation to electoral matters such as appeals, applications, petitions and reviews under the Electoral Act. It will have exclusive jurisdiction over these matters falling under the Act. However, the Electoral Court will not have jurisdiction to try criminal cases, all of which have to go through the normal judicial avenues. Nevertheless, it must be noted here that this Bill introduces, under measures to curb politically-motivated violence and intimidation, special magistrates’ courts to deal expeditiously with cases of electoral violence, which are generally of a criminal character. At present the court’s jurisdiction is much more limited. • The challenge, as with the whole judicial system is the independence and impartiality of the Electoral Court. Critics of the judicial institution in Zimbabwe argued that it is politicallycompromised and that since 2001, the judiciary has been packed with judges who are sympathetic to ZANU PF. This is probably an unfair, blanket criticism which does not distinguish between the different judges. Whilst there may be some who are compromised, it is also fair to consider that there are those who remain guided by their professional standards. 42