9 The Postal Vote Linked to the issue of Zimbabweans in the Diaspora is the issue of postal votes. It is our submission that the use of the postal system be extended to all Zimbabweans residing outside the country not the current scenario where only those who would be on official government duty during the time of the election are allowed to use the system. Furthermore, to create transparency, the Registrar General of Voters would be compelled to publicise the total number of people who would have applied for the facility and those who would have been granted the permission to vote using the system. Election observers should be allowed to supervise the process. Voter education The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission should also allow civil society organisations to conduct voter education. Provisions of the ZEC Act that seek to restrict the role of civil society in the imparting of voter education should be repealed. Civil society organisations, unlike political parties, usually provide the Zimbabwean voter with non-partisan electoral information that gives the voter an opportunity to vote from an informed position. Observers The government should also invite observers from all over the world to observe the entire electoral process. Election observation should not be a preserve of the so-called friendly countries. Inviting such observers usually boosts the electorate’s confidence in the electoral process and also enhances its transparency. The outcome of such an election is more likely to be accepted by all contestants. Such a culture of openness generally builds trust between the EMB and the contestants. Monitors The dissolution of the Electoral Supervisory Commission has created a void in that monitors no longer exist. In terms of the country’s legislation civil society organisations may only participate in

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