total of 5,695,706 voters (79% of the eligible population), 3,073,190 of whom were women (54%) and 2,622,516 men (46%). Credibility and Independence of the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) The BVR exercise was enabled through the Electoral Laws Amendment Act which was purportedly introduced to complete the alignment of certain provisions of that Act with the new Constitution. Apart from minor amendments to the terminology, the Act only dealt with technical issues affecting the BVR. The Act failed to provide a proper legal framework to facilitate and regulate the electronic BVR system, and it remained a mystery how data would be stored and transmitted, both at registration and during the election. ZEC was composed largely of personnel loyal to the ruling ZANU-PF party. For the most part, ZEC was secretive with information, and was behind schedule in terms of the election timelines. For instance, ZEC failed to release a finalised voter’s roll until after the nomination court announced, on 14 June, the 23 candidates to contest the presidency. The voter’s roll ZEC subsequently provided to opposition parties did not include biometric information and differed materially from the one used at polling stations on election day. Ballot papers were printed in an unbalanced layout with the names of 13 candidates in one column and 9 in the next such that President Mnangagwa's name appeared at the top of the second column. In July, High Court Judge David Mangota dismissed an Electoral Court challenge by the Tendai Biti-led opposition People’s Democratic Party (PDP) which sought a redesign of the presidential ballot paper. Importantly, the Act still has provisions at odds with the Constitution: Ÿ ZEC remains compromised under the Act; Ÿ the right to vote is denied to many groups such as those in the diaspora, in prison and those unable to vote in person on polling day; Ÿ and the Act fails to adequately protect the public’s right to freedom of expression and right to access information around elections, ultimately violating the right to free and fair elections. On 12 July, ZEC officials were present at Ross Police Camp in Bulawayo when police officers cast ballots in the presence of supervisors, but they did so without observation from opposition party polling agents in violation of the Electoral Act. Peculiarly, the amendments addressed in the Act were initially promulgated under the Presidential Powers (Temporary Measures) (Amendment of Electoral Act) Regulations, 2017 on 15 September 2017. The Regulations were made in terms of the Presidential Powers (Temporary Measures) Act, which gives the President powers to make regulations in the interests of defence, public safety, public order, public morality, public health, the economic interests of Zimbabwe or the general public interest. ZEC managed to register a total of 5,695,706 voters (79% of the eligible population), 3,073,190 of whom were women (54%) and 2,622,516 men (46%) Arguably, the Act infringes the Constitution in that it violates the principle of separation of powers by delegating Parliament’s law-making function to the President. 7 STATE OF HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT ZIMBABWE 2018