The second treason charges under which Movement for Democratic Change leader Morgan Tsvangirai was charged with inciting mass demonstrations to overthrow President Robert Mugabe were withdrawn.
Tsvangirai’s lawyer Eric Matinenga said that the state could still proceed against Tsvangirai by way of a separate summons but this was highly unlikely because the case was very weak.
Matinenga said that a gag order in place since 2003 preventing Tsvangirai from saying certain things that could be perceived as undermining the government’s legitimacy expired with the case.
Full cable:
Viewing cable 05HARARE1105, TSVANGIRAI,S SECOND TREASON TRIAL CHARGES WITHDRAWN
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C O N F I D E N T I A L HARARE 001105
SIPDIS
AF/S FOR L. MUNCEY
NSC FOR SENIOR AFRICA DIRECTOR C. COURVILLE
E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/31/2010
SUBJECT: TSVANGIRAI,S SECOND TREASON TRIAL CHARGES WITHDRAWN
Classified By: Charge d’Affaires Eric T. Schultz under Section 1.4 b/d
¶1. (U) The GOZ on August 2 dropped the remaining treason
charge against MDC President Morgan Tsvangirai. The latest
charge stemmed from Tsvangirai’s role in mass demonstrations
against the ruling party in June 2003. (Note: Prosecution on
a first treason charge ended with Tsvangirai’s acquittal in
October. End note.)
¶2. (C) Tsvangirai’s attorney, Eric Matinenga, told us on
August 3 that the state could still proceed against
Tsvangirai by way of a separate summons. Noting that the
SIPDIS
state’s case was even weaker than the previous one, however,
Mantinenga asserted that such an approach was highly
unlikely. He added that a gag order in place since 2003
preventing Tsvangirai from saying certain things that could
be perceived as undermining the GOZ’s legitimacy expires with
the case.
¶3. (C) Comment: The dropping of the case may say more about
the GOZ’s shifting priorities than it does about the weakness
of the case. Whether the state was going to win these
treason cases or not, the charges had long served the state’s
purposes by distracting and muzzling the opposition leader
and depleting opposition coffers in legal costs. With the
March election “won”, the next national election not
scheduled until 2008, and the opposition in apparent
disarray, national economic implosion is replacing political
control as the ruling party’s most immediate concern. The
regime seems increasingly aware that it will need
international assistance to stem the country’s myriad crises
and is becoming more image-conscious as it wrestles with how
to secure that assistance. In this regard, the dropped
charge may be part of the regime’s nascent efforts to improve
its image, particularly with an eye to ongoing loan
negotiations with South Africa, discussions with the UN on
food and displaced persons assistance, and the upcoming IMF
expulsion vote.
SCHULTZ
(21 VIEWS)
