ZIMBABWE: Government calls on opposition to join constitutional reforms

The Zimbabwe government intends to proceed with its consitutional reform programme despite a boycott by opposition groups, media reports said. Minister of Justice Emmerson Mnangagwa told the official ZIANA news agency at the weekend that it was in the opposition's best interests to participate in the government-appointed constitutional commission which is expected to present a draft constitution to President Robert Mugabe at the end of the year. "They are the ones who have been calling for change and this is the time to do so," he said. The opposition, however, wants an independent reform process to draft the new constitution which would then be put to a referendum and enacted by parliament without amendment. Under existing law, Mugabe can ignore the commission's recommendations or change it's terms of reference. Morgan Tsvangirai, the leader of the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) and chair of the National Constitutional Assembly (NCA) task force said the boycott would continue. He told IRIN the NCA, a coalition of civil society groups, would lead a national "information and education campaign" to run in parallel with the government's reform process. Opposition groups argue that the current constitution, which has been amended 15 times since independence in 1980, vests enormous powers in the presidency and has been used by the ruling ZANU-PF party to entrench itself in power. Meanwhile, the ZCTU said on Saturday it would stage a national workplace sit-in later this month if government and private business failed to award workers a 20 percent cost-of-living adjustment. Mass action would defy a government strike ban. According to state media reports, the government said it would only negotiate with the unions over their pay demands if they dropped plans to launch a new political party in July to contest legislative elections next year.