Mwanawasa agrees to new constitution after sustained pressure

In a surprise move, Zambia's President Levy Mwanawasa has bowed to pressure and agreed that a constituent assembly would adopt the new constitution, as demanded by civil society and the opposition. Mwanawasa, a lawyer turned politician, caught his critics off guard when he conceded defeat during a public rally at the weekend in the mining town of Ndola, about 350 km north of the capital, Lusaka. "If it's the wish of the people to have a new constitution before this year's elections, and a constituent assembly, we will implement the people's wishes - as long as the law is followed," he announced. Mwanawasa's statement should have ended the long-running and acrimonious debate on the new constitution but the opposition and civil society remained unconvinced. "Mr Mwanawasa's statement must be taken with a pinch of salt because there is a possibility of deception - and the statement is being made during an election year," Reverend Japheth Ndhlovu, chairman of the influential Oasis Forum, which has been campaigning for a new constitution, commented to IRIN. "We must also remember that the president has not lived up to his word many a time," he added. According to Vernon Mwaanga, Minister of Information and Broadcasting Services, and also chief government spokesman, "There will be a full cabinet meeting on Friday to discuss the way forward on the need for a new constitution and a constituent assembly, so this is a serious matter. A decision will be made at that meeting." Mwanawasa had maintained that it was not possible to have a new constitution in place ahead of this year's elections, citing time and money as the main stumbling blocks. This compelled the Oasis Forum, a civil society body comprising the Law Association of Zambia (LAZ) and the three main church bodies in the country, to mount countrywide demonstrations last year, which were attended by more than 10,000 people in Lusaka alone. LAZ president William Mweemba noted that as exciting as Mwanawasa's statement was, it was still up to parliament to enact a law establishing a constituent assembly. "We are running out of time. It's also a pity that Mwanawasa has left this until the last minute, but he must act very fast if he is serious," Mweemba remarked. The Constitution Review Commission (CRC), appointed to collect submissions and draft a new constitution in 2003, has already handed a draft constitution to Mwanawasa, which included the demand that future presidents of Zambia should only be sworn in after being elected by more than 50 percent of the registered voters. Mwanawasa was sworn in as president after winning just 28 percent of the votes in a 2002 election, widely rejected as fraudulent by the Atlanta-based Carter Centre, European Union (EU) monitors and two domestic election monitors. Zambia is scheduled to hold presidential and parliamentary elections in the next six months.