Renamo proposal rejected

Renamo made a new proposal on the electoral law but government negotiators refused to even discuss it during negotiations on Monday.

Renamo had always demanded "parity" in the National Elections Commission (CNE) which it had said meant an equal number of Renamo and Frelimo nominated members, plus others from civil society and the other main opposition party, the MDM. This would have given the opposition a majority in the CNE and could never have been accepted by Frelimo.

Last week Renamo tabled a new and more plausible proposal - that Frelimo have half the seats and the other half would be Renamo, MDM and civil society. This proposal could, for the first time, be the basis of serious negotiation. But government rejected it out of hand, saying proposals to change the CNE must go to parliament, where Frelimo has a majority. Renamo has always called for a political agreement in the bilateral talks, which would effectively force Frelimo in parliament to accept such an agreement.

The Renamo proposal is the first from either side that seems to indicate a willingness to negotiate. Of course, many other issues would have to be resolved. But it does seem that Renamo and government might be able to agree on a CNE which was half Frelimo and had a neutral chair (president), and Renamo might even accept the present chair, Abdul Carimo, who comes from the Electoral Observatory and is widely respected.

If that could be agreed, then Renamo might also be willing to temper its demands to politicise the electoral administration, STAE.

Meanwhile, the military negotiating team named by Renamo head Afonso Dhlakama has still not gone to Maputo to meet the military team named by government.

Government has also again rejected the Renamo suggestion that outside "facilitators" should be brought into the talks.

Source: MOZAMBIQUE 227
News reports & clippings
3 October 2013