GOZ LIFTS NGO BAN

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 HARARE 000765 SENSITIVE SIPDIS AF/S FOR G. GARLAND DRL FOR N. WILETT ADDIS ABABA FOR USAU ADDIS ABABA FOR ACSS STATE PASS TO USAID FOR E. LOKEN AND L. DOBBINS STATE PASS TO NSC FOR SENIOR AFRICA DIRECTOR B. PITTMAN DCHA/AA FOR MIKE HESS AFR/AA FOR KATE ALMQUIST AND FRANKLIN MOORE AFR/SA FOR ELOKEN, LDOBBINS, JKOLE DCHA/OFDA FOR KLUU, ACONVERY, TDENYSENKO, LMTHOMAS DCHA/FFP FOR JBORNS, JDWORKEN, LPETERSON, ASINK E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ASEC EAID KDEM PGOV PHUM PREL ZI SUBJECT: GOZ LIFTS NGO BAN REF: A. A. HARARE 754 ¶B. B. HARARE 503 -------------- SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (SBU) On August 29, the Ministry of Public Service, Labor, and Social Welfare finally lifted the ban on non-governmental organizations' (NGOs) and private voluntary organizations' (PVOs') field operations that the GOZ had imposed on June 4, 2008 (ref B). This comes after weeks of efforts by donors, NGOs, and the MDC to push the Zimbabwean Government (GOZ) to lift the ban which denied the organizations access to 1.3 million at-risk Zimbabweans. The GOZ initiated the ban when it accused the NGOs/PVOs of using food as a political tool during the run up to the June 27 presidential run-off election. NGOs are now scrambling to ramp up their operations and to supply the GOZ with a required report on their operations by the end of September, ¶2008. END SUMMARY. -------------- Ban lifted, information required by GOZ -------------- ¶2. (U) The Secretary for the Ministry of Public Service, Labor and Social Welfare, Lancaster Museka, issued a statement on Friday August 29 announcing that the suspension of all PVO/NGOs registered under PVO Act Chapter 17:05 was immediately lifted, allowing operations to continue in: (1) humanitarian assistance, food aid, relief, recovery and development, (2) family and child care protection, (3) care and protection of older persons, (4) rights and empowerment of people with disabilities, and (5) HIV and AIDS treatment, care, and related support services. ¶3. (SBU) Museka and Stanley Mishi, head of the Department of Social Services (DSS) within the Ministry, hosted a "clarification" meeting on September 1 for NGOs and UN agencies. Museka and Mishi explained that all NGOs would be required to provide information on a new form called a "Monitoring and Evaluation Instrument". Mishi declared that this reporting requirement was not new, but had been laid out in the NGO Operational Guidelines of 2003. (NOTE. As the meeting opened, they demanded that everyone from an organization registered as a "trust" and anyone not an "NGO/PVO or UN agency" leave. While some left, representatives from USAID, the French embassy, the European Community Humanitarian Organization (ECHO),and the Dutch and Swiss development agencies stayed. END NOTE.) ¶4. (SBU) The GOZ officials said the reporting form would be issued to NGOs in the coming weeks and must be returned to the Ministry within two weeks thereafter. NGOs will need to provide for June 2007-June 2008: contact details, a "corporate governance section" that includes names of board members and officers, registration objectives, implementation areas, funding details (e.g. sources, amounts),sub-grantees, description of program activities and developmental programs, and program details. For this period, NGOs must also provide information on food and non-food items, including how much they distributed, where, and where it was sourced. Museka and Mishi also asked for a July-December 2008 food distribution plan. All this information must be signed by HARARE 00000765 002 OF 003 the organization director and would carry the "force of the law" if it is found untrue, Mishi said. In addition to the requested information, Museka and Mishi directed NGOs to display registration certificates in all offices and to provide a copy to local and national authorities. They emphasized that organizations not complying with GOZ directives could face deregistration. -------------- "Military involvement is history" -------------- ¶5. (SBU) The 2003 Guidelines state that NGOs should "complement GOZ efforts", "not create parallel structures", and "deliver through local governance structures". When asked whether the Joint Operations Command had in fact in the past constituted a "parallel structure" for the delivery of humanitarian assistance, Mishi said military involvement was "history". (NOTE: The JOC is a group of security-related ZANU-PF leaders that wield significant control over politics and security throughout the country. It has been frequently accused of facilitating the distribution of food aid along political lines. END NOTE.) Museka and Mishi said local community committees should agree on who should receive food and that Members of Parliament, chiefs, and local councilors should not be included in the committee. These officials should only be approached by the committee to mediate local-level disputes. Mishi further explained in no uncertain terms that "able bodied people should not receive food handouts", singling out World Food Program's Vulnerable Group Feeding program (COMMENT: It is unclear who would determine who is and isn't "able bodied", and how food distribution would be affected by this determination. END COMMENT.) -------------- -------------- Nonetheless, The Herald levels new accusations against NGOs -------------- -------------- ¶6. (U) Throughout the nearly three-month ban, GOZ officials have said that NGOs were "dabbling in politics" in their food distribution. In announcing the lifting of the ban on August 29, the government mouthpiece "The Herald" leveled two new accusations against NGOs as an explanation of the ban. The Herald reported that "NGOs were accused of asking unsuspecting villagers to surrender their national identity cards before the March elections, but did not return them, effectively depriving them of their right to vote". The Herald also claimed some NGOs threatened to "stop food distribution" in the event of a ZANU-PF victory. -------------- NGOs ramp up activities -------------- ¶7. (SBU) After the lifting of the ban on Friday, C-SAFE (a consortium of CARE, World Vision, and Catholic Relief Services),the major supplier of U.S.-provided food assistance to Zimbabwe, began dispatching food over the weekend. C-SAFE director Eddie Brown told us he believed he had enough food to meet or exceed his September distribution targets. Additionally, he said C-SAFE was already working to mobilize a "massive scale-up" in terms of logistical arrangements and re-engaging communities throughout the country. C-SAFE had already organized meetings with HARARE 00000765 003 OF 003 governors and other officials, and believed it would be received positively as large-scale food distribution ramps up. -------------- COMMENT -------------- ¶8. (SBU) The lifting of the humanitarian assistance ban is long overdue, and comes after repeated diplomatic and NGO requests. The GOZ has, however, left itself an opening to shut down certain NGOs or activities as they review the documents NGOs must submit by the end of September. And although the GOZ has acted, many NGOs fear local ZANU-PF officials and war veterans will obstruct their efforts. We are encouraged by the lifting of the ban but will watch cautiously to see if unfettered humanitarian access becomes a fact. ¶9. (SBU) The June 4 ban issued by Nicholas Goche, Minister of Public Service, Labor, and Social Welfare, referred specifically to NGOs engaged in humanitarian assistance. Nevertheless, there is concern among some NGOs that the newly enforced requirements to submit information could be used to impede the operations of NGOs operating in the area of democracy and governance if the GOZ and local officials disapprove of their work and goals. We will monitor this situation closely. END COMMENT. WARREN