The Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum director Musa Kika has said Zimbabwe urgently needs democratic, not authoritarian consolidation to end the human rights abuses and violence that is rocking the country ahead of the 2023 polls.
In his remarks on this year’s International Day of Democracy commemorated every year on 15 September, Kika said the promise of democracy remains elusive in the country. “This year, Zimbabwe marked 42 years of self-rule, so as we take stock of democracy in Zimbabwe, we are looking at how far we have gone in the 42 years to better the lives of the people,” Kika said.
“What democracy does is, it should give people a promise, a promise that should manifest in better livelihoods for the people in tangible ways, the social and economic well-being as well as economic freedoms.
“Zimbabwe today, regrettably, 42 years later, we can not stand proudly and proclaim to ourselves and the world that we have done the best that democracy has delivered to the people of Zimbabwe.”
