|
 |
Zimbabwe
| COUNTRY |
REFERENDUM TYPE |
DATE |
| Republic of Zimbabwe |
Referendum to approve the government sponsored draft constitution. |
February 12-13, 2000 |
| At
stake in this Referendum:
Approval of a new draft constitution that would:
- Consolidate the powers of the President.
- Allow President Mugabe to stand for an additional two terms.
- Allow the government to acquire privately owned land without paying compensation.
|
Description
of government structure:
- Chief of State & Head of Government: Executive President Robert Gabriel MUGABE
- Parliament: Zimbabwe has a unicameral parliament, the House of Assembly, with 150 members.
- xxx
|
Main
provisions in this Referendum:
- A
majority of overall votes cast are required for the constitution to
be approved.
- If
approved, the constitution would have become the subject of a Bill submitted
to Parliament.
|
Results
of the Referendum:
- Number
of "No" Votes: 697,754
Percent of "No" Votes: 54.68%
Number
of "Yes" Votes: 578,210
Percent of "Yes" Votes: 45.32%
- Population
and number of registered voters:
Population:
12,500,000 (March 2000 est.)
Number
of registered voters: 6,500,000 (March 2000 est.)
- Of interest:
The
February 12-13 referendum was Zimbabwe's first since becoming an independent
nation in 1980.
The
independent Media Monitoring Project Zimbabwe have concluded that coverage
on the state-owned media was vastly biased in favor of a 'Yes' vote.
Advertisements calling for a 'No' vote were only screened in the last
few days of the campaign after a High Court order.
The
government appointed a 400-member commission to write the new draft
constitution to replace the independence constitution negotiated before
Zimbabwe's independence in 1980, and since extensively amended.
|
|
|
|
|
| SOURCE: INTERNATIONAL FOUNDATION FOR ELECTION SYSTEMS (IFES) |
| For additional information:
IFES ElectionGuide Online |
|
|
|
|
