US embassy cable - 05HARARE1357

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 HARARE 001357 
 
SIPDIS 
 
AF/S FOR B. NEULING 
SENIOR AFRICA DIRECTOR C. COURVILLE 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/28/2015 
TAGS: PGOV, PHUM, PREL, ZI, MDC 
SUBJECT: TSVANGIRAI WALKS TO PROVE RELEVANCY, TEST WATERS 
 
REF: A. REF A: HARARE 1356 
 
     B. REF B: HARARE 1181 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Christopher Dell for reasons 1.5 b/d 
 
1. (C) Summary.  For the past two weeks MDC leader Morgan 
Tsvangirai has walked the 16-kilometer roundtrip journey to 
 
SIPDIS 
and from work as a means to highlight the failure of the 
GOZ,s economic policies and to demonstrate solidarity with 
average Zimbabweans struggling to cope with the pressing fuel 
shortage (ref A).  Tsvangarai,s walks have garnered moderate 
amounts of popular support and media attention, and have 
prompted some MDC MPs to lead similar, periodic walks in 
their constituencies.  The challenge for the MDC, however, 
will be to disburse this form of protest outside of 
Tsvangarai,s middle-class neighborhood and to have it take 
 
SIPDIS 
root in Harare,s high-density suburbs and other parts of 
Zimbabwe.  End Summary. 
 
-------------------------------- 
These Boots Are Made For Walkin, 
-------------------------------- 
 
2.  (C) Tsvangirai on September 16 began walking the 
16-kilometer roundtrip distance from his suburban home to his 
office in downtown Harare, saying that he ) like many of 
Harare,s other residents ) was unable to find fuel for the 
daily commute.  An MDC press release issued September 15 said 
that Tsvangirai had been unable to secure fuel for the past 
month and had resorted to asking friends and supporters for 
gasoline.  MDC Communications Director Mazwell Zimuto told 
poloff on September 27 that Tsvangirai instigated the walks 
as a way to show solidarity with Zimbabweans suffering from 
the GOZ,s economic mismanagement. On the first day of his 
walk, Tsvangirai told reporters that the hour and 15 minute 
walk was a &nasty experience8 and questioned how people 
coped with the situation. 
 
3.  (C) The walks have garnered modest amounts of public 
support with Zimuto reporting that more than 100 followers 
accompanied Tsvangirai on September 23.  Numbers, however, 
vary daily and at differing points along the route; MDC 
Director for Presidential Affairs Gandi Mudzingwa told poloff 
on September 28 that approximately 50 MDC officials 
accompanied Tsvangirai on Tuesday morning and that about 20 
joined on Wednesday morning.  Several MDC MPs, including 
Trudy Stevenson and Tendai Biti, have also joined Tsvangirai 
on various days of the walk.  Mudzingwa said the MDC had 
decided not to invite the public to participate and to have 
only its leaders march as a way to set the example. 
 
4.  (C) Other opposition MPs have staged walks in their own 
constituencies to highlight the fuel shortages and show 
solidarity with average Zimbabweans.  According to Zimuto, 
the MPs for Harare Central, Mabvuku-Tafara, and Mufakose ) 
all in Harare Province - last week walked their daily 
commute.  Mudzingwa said that the MP for Highfield walked on 
September 28 with about 13 followers.  Mudzingwa and Zimuto 
both reported that other MDC politicians were expected to 
take up periodic walks. 
 
5.  (C) The GOZ,s response to the walks has been fairly 
muted.  Predictably, GOZ officials and state-controlled media 
have discounted the walks as a &cheap publicity stunt8 and 
even claimed that Tsvangirai actually drove most of the way 
in a gas-guzzling truck.  Meanwhile, Mudzingwa said that the 
police have not interfered with Tsvangarai,s walks, although 
officers have been periodically present along the route. 
 
------- 
Comment 
------- 
 
6.  (C) Coming on the heels of three no profile 
demonstrations against constitutional reform (ref B), 
Tsvangarai,s walks are a step forward in the opposition,s 
 
SIPDIS 
ability to garner public attention and capitalize on a key 
wedge issue ) Zimbabwe,s pressing lack of fuel. 
Tsvangarai,s walks are a significant sign of life from the 
 
SIPDIS 
party that has been on the defensive since the March 
Parliamentary election.  Nonetheless, these walks are 
probably too little too late.  Zimbabwe has been virtually 
without fuel for anyone without access to foreign exchange 
for several months, forcing many people to walk great 
distances from their residences to their jobs.  The impact of 
Tsvangarai,s recent walks from his middle-class neighborhood 
 
SIPDIS 
appear to be lost on the vast majority of Harare,s poorer 
residents who live in high-density suburbs and have faced 
long queues, periodic gas shortages, commuter bus fares 
hikes, and long walks for the past several years. 
Tsvangirai,s walks also highlight the MDC,s failure to 
 
SIPDIS 
launch an effective media campaign; coverage in the 
independent media has been largely confined to photographs 
with brief captions. 
 
7.  (C) Tsvangarai, however, treads a fine line on these 
walks.  The MDC has gone to great lengths not to call these 
events demonstrations and to reduce public participation in 
the walks for fear of a government backlash and Tsvangarai's 
possible arrest for failure to obtain permission for holding 
"public meetings."  The GOZ, for its part, appears ready to 
tolerate favor the status quo of relatively modest numbers 
and limited media attention.  Were the MDC able to 
significantly expand the profile of these walks, the GOZ 
would be forced to decide between allowing the protests to 
continue, and thus gain strength, or clamp down and 
consequently bring more media and international attention to 
the MDC. 
DELL