From the Catholic Bishops of Zambia to our fellow Zambians and all people of good will, greetings and peace! The bible recounts the story of how God sent Elijah to a town called Zarephath, to a widow who had given up hope of surviving. When he met her she was about to prepare a last meal there was no more food left. After that she expected to die of hunger, she and her son (1 King 17). We, Zambians, are indebted to the Mung’omba Constitutional Review Commission (CRC) for the integrity and thoroughness with which they have carried out the review of the present Constitution.
THE WAY FORWARD
The overwhelming majority of the people who made submissions to the Commission clearly said that they want the new Constitution to be adopted by a Constituent Assembly; this Constitution will then be enacted into law by Parliament. We call on the government to immediately start the process of enacting legislation to set up this Constituent Assembly. To refuse to do so is to deny people that hope that life will be better. The refusal of the government to listen to the voice of the people is to quench that last, faint hope. If people have no hope of a better tomorrow then they have nothing more to live for.
A Constitution is an important document, which defines the rights and duties of government and citizens, allocates these powers, stipulates the manner of their exercise and limits them so that the liberties of the citizens may be preserved. Since a Constitution is the basic law of the land, it needs to go through the process of popularization and legitimatization. In this regard, it is the people of Zambia who should be the driving force behind the constitution. They know how they want to be governed; hence they should be accorded the chance to write their own Constitution in a Constituent Assembly. Government is, therefore, morally bound to listen to the people of this nation.
Time has come to weigh the incumbent sacrifices that we all ultimately will need to make towards the successful holding of a Constituent Assembly. Since time is short, the creation of a Constituent Assembly is now urgent in order to facilitate agreement on amendments of those parts of the Constitution that can and should be amended before the 2006 presidential and general elections. Others, such as the Bill of Rights and Article 79 that need a referendum, though important, can wait until after the elections.
WHAT WE NEED IS POLITICAL WILL
The constitutional process needs to go forward. To stall this process now would be dangerous for the nation. This process needs to be governed by an atmosphere of compromise, healthy dissent and cooperation. With political will, we can achieve greater results. To compromise is not to admit defeat or to give up one’s values. It is a move to cooperate and engage in true dialogue in order to allow for better results.
OPEN THE DOORS TO DIALOGUE
Dialogue involves a courteous discussion with a view to reach or at least move closer to consensus. This requires stakeholders to be open, to be ready to listen and to share positions that will see a better future. We therefore appeal to the citizens of Zambia for a high level of patriotism and love of neighbour, even when you disagree with their views. We appeal for an attitude of willingness to enter into fruitful and genuine dialogue. To the President Mr. Levy Patrick Mwanawasa: Please open the doors to dialogue so that the nation can move forward in this important matter of the Republican Constitution.
CONCLUSION
Peace is God’s gift to us as a nation (John 14:27). We cannot take this peace for granted. To stifle the voice of the people and to ignore their legitimate demand is to take peace for granted. No price is too high to pay so that we may continue to live in peace in Zambia. We the Archbishops and Bishops of the Catholic Church in Zambia remind the government of its duty to preserve peace by listening to the voice of the people. Let the process of setting up the Constituent Assembly begin; this is the desire of the people of Zambia.
May God bless you all. God will bless us again when government listens to the plea of the people; then we can indeed be a peaceful and hopeful nation.
