Man who lost vote says cherish the right

Johno Johnson, seen here with Sharon Reece of the Mt Albert electoral office, says it's wonderful to be able to vote and not feel fear. Picture / Brett Phibbs

A Zimbabwean man who lived under the Mugabe regime wants New Zealanders to cherish the right to vote.

Johno Johnson and his New Zealand wife left Harare in 2002 when conditions deteriorated. The upheavals that began in 2000 meant earning a living was very hard for the agrichemical sales manager.

"Once all the farms were taken away, we lost all our business. We had to restructure the whole factory and the pack house and everything like that. Then my citizenship was taken from me."

The repossession of farms started a chain of events that ultimately led to the displacement of many Zimbabweans.

"Hundreds and hundreds and hundreds were told, 'You're not a citizen'."

The pivotal event was a public referendum in 2001, where the populace rejected President Robert Mugabe's wish for a one-party state.

"When the referendum went out, the whole country voted," said Mr Johnson.

The regime retaliated with a mixture of brutality and bureaucracy. When Mr Johnson applied for a new passport, he received a letter stating that he was not allowed one. Mr Mugabe had sought to exclude Zimbabweans who weren't of his tribe, and the only way to do that was to take away their citizenship, he said.

Mr Johnson managed to secure a South African passport after an 18-month wait, and then came to New Zealand. "When you know you're voting in a corrupt country, it's not a good feeling. And when you can be in a country where you are really free, it's just a wonderful feeling to be able to go and vote and not feel fear in any way."