Kitsepile Nyathi and agencies
28 July 2008
Harare — Zimbabweans kept in the dark about the ongoing secretive talks between the country's major political parties have only one wish: a deal that will halt an economic decline that is gathering pace every day.
President Robert Mugabe's ruling Zanu PF and the two factions of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) last Thursday began talks to end a political impasse caused by the disputed June 27 one candidate presidential run-off election.
Except for the memorandum of understanding setting the agenda and time frame for the dialogue that was signed amid pomp and funfair by Mr Mugabe and his arch rivals Mr Morgan Tsvangirai and Professor Arthur Mutambara of the MDC, everything is being done in secret.
Today, South African President Thabo Mbeki said the Zimbabwe parties are continuing with negotiations to resolve the country's political crisis. "Those negotiations among the Zimbabweans are continuing," President Mbeki said in a briefing in Pretoria.
The South African leader is overseeing the talks between President Robert Mugabe's ZANU-PF and the opposition Movement for Democratic Change. President Mbeki and other African leaders have pressed President Mugabe and Mr Tsvangirai to negotiate a national unity government, which is seen as the only way to avert further violence and reverse an economic slide in Zimbabwe.
Zimbabweans regard the talks as the most important political development since the Lancaster House talks that ushered the country's independence in 1980.
The parties gave themselves a seemingly unrealistic deadline of two weeks, which means that they must strike a deal by August 4. "I have taken a one month leave to see if things will change," said Mr Stanely Choruwa, a lecturer at the National University of Science and Technology (NUST). "If these talks don't succeed, I will have no choice but to go and look for work either in Botswana or Namibia."
Many of his colleagues in Zimbabwe's seven government run universities did not bother applying for leave and they had perfect excuses.
"I got paid $80 billion (less than US$1) last month and it is not enough for a two way bus ticket," said Ms Sithembile Ngulube, an instructor at the University of Zimbabwe. "I can't afford food for my family let alone transport to work every day."
At one of the universities security guards were roped in to invigilate examinations early this month after academic and non-academic staff downed tools demanding more pay.
President Mugabe's interim government has also given up negotiating with doctors, nurses and teachers who now regularly go on strike when their meager salaries are decimated by inflation.
Professionals working for international aid agencies feeding almost a third of the country's population are perhaps the only ones still able to survive Zimbabwe's hyperinflation because they are paid in foreign currency.
With inflation figures officially pegged at two million per cent but put at 10 million per cent by independent economists, Zimbabwe's economy in recession for the past nine years appears to have reached the proverbial endgame.
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SMART REPORTINNG
'Big or small, terrorism affects them all'- Island Editorial 'The Island', a most frequented local daily in Sri Lanka at the event of the 15th SAARC summit in Colombo, comprehends the need for a more globalized, cohesive counter- terrorist network for preserving world peace in a timely editorial published today(July 28).
The editorial while emphasizing on the transborder terrorist cooperation threatening world democracies at present further asserts that, 'the continuation by countries of the wrong policy of being selective in dealing with terrorism and using it as an extension of their foreign policy will only make… [Read Full Text]
Prem you have developed hatred against our President. If you are white l am not surprised. lf you are white you better take hid of what the other writer has said. Becareful not to cause another world war.
Dear Chiki,
It's not a question of white or what not! I have many Zimbabwean friends and they all bleed deep inside that they cannot offer any comfort to their children even with all the sacrifices there are undergoing.
Mugabe bears the sole responsibility of not only the mess around, but also the widespread human tragedy. He also holds the key to a smooth transition should he accept to hand over power. Tsvangirai has declared publicly he was agreeable to grant him a peaceful exit. What else does he want.
The MDC Chief negotiator is still under a very serious… [Read Full Text]
Prem My friend its sad that you cant see the light. You have already taken a stance against our president. I do not know why most of you want a transition gvnt giving executive powers to Tsvangirai. Is it difficult to understand that the majority of Zimbabweans did not choose Morgan as their president. To be exact 53% of Zimbabweans said nop. Maybe let me demistfy, if you are runnung in a race and all contestants fall off before reaching the finnishing line, definitely no one should be crowned a winner. You speak of Zuma because he has mentioned negative… [Read Full Text]
and you call the beating murder, torture and rape of MDC supporters a level playing field? Do you call the police and military being forced to vote for Mugabe a level playing field? Now lets go back to these 'illegal' sanctions. Firstly, the only sanctions britain has on zim relates to targeted sanctions on travel for ministers and an arms embargo to prevent an atrocity like we saw in Sudan. If you are talking about the World Bank not lending money to Zim, well then you have to ask China and South Africa why they too refuse to lend money… [Read Full Text]
Prem, you claim it is not a question of white, but most white anglos have been expressing such hyperbolic statements about Zimbabwe in general that what we see is not your so-called concerns, but your interest in white Zimbabweans who lost out.
Prem, your words have no compassion really of what is going on in Zimbabwe. You have crocodile tears and full of hypocrisy. Where were you when Mugabe slaughtered the matebele and when Ian Smith was murdering black people in Zimbabwe?
For sure, Zimbabwe has problems and need to be fixed, but we don't need your crocodile false… [Read Full Text]
The talks have broken off. That is good news. A so-called unity gov that neuters MT and the MDC (like was done to Nkomo and Zapu) would be stupidity. Rather let Mugabe lie in the bed he has made. This runaway inflation will devour him just as surely as it is devouring the wealth of all ordinary Zimbabweans. All of Zim will rejoice when he breathes his last. Murderer. Coward. Tyrant. Dictator.
See all comments (18).
How can the economy stand still when murderous Mugabe wants to defy the will of the majority of Zimbabweans to cling to power by ruse. He is on the point of even fooling Mbeki.
Just yesterday, Botswana appealed for international assistance to meet its obligations towards an ever increasing number of refugees and political asylum seekers from once prosperous Zimbabwe! The economy continues to slide not even dangerously but morbidly. It's the endgame of Mugabe, unless Mbeki is in collusion with him to save his honour, if any honour he still has!!
The Chair of Zimbabwe Transparency International has been… [Read Full Text]