Cape Town — Zimbabwe's main political parties remain deadlocked over how to share power despite pressure exerted by a summit of Southern African leaders at the weekend.
South Africa's President Thabo Mbeki, the incoming chairman of the Southern African Development Community (SADC), said at the end of the SADC annual summit on Sunday that the heads of state and government who attended the meeting believed Zimbabwean negotiators had produced a set of documents that "form a good basis for a speedy resolution of outstanding matters."
But, he told a news conference, it was impossible to say when a settlement would be reached. He said it was a matter "of the greatest urgency" that "an inclusive government" should be formed to deal with Zimbabwe's humanitarian crisis.
In an interview published by the New York Times on Sunday, Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) leader Morgan Tsvangirai made it clear that disagreements over how to split power between the MDC and Zanu-PF, which has ruled for 28 years, were blocking a settlement.
Tsvangirai, whose party won the highest number of votes in March parliamentary and presidential elections, said that he was willing to split cabinet posts with Zanu-PF, and would accept Robert Mugabe retaining the title of president with a role in overseeing the government.
But Tsvangirai said he had to control the cabinet. "Who is in charge of the cabinet?" the Times reported him as asking. "To whom do all these ministers report? Can you dismiss them if they breach? It's fundamental."
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Mbeki now talking about crisis in Zimbabwe? How annoying would it be to lunatic Mugabe?
Had Mbeki said that very thing before the run-off elections, he would have spared Zimbabweans a devil standing in the way of an alternate power as decided by the March elections!
Mbeki is the main culprit and he has to sort out the mess himself by forcing his lunatic friend out of the way. In order to do that, he has just to threaten to freeze assets and wealth of Mugabe's cronies amassed illegally in SA and prevent them from travelling via SA airprots.
Just simple! Would he have the guts? That's another thing. talk to the ANC. They know his limits.
Tsvangirai is damn right to reject outright any dilution of powers of the post of PM that of right must be attributed to the MDC-chosen candidate.
Democracy will win in the long run. Zimbabweans who did not fear the bloody crocodiles while crossing over rivers to SA will return soon to tackle Mugabe & cronies who are at the root of all their miseries.
First and foremost let us all be reminded that no one won the march elections in zimbabwe,according to the electoral laws which all the political parties agreed to someone had to have a vote of over 50% to be an outright winner. Non had that kind of vote, so it is mischivious for anyone to claim that MDC T won those elections. Secondly all those people who are down south or overseas are not political refugees, everyone knows that they are economic refugees running away from the economic hardships back home.These hardships were not caused by Mugabe's misrule but rather by sanctions or lack of balance of payments which every country in the world gets from the world bank, IMF etc. lastly i would like to say it is not true that all zimbabweans hate mugabe. According to the March elections +\-42% of those who voted supports him plus others who for one reason or the other did not vote. In future i suggest that when the likes of prem do write anything they must write for themselves not for everyone, because some do not share his views.
Couple of facts to get straights:
"...but rather by sanctions or lack of balance of payments which every country in the world gets from the world bank, IMF etc.." Where did you get this mistaken idea from? Balance of Payments support is not a right. It is a reciprocal arrangement akin to a bank and its customer; banks tend to avoid high credit risk situations. Zimbabwe was already in default with its loans, had disregarged all economic advice from the World Bank & IMF and then launched its version of China's "Cultural Revolution" (which as you should know the Communist Party of China now regards as a grave mistake) before balance of payments support was withdrawn
"According to the March elections +\-42% of those who voted supports him plus others who for one reason or the other did not vote." How do you know that the ones who did not vote for one reason or the other were not actually MDC supporters who felt too terrified to vote for the man of their choice and there for declined to vote at all? That sounds a lot more plausible given the number of victims amongst MDC ranks compared to Zanu-pf victims.
Myself, am greately concerned about the reason why sadc treated mugabe as an ordinary president at the just ended summit. Then afterwards, sitting down to settle the issue that must address power squables. Does it make sense at all? It shows that sadc lacks logic and clarity on the Zim criss.
SADC treated him as the president because he is the president. Just as the UN in June and the AU last month treated his as the president at the conferences he attended.
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