Harare — Zimbabwe's feuding political parties look set to miss a monthend deadline set by the Southern African Development Committee (SADC) to conclude outstanding issues of their power sharing agreement as negotiators are yet to meet.
SADC averted a political meltdown on November 6 when it convinced Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai to end a three week boycott of the unity government.
But the regional body gave the squabbling parties a 30-day deadline to resolve a slate of thorny disputes.
An emergency SADC mini summit in Mozambique to tackle the Zimbabwe crisis gave the parties 15 days to kick start negotiations.
The deadline is fast approaching without any signs of movement signalling the parties' seriousness to end their disputes, including the arrest and harassment of Mr Tsvangirai's loyalists.
On Monday, some of the negotiators from President Robert Mugabe's Zanu PF and the two Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) factions met the PM, in what officials said was a brief meeting to set the tone for the talks.
Two minutes
The meeting only lasted about two minutes as some of the negotiators were said to be out of the country.
This means that negotiations will not start until Friday, a senior official in Mr Tsvangirai's office said.
"They will work from Friday right into the weekend to deal with the matters as brought on the table through the SADC troika summit," said Mr Gorden Moyo, the Minister of State in the PM's office.
"The principals themselves have met and agreed on a programme.
"On Monday the Prime Minister was then implementing the agreement in as far as their meeting was concerned."The main MDC's chief negotiator and Finance Minister Mr Tendai Biti was however, optimistic the negotiations were on course.
"PM Tsvangirai implored us to start the negotiations but the meeting did not go far because there was no representation from the other party (small MDC faction) whose negotiators are out of the country," he said.
"We are hoping to start the negotiations as soon as the other negotiators are back and we will work hard to make sure we meet the stipulated time frame."
Last week, Mr Mugabe, Mr Tsvangirai and Deputy Prime Minister Arthur Mutambara - the three principals in the unity government formed in February - met and referred all the outstanding issues to their negotiators.
The former foes are still wrangling over the appointment of provincial governors, ambassadors, permanent secretaries and lack of progress in political reforms.
Mr Tsvangirai's MDC also wants Mr Mugabe to reverse the unilateral appointment of his cronies to head the central bank and the attorney general's office and also swear in its deputy agriculture minister designate who is facing terrorism charges.
On the other hand, Zanu PF says it will not move on the demands until the MDC calls for the lifting of sanctions against Mr Mugabe's inner circle and the closure of pirate radio stations.
Mr Mugabe also accuses his coalition partners of setting up parallel government structures to try and topple him from power. Zanu PF says MDC is working with Western powers on a regime change agenda. Analysts say the parties are unlikely to meet the SADC deadline because they are poles apart on a number of fundamental issues.
But Mr Moyo was confident the weekend meetings will produce a result and a report will be sent to the new facilitator, South African President Jacob Zuma.
Mr Zuma who takes over from his predecessor Mr Thabo Mbeki - the key facilitator of the dialogue that led to the historic power sharing agreement signed on September 15 last year - will then visit Zimbabwe to assess progress.
His entry was welcomed by many Zimbabweans who felt that he would be tougher on Mr Mugabe than Mr Mbeki.
Incessant squabbling between Mr Mugabe and Mr Tsvangirai has left many wondering about the Harare coalition's long term viability.
Major investors appear to have adopted a wait and see attitude before they can consider making any significant investments in the country.
Chances that the coalition will collapse are increasingly becoming remote as the parties now agree that they cannot survive without each other.The marriage of convenience has undoubtedly done a lot to restore the country's severely battered economy.
But the major concern is that many investors now fear Zimbabwe's new found stability is threatened by the unresolved issues.
During Mr Tsvangirai's brief withdrawal from the unity government, Zimbabwe's stock exchange that had found its vibrancy on the back of the new dispensation, crashed overnight.
Foreign investors who had rushed in to cash on the new order were also quick to take a back seat.
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This is a joke as everyone knew this would happen as the SADC is talk, talk, and more talk but no action, Mugabe is a liar and has made the most ignorant comment I have ever heard demanding the MDC have sanctions removed against him and the Zanu-pf inner circle, how stupid is that the MDC has no control in those sanctions against Mugabe and the Zanu-PF which he will soon learn. Tsvangirai do not be foolish and ask the West to remove those sanctions against Mugabe and the inner circle of the Zanu-pf. This issue has nothing to do with the original GPA agreement anyways Mugabe just needs to be a man and admit his faults and then step down.
Euro35;
You say Tsvangirai has no control over the sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe but at the same time you advise him not to call for their remove; can't you see this is contradictory? If the stooge of the west has no control over the sanctions why don't you let him call for their removal and we see what happens after that.
I will tell you that Tsvangirai has leverage over the sanctions on Zimbabwe because he is the one who called for their imposition in the first place. Remember that you barbaric whites always want someone, an indigenous, that you control and who will eloquently speak on your behalf and in defense of your interests. Tsvangirai is doing just that!!
If, therefore, Tsvangirai disengages from you and aligns with the people of Zimbabwe, who have suffered and died for the past 10 years because of his selling out, then he would have weakened the imperialist grip on our country. That is how he gets to control these sanctions on the people of Zimbabwe.
Had it not been for Judas (one of the disciples), Jesus would not have died at the time he was killed. An enemy within is more dangerous than an enemy without. Tsvangirai is today strengthening the imperialist hand in Zimbabwe; just the same way he delayed our liberation by aligning with the Rhodesia Special Branch during the war of liberation.
Rhodies and imperialists in the west are powerful in Zimbabwe today because they are using one of our own, they are fronting a black man - black outside but white inside - to fight against the wishes and aspirations of his mother, father, brother, sister, son, daughter, uncle, nephew, nice, aunt, sahwira (friend) and neighbor.
takunya you never seem to amaze with your same old responses just with different words. What I said is not contradictry about Tsvangirai but if he calls for the removal of sanctions again Mugabe and the Zanu-pf inner circle and it does not happen well knowing you you will still blame the West somehow once again because that is all the Zanu-pf does is blame someone else for their problems...
Tsvangirai can call for sanctions to be removed and buddy up with Mugabe and the Zanu-pf but I pronise it will come back to haunt him and as well The West will not remove any sanctions on Mugabe and the inner circle of the Zanu-Pf regardless of who pleads for it!
Takunya or omugabe, chokora and all you are the same person so go back to your zanu-pf cronies and see what crazy out of this world comment you can come up with next that no one believes except yourselves.
For all Zimbabweans to be truly liberated they need someone who cares about every Zimbabwean and will put the people's needs ahead of them ownselves so that exempts Mugabe and the Zanu-Pf and maybe Tsvangirai is not the guy either but it is clear Mugabe must go... his time has come and gone...
Euro35;
"...The West will not remove any sanctions on Mugabe and the inner circle of the Zanu-Pf regardless of who pleads for it". You are wrong because what is strengthening these barbarians, these blood suckers, these morons in our country, is this sellout called Tsvangirai and his imperialist (CIA and MI6) created MDC-T party.
What the CIA and MI6 are doing right now is; provide the idiotic fool with a few dollars, train a small group of his thugs in Botswana and elsewhere and instruct them to go out and kill his own supporters and blame it on Zanu-pf.
The media, being wholly controlled by imperialists, will immediately says that Zanu-pf has murdered MDC-T supporters and the gullible ones will believe it without asking any questions, thus, sanctions will then be tightened.
Knowing as we all do that sanctions have a profound, extensive and crippling effect on our economy, many Zimbabweans will die while some will stream across the Limpopo looking for greener pastures elsewhere - enough ammunition for those who want to reverse all the gain made so far and ultimately re-colonise our country.
Therefore, the moment Tsvangirai decides to leave this business of selling out and start fighting for the rights and protection of Zimbabweans, imperialists will not find anyone to use.
They will not find any excuse; hence, they are forced to remove the illegal, racist, ruinous and inhuman sanctions that have been imposed on the people of Zimbabwe and not on "Mugabe and his inner circle" as you would like the world to believe.
takunya (mugabe's puppet) keep spreading your lies of how the sanctions are against all of Zimbabwe and when everyone including you know these sanctions are against Mugabe and the Inner circle of the zanu-pf. The only reasons you want these sanctions removed is your getting left out but your are corrupt enough I am sure you will steal from someone else anything to keep you from earning a living.
Why don't you and your Zanu-pf buddies do what you do best kill steal and lie to your own people. I have been there so give me you lies on how the zanu-pf is not behind any of the murders of people within the MDC so you can just stop there with that... Everyone knows how mugabe and the zanu-pf use fear to control and manipulate the people...
sorry but it is time for you to go out and get a real job b/c your thieving days are about over...
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