/ 15 August 2008

MDC hoping to return stronger

Zimbabwean opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai walked out of negotiations in Harare knowing that he will have to return and confident that he will do so in a stronger bargaining position.

The latest deadlock has highlighted the tensions in the MDC. Some senior members were keen for Tsvangirai to sign the deal already on the table, which centrally provides that Britain will meet the claims of dispossessed farmers and that Western sanctions against Zanu-PF leaders should be dropped.

The senior MDC members argued that they could not allow the suffering of ordinary Zimbabweans to continue.

However, the respective positions of Tsvangirai and Robert Mugabe in a national unity government continue to be the main stumbling block, with Tsvangirai insisting that the Zanu-PF leader should be stripped of all executive power.

A close observer said Tsvangirai walked out believing that he could clinch a more favourable deal if he hangs back.

”He will return to the talks. But to some extent he is underestimating Mugabe’s stubbornness — Mugabe can live with a country that is falling apart.”

Western diplomats remain adamant that the outcome of the talks must reflect the March 29 election result with Tsvangirai as head of state with full executive powers.

They indicated they might accept a titular role for Mugabe. ”We would obviously prefer him not to be there, but it isn’t the end of the world if he is,” one diplomat said.

Tsvangirai’s immediate concern is how to approach the SADC summit due to take place in Johannesburg this weekend.

A deal had looked within reach when President Thabo Mbeki arrived in Harare last Saturday, after the three negotiating teams appeared to be at one on many key issues.

But the first sign of trouble was when a conference room at the Rainbow Towers Hotel in Harare, decorated in preparation for the signing ceremony, remained empty well into the first night of talks.

They continued for another three days with the parties drifting further apart. Mbeki asked for patience, telling reporters that he was committed to finding a solution: ”If it means staying in Zimbabwe for six months, [I] will do it.”

”I know the suffering the people of Zimbabwe have gone through, the violence of the past few months. Zimbabweans want to lead a better life, to recover from the problems they face,” he said.

Leaving Tuesday’s encounter, a visibly angry Tsvangirai told reporters who asked him about the status of the talks to ”go ask Mbeki”. Earlier, Mugabe said he had ”wanted to raise my fist” at one point in the negotiations.

Zanu-PF has tried to sideline Tsvangirai, painting him as the spoiler, and the leader of the rival MDC faction Arthur Mutambara as the more rational partner.

Zimbabwe’s state media claimed Mutambara had signed a deal with Mugabe, but Mutambara denied this, saying a deal could only be signed if all three agreed on all the issues in dispute.

But, he charged Tsvangirai had shifted position on several occasions. ”Three times he agreed to this one aspect and three times he changed his mind,” said Mutambara.

Tsvangirai’s hardened position became apparent on Tuesday when he angrily walked out of the talks after refusing to move on his central demand — that any power-sharing be based on the March 29 election, in which he won 47% of the vote to Mugabe’s 43%; that parliament rather than Mugabe should elect a new head of government; and that he would not accept the post of prime minister without the authority to hire and fire cabinet ministers.

Documents leaked to the Mail & Guardian show the three leaders had agreed on 13 issues before Tuesday’s deadlock.

On Wednesday, Tsvangirai declared that any ”resolution that represents anything other than the will of the Zimbabwean people would be a disaster for our country”.

Botswana continued to insist this week that it will not attend the SADC summit if Mugabe attends. Mugabe has been invited as Zimbabwe’s head of state.

Foreign Affairs Minister Nkosazama Dlamini-Zuma said this week that President Ian Khama’s decision was sad, but that the issue was ”not within South Africa’s control”.

”All of us should guard the unity and cohesion of the SADC jealously,” she said.

Thirteen agreements

  • Lift all sanctions against Zimbabwe,
  • resist undue external interference,
  • condemn any attempts by foreign powers to effect regime change,
  • UK must accept primary responsibility to pay compensation for expropriated land,
  • holistic audit of land ownership should be done,
  • multiple farm ownership and farm productivity should be dealt with by parliament,
  • end all violence,
  • disband youth militia,
  • restoration of civil liberties including freedom of expression and communication
  • ,

  • call on foreign governments to desist from hosting and funding radio stations,
  • reform state institutions,
  • facilitate unfettered access for aid groups and
  • promote national healing and cohesion.