South African and Zimbabwean church leaders agreed at a meeting on Monday to create a task team to promote talks between Zimbabwe’s ruling Zanu-PF and the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC).
The agreement, however, is in principle, said Russel Botman, the president of the South African Council of Churches (SACC).
He said the team still has to receive a mandate on the matter from all Zimbabwean faith-based organisations.
”We are not clear as what Zimbabwean clergymen want us to do and we do not intend making any presumptions. They are still to present their agenda to us so we can see if we can deliberate on that,” said Botman, who will lead the team.
”We move from the premise that problems in Zimbabwe will not be solved without a collective decision and input from those who are directly affected.”
Botman said other task team members are SACC secretary general Molefe Tsele, South African Catholic Bishop’s Conference secretary general Richard Manatsi and Evangelical Alliance of South Africa representative Moss Ntla.
The clergymen also discussed at the meeting, which Botman described as the first of its kind, the political and social instability in Zimbabwe.
Botman said Zimbabwean church leaders raised their concerns on various issues affecting the political instability in their country, especially in the run-up to the 2005 parliamentary elections.
”They have raised the issue of lack of independent media and the use of state institutions like the police and the army by the ruling Zanu-PF to intimidate and quash opposition parties.”
Asked if the clergymen doubted the South African administration’s political will to solve the Zimbabwean crisis, Tsele said efforts by President Thabo Mbeki to come up with a peace plan could not be underestimated.
”We need to stress that South Africa should not be seen as the only party that can bring an end to this debacle. Regional and continental organisations must be seen to be doing something,” he said.
”The process of reaching a peaceful settlement in Zimbabwe is slow but the delay can not be laid on our government or President Mbeki’s door step but on political players in that country.”
Tsele said he hoped Zanu-PF and the MDC would reach a peace settlement before next year’s election. — Sapa