South Africa and Britain have agreed in principle on the desired outcome of the Zimbabwean crisis, and differ only in tactics, Britain’s Minister for Africa Chris Mullin said on Wednesday.
Mullin told reporters in Johannesburg that South Africa and Britain wanted to see a democratically elected government in Zimbabwe, and a free press.
He said Britain was a proponent of democracy in all countries, not just Zimbabwe, and his government was also watching the situation in countries like Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Britain’s interest in Zimbabwe stemmed from its historic ties, but also because it was a country that was once a breadbasket and had been reduced to ”penury”.
Mullin expressed concern at the number of Zimbabwean refugees in South Africa and other neighbouring countries.
He said the decision by the Zimbabwean government to force the World Food Programme to withdraw its assistance was ”regrettable”. Food should never be used as a political weapon.
The Zimbabwean government said earlier this month that it would not be asking for international food aid because it predicted a harvest of 2,4-million tons of staple maize.
Mullin said South African President Thabo Mbeki should not be blamed for the situation in Zimbabwe as he had ”done his best,” and Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe and his government were ”difficult customers”.
Turning to Africa’s role on the international stage, Mullin said Britain would chair the G8 summit as well as the European Community next year and intended to put Africa high on the agenda.
He said attention would be given to issues like fairer terms of trade, HIV/Aids and debt relief.
When asked about the request for the extradition of two men from Britain to Equatorial Guinea for their alleged part in a coup, Mullin said a process would have to be followed and described it as legal rather than political.
Mullin said the British consular department in Zimbabwe had visited Simon Mann, one of the alleged mercenaries held in Harare, who held both South African and British citizenship.
He said Britain was doing what it could regarding the treatment of those held at the Chikurubi maximum security prison outside Harare and believed there had been some improvement in their conditions. – Sapa