Shouting and swearing at the Zimbabwean government will not help resolve problems there, President Thabo Mbeki said on Saturday.
”It will really be quite easy for me to call a press conference and say, ‘Bob Mugabe, these are the things I don’t like,’ and make very good news,” he told delegates at the launch of the African Editors’ Forum in Kempton Park, Gauteng.
”But, I am saying, that is the end of the engagement. It doesn’t work.”
South Africa’s approach — and that of the region — is to work together to find solutions to problems.
”The easiest thing to do, as you would know, is to swear at somebody. We can. But that’s the end of the engagement.”
He said this may work for other regions.
”In our view, it doesn’t make sense in the region here.
”Shouting at one another won’t help. So, no, there is not going to be amplification of anything, but an engagement.”
Mbeki and the South African government have been criticised for their ”quiet diplomacy” approach to Zimbabwe’s political and other problems, including an imploding economy and human rights violations, and severe restrictions on the media.
He said South Africa has held discussions with Zimbabwe over that country’s arrears with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
”One of the things discussed recently with Zimbabwe was their arrears with the IMF,” Mbeki said.
Fortunately Zimbabwe had found some money to start paying it back and got an extra six months’ reprieve instead of being expelled from the IMF, he said.
”We had indeed said we are ready are assist because we understand the implications of the expulsion of Zimbabwe from the IMF.”
Everybody owed anything by Zimbabwe would have demanded to be paid and this would have seen the seizing of exports to settle debts, private banks would not have made loans to individuals, and neighbouring countries would have inherited the consequences of that, he said.
Shortly before its threatened expulsion, Zimbabwe managed to raise $120-million towards its debt and another $15-million has since been paid, with a six month reprieve to raise the $160-million still owed, media reports say.
Zimbabwe’s Reserve Bank Governor, Gideon Gono, has said the payback came from the export of tobacco, minerals and cotton, but the IMF has said it will investigate the source of the funding. — Sapa