Zimbabwe on Friday lifted a ban on aid agencies suspended ahead of the June 27 presidential run-off over accusations that some of them were siding with the opposition.
”The government has with immediate effect lifted the suspension of operations of private voluntary organisations and NGOs,” said a Social Welfare Ministry statement read on state television.
Opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai had called on Wednesday for the immediate resumption of aid programmes in the country, saying the country faced ”a profound humanitarian crisis”.
The Welfare Ministry said aid organisations involved included those working in ”humanitarian and food assistance, relief, recovery and development, childcare and protection and rights of people with disabilities”.
”Others are those involved in HIV/Aids treatment, care and other support services,” it said.
On Wednesday, Tsvangirai demanded that ”NGOs be allowed to resume humanitarian assistance — distributing food, medicines and life-saving assistance”.
”This destructive policy of banning humanitarian assistance can be reversed with one letter,” he said.
Talks
Meanwhile, power-sharing talks between Zimbabwe’s political rivals were to resume on Friday, officials said, more than two weeks after negotiations stalled, amid anger over President Robert Mugabe’s plans to form a government without the opposition.
”The talks are resuming today [Friday]. Those groups are in South Africa at the moment. Talks will resume today in order to finalise all outstanding matters,” South Africa’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Aziz Pahad, told journalists.
”We hope the talks can lead to the finalisation of the … outstanding matters so that we can start with a normalisation of the political, economic and humanitarian situation in Zimbabwe,” Pahad said.
However, the main opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) said its negotiating team had not reached South Africa.
”It is not true that the MDC delegation has arrived in South Africa for the talks,” spokesperson George Sibotshiwe said.
A smaller opposition faction led by Arthur Mutambara taking part in the talks had arrived, its spokesperson said.
”Our negotiators are in South Africa for the talks. The talks are resuming this weekend,” said the spokesperson, Edwin Mushoriwa.
South Africa’s President Thabo Mbeki is mediating the negotiations, under the auspices of the regional bloc, the Southern African Development Community (SADC).
Relations have soured between the two sides since the talks stalled on August 17 at the end of a SADC summit in South Africa designed to wrap them up.
Mugabe, whose ruling Zanu-PF party lost its majority in March elections, was jeered and heckled during his speech to the opening of Parliament on Monday. And the veteran leader has insisted on forming a government without the opposition, because of a lack of progress in the talks.
Divisions remain over how Mugabe (84) and MDC leader Tsvangirai would share power in a national-unity government, including what authority they would have as president and prime minister.
Analysts believe Mugabe is reluctant to yield responsibility for sensitive security ministries like the army, police and intelligence, given that Zimbabwe’s military are strong backers of the veteran president.
The parties are also divided over how long a transitional government would remain in place, according to a South African official.
The MDC wants a clause in the agreement stating that elections be held within 90 days of either of the parties pulling out of the unity government, said official said, speaking before the talks stalled. — AFP
