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Dashed hopes all round
IRIN News
August 13, 2008

http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportID=79804

Abigail Mukurazhizha, 35, a stockbroker in Harare, capital of Zimbabwe, was among the scores of people jostling each other to buy a copy of The Herald, the official newspaper, with the headline proclaiming "Deal Sealed" above a story on the crucial talks to resolve the political crisis.

However, her excitement quickly turned to disappointment because as far as she is concerned, "there is no deal at all".

"Let's make no mistake about this - a deal that does not involve [opposition leader Morgan] Tsvangirai — the man who won the free and fair election in March — is null and void, and it seems the old man [President Robert Mugabe] is just not ready to hand over power to those that have legitimacy," Mukurazhizha commented. "We are moving in circles and that makes me sick; very frustrated."

The two factions of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) and the ruling ZANU-PF have been locked in power-sharing talks for over three weeks to break the political impasse after a controversial presidential election re-run on 27 April.

Tsvangirai, leader of the main MDC faction, won the first round of presidential elections on 29 March but pulled out of the presidential run-off, citing a campaign of violence in which he claimed over 100 of his party supporters had been killed.

Mugabe, leader of ZANU-PF and President of Zimbabwe since independence 28 years ago, was left as the sole candidate in the run-off and installed as head of state, but agreed to talks mediated by South African President Thabo Mbeki.

But, according to the Herald, Tsvangirai walked out of the talks on 12 August, while Mugabe and the leader of the smaller MDC faction, Arthur Mutambara, whose party won 10 seats in the parliamentary elections, signed a deal.

But Mbeki told IRIN on 13 August that Tsvangirai had asked for time out and the talks had been adjourned.

"There has been a disagreement with one element of the talks which has to do with an agreement with power sharing. Morgan Tsvangirai asked for time out in order to reflect on this matter so that we reconvene them later," he said.

Tsvangirai won the first presidential poll in March with 47.9 percent of the vote against Mugabe's 42.7 percent, but did not get enough votes to avoid a second poll for the presidency.

"Just like in the run-off, where Mugabe 'contested' alone, this empty deal is in all essence a ZANU-PF agreement," Mukurazhizha said. "Mutambara did not run in the presidential elections and is just too happy to have some relevance in Zimbabwean politics."

Mukurazhizha had hoped that a deal giving Tsvangirai executive powers, possibly as prime minister, with Mugabe as a ceremonial president, would set Zimbabwe's economy, now in its eighth year of acute meltdown, on a path to recovery.

Hopes dashed
"All my hopes of returning to a normal life in the near future have been dashed by Mugabe's unwillingness to relinquish power," John Rukweza, 28, a shop manager in the capital, told IRIN.

"Prices keep going up as our pockets shrivel. There is no electricity, no water, and unemployment will rise even further as industries close - all because of an obsession with power, an obsession that benefits a few people at the expense of the majority," said Rukweza.

He predicted that many Zimbabweans would leave the country after hanging on, hoping that the talks would bring political and economic stability. "Many in formal employment thought that an internationally accepted deal would bring back the spark to their jobs, but there seems to be no light at the end of the tunnel."

Rukweza is afraid that if no agreement involving Tsvangirai is reached soon, the country will slide back into political violence. "I am convinced that Mugabe is living in perpetual fear, and the brave face that we see on television masks a man who is in a deep quandary," he said.

"Even if he [Mugabe] wanted to give Tsvangirai some executive powers, there are many powerful people within his party who would lose out, and these people seem to be pressuring him to deny the MDC leader what rightfully belongs to him and to the people."

Divide and rule
Abednico Mataure, 59, a retired teacher, warned that Mugabe could be looking to weaken the opposition by "divide and rule" tactics. "After parliamentary elections the opposition won more seats than ZANU-PF, and that was good, since it reversed the then ruling party's ability to make decisions based on its majority in parliament," he commented.

"However, with the stance taken by Mutambara, the opposition is now divided. There are some in the opposition who would grab any chance to be in positions of power, and I am afraid that Mugabe might announce a cabinet that includes members from Tsvangirai's party, a development that could further weaken his party if some of those members decide to accept what is offered."

However, Tsitsi Zambuko, a 55-year-old widow and veteran of the liberation war, urged Mugabe to forge ahead without Tsvangirai. "Since January, everyone has been talking about elections and nothing has been moving; we have gone for too long without a parliament," she said.

"And who is Tsvangirai to think that he can hold us to ransom? After all, he is nothing but the mouthpiece of Britain and the United States, and is responsible for all the suffering we are experiencing today," Zambuko told IRIN.

She said Mugabe was the "legitimate leader of Zimbabwe because he won the 27 June run-off, and led the war against imperialism, while he spends sleepless nights trying to find ways of totally empowering the people of this country".

Deal still in sight?
Mbeki told IRIN that he was confident though that he would be able to wring out a settlement.

Despite claiming victory in the June run off, Mugabe has not sworn in parliament or announced his cabinet in the hope of securing an all inclusive government.

"The political leaders acknowledge that none of them on their own with their political parties have the capacity to solve these problems and so they have to work together," said Mbeki.

He declined to spell out details of the disagreement.

One of the negotiators involved in the talks told IRIN that the talks hit a hitch after Tsvangirai had been offered a non-executive prime minister's post with no meaningful responsibilities.

"Tsvangirai was not happy that he would have presided over a few social and economic ministries while Mugabe retained executive powers as executive president while security ministries would have fallen directly under the control of Mugabe," said the negotiator.

Mugabe told IRIN that the talks had not broken down. "No, the talks have not collapsed. They can never collapse as long as we have tongues for talking."

Mutambara confirmed at a press conference that while they had not signed any document, they were in agreement with the power sharing proposals.

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