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Talks, dialogue, negotiations and GNU - Post June 2008 "elections" - Index of articles
Mugabe has upper hand over Tsvangirai in new Zimbabwe government
David
Blair, The Telegraph
September
16, 2008
View article
on the Telegrapgh website
Under Article 20, the
cabinet - chaired by Mr Mugabe - will keep the authority to "adopt
all government policies". The Movement for Democratic Change
will have a majority of ministers in the 31-member body. But the
cabinet will "take decisions by consensus", not by majority
vote, suggesting that Mr Mugabe will retain a right of veto.
Far from reducing the
presidency to a ceremonial position, the agreement explicitly states
that Mr Mugabe will have "executive authority". When he
makes key appointments, he must "consult" Morgan Tsvangirai,
the new Prime Minister, but he is free to ignore this advice.
As for the new government's
objectives, the agreement springs straight from Mr Mugabe's hymn
sheet. The seizure of land from white farmers is "irreversible"
and lifting the alleged "sanctions" imposed by the rich
world is a priority.
The agreement is careful
to absolve Mr Mugabe of responsibility for Zimbabwe's economic crisis.
"This international isolation has over the years created a
negative international perception of Zimbabwe," states the
text, as if Mr Mugabe had nothing whatever to do with the problem.
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