Zimbabwe

Power-sharing talks kick-off in Harare

Article published on the 2008-08-10 Latest update 2008-08-11 09:34 TU

Thabo Mbeki (R) is greeted by Robert Mugabe in Harare.
(Photo: Reuters)

South African President Thabo Mbeki was in Harare Sunday to mediate talks between Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe and the leaders of the opposition that would see a power-sharing arrangement emerge following this spring’s controversial elections.

Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) leader Morgan Tsvangirai and Arthur Mutambara, the leader of a breakaway MDC faction, arrived at the Rainbow Towers hotel where the talks are taking place without making any comment.

Power-sharing talks began after the political rivals signed a deal on 21 July laying out the framework for negotiations following Mugabe’s uncontested re-election in June.

“Although publicly, he would like to give the appearance that he controls the situation and that he’s not losing any meaningful power, Robert Mugabe and the Zanu-PF reached a point where they literally cannot run the affairs of government in a meaningful way without sharing power”, says Holani Zitha, who runs an umbrella-group of civil society organisations in Zimbabwe.

“The basis for stability and economic recovery can only begin when there’s normalcy in the manner in which the country is run,” Zitha told RFI.

Zimbabwean state media reported Sunday that negotiators had reached an agreement on key issues and that the Mbeki-mediated talks would hammer out the details.

Citing anonymous sources, the Sunday Mail newspaper reported that the ruling and opposition parties have resolved issues related to land redistribution - a process widely blamed for causing Zimbabwe's economic meltdown.

The ruling Zanu-PF party have insisted that Mugabe be recognised as president as part of any deal, while the MDC argues that their candidate deserves a powerful role in government after Tsvangirai finished ahead of Mugabe in the first round of the presidential election in March.

Mugabe’s negotiators have offered Tsvangirai one of several vice-presidential posts, and reports indicate that the MDC is floating the idea of keeping Mugabe in a more ceremonial presidential post, while Tsvangirai would be made an executive prime minister.