zimfinalpush
| Mbeki said to be keen to unite divided MDC first |
  Morgan Tsvangirai Prof Arthur Mutambara By Our Correspondent HARARE, April 11, 2007 - The South African government could be applying pressure on the two feuding factions of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) to unite if the fractured opposition genuinely wishes to engage the ruling-Zanu-PF party in talks aimed at finding a solution to Zimbabwe's current socio-political and economic problems. Tendai Biti, the secretary general of the mainstream MDC led by Morgan Tsvangirai and Welshman Ncube, his counterpart in the breakaway faction led by Prof Arthur Mutambara, both recently travelled to South Africa where they held a meeting with top African National Congress (ANC) officials over the crisis in Zimbabwe. Although the details of the meeting have been kept under a veil of secrecy, Biti confirmed yesterday that he and Ncube had been invited to Pretoria to personally collect letters written by President Thabo Mbeki to Tsvangirai and Mutambara. He however did not shed any light on the actual content of the letters. "Yes, we traveled to South Africa at the invitation of the ANC officials and South African government,' Biti said. "Our role there was to collect letters that President Mbeki wrote to the two opposition leaders. "We are not however privy to the content of the letters because they were confidential letters addressed to specific individuals." Information filtering through from South Africa suggests that Biti and Ncube briefed the ANC officials on the road map that was drawn towards the re-unification of the MDC to its original unified status before the break-up in 2005. The re-unification process was stalled late last year when the negotiating teams failed to agree on ground rules that were to be observed as both factions drew up conditions towards the re-unification process. The parties failed to reach consensus on the conditions. A senior MDC official in Tsvangirai's camp said yesterday that the main motivation for the latest South African initiative was to ensure that there was a basic understanding between the two factions of the opposition movement. Said the official: "We have not been given a full briefing of what transpired in that meeting with the ANC and South African government officials. However, it seems the agenda of the meeting was to take stock of what has happened since the October 12, 2005 break-up. "The meeting was also aimed at looking at ways in which this re-unification process can be worked out because Thabo Mbeki seems determined to helping find a solution to the current crisis. "The reason is simple, and he has told the rest of the SADC leaders that should Zimbabwe's situation prevail until 2010, it was bound to create problems when South Africa hosts the World Cup in that year." The letters, the official said, contained "a strong message from Mbeki" who sources said, saw no point in dragging Zanu-PF to the negotiating table alongside a fractured MDC party. Already, Mutambara has hinted that he is interested in the unification of the MDC and that the opposition party would have to file one candidate if it entertains any serious intention to dislodge President Robert Mugabe from power. Tsvangirai, whose party commands the greater majority op opposition support, especially in the urban areas, is yet to talk about the unification process as well as the one candidate issue. Analysts say Tsvangirai appears determined to face Mugabe again at the polls after eight arduous years of challenging his power. Tsvangirai lost the election to Mugabe in 2002 but reckons that the 83-year old leader stole the election through fraudulent means, including abuse of state resources and ballot rigging. |
Yahoo! Answers - Got a question? Someone out there knows the answer. Try it now.
No comments:
Post a Comment