Harare, Oct 26: Six weeks ago, African leaders
came to Harare to celebrate the signing of a power-sharing
accord meant to end the country`s political turmoil. On Sunday
they return to prevent the deal from falling apart.
Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe and Opposition leader
Morgan Tsvangirai signed a pact on September 15 agreeing to
form a unity government, with eight African leaders on hand to
hail the pact as a way to haul the country from political
unrest and economic collapse.
But the optimism surrounding the agreement quickly
faded as talks bogged down over control of powerful
ministries, including finance and home affairs, which oversees
the police.
At least three key leaders from the 15-nation Southern
African Development Community (SADC) are set to return
tomorrow to Harare to meet with Mugabe and Tsvangirai in hopes
of rescuing the deal.
"SADC potentially does have the power to break the
deadlock, but only if it is willing to apply some form of
sanctions -- either diplomatic or economic -- to force Mugabe
to end his intransigence," said Laurence Caromba, of the
Centre for International Political Studies in South Africa.
"Until now, most countries in the bloc have been
unwilling to do this, which is unfortunate."
SADC first began trying to broker a settlement between
Mugabe and Tsvangirai seven years ago, after the Opposition
Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) emerged as the first
serious challenge to the ruling ZANU-PF since independence in
1980.
After months of political turmoil, former South
African President Thabo Mbeki brokered the unity accord, which
would keep 84-year-old Mugabe as president while making
Tsvangirai Prime Minister.
Bureau Report
