SADC Summit to Discuss Zimbabwe Crisis

By Ish Mafundikwa

Harare
31 October 2009

The Southern African Development Community (SADC) delegation that was
in Zimbabwe to consult with members of the national unity government
will recommend the convening of an extraordinary summit soon.

The visit to
Harare by the SADC troika on Security, Defense and Politics was
ostensibly to access the progress of the implementation of the Global
Political Agreement or GPA, the deal that brought about Zimbabwe's
national unity government. 

But observers say it was prompted by Prime
Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's partial withdrawal from the government
earlier this month citing President Robert Mugabe's ZANU-PF party's
failure to comply with the GPA. Mr. Tsvangirai is the leader of the
Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) party.  

After consulting
with all three parties that make up the national unity government,
delegation head Oldemiro Baloi, the Mozambican Foreign Minister, told
the media.

"SADC will continue its efforts to support, to help
Zimbabweans helping themselves by this troika finishing as soon as
possible, I mean very urgently, the report we are supposed to prepare
send it to the chairman of the troika and to do our best to convene a
summit of the troika as soon as possible," he said.

However, Baloi would not say exactly when the summit would be held.

Baloi
said while it was clear the national unity government had brought about
positive change in Zimbabwe, it faced some hurdles.

"Those that
are mentioned more frequently are the issue of the reserve bank
governor, the attorney general, the governors and sanctions, media
reform," he said. "There is a commission that should have been set up,
the media, commission, it's taking long because if it was in place it
was supposed to deal with whatever issues related to media complaints."

The
MDC has a long list of complaints it alleges are non-fulfillment of the
Global Political Agreement and wants resolved before it can participate
fully in government. Mr. Tsvangirai, however, hinted at compromise when
he spoke to the media after the troika visited him at his offices.

"We
have to find a solution to the crisis and that's the whole objective,"
he said. "If we can get the inclusive government working again and if
all the GPA issues are resolved or partially resolved depending on what
the summit will deal with then we are able to push the country forward,
that's the most important objective."

Mr. Mugabe is quoted by
the state-controlled media as dismissing the perception that the
convening of the summit was a victory for the MDC as propaganda and
cheap politicking.

But speaking at the burial of a veteran of
Zimbabwe's war of independence Saturday he said talks between the
parties would continue.

Movement for Democratic Change
spokesman Nelson Chamisa told VOA his party would not attend Tuesday's
weekly cabinet meeting, the third such meeting it has boycotted, until
the issues that brought about the disengagement are addressed.