South Africa opposition to quiz Mbeki on Zimbabwe statements

By Tererai Karimakwenda
09 February 2006

On Thursday The Democratic Alliance party in South Africa said they plan to submit parliamentary questions to President Mbeki regarding his statements to the SABC that Zimbabwe’s opposition reached an agreement on a new constitution with the ruling party 2 years ago. The decision to quiz Mbeki came after both factions of the Movement For Democratic Change rejected Mbeki’s claims that he had received a draft copy of the agreement initialed by both the MDC and ZANU-PF. SABC aired the interview last Sunday, and by Monday questions regarding the truth of his comments were being raised by the press.

D.A. national chairman Joe Seremane told us they wanted to know who reached the agreement and when, and who was responsible for the breakdown in the negotiations. Seremane said president Mbeki continually gives the impression that he is defending Robert Mugabe, while the Zimbabwe meltdown continues to get more serious. Mbeki told SABC the talks between the MDC and ZANU-PF had ended because “new problems arose between themselves”. But Priscilla Misihairambwi Mushonga, who was the MDC shadow foreign minister 2 years ago, told us it was ZANU-PF that pulled out of the talks. Seremane said he wants Mbeki to specify why the talks ended.

A statement released by the D.A. on Thursday said:
“This is not the first time that President Mbeki has been seen to lay the blame for the failure to resolve the political and economic crisis in Zimbabwe on the MDC. The MDC has previously made it clear that they do not regard President Mbeki as an honest broker. The President's comments on Sunday will only serve to underscore the impression that he is biased towards ZANU-PF and that he harbours an enormous distrust for the Zimbabwean opposition.”

Seremane said South Africa can take a much firmer stand on Zimbabwe and force the 2 sides to find a solution through negotiations. He also believes more pressure can be put on Robert Mugabe by imposing smart sanctions to limit supplies of electricity and water. Seremane added that pressure to change can also be exerted on the Zimbabwe government if they want to continue doing business with South Africa.