Zimbabwe: Robert Mugabe and Morgan Tsvangirai sign historic power-sharing deal

Morgan Tsvangirai, cheered by thousands of dancing supporters, has signed an historic power-sharing agreement with President Robert Mugabe and become Zimbabwe's new prime minister.

 

By Sebastien Berger in Harare
Last Updated: 4:49PM BST 15 Sep 2008

Mr Tsvangirai has suffered arrest, assault, attempted assassination and trial on charges of treason, all at the hands of Mr Mugabe's regime Photo: Reuters

After founding the Movement for Democratic Change nine years ago and enduring the murder of hundreds of his supporters, along with the impoverishment of Zimbabwe's people, Mr Tsvangirai finally entered the corridors of power. The agreement leaves Mr Mugabe as president - but in a weaker position than at any time in his 28-year rule.

The MDC's two factions will have a majority in the new 31-member cabinet - and they have already won a majority in parliament. But Mr Mugabe signalled that he will not retreat into the background. In a belligerent speech, he blamed British "interference" for all Zimbabwe's problems and pointedly warned that the unity agreement would only be "preserved" if all parties upheld the country's "sovereignty".

Inside a packed conference centre in Harare, a smiling Mr Tsvangirai received louder cheers than the president, whose wife, Grace, looked on from the floor, her mouth turned down in apparent fury.

Quoting Mr Mugabe's speech at Zimbabwe's independence in 1980, Mr Tsvangirai said: "Let us turn our swords into ploughshares. If you were my enemy yesterday, today we are bound by the same patriotic duty and destiny."

Mr Tsvangirai has suffered arrest, assault, attempted assassination and trial on charges of treason, all at the hands of Mr Mugabe's regime. But he said: "I have signed this agreement because my belief in Zimbabwe and its peoples runs deeper than the scars I bear from the struggle. I have signed this agreement because my hope for the future is greater than the grief I feel for the needless suffering of the past years. We deserve a better life, we deserve a life without fear, hunger, poverty and oppression."

Mr Tsvangirai added that the "road ahead is long and it will not be easy" and said: "The hand with which I sign this agreement is the hand which I extend to President Mugabe. Let us not be divided by the past but united by hope for the future."

In contrast, Mr Mugabe's speech was almost entirely about the past, and a demonstration that despite Zimbabwe's economic meltdown, he still believes that all his decisions were justified.

Flanked by his generals, he gave a history of the anti-colonial struggle and delivered a trademark denunciation of Britain. "The problem we have faced is a problem that has been created by the former colonial power wanting to continue to interfere in our domestic affairs," he said. "Why, why why the hand of the British? Why, why, why the hand of the Americans here?"

As Mr Mugabe spoke these words, Mr Tsvangirai visibly winced and covered his face with one hand.

In 1987, Mr Mugabe signed an agreement to share power with Joshua Nkomo, then leader of the Zapu party. He proceeded to neutralise and humiliate Mr Nkomo. Tensions undoubtedly remain between the MDC and Mr Mugabe's Zanu-PF party - at one point during the ceremony, rival groups outside broke into a stone-throwing exchange.

Mr Mugabe issued a thinly-veiled threat. "As we move forward from now certain salient principles have to guide us if this unity is going to last," he said, citing sovereignty and land. Pointing out that the MDC had no experience of government, he said Zanu-PF was ready to "provide experience".

And in the comment that perhaps revealed most about his inner feelings, Mr Mugabe said: "Democracy in Africa is a difficult proposition, because always the opposition will want much more than what it deserves."

Zimbabwe Rivals Sign Power-Sharing Agreement

Desmond Kwande/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

Zimbabwe's president, Robert Mugabe, second from left, and opposition leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, second from right, signed a power-sharing accord in Harare after weeks of negotiations.

By CELIA W. DUGGER and ALAN COWELL

Published: September 15, 2008

HARARE, Zimbabwe — After more than 28 years of unbroken power, President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe signed an agreement with the opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai on Monday to divide the responsibilities for running the troubled country.

While many of the pieces of the long-awaited deal remained either unresolved or unannounced, Mr. Tsvangirai said the agreement “sees the return of hope to all our lives.”

Despite questions about how the agreement would be implemented after so much acrimony and hostility between the two men, Mr. Mugabe said: “We are committed to the deal. We will do our best.”

Opposition supporters at the ceremony in a conference center at a Harare hotel celebrated the signing and were jubilant when Mr. Tsvangirai appeared, hooting and applauding. Among the audience were many opposition workers who had gone into hiding in the run-up to the election in March or been beaten in government-sponsored violence over the last eight years.

Godknows Nyamweda, 36, a local ward councilor here in Harare, rolled up his sleeve to show the scars where he said he had been sliced by a knife.

“I came to make sure my big fishes have not betrayed me and to make sure I’m walking in a free country,” he said.

There was still an undercurrent of fear that that the repression could yet return with a vengeance, and some people were afraid to be quoted by name.

The crowd also repeatedly cheered the presence of Botswana’s president, Seretse Khama Ian Khama, clapping and chanting, “Khama, Khama, Khama.” He has been Mr. Mugabe’s harshest critic in the region, refusing to recognize the legitimacy of his election.

Western diplomats were studying the text of the deal to see how power will actually to be divided. Western nations are wary of pouring billions of dollars into Zimbabwe for its reconstruction unless they are convinced that Mr. Tsvangirai has the authority he needs to change economic policies they believe have been calamitous for the country.

The arrangement was reached after weeks of negotiations that opened in July. The negotiations followed a season of contentious elections, scarred by bloodletting and intimidation, which the opposition blamed on the government. Mr. Tsvangirai claimed victory in the first round of elections in March. But he boycotted a presidential runoff in June, citing political violence, leaving Mr. Mugabe as the sole candidate.

Despite the violence and bad feelings between the two sides, the sight of Mr. Mugabe, Mr. Tsvangirai and a second opposition leader, Arthur Mutambara, clasping hands beside Thabo Mbeki, the South African president who mediated the deal, prompted some participants to suggest that Zimbabwe’s fortunes might have changed after years of autocracy and economic chaos.

Mr. Tsvangirai said a sense of hope “provides the foundation of this agreement that we sign today that will provide us with the belief that we can achieve a new Zimbabwe.”

For his part, Mr. Mugabe seemed far less accommodating, using a speech after the signing ceremony to renew his accusations that Britain, the former colonial power, and the United States were responsible for Zimbabwe’s problems.

“African problems must be solved by Africans,” he said. “The problem we have had is a problem that has been created by former colonial power. Why, why, why the hand of the British? Why, why, why the hand of the Americans here? Let us ask that.”

Mr. Tsvangirai, often labeled an agent for the British in the state media, said in his own remarks that it was time for Zimbabwe to open up to international donors — Britain and the United States among them — who were seeking to feed the multitude of hungry Zimbabweans.

The moment was another milestone in Zimbabwe’s political history.

Almost three decades ago , Mr. Mugabe, leader of the political party that claimed the loyalty of the biggest of two guerrilla armies fighting white minority rule in the country, formerly called Rhodesia, was brought only reluctantly to negotiate a peace deal in 1979 rather than press for a military outcome.

Some years later, Mr. Mugabe struck a unity agreement with a fellow nationalist leader, Joshua Nkomo, that led to Mr. Nkomo’s political eclipse.

Mr. Tsvangirai said his commitment to the agreement showed that “my belief in Zimbabwe and its peoples runs deeper than the scars I bear from the struggle” — a reference to the beatings he received in detention.

The full details of the agreement seemed unclear. Introducing the signatories, Mr. Mbeki, the South African leader who staked much political and diplomatic capital on negotiating the accord, referred to Mr. Mugabe as president, Mr. Tsvangirai as prime minister and Mr. Mutambara as deputy prime minister.

As the two sides have negotiated over power, Mr. Tsvanigrai has sought control of the police, which he believes were involved in a campaign of violence against his supporters during the election.

Mr. Mugabe dwelled in his speech on the role in negotiating a settlement played by Zimbabwe’s neighbors, referring back to the days when a belt of southern African lands bordering the last bastions of white rule in Africa called themselves “frontline” states and supported liberation movements, including those in Zimbabwe.

“They have come to our assistance once again,” he said.

Mr. Mugabe reserved his main credit for the deal for Mr. Mbeki, describing his mediation as “noble work.”

Talking about the negotiations that led to the agreement, Mr. Mugabe also said there were “lots of things in the agreement that I don’t like, and still don’t like.”

However, he said, “we are all Zimbabweans and is there any other road, any other route to follow? History makes us walk the same route.”

With Zimbabwe’s economy virtually collapsed and inflation running at more than 11 million per cent, the new government in Zimbabwe is likely to need huge financial support from some of those outside powers Mr. Mugabe blamed so vehemently for its woes.

And some of those outsiders remained skeptical about the implementation of the agreement.

David Miliband, the British foreign secretary, echoed a European Union statement linking aid to reforms.

“The new government needs to start to rebuild the country,” Mr. Miliband said in a statement. “If it does so, Britain and the rest of the international community will be quick to support them.”

Celia W. Dugger reported from Harare, Zimbabwe, and Alan Cowell from Paris. Graham Bowley contributed reporting from New York.

Rock-paper-scissors in Zimbabwe's deal

Christian Science Monitor

The children's game holds a lesson for the country's new power-sharing
agreement.
By the Monitor's Editorial Board
from the September 16, 2008 edition

As a power-sharing deal in Zimbabwe was inked Monday, supporters of
strongman Robert Mugabe raised their fists in salute. Opposition followers
waved open hands. The two gestures - one defiant and one hopeful - hint at
the tension underlying this unlikely political marriage in a country where
democracy in Africa has been on trial.

As with Kenya's new unity government formed earlier this year, the most
welcome aspect of Zimbabwe's grand coalition is an end to political
violence. The brutality was triggered by March elections that resulted in
massive government interference in a June runoff.

Beyond a return to calm, it's impossible to know whether this team of
enemies can find the trust and will to restore one of Africa's most troubled
nations to the jewel it once was.

The deal defies the will of voters since it leaves significant power in the
hands of Mr. Mugabe, the octogenarian autocrat who has ruled and ruined this
once humming commercial and agricultural engine in southern Africa.

Mugabe, at the helm of Zimbabwe for nearly three decades, will stay on as
president and head a cabinet of 31 ministers - with the balance of power
slightly tipped to the divided opposition. Morgan Tsvangirai, who heads the
opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), becomes prime minister,
handling the country's mountain-sized problems. He'll also lead a sort of
über council to oversee Mugabe's cabinet. Whether this cumbersome tandem of
ministers will pull together or pull apart remains to be seen.

But the real power, the security forces, favors Mugabe. He retains control
over the Army and intelligence services which set upon Mugabe opponents in
the wake of a first round of elections March 29.

This halvsies agreement rides roughshod over voters in that election, which
Mugabe and his ZANU-PF party lost at both the parliamentary and presidential
levels. Indeed, Mugabe has been losing the confidence of Zimbabweans for
years. Millions of them have voted with their feet, fleeing the world's
worst inflation (now over 11 million percent per year), unemployment of over
80 percent, and widespread hunger. The UN forecasts that about 45 percent of
the remaining population will soon suffer "food insecurity."

Disappointing agreements are often the nature of political compromise.
Mugabe obviously still retains influence through his status as his country's
liberator from white rule, and through the support of African leaders such
as South African President Thabo Mbeki, who negotiated this deal. Mr. Mbeki
deserves credit for bringing the two sides together, but one wonders what
might have emerged had he handled Zimbabwe's dictator with anything rougher
than kid gloves.

Yet Tsvangirai and the MDC are not without leverage. Their real
participation in the new government is the key to the end of Western
sanctions and the start of massive economic and humanitarian aid vital to
Zimbabwe's rebirth.

Zimbabwe brings to mind the children's hand game, rock-paper-scissors. Much
smashing and cutting have preceded this week's deal. One hopes that the open
hands of democracy will wrap around the fist of authoritarianism, so that
its brutal force is felt no more.

Text of the power-sharing agreement

http://graphics8.nytimes.com/packages/pdf/world/2008/09/0915_Zimbabwe_Agreement.pdf

Optimism and winces: Zimbabwe's new future?

http://www.independent.co.uk

By Daniel Howden
Monday, 15 September 2008

The most optimistic and magnanimous words spoken yesterday came from Robert
Mugabe:

"If you were my enemy yesterday, today we are bound by the same patriotic
duty and destiny." They were not spoken by the 84-year-old autocrat,
instead, they were quoted back to him by Zimbabwe's new prime minister,
Morgan Tsvangirai.

The former union leader confronted his rival with the older man's own
eloquence, spoken in 1980 after the end of white rule. Mr Tsvangirai used
the words this time to reach out to the same leadership that has had him
beaten, imprisoned and charged with treason, but with whom he will now share
power. Prime Minister Mugabe entered office 28 years ago with an appeal to
the white community to stay and to reconcile. If Mr Tsvangirai's quote was
an attempt to appeal to anything that remains of that liberation hero, it
did not work.

When it came time for Mr Mugabe to speak there was no looking forward, only
back to the same anti-colonial rants that have marked his public appearances
in recent years. There was the same paranoia and misrepresentations of
political violence, blaming the beatings and murders on the victims. And a
total denial of responsibility for the current state of the country.

The rhetorical gap represented the actual divide between a new
administration intent on addressing the economic crisis and an old
administration intent on acting as though nothing had changed. While a queue
of potential foreign donors from the IMF to the EU have promised a rescue
package to refloat the economy they have also made it clear that this will
not happen until there is a clear demonstration of the political will to
overhaul the disastrous past policies. Only one side was prepared to even
speak about this.

Mr Tsvangirai openly blamed the "policies of the past", while Mr Mugabe
insisted all woes were "created by former colonial powers."

The tensions that have punctuated the talks process with walkouts and
violent disagreements were close to the surface again yesterday with new
prime minister wincing through the president's tirade. It is hard not to see
this is a precursor of their working relationship.

There are a number of key audiences waiting for a clear signal from Harare
to return. The aid agencies who were recently barred and have begun - in
part - to return; the once thriving Zimbabwean media, which has operated in
exile; and the millions of ex-pat Zimbabweans watching. So far only one half
of the new government is giving them a reason to come back.

Zimbabwe rivals shake hands on power-sharing

Financial Times

By Tony Hawkins in Harare

Published: September 14 2008 18:18 | Last updated: September 15 2008 18:44

Zimbabwe’s rival politicians pledged to work together for a “better
 Zimbabwe” on Monday after signing a historic power-sharing agreement in
Harare.

Completing a nine-year march to office that has seen him routinely harassed
and occasionally beaten by state forces, Morgan Tsvangirai, leader of the
Movement for Democratic Change, called on Zimbabweans to consign divisions
to the past.

“This agreement sees the return of hope to all our lives. It is this hope
that provides the foundation of this agreement that we sign today, that will
provide us with the belief that we can achieve a new Zimbabwe,” said Mr
Tsvangirai, who becomes prime minister in the new administration.
International reaction to the deal remained cautious. Power and ministerial
positions will now be divided up roughly evenly between President Robert
Mugabe and his opposition rival, with a small breakaway faction of the MDC
holding the balance with three positions in the cabinet. However, if all
goes to plan, Mr Tsvangirai will lead day-to-day running of government and
gain control of the budget.

The agreement recognises that there will be nothing to spend, however,
unless western countries put an end to Zimbabwe’s economic isolation and
allow it access to credit from international financial institutions.

European Union foreign ministers meeting in Brussels issued a statement
saying: “The EU stands ready to adopt a set of economic support measures and
measures to support a transitional government . . . ”

Mr Tsvangirai promised “a new way of governing where we serve the needs of
the people”.

He promised that his administration would give top priority to ending food
shortages, to assuring food was available in the shops at “affordable
 prices” and to improving supplies of electricity and petrol.

He pledged also to “restore the value of the currency”, battered by
inflation that some estimate has now reached 40 million per cent.

In quoting Mr Mugabe’s famous post-independence speech of April 1980, “Let
us turn swords into ploughshares”, Mr Tsvangirai caught the mood of his
audience, which visibly wanted to believe that there is a better future.

The 84-year-old president sat slumped in his chair throughout the
proceedings. It was a tough morning for him. Boxed into a corner by
international pressure, the collapse of the economy and an election contest
that saw his Zanu-PF party lose its majority in parliament for the first
time, Mr Mugabe was pushed into a compromise, brokered by Thabo Mbeki, the
South African president.

The most striking contrast between his remarks and those of the two
opposition leaders was his preoccupation with the past – colonialism,
African unity and the west. He stressed that there were certain “salient
principles” that would have to be observed by the new coalition government.

One principle was ownership of natural resources. “Zimbabwe belongs to
Zimbabweans” he said – a clear indication that he and his party will block
any attempt to reverse the country’s disastrous land reform programme.

Can Zimbabwe's Shotgun Marriage Work?

By Megan Lindow Monday, Sep. 15, 2008

Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe laughs with opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai and Arthur Mutambara, after signing a power-sharing deal at Rainbow Towers hotel in Harare September 15, 2008.

Philimon Bulawayo / Reuters

Cheers and smiles erupted at Harare's Rainbow Towers, Monday, as President Robert Mugabe appeared to relax his grip on power in Zimbabwe for the first time since independence in 1980. In an unprecedented ritual of unity following months of political violence directed at opposition supporters, Mugabe shook hands with opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) leader Morgan Tsvangirai, and Arthur Mutambara, the leader of a rival faction within the opposition, as they signed a deal under which although Mugabe remains president, the MDC will take the lead in the day-to-day running of the government, led by Tsvangirai, who will become prime minister. It was a compromise deal neither side wanted, but which neither side had the leverage to resist.

The new arrangement will give Mugabe, as president, control over the cabinet, although his powers have been curtailed. Tsvangirai, as prime minister, with Mutambara and one other MDC appointee as his deputies, will head a parallel power structure called the Council of Ministers, which will oversee the cabinet. The two factions of the MDC will control 16 of 31 new cabinet posts, in addition to its small parliamentary majority. After last-minute wrangling over the weekend, it was reportedly agreed that Tsvangirai would take control of the police and foreign affairs, while Mugabe would retain control of the army and intelligence services — which are widely believed to be controlling the country now, through a shadowy politburo known as the Joint Operations Command. Members of Mugabe's regime and security forces will also enjoy immunity from prosecution over acts of violence against opposition supporters.

Neither Mugabe nor Tsvangirai made any secret of their difficulties in accepting the accord. "We had two options: to put aside our differences, or to plunge the country into the abyss of a failed state," Tsvangirai said after the signing. "I have signed this agreement because my belief in Zimbabwe and its people runs deeper than the scars I bear from these struggles." Mugabe was less conciliatory in his own 30-minute speech, drawing jeers from the crowd as he took swipes at Tsvangirai and lashed out at the United States and Britain, which Mugabe has blamed for undermining his regime and sowing the seeds of the country's crisis. "They spoke of regime change and they are still speaking of it," he said. "They imposed sanctions. We had not attacked Britain; we had not done anything to Britain." He then went on to imply that democracy is not working in Africa, saying: "We must resist those who want to impose their will on us. This thing called democracy in Africa is a difficult proposition. Always the opposition want more than what they deserve."

The deal, brokered by South Africa's President Thabo Mbeki, looks set to end months of political turmoil that began when Mugabe finished behind Tsvangirai in the first-round presidential poll on March 29, and unleashed his security forces in a campaign of violence that prompted Tsvangirai to withdraw from a runoff poll in June. The key factor forcing Mugabe to relent on his resistance to sharing power is Zimbabwe's economic collapse, prospects for recovery from which are heavily dependent on international assistance — and therefore on resolving the political crisis. Having agreed to share power, Zimbabwe's political rivals have taken a crucial first step down what is certain to be a long and difficult path toward rebuilding Zimbabwe. "This is just the beginning," Mutambara acknowledged, before a cheering crowd. "The hard work starts today."

Despite the relief and jubilation on display at the signing ceremony, analysts note that the deal is fragile, and fraught with uncertainty over the practicalities of sharing power between such bitter enemies. Many expect that Mugabe will continue to do his utmost to undermine the deal and sideline his opponents, while the military — believed to be the dominant voice in the president's inner circle, and which vehemently opposes MDC rule — is another potential stumbling block. "It's like an egg at the moment," Harare political analyst John Makumbe told TIME. "The stuff inside the deal is very good, but the shell is very fragile, so let's hope it doesn't get dropped."

Some warn of a parallel to the aftermath of Zimbabwe's independence struggle, when Mugabe drew his then chief political rival, Joshua Nkomo, into a unity government and then proceeded to neutralize his power and bludgeon his supporters. They fear that Tsvangirai may have been forced, by the limited options available to him, to make too many compromises to substantially alter the power equation. Opinion on the agreement among analysts and diplomats ranges from muted optimism to quiet skepticism, while potential donors such as the European Union, will likely wait to assess the implementation of the agreement and for changes in economic policy before ponying up billions of dollars in investment that has been pledged.

A reminder of the difficulties ahead was in evidence even at the celebratory signing of the accord. Outside the venue, there were violent clashes between supporters of Mugabe's Zanu-PF and activists of the MDC. Police fired warning shots, as members of opposing camps threw stones at one another and smashed car windows. Still, ordinary Zimbabweans on both sides of the political divide expressed their optimism. "It is good that the leaders are now working together," ZANU-PF supporter Tichaona Maheu told TIME. "I hope they will address the economic hardships the country is facing. I believe the leaders will work together for the good of the people." But as the leaders themselves acknowledge, the work of rescuing the dysfunctional economy and healing a sick, hungry and traumatized populace has only just begun.

—With reporting by Simba Rushwaya/Harare

Analysis: the jury is still out

Times Online
September 15, 2008

Martin Fletcher
It was not a great start. Within minutes of signing a power-sharing deal
with Morgan Tsvangirai, Robert Mugabe delivered another of his rants against
Britain, blaming Zimbabwe's former colonial power for its desperate economic
plight and making gratuitous digs at an opposition which "wants much more
than it deserves".

He offered no hint of the humility, or the recognition of his own grievous
mistakes and misrule, that will be necessary if Zimbabwe's cumbersome new
power-sharing arrangements are to work. He barely acknowledged his supposed
"co-leader". Indeed, the only talk of reconciliation came from Mr
Tsvangirai.

For the moment the jury is very much out on this supposedly-historic deal,
with the onus firmly on Mr Mugabe to prove that he is genuinely prepared to
work with his old enemy - a man he has had imprisoned, tortured, beaten and
charged with treason - for the benefit of all Zimbabweans.

If western nations are to give the billions required to rebuild Zimbabwe's
shattered economy and if the three million Zimbabweans who have fled their
country are to be enticed home, they will first need convincing that Mr
Tsvangirai really is in charge and that Mr Mugabe is not simply using him as
a front man to give a veneer of respectability to a vile regime.

To do that Mr Mugabe will have to accept the swift reversal of some of his
regime's most heinous policies - the draconian security measures, the
obstruction of humanitarian aid agencies, the repression of the media. He
will have to call off his war veterans and end the intimidation of Mr
Tsvangirai's supporters in the Movement for Democratic Change.
He will have to agree with Mr Tsvangirai an emergency plan to curb an
inflation rate in excess of 20 million per cent and ways to restore to
productive use the white-owned farms the regime has seized, plundered and
ruined in the past eight years. He will have to engage in good faith in a
process of constitutional reform leading to free and fair elections.

Were Mr Mugabe to do these things there would be real hope that Zimbabwe's
long nightmare is over and Mr Tsvangirai's decision to share power with a
man who has done so much to destroy his country will be justified.

But in 28 years Mr Mugabe has never previously shown the slightest
inclination to compromise with his enemies and the ambiguities of this
power-sharing deal - with Mr Mugabe heading the Cabinet as president and Mr
Tsvangirai heading a Council of Ministers as prime minister - gives the wily
octogenarian plenty of scope for obstruction and for outmanoeuvring his
tactically far-less-astute rival.

Such a course might buy Mr Mugabe a little more time in office, but at a
terrible cost to his desperate, starving people.

Zimbabwe calls on Britain to pay for lost farms

Reuters

Mon 15 Sep 2008, 12:36 GMT

HARARE, Sept 15 (Reuters) - Zimbabwe's new power-sharing leadership called
on former colonial power Britain on Monday to accept responsibility for
compensating farmers who lost their land during the country's land reform
process.

President Robert Mugabe and opposition leaders Morgan Tsvangirai and Arthur
Mutambara signed a deal on Monday to end a political crisis exacerbated by
elections earlier this year.

The deal, under which Mugabe relinquishes some of his powers to rivals he
brands stooges of the West, proposes that the parties try to secure
international finance to pay compensation to farmers.

"The parties hereby call upon the United Kingdom government to accept the
primary responsibility to pay compensation for land acquired from former
landowners for resettlement," the agreement stated.

Mugabe's government began seizing white-owned commercial farms in 2000 to
distribute to blacks, a policy critics say ruined the agriculture sector.

Zimbabwe's government has in the past accused Britain of reneging on an
agreement to compensate farmers who lost their land during reforms.

The power-sharing deal called for a "comprehensive, transparent and
non-partisan" land audit to ensure individuals did not own too many farms.

Critics say Mugabe's ministers and supporters took control of farms that
were initially meant to be given to landless blacks. (Reporting by Gordon
Bell; Editing by Matthew Tostevin)

Prime Minister Tsvangirai calls on Zimbabwe parties to 'unite'

Yahoo News

Mon Sep 15, 10:22 AM ET

HARARE (AFP) - Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai used his first platform as
head of government on Monday to call on Zimbabwe's rival political parties
to work together to "unite" the country.

"I, the prime minister of Zimbabwe, call ZANU-PF and MDC to unite Zimbabwe.
Divisions belong to the past," Tsvangirai said after signing a historic
power-sharing deal with President Robert Mugabe.

As Tsvangirai got down to executive business, his first priority was a call
for the economically-shattered southern African country's doors to be
reopened to international aid.

"The international aid organisations came to help our country and found our
doors locked," Tsvangirai said. "We need to unlock our doors to aid -- we
need medicine, food, and doctors back in our country.

"We need electricity, water, petrol for our vehicles, we need to access our
cash from bank."

Over the past decade Zimbabwe's economy has collapsed with the world's
highest inflation rate, chronic shortages of foreign currency and food,
skyrocketing unemployment and widespread hunger.

Mugabe, speaking moments after signing a historic power-sharing deal on
Monday, again warned against foreign influence in his country.

"We must resist those who want to impose their own will on us," Mugabe said.

"Zimbabwe is a sovereign country, only the people of Zimbabwe has the
fundamental right to govern it. They alone will set up government, they
alone will change it."

The 84-year-old president has in the past repeatedly labelled Tsvangirai a
stooge of the West.

Earlier, the European Union said it was taking a wait-and-see attitude to
Zimbabwe's new power-sharing deal, leaving its sanctions unchanged but ready
to reconsider them next month, EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said.

Mugabe, 84, kept a straight face as the pair shook hands after the ceremony
attended by several southern African leaders, while Tsvangirai did so with a
beaming smile.

The veteran president, a hero in the country's liberation war who has ruled
Zimbabwe since independence from Britain in 1980, had pledged in the past
that the opposition would never rule in his lifetime.

Precise details of how the accord was to work in practice were to be
formally unveiled later Monday.

Zimbabwe police fire warning shots at unruly crowd

Washington Times

ANGUS SHAW ASSOCIATED PRESS
Originally published 07:59 a.m., September 15, 2008, updated 07:58 a.m.,
September 15, 2008

HARARE, ZIMBABWE (AP) - Police have fired warning shots at an unruly crowd
of thousands that was trying to break into the convention center where
Zimbabwe's rival political parties signed a power-sharing deal.

Supporters of both sides threw stones at each other Monday and several
hundred people broke through the gates into the grounds of the convention
center where several African leaders were witnessing the signing ceremony.
They did not reach the hall.

An Associated Press reporter watched police fire warning shots and use riot
dogs but fail to contain the crowd.

Police speedily closed the gates and were trying to contain several thousand
people pressing against the gate and fence as the ceremony ended.

'It's Still Possible To Mess It Up'

7:43pm UK, Monday September 15, 2008

Emma Hurd, Africa correspondent

For a moment it felt like a new beginning in Zimbabwe as the country's bitter political rivals shared a handshake and agreed to share power.

Morgan Tsvangirai with his head in his hand as Robert Mugabe rants

But then Robert Mugabe opened his mouth. Out poured the same old rhetoric, a tirade against all of his old enemies - chief among them the former colonial power.

"Why oh why, the British?" he wailed, as his new partner in government, Morgan Tsvangirai, lowered his head into his hands.

The Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) leader must have suspected he was dealing with the same old Mugabe and as the 84-year-old ranted on and on - with barely a mention of national unity or reconciliation - those fears must have been confirmed.

The Zimbabwean President has not changed and Mr Tsvangirai will have to find a way of outmanoeuvring him in the coming weeks and months.

Even on paper the power-sharing deal is confusing, and in practice the ageing President may be able to mess it up in no time at all.

Mr Mugabe is still the head of state and he will still chair the Cabinet, even though the combined MDC will have 16 of the 31 posts.

In theory, Mr Tsvangirai, who will be in charge of the new Council of Ministers, should be given control over the day-to-day running of the Government of National Unity - but it is far from clear which of the two men will have the final say.

The ministries are still being carved up between Mr Mugabe's Zanu PF party and the two MDC factions, with the opposition pushing for home affairs, foreign affairs and the crucial finance ministry.

They are also likely to take control of the highly politicised police force, while Mr Mugabe seems set to retain control over the army.

It all amounts to a huge compromise in which power is so finely balanced that it could be tilted either way.

The big hope for the deal is that Mr Mugabe has finally woken up to the scale of the crisis in his country, where the economy is the fastest shrinking in the world.

He might perhaps have grasped that without Mr Tsvangirai there will be no international rescue packages, which could amount to £1bn.

But it was not a pragmatic Mr Mugabe who took to the stage in Harare.

He was bristling with defiance and sending a warning: the battle for Zimbabwe is not over yet.

Talks on new Zimbabwe ministers to start Tuesday

africasia

HARARE, Sept 15 (AFP)

Talks to allocate ministers for Zimbabwe's power-sharing government will
begin on Tuesday, the governing party's chief negotiator said on national
television.

"The discussions to allocate who will head which ministry ... that process
will in earnest start tomorrow after the signing ceremony," said Patrick
Chinamasa of President Robert Mugabe's ZANU-PF party.

On Monday leaders of three Zimbabwe political rivals signed an accord aimed
at ending the country's ruinious political crisis following protracted
negotiations.

Under the agreement the leaders agreed to an all inclusive power-sharing
agreement which will see the appointment of 31 ministers drawn from the
three main parties.

Morgan Tsvangirai, leader of the main opposition Movement for Democratic
Change, will become prime minister and the head of a smaller splinter group,
Arthur Mutambara, will be his deputy.

"The principals are going to meet to decide which ministries are going to be
run by the ZANU-PF, which ministries are going to be run by the MDC-T and
which by the MDC-M," Chinamasa said, referring to the movements headed by
Tsvangirai and Mutambara.

"The other immediate matter is the issue of the amendment of the
constitution."

The deal, brokered by South African President Thabo Mbeki, has been widely
approved by African leaders, but the larger international community reacted
cautiously, mainly awaiting details.

In August, the parties failed to sign the proposed agreement after
Tsvangirai said he needed more time to consult over specific issues
regarding the allocation of powers.

International Monetary Fund head Dominique Strauss-Kahn on Monday hailed the
power-sharing deal saying the IMF stood ready to hold talks with the
country's leaders.

"Today's power-sharing deal in Zimbabwe paves the way for a new government
that can begin to address the economic crisis," Strauss-Kahn said in a
statement.

EU foreign ministers on Monday left sanctions in place against Zimbabwe,
despite the deal, saying they wanted to see democratic improvements before
resuming economic aid.

The 27 foreign ministers said in a joint statement that the EU was prepared
to "adopt a set of economic support measures" but only in support of "a
transitional government taking the steps to restore democracy and the rule
of law in Zimbabwe."

Secrecy still shrouds power sharing deal, despite signing ceremony

By Lance Guma
15 September 2008

Hours after Morgan Tsvangirai, Robert Mugabe and Arthur Mutambara signed the
historic power sharing deal in Harare, Zimbabweans still remained in the
dark about what it entailed. All they knew was that Mugabe remained
President, with Tsvangirai the new Prime Minister deputised by Mutambara.
MDC and ZANU PF officials remained mum on when the details of the deal will
be made public, although speculation suggests it will be sometime this week.
What has added to the confusion is that the facilitator Thabo Mbeki had
indicated everything would be made public on Monday.

According to details leaked, there will be a total of 31 government
Ministries after 13 new ones were created in the last few days. ZANU PF is
expected to run 15 of these, with the Tsvangirai MDC taking control of 13
and the Mutambara MDC getting the remaining 3 cabinet posts. Mugabe as
President will chair Cabinet meetings deputised by Tsvangirai while the MDC
leader, as Prime Minister will chair a newly created Council of Ministers
that will supervise the work of Cabinet. Mugabe will not sit in the Council
of Ministers. In return for Mugabe controlling the army the MDC has demanded
control of the police.

Sources say the ideal scenario for the MDC would be control of the Home
Affairs, Information, Finance, Justice and Foreign Affairs Ministries, but
this might turn out to be too hopeful. Although there is talk the Ministry
of State Security which controlled the dreaded CIO spy agency will be
scrapped it's not clear who will control the agency. The Justice Ministry
seems to have been split into 2 to create a new ministry of Prisons and
Correctional Services and its sister Justice, Parliamentary and
Constitutional Affairs ministry.

The duration of this new government also remains unclear. So far Newsreel
understands the deal will be reviewed after 18 months in which time a new
constitution will have been drafted. This could pave the way for fresh
elections should either party withdraw from the agreement. Mugabe has been
insisting the new government should run the country for 5 years and it
remains to be seen if his wish was granted. The opposition had wanted only a
short transitional period in which to allow for democratic reforms and
national healing before new elections are held to settle the issue of
absolute control.

Government structure (as leaked so far)

President Robert Mugabe Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai
2 ZANU PF Vice President's Vice Prime Minister Arthur Mutambara
2nd Vice Prime Minister Thokozani Khupe

Some of the Ministries (as leaked so far)
1. Prisons and Correctional Services
2. Economic Planning and Development
3. Industry and Commerce
4. Regional Integration and International Trade
5. Environment, Natural Resources and Tourism
6. Justice, Parliamentary and Constitutional Affairs
7. State Enterprises and Empowerment
8. Public Works and Rural Development
9. Media, Information and Publicity
10. Information Communication Technology
11. Youth, Arts, Sports and Culture
12. Education
13. Health
14. Science and technology
15. Local Government
16. Lands
17. Agriculture
18. Water Resources
19. Public Service
20. National Housing and Social Amenities
21. Transport
22. Defence
23. Home Affairs
24. Foreign Affairs
25. Finance
26. Labour and Social Services
27. Energy
28. National Housing
29. Transport
30. Water Resources and Management
31. Public Works and Rural Development.

SW Radio Africa Zimbabwe news

Mbeki: SADC to mobilise financial resources for Zimbabwe's agriculture

http://www.apanews.net

APA-Harare (Zimbabwe) The Southern African Development Community (SADC) will
mobilise resources to finance Zimbabwe's agriculture season, SADC
chairperson and South African President Thabo Mbeki said in Harare on
Monday.

Mbeki pledged to work with other SADC leaders and the African Union to
ensure Zimbabwe's next agricultural season was well-funded to avert another
poor harvest next year.

"We have to ensure as the region and continent that we extend a hand to help
the people of Zimbabwe. We must get the seed, fertiliser, fuel and
implements as a matter of urgency," said Mbeki who was the facilitator in
power-sharing talks between President Robert Mugabe and opposition leader
Morgan Tsvangirai, who is now the country's Prime Minister in the unity
government.

Zimbabwe has had successive poor seasons since 2000, which have been blamed
on under-funding and a controversial decision by Mugabe to expropriate
white-run farms for the resettlement of black farmers.

Agricultural output has more than halved in the past eight years as the
newly resettled farmers failed to fully utilise their land despite massive
investments in agriculture by the government.

The food deficit has forced the former regional breadbasket to rely on
imports, depriving other sectors of the economy of much-needed funding.

      JN/nm/APA
      2008-09-15

Rebuilding Zimbabwe must begin immediately

Oxfam

Date: 15 Sep 2008

Rebuilding Zimbabwe's shattered economy must be a priority for the
international community, international aid agency Oxfam said today in
response to the news of a power sharing deal.

"Delay is not an option. The international community must provide support
and assistance to the new coalition government," said Charles Abani,
Regional Director for of Oxfam in Southern Africa. "Assistance must be
carefully coordinated and managed, so that very weak state institutions are
not overstretched. Zimbabwean civil society must also be included in a
transparent process."

Ordinary Zimbabweans are desperately short of food, health care, clean water
and safe sanitation. The little food that is available is unaffordable to
most. An estimated 3.8 million people are anticipated to be in urgent need
of food assistance by October. Life expectancy for women is just 35 years,
and unemployment stands at 85 per cent.

Investment in agriculture is key. Farmers need fertilizers and seeds
urgently, so that they can prepare for the November planting season.

"The international community must not just throw money at this problem then
walk away and say 'job done'. Zimbabwe needs a long-term plan, built on
partnership and shared responsibilities, and supported by long-term,
predictable aid from international governments," said Abani.

"It is also important that the Zimbabwe government meets its commitments to
rebuilding the nation. The coalition government must show leadership in the
rebuilding process if international support is to succeed. They should
ensure equitable and effective access to humanitarian assistance, extend the
operational space for all civil society organizations, and deal quickly with
outstanding registration issues for NGOs," Abani added.

"Many local and international organizations who want to get back to helping
poor people in Zimbabwe are still unable to do so because their registration
status is pending. We urge the new government to facilitate the registration
process in the interest of Zimbabweans in need of assistance."

What do you think the top priorities are for Zimbabwe’s leaders, and why?

Aid agencies hopeful of feeding Zimbabwe

Washington Times

ALEXANDER G. HIGGINS ASSOCIATED PRESS
Originally published 02:25 p.m., September 15, 2008, updated 02:26 p.m.,
September 15, 2008

GENEVA (AP) - Aid agencies on Monday welcomed the new power-sharing
government in Zimbabwe as giving hope that they will be able to step up food
deliveries to millions of people facing hunger and worse.

"The food situation in Zimbabwe has reached crisis point," said Matthew
Cochrane of the international Red Cross. "There are already more than 2
million people who don't have food, and that number is going to rise to 5
million, which is about half the country's population, by the end of the
year."

Some agencies have been gearing up to provide more aid since the government
started easing restrictions recently, but they expressed caution.

"We don't know whether the new power sharing government will make any
changes to the rules and regulations around humanitarian assistance,"
Richard Lee of the U.N.'s World Food Program said.

But Lee said in a telephone interview from Johannesburg, South Africa, that
the political settlement should improve political stability and allow the
World Food Program and its partner organizations to work.

In June, President Robert Mugabe's government restricted the work of aid
agencies, accusing them of siding with the opposition before a presidential
runoff. The ban was lifted last month, but aid agencies say it takes time to
gear up.

Kenneth Walker of CARE International said, "Any movement toward ending the
political crisis in Zimbabwe has got to positively affect the humanitarian
situation. So we are very hopeful, very happy, that that kind of progress
seems to be under way with this power-sharing agreement."

Cochrane, South Africa-based spokesman for the International Federation of
Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, said the agency was ready to start
food distribution this week under a 27.7 million Swiss franc (US$24.5
million) fundraising appeal launched a month ago.

"We had fairly slow donor response at first, but since then it's really
built up quite dramatically so we've been able to procure the initial
supplies," he said. "Obviously we need ongoing support. This is a nine-month
operation."

The program will target 260,000 of the neediest people across Zimbabwe,
Cochrane said.

But many more are in severe need, he added.

"I was in Zimbabwe last week in Masvingo province which is in the south and
one of the worst areas affected," Cochrane said. "The situation was a lot
worse than I thought it would be. You've got people who don't have any
access at all to food.

"Even people with money can't get food. There's no food on the shelves. The
supermarkets we went into, they had mineral water and tea leaves. That was
the sum of their supplies."

He said the food shortages hinder the Red Cross's efforts to deliver
antiretroviral drugs to HIV-infected people in Zimbabwe, because the lack of
food makes them feel too sick when they take the medication.

"We're seeing a lot of people defaulting on their treatment," Cochrane said.
"The body needs food to absorb any kind of medication, but it is
particularly important with ARTs (antiretroviral therapies)."

Side effects like "skull-splitting migraines, extreme exhaustion and nausea"
lead people to stop taking drugs even though it means they might quickly die
of AIDS.

"Once they've stopped taking the drugs, the virus comes back with a
vengeance," Cochrane said. "They just feel so ill that they'd rather have a
day without feeling ill than the security that the drugs bring them."

The Red Cross program also is distributing seed and fertilizer to 20,000
farmers in hopes of improving next year's harvest, Cochrane said.

The food shortages follow a record poor harvest this year and bad harvest
last year.

____

Associated Press writer Eliane Engeler contributed to this report.

Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops' Conference urges healing and reconciliation

15 Sep 2008 16:32:00 GMT
Source: Catholic Agency for Overseas Development (CAFOD) - UK
CAFOD
Website: http://www.cafod.org.uk

15 September 2008

Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops' Conference urges healing and reconciliation

Today the Secretary General of the Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops' Conference,
Father Fradereck Chiromba was amongst those attending the signing of the
power-sharing deal which has sparked new hope for the people of Zimbabwe.

The Zimbabwean Catholic Church has a strong history of both providing care
and support for those affected by the country's economic, social and
political crises and repeatedly challenging the Zimbabwean government to
reflect the needs of its people.

Following the signing, Father Chiromba said: "It was a joyful and momentous
occasion. But, behind the signatures on that piece of paper are huge
challenges ahead for Zimbabwe's so-called government of national unity. The
celebrations have not really started yet, the people of Zimbabwe have just
heaved a sigh of relief.

"One of the immediate challenges is getting food to people. There is a great
need to provide basic food aid as people are coping with a bad harvest and
of course the country's dire economic situation. There are also no medicines
in the hospitals, doctors do not even have aspirins to give out and there is
the situation of the three million or so Zimbabweans living in neighbouring
countries.

"And of course development doesn't work unless it goes hand in hand with
healing and reconciliation for those people who have been traumatised by the
violence. The Catholic Church has always played a pivotal role in
prioritising the needs of the people and will continue to do so as we all
hope and pray that peoples' lives will now change for the better."

The Catholic aid agency CAFOD has one of the largest presences within
Zimbabwe of the British aid agencies and has worked in the country for
nearly three decades. Its emergency food relief programme is currently
targeting 110,000 people. It is also working on HIV programmes, water
projects and sustainable agriculture schemes.

Interviews are available in both London and Harare

For Harare interviews please contact Nana Anto-Awuakye on 07866 787 995

For London interviews or further information please contact: Fiona Callister
on 020 7095 5558 or 07867 908720 or fcallister@cafod.org.uk

Miliband cautious on Zimbabwe pact

http://www.independent.co.uk

By Geoff Meade, PA
Monday, 15 September 2008

The UK Foreign Secretary David Miliband today urged the new power-sharing
government in Zimbabwe to end the country's economic and humanitarian
plight.

After talks with fellow EU foreign ministers in Brussels he cautiously
welcomed the pact between President Robert Mugabe and opposition leader
Morgan Tsvangirai but warned the terms of their agreement on joint
leadership had to be matched with action.

The EU meeting came as the two men sealed their power-sharing deal at a
formal signing ceremony in Harare, bringing Mr Tsvangirai into government as
Prime Minister and Mr Mugabe remaining president with reduced authority.

Mr Miliband said the UK Government welcomed "the prospect of a turn in the
tide of suffering in Zimbabwe".

He went on: "Our overriding concern is with the people of Zimbabwe, who have
suffered too long.

"We hope that this agreement will allow Zimbabwe to chart a new course
towards economic recovery and political stability.

"What matters now is not just the words in the agreement, but the way it
functions and the actions the new government takes on the ground. We hope
that the new government will reverse the tragic policies and decline of
recent years."

Mr Miliband said that if the new regime was able to start to rebuild the
country, Britain and the rest of the international community would be quick
to support them.

Earlier, the Prime Minister also said the UK stood ready to support the new
administration depending on what practical actions were actually taken
towards change.

Gordon Brown's spokesman said: "We congratulate President Mbeki on his
efforts to broker a deal between Zanu-PF and the MDC, but we will need to
study the detail.

"In principle we stand ready to support Zimbabwe's new administration to
bring about much-needed change, but the extent and nature of our support
will be determined by the actions the new administration takes on the
ground."

Today, the EU foreign ministers made clear it was far too early to suspend
existing EU sanctions against more than 100 members of the Mugabe regime,
who are subject to travel bans in Europe and the freezing of any financial
assets held in the EU.

But they pointedly did not proceed with plans to add more names to the
sanctions list.

The EU has no formal relations with Zimbabwe but has supplied humanitarian
aid. Officials say more formal trade and aid packages could be triggered if
the new government arrangement restores stability and provides direct
benefits to help the population.

The foreign ministers this afternoon also agreed to send a 200-strong EU
monitoring mission to Georgia to oversee a pull-back of Russian troops, as
agreed with French President Nicolas Sarkozy in talks earlier this month.

Mr Miliband said the UK contribution would be about 20 observers.

Earlier Mr Miliband commented: "We are very committed to playing our full
part in this important mission (to Georgia).

"There is great concern about Russian behaviour in the last four or five
weeks, about territorial integrity and the way it has been violated."

Zimbabwe deal not enough for EU to lift sanctions

http://www.telegraph.co.uk

The EU has said it is not yet ready to lift crippling economic sanctions on
Zimbabwe despite a power sharing agreement between President Robert Mugabe
and the country's opposition.

By Louis Weston in Harare
Last Updated: 9:58AM BST 15 Sep 2008

Javier Solana, the EU's head of foreign policy, welcomed the deal but said
he needed to see "much more detail" and would not lift the embargo for at
least a month.

The agreement, which was brokered by South Africa's President Thabo Mbeki,
is to be signed by Mr Mugabe and Morgan Tsvangirai, head of the opposition
Movement for Democratic Change.

Mr Mugabe was partly forced into the agreement by the devastating impact of
international sanctions on Zimbabwe's economy.

"It still is not very clear what will be the outcome," Mr Solana said before
a meeting of EU foreign ministers. "The first reaction is positive.

"We want to help the country, if the agreement is implemented."

In Harare, African leaders have arrived to personally witness the signing of
the power sharing deal.

A four-year-old boy who watched Mr Mugabe's supporters torture and murder
his mother will also be among the audience.

Ashly Chiroto's father Emmanuel is a Movement for Democratic Change
councillor and the deputy mayor of Harare. He was kidnapped by a mob of
Mugabe-supporting thugs at the height of the election violence.

Two gangs approached their house in Headcliff, an eastern suburb of the
capital, looking for him. Mr Chiroto was away, so instead they threw three
petrol bombs into the building and seized his wife and son.

As his wife Abigail, 26, sat in the car with Ashly on her lap the men broke
her hands and slashed her stomach open with a knife. Stuffing her mouth with
paper to stifle her screams, they dragged her out of the vehicle and shot
her in the head.

Mr Chiroto, 44, said he wanted his son to see the power-sharing ceremony,
and would set up a memorial, such as an orphanage or a trust fund, named
after his wife.

"When he grows up he will know his mother died but at least there is
something in her name," he said, adding he would tell the boy of "the
madness that we saw where a government that was in power was trying to
maintain its position by murdering innocent people.

"I run short of words," he said. "Every day I think about it, every single
day. I imagine I could be with my wife. It was complete destruction. All my
clothes, all that i worked for all my life went up in smoke.

"This is the shirt she gave me for my birthday last year," he murmured as he
showed burnt clothing piled up against a wall.

But Mrs Chiroto and the other 200-plus people killed in the aftermath of the
polls in March "didn't die in vain", he said.

"At least we have got something in our hands right now. The MDC is going to
have a say in this government. They didn't die in vain," he repeated.

The details of the agreement remain secret, and at the weekend Mr Mugabe, Mr
Tsvangirai and Arthur Mutambara, the leader of a smaller MDC faction, met to
try to settle the distribution of cabinet posts, without success - although
it is agreed the combined MDC will have a 16-15 majority in the cabinet.

Deliberations will resume Monday morning ahead of the signing to finalise
the composition of the cabinet, sources said. The MDC is insisting that it
be given home affairs - one official said that not receiving the ministry,
which brings with it control of the police, would be a "dealbreaker".

But Mr Mugabe is under pressure of his own from within his party, a source
privy to the meeting said, with some feeling he has given up too much and
many of his ministers facing the imminent loss of their positions

Zimbabwe voices

BBC

Monday, 15 September 2008 14:09 UK

BBC News website readers from Zimbabwe give their reaction to the power-sharing deal that has been signed by the country's President Robert Mugabe and his long-time rival and now Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai. VICTOR, HARARE We accept that there cannot be a better way than this for now. There's no quick fix because of the atmosphere that exists. But something good might come out of it. It is important for us all not to take sides. And that we commit to the deal. CH, HARARE Definitely we are excited about this deal. It should be a new beginning for a new Zimbabwe. We are hopeful and await the implementation. ESTHER, 28, PROFESSIONAL, HARARE We are all very happy. We are just waiting to hear the practicalities of the deal now. Some people are pretty excited. But a number are still sceptical and are just watching and waiting. I can understand their sentiments because we've been in a situation like this before - in the 1980s. I was talking to one lady that I go to church with. We are hoping that the rumour that Tsvangirai has control of the police force and the judiciary is true. They definitely need to be non-partisan because they are there to uphold the law. I am hoping that Tsvangirai will not fall into any of Mugabe's traps and that he can fulfil the role as he has said he will. I can't wait to be able to go to South Africa on holiday instead of going to buy cooking oil. I spoke to my sister in South Africa yesterday and she, like many other Zimbabweans outside the country, is very sceptical. She was actually quite shocked at my celebratory mood over the news of the deal. But you know, people here have been through so much and the mood now is one of an anticipated relief that is coming soon. I am personally hoping for the best. SYD, HARARE I believe this deal will end the political crisis, although it won't be as instant as most people think because for as long as the parties share power 50-50, there will always be antagonising when it comes to political issues. However, Mr Mugabe seems to have taken a back seat in the agreement which has been announced, it seems as if he will have a very small role to play even though he will head the security forces and chair the council of ministers. I believe that with MDC having the majority in parliament and with Mr Tsvangirai as prime minister, MDC is now effectively the ruling party. The transition will take a bit of time though as many in Zanu-PF stand to lose a lot of wealth. E TEMBO, HARARE The power-sharing deal is a relief to us Zimbabweans. We have suffered for many years yet we are a hard-working nation. It is very unfortunate that there was a one-man-band in charge. Effectively the agreement abolishes this. We hope this is the beginning of better things to come. RICHARD, 53, OPERATING SUPERINTENDENT, HWANGE Today is wonderful for all Zimbabweans. It is like Christmas has come to us all. Everyone is very happy and the feeling is one of optimism. What the European community should respect now is that all the signatories are all Zimbabweans and their signing of the deal shows they respect the deal and agree to abide by it. There is no way that this deal can make everyone happy but we really have to put our differences aside. First, I want to see the political divisions disappear. And I want all the Zimbabweans who have left over the past few years to come home and re-build our country. I also want the sanctions to be lifted, for the economy to be re-instated and food to be appear back on the shelves. I want to see the end of corruption. Our government is an inclusive one now. The speeches that mattered most to me were Tsvangirai's and Mugabe's. I hope that Prime Minister Tsvangirai will now be his own man and not be manipulated by anyone. I also want people to think the best and stop believing or fearing that Mugabe will go back on his word. The old man has signed and that is a big deal - he's a proud man, he's 84 and he's been ruling for so long. He must be treated with respect like a grandfather. The youngsters must listen to him. We must remember that when a man kills an oxen, he passes on the meat and the carcass but never the head - that must be kept because it shows who killed the oxen. 'DESPONDENT', 46, HARARE I was feeling optimistic but after hearing the speeches I am not anymore. After hearing the president's speech I am so depressed. The way he was talking about the past and colonialism. It makes me wonder if he's committed or not. But God knows we need some light at the end of the tunnel. We need food in our stomachs, water, regular power, medical treatment and drugs. We need fuel. We need our dignity restored. If this is done, then everyone will feel happier. And I will believe in this deal. No water has run from my home taps since 28 March earlier this year and so for me, to just open my tap at home and get water - that would change my mind. Likewise if I could walk into a chemist and buy my son the asthma pumps he needs, that would do it for me. My son is asthmatic but I can't even buy his medication here. I am despondent about the deal. I think I have seen too much suffering and I feel completely knocked down. I cannot trust Mugabe. My hope has died. I hope I am proved wrong. I want to feel hope again.

How quickly can Zimbabweans expect economic change?

IMF opens door to restore ties with Zimbabwe

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com

16 Sep, 2008, 0109 hrs IST, REUTERS

WASHINGTON: The International Monetary Fund on Monday opened the way to work
with Zimbabwe's new power-sharing government but said the country's leaders
first need to make clear commitments to rescue the economy. IMF Managing
Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn said the signing of the power-sharing accord
between President Robert Mugabe and opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai was
a chance to reverse the economic crisis, where inflation is more than 11
million percent, the world's highest rate.

"We stand ready to discuss with the new authorities their policies to
stabilize the economy, improve social conditions, and reduce poverty,"
Strauss-Kahn said in a statement. But Strauss-Kahn said the government
needed to show it was willing to implement credible policies to put the
economy on sounder footing. "I encourage the government to take steps to
show clear commitment to a new policy direction and to seek the support of
the international community," he added.

Such a strategy would also help put Zimbabwe in better standing with the
international community and to restore ties with the IMF. The fund suspended
Zimbabwe's voting rights in June 2003, barring it from participating in IMF
decisions, as the Mugabe government fell behind on paying its IMF debts and
the economic situation deteriorated.

While Zimbabwe has averted expulsion from the IMF, the global lender has
maintained its suspension of financial and technical assistance to Mugabe's
government, which is around $114 million in arrears to the fund.
Strauss-Khan urged the new government to seek help from international
donors.

Scores of Zimbabweans leave SA to return home

SABC

September 15, 2008, 17:30

Thulasizwe Simelane
Hundreds of Zimbabweans living in South Africa today packed their bags and
headed back home after Zimbabwe's political rivals signed a power-sharing
agreement earlier today. However not all Zimbabweans have positively
embraced the idea of going back home. Some are reluctant to believe that
things will change overnight.

Meanwhile, the Southern African Development Community's appointed mediator,
president Thabo Mbeki, has called on Zimbabwe's neighbours to continue to
support the country on its recovery path.

The deal ensures that Movement for Democratic Change leader Morgan
Tsvangirai is set to oversee the day to day business of government as Prime
Minister with executive authority, while Mugabe remains president with some
powers. Tsvangirai wasted no time assuming his role and pledged to end food
shortages and improve health, education, and turn the economy around.

What does deal mean for Zimbabweans in the Diaspora?

By Violet Gonda
15 September 2008

Zimbabwe has a new leadership with Morgan Tsvangirai as Prime Minister and
Robert Mugabe remaining President, but with reduced powers. In his
acceptance speech Tsvangirai addressed the problems in Zimbabwe whereas
Mugabe focussed on his usual anti colonialist rhetoric.

As Mugabe relaxed his grip on power on Monday by agreeing to share power
with his arch-rival Tsvangirai, nowhere is the expectation of the new deal
more intense than the Diaspora where many Zimbabweans are confronted with
the possibility of being able to return home. For some this will be an
answered prayer but for those who are enjoying the opportunities made
available to them outside the country, this will present difficulties.

It is estimated that there are more than three million Zimbabweans in the
Diaspora, mostly in South Africa and the United Kingdom. Many left the
country as a result of the political and economic crisis. Some are
professionals, while others are ordinary Zimbabweans who have never held
jobs back home but they have been keeping people going in Zimbabwe.

Now that there is a new leadership what does this mean to them? Does the
risk on return still exist for asylum seekers, and in a collapsed economy of
80% unemployment what capacity has this new government to create jobs?

With migration being already a huge issue in Britain, what does the future
hold there for Zimbabwean refugees and asylum seekers? And what about in
South Africa, where xenophobic attacks saw thousands of Zimbabweans fleeing
for safety?

The UK based Zimbabwe Association said it has been inundated with calls from
concerned people displaying a whole range of emotions, some despairing while
others cautiously optimistic. Co-ordinator Sarah Harland said although its
early days, if the situation stabilises it would be logical for the UK Home
Office to start returning people to Zimbabwe. But she said the Association
is going to lobby hard to ensure there is a sustained return pack that also
gives people a period to see how things will settle down in Zimbabwe because
the situation is still very unstable.

"And the last thing that Zimbabwe needs right now is large numbers of people
being dumped into a situation that is chaotic, volatile and overstretched,"
Harland added.

Harland said many Zimbabweans are prepared to go back to Zimbabwe as long as
the situation is stable, and are willing to go back voluntarily but are
asking for a sustained return package. As a result of this the Zimbabwe
Association is planning to lobby for a temporary right to work for
Zimbabwean asylum seekers in the UK so that people can be re-skilled before
they are returned home.

Meanwhile, on Monday the South African Department of Home Affairs said there
was no change in policy yet regarding Zimbabwean refugees in that country.
Home Affairs spokeswoman Siobhan McCarthy is quoted by the South African
Press Association (SAPA) saying an assessment will need to be done by
Zimbabwean and South African government officials and the United Nations
High Commissioner for Refugees.

SAPA quotes the spokesperson saying: "When the situation permits we will
invite Zimbabweans to return home and [will] assist with the returns."

SW Radio Africa Zimbabwe news

First the signing - then the street fighting

http://www.zimbabwetoday.co.uk/

The agreement is signed - but violence breaks out yet again

Any hopes that this morning's formal signing of the power-sharing agreement,
and the inevitable handshakes and smiles exchanged by our political leaders,
would signal a new and peaceful Zimbabwe were shattered when opposing groups
of supporters clashed violently.

Rival mobs, chanting songs, met in the streets outside Harare's Rainbow
Hotel, in which the ceremony took place. Stones were thrown, and then
fighting broke out with fists, sticks and other weapons causing several
serious injuries.

I witnessed one woman, MDC activist Elizabeth Takaenda, taking a blow to the
head from a brick. An ambulance took her and others to hospital. Meanwhile
police vehicles were attacked and windscreens smashed.

Anti-riot police moved in after about 30 minutes, firing warning shots,
although a police source told me that they had been instructed not to use
too much force against the demonstrators. The gateway into the hotel was
closed to keep out the crowd.

Eventually the Zanu-PF supporters dispersed. But to the delight of onlookers
in this heavily MDC-orientated town, the opposition groups proceeded to
march through the streets, singing songs.

The actual signing ceremony went ahead without a hitch. MDC leader Morgan
Tsvangirai said the agreement represented the best hope for Zimbabwe. Mr.
Mugabe typically blamed many of the country's difficulties on Britain, and
was roundly booed when he suggested that the opposition had used violence to
promote its aims.

Full details of the agreement have yet to be made public, but the broad
outlines, as described on this and other sites, appear to be correct.

Posted on Monday, 15 September 2008 at 14:33

JAG open letter forum - No. 563 - Dated 15 September 2008

Excerpt - I have deleted those letters that we have already published...

Email: jag@mango.zw; justiceforagriculture@zol.co.zw

Please send any material for publication in the Open Letter Forum to
jag@mango.zw with "For Open Letter Forum" in the subject line.
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2. Farmer Giles

Dear JAG,

For many years there was a ceramic model of a cow with a farmer pulling at
each end - on the wall of the senior partner's office of an old established
legal practitioners' firm in Bulawayo.

With a closer look you could see a lawyer busy milking the cow while the two
farmers continued their tug of war!

I probably saw it for the first time about 25 years ago - and laughed - and
continued to laugh every time I saw it.

I think the Law firm has long since moved from the Haddon and Sly building
and now has a new senating senior partner.

On reflection that little piece of artwork is actually very powerful.

I always looked at the two farmers and the lawyer in it, and appreciated the
fact that the two concurrent and elderly senior partners (now passed on) had
a great sense of humour.

It would now appear that the two main political factions have been "pulling
on the cow" for so long that the farmers have left and the cow has died.

The politically expedient experiment with agriculture seems to have
established a few facts.
^Õ To produce milk you need a cow.
^Õ In most parts of the world, cows are looked after by farmers not
politicians.
^Õ If you don't feed the cow you will not get much milk.
^Õ If you do not feed the cow at all, eventually it will die.
^Õ Eventually, even lawyers can become concerned as to where they will get
their next pint.

Hopefully the new political dispensation will not be too Irish as to need to
repeat the experiment, or "personally travel down the learning curve
themselves to be sure to be sure."

The precious few dairy cows left in the country are actually starving as
Zimbabweans await the New Deal.

Farmer Giles.
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3. Stu Taylor

Dear JAG,

Does nobody realise that any "compromise" that includes Mugabe in the
equation is a non-starter? If the guy is left to control any arm of the
services, this is a recipe for disaster - how naive can one get? He must be
relegated to becoming a normal citizen of the country and so suffer the
consequences of his own mismanagement - this would be far better than
attempting to get him to The Hague, something which will never happen
anyway. He must stand in queues for cash, he must go and forage for food, he
must go without power or water for weeks on end, he must use hard-earned
cash and spend 95% of his earnings on public transport - if he's actually
capable of doing an honest day's work to earn any remuneration.

For those who think that "something is better than nothing" then you don't
know the deceit and evil that surrounds the man - he must have nothing to do
with the driving of the nation, as he is past it, was never capable of much
more than directing campaigns of violence against his own people and rigging
virtually every election since, and including, 1980. Have a good day.

S. Taylor.
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4. Rob Gas - How we'll know that the new deal is working
Dear JAG,
Some people are expressing concern and anxiety over aspects of the agreement
such as 'Bob still controls the army' and 'Morgan has had to back down on
many aspects that he wanted to stand firm on.'

A month or two down the track we'll know for sure whether or not this
agreement is 'the real deal' or whether we have to go back to the drawing
board.

Here are a few of the things to watch out for:

First, will the media be freed up? The independent press and the air waves.
In the event that that happens, then this agreement is the 'real deal.'
Assuredly, once comment and opinion flow freely in Zimbabwe, then those few
despots who sought to thwart the will of the people are doomed.

Second, when the judiciary are an independent body once more, handing down
judgements according to the law of the land and according to the
constitution and not being rewarded with 'somebody else's farm' because they
have handed down an illegal and unconstitutional judgement that perpetuates
the illegal rule of a tyrant - then be assured my friends then this
agreement is the 'real deal.'

Third, when people feel safe, when we don't have to be careful of what we
say, when we can talk freely on the phone and by e mail. When the C I O stop
being a unit that thinks that they have a God-given right to terrorize
innocent, law-abiding, tax-paying citizens who have done nothing worse than
exercise their constitutional right to vote for a political party of their
choice- then we'll know the deal is real.

Need I mention the Army? When the army have learned that their function is
NOT to thwart the democratic right of ninety percent of the citizens of our
dear country, THAT will be a huge step in the right direction.

So.... let's watch for these signs...

I believe that all of these changes will come to pass. And for those who
have sought to thwart the will of the majority for their own selfish ends
and have recently sought to have a 'guaranteed immunity' for their
crimes....well...perhaps...perhaps. My own hunch is that 'a date with
destiny' awaits all of these individuals and that this moment of reckoning
is an inevitable consequence of their past actions. The sands of time are
bringing this moment closer and closer.

Rob Gass
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5. Mdpa - The deal!  Coming home to live ... from Australia!

Dear JAG,

Already people are making plans to return home to where they belong.

In the past couple of days, two friends from SA and one from Australia will
return home, given a smooth transition to democracy****There are thousands
others and a recent poll suggest 67% of Zimbabweans abroad will immediately
make plans return home and others will follow!!
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6. Jane and Scott Petrie
Dear JAG,
Oh after the historic news tonight that a deal is on the table, sounds like
some of our prayers have been answered. Congratulations, Zimbabwe, we wish
you everything of the best. We can soon come home to visit a country that
gave me birth, that I can say that I'm truly proud to be Zimbabwean. Our
thoughts and prayers are with you. God Bless Zimbabwe, now please bring
peace and stop all suffering.
Jane and Scott Petrie.
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8. J L Robinson - Inflation

Dear JAG,

Eddie Cross has indicated that inflation was 3.2 million % in June, 32
million % in July and is now 334 million %.

Eddie's overall understanding of the macro economy - or rather what is left
of it - is simple, straightforward and openly honest.

Today we read that "The Donors" will need a new RBZ Governor in place before
they even consider assisting the country - the hero of zeros from zero must
go!

This points to the international community understanding the power Mr. Gono
has wielded and abused by purchasing German paper at a cost of US7 Cents
apiece - and then selling it for a US$ through a controlled marketing plan
on the streets cleverly disguised as the informal sector.

334 million % is sort of score card for Zanu and Gono that can be compared
on the international ratings - probably Number One by a good few lengths.

From what I can see Zanu just adored this money tree and has reaped as much
as they can for many years - and the parallel market has followed the
serious overprinting pretty closely.

It seems that Zimbabwe will need to now become productive again - a
renaissance in basic skills and productivity in all walks of life - commonly
referred to as social credit.

To take pride in work and attempt to deliver an honest day's work.

230 million kgs of tobacco and 2 million tonnes of grain would be dream come
true.

The money changers and dealers will be hard pushed to adjust mentally to
international returns of say 6% per annum.

Inputs will need to be allocated to skilled persons with legally owned
resources - and there will have to be a "productivity drive" instilled to
replace the "patronage drive" to make Zimbabwe a normal country again.

Inflation is man made, so too is it man tamed - through fiscal discipline.

Gono and Mugabe have truly feasted on their country and peoples' savings and
it is now up to those with the energy, brains and passion to help the
poorest of the poor reclaim some level of self respect and independence.

J.L. Robinson.
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9. Stu Taylor

Dear JAG,

Besides Kirsty Coventry, Zimbabwe has another claim to fame (flame?) - we
have candles that single-phase - and a government that has had a major power
failure. The people's resilience is paying dividends and we are on the home
straight as the last dice are rolled - Mugabe is down and nearly out - 18
years too late; he could have bowed out gracefully in 1990 and left the
political arena a hero-statesman, but he has now stacked the cards against
himself. The country has operated without any form of effective government
for about a decade now. It is time to consolidate, count our losses - which
are HUGE - and install a government of our own choice, paving the way for a
brighter future for those who come after us; this country has a lot going
for it, although battered and bruised, but we must now hang on a little more
and think one way - RIGHT IS MIGHT. Go well.

Stu Taylor.
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All letters published on the open Letter Forum are the views and opinions of
the submitters, and do not represent the official viewpoint of Justice for
Agriculture.
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