President Robert Mugabe warned Zimbabwe’s opposition on Monday not to be ”used by enemies” in an address to the nation ahead of a new round of power-sharing talks.
Speaking during commemorations in honour of fighters who died in the liberation war against white minority rule, Mugabe said Zimbabwe is ”not for sale” and ”will never be a colony again”.
”Let’s not hand over the country to the enemy,” the 84-year-old leader said, addressing the audience in both Shona and English. ”If you are on the enemy’s side or you are being used by enemies, stop it.”
Mugabe has often sought to portray opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) leader Morgan Tsvangirai as a stooge of former colonial power Britain, though his rhetoric has cooled in recent weeks with the two sides engaged in talks.
He said: ”When somebody makes you turn against each other, you don’t say we are no longer family members.”
Mugabe, himself a hero of the independence struggle, also declared ”we will die for our legacy”, saying: ”Fighting in self-defence is not a sin.”
Talks resume
The country’s political rivals were to resume power-sharing talks on Monday following negotiations the previous day that ended with Mugabe saying he was ”confident” a deal was within reach.
South African President Thabo Mbeki mediated Sunday’s talks at a Harare hotel amid signs the rivals had closed in on an agreement to end the political crisis.
Mugabe, Tsvangirai and Arthur Mutambara, head of a smaller MDC faction, had arrived at the hotel more than 13 hours before the talks finally broke up.
Asked if there were sticking points, Mugabe said: ”There are always sticking points in any dialogue, but we are confident we will overcome.”
Tsvangirai refused to comment as he left the hotel.
Mutambara, who attended Mugabe’s Heroes’ Day speech on Monday unlike in previous years, said only that ”the talks are still in progress”.
His spokesperson Edwin Mushoriwa, however, said that ”14 hours of discussion means there is some kind of disagreement. If it was an agreement, it would have been in two hours.”
On Sunday, bouquets of flowers and chairs were brought into the ballroom at the hotel where on July 21 the rivals signed a deal laying the framework for power-sharing negotiations.
‘We need to pray’
MDC number two Tendai Biti, the party’s chief negotiator, briefly spoke to reporters as he left the Rainbow Towers hotel, nodding in agreement when asked if any progress had been made. ”I think we all need to pray,” he said.
Mbeki arrived in Harare late on Saturday after more than two weeks of negotiations in South Africa in a bid to reach a power-sharing deal following Mugabe’s widely condemned re-election.
His trip came amid signs the rivals were nearing a deal, with both Mbeki’s government and Mugabe reporting progress in recent days. It also came ahead of a summit of Southern African heads of state next weekend.
The power-sharing talks follow Mugabe’s re-election in a one-candidate poll on June 27.
Tsvangirai boycotted the presidential run-off despite finishing ahead of Mugabe in the March first round, citing violence against his supporters that had killed dozens and injured thousands.
The opposition leader believes his first-round total gives him the right to the lion’s share of power. The ruling Zanu-PF has insisted Mugabe must be recognised as president in any deal, as he won on June 27.
Negotiations have reportedly included proposals for Mugabe, who has ruled since independence in 1980, to take on a more ceremonial role in exchange for amnesty from prosecution, with Tsvangirai being made executive prime minister. — AFP
