Zimbabwe will transfer ownership of all foreign-owned firms that support Western sanctions against President Robert Mugabe’s government to locals and investors from ”friendly” countries, a state newspaper reported on Sunday.
The Southern African state is struggling with an economic crisis many blame on Mugabe’s policies, which has left it with an inflation rate of over 2,2-million percent and chronic shortages of food and other basic needs.
Mugabe’s government blames the crisis on sabotage by enemies angry over his seizures of white-owned farms for black Zimbabweans, and has followed up that policy with another controversial law seeking to transfer majority ownership of foreign-owned firms to locals.
The Sunday Mail said Zimbabwe had begun auditing the ownership of Western firms in the country as part of a black empowerment drive ”and to counter the possible withdrawal of investment under sanctions imposed and proposed by Britain and the United States”.
Mugabe — fighting to retain power after a controversial run-off poll boycotted by his rival — says Zimbabwe’s severe economic crisis is due to sabotage by former colonial master Britain, its European Union allies and the US.
The Sunday Mail paper said preliminary results of Zimbabwe’s audit of foreign investments showed that 499 companies enjoyed British investments. Of these, 309 had majority shareholders in Britain and 97 were wholly owned by Britons.
The audit also found 353 firms with shareholders from other European countries, the weekly said in a story largely attributed to unnamed government sources.
”A high-ranking government source told the Sunday Mail that these companies would be targeted for takeover by local investors and companies from friendly countries, particularly those in the Far East, should they heed calls by the US and European governments for them to disinvest from Zimbabwe,” it said.
Dialogue process
Zimbabwe’s opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) will not sign an accord leading to talks on ending the political crisis until the mediator, South African President Thabo Mbeki, has addressed some concerns, a party spokesperson said on Sunday.
Sources in the MDC said on Saturday that MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai might sign the document as early as Monday so that talks could begin on ending an impasse with Mugabe’s ruling Zanu-PF.
Mugabe easily won re-election on June 27 in a second-round poll from which Tsvangirai pulled out, citing violence against his supporters by Zanu-PF militias.
On Sunday Tsvangirai’s spokesperson, George Sibotshiwe, said the MDC leader would not sign until Mbeki, criticised for his failure to help end the stand-off, ironed out concerns with parts of the memorandum, which sets out guidelines on substantive negotiations.
”I think in principle the decision is to sign the document. We are committed to the dialogue process,” Sibotshiwe told Reuters.
”Our executive and council have already gone through the document and have raised their concerns with the facilitator … the onus is on the facilitator to ensure that those things are sorted out in order for the signing to happen within the required time.”
Asked whether a signing was likely on Monday, Sibotshiwe replied ”I cannot answer that. [Mukoni] Ratshitanga, the spokesperson for President Mbeki, is the only person who can respond to that.”
However, a United Nations representative said on Sunday that the parties in Zimbabwe have reached consensus on holding substantive crisis talks.
The UN special representative to Zimbabwe, Haile Menkerios, said the draft had been agreed to by Mugabe and opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai, which was ”at least a first step”.
”There is a draft which we are informed the two negotiating parties have agreed to but the two principals, that is Mr Mugabe and Mr Tsvangirai, would have to sign,” he told South African public radio.
”It hasn’t been signed yet, but once that is done, once you clear the way or the basis for the talks, then the actual talks begin.”
‘An embarrassment’
Earlier, it was reported that Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga said on Sunday the MDC was preparing to hold talks with Mugabe’s party.
He said he expected the two sides to sign an agreement this week for talks to take place in South Africa, and he hoped they would lead to a safe exit from power for Mugabe.
”Robert Mugabe is an embarrassment to the African continent,” Odinga told BBC television. ”He lost an election and refused to move on.”
”I am told the parties have now agreed a framework for negotiation, which I am told will be signed in South Africa this week,” he added. ”I am encouraging this kind of dialogue in the interests of the people of Zimbabwe.”
”I am told these talks are going to take place in Pretoria and will be chaired by President Mbeki but supervised by African Union and United Nations representatives.”
”If this happens then it is the first step in giving Mr Mugabe a safe exit,” he added. — Reuters, AFP