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Momodou
Denmark
11634 Posts |
 Posted - 15 Sep 2008 : 15:23:19
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Congratulations to all Zimbabweans and good luck! This power sharing thing is becoming the new trend in Africa and lets hope the the momentum continues.
Zimbabwe rivals sign power-sharing deal
HARARE (Reuters) - Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe signed a power-sharing agreement with opposition rival Morgan Tsvangirai on Monday, relinquishing some of his powers for the first time in nearly three decades of iron rule.
The deal followed weeks of tense negotiations to end a deep political crisis compounded by the veteran leader's disputed and unopposed re-election in a widely condemned vote in June. Under the agreement, Tsvangirai will become prime minister.
"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," Tsvangirai said after the signing ceremony.
Zimbabweans hope the agreement will be a first step in helping to rescue the once prosperous nation from economic collapse. Inflation has rocketed to over 11 million percent and millions have fled to neighboring southern African countries.
Cheers greeted the signing of the deal at a Harare hotel by Mugabe, Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) leader Tsvangirai and Arthur Mutambara, who leads a breakaway faction of the main opposition party.
The three smiling Zimbabwean leaders exchanged copies of the agreement and shook hands in front of South African President Thabo Mbeki, who brokered the deal, and other African leaders.
Mugabe, 84, made clear he would not tone down his attacks on Western countries such as former colonial power Britain. he accuses them of supporting the opposition in a bid to drive him from power.
"African problems must be solved by Africans...the problem we have had is a problem that has been created by former colonial powers," Mugabe said after the signing ceremony as Tsvangirai looked uncomfortable.
But he added: "We are committed to the deal, we will do our best".
WESTERN COUNTRIES WATCHFUL
Western countries are still keen to see how the deal works in practice but the European Union said on Monday it stood ready to bring aid to Zimbabwe if the new government took measures to restore democracy and the rule of law.
British Foreign Secretary David Miliband welcomed the agreement but said its details would be studied carefully.
"The new government needs to start to rebuild the country. If it does so, Britain and the rest of the international community will be quick to support them," Miliband said in a statement.
Under the deal agreed last week, Tsvangirai will become prime minister and chair a council of ministers supervising the cabinet. Mugabe, who has ruled since independence from Britain in 1980, will remain president and head the cabinet.
The deal is expected to split control of the powerful security forces that have been key backers of Mugabe.
The president, a former guerrilla commander, is likely to keep command of Zimbabwe's strong army, but the MDC wants to run the police force. Mugabe's ZANU-PF will have 15 cabinet seats, Tsvangirai's MDC 13 and a splinter MDC faction three seats.
Analysts say the power-sharing deal is fragile and will require former enemies to put aside their differences and work closely to overcome skepticism, especially from Western powers whose financial support will be vital for recovery.
ZANU-PF and MDC negotiators met early on Monday to allocate the 31 ministries. Names of the ministers are likely to be announced later in the week, a government official said.
There would also be a national security council, replacing a joint operations command of security service chiefs. The opposition says they were instrumental in organizing a campaign that intimidated the opposition into standing down for the presidential run-off, allowing Mugabe to retain power.
(Additional reporting by Nelson Banya in Harare; Ingrid Melander in Brussels; Adrian Croft in London; Writing by Marius Bosch; editing by Keith Weir)
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A clear conscience fears no accusation - proverb from Sierra Leone |
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kayjatta
2978 Posts |
Posted - 15 Sep 2008 : 15:47:05
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| It is indeed a very good news with caution though... |
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Janko
Gambia
1267 Posts |
Posted - 15 Sep 2008 : 15:50:00
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Thanks Momodou
It’s good news; hope the keen bystanders do not throw sand in the machine.
All the best of luck to Zimbabwe and her people |
Clean your house before pointing a finger ... Never be moved by delirious Well-wishers in their ecstasy |
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lurker
509 Posts |
Posted - 15 Sep 2008 : 15:58:24
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onions have many layers. but they are still onions.
good luck to them all. not holding my breath, though.
please do not start at me for being a pessimist. nothing in this man's history suggests that he is suddenly doing this out of altruism.
let us hope i am wrong and the optimists are right. |
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njucks
Gambia
1131 Posts |
Posted - 15 Sep 2008 : 18:52:50
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quote:
Originally posted by Momodou
Congratulations to all Zimbabweans and good luck!
The three smiling Zimbabwean leaders .......Mugabe, 84, made clear he would not tone down his attacks on Western countries such as former colonial power Britain.
"African problems must be solved by Africans...the problem we have had is a problem that has been created by former colonial powers,"
But he added: "We are committed to the deal, we will do our best".
The solution to Africa's problem is to look towards itself and work their problems out. Hypocrical ''colonial fingers'' working behind the scenes are the biggest threat to our existence/peace.
Mugabe has set a PRECEDENT in AFRICA. NEVER AGAIN WILL WESTERN COUNTRIES (especially former colonial powers) think they can intefere in Africa's internal affairs through arm chair instructions.
i hope Morgan is not stupid enough to attempt to reverse the ''Land Issue''. if it works or fails its a problem again for Zimbabweans, and Zimbabwean/Africans only to solve.
for those who have followed the debate on the bantaba, its the African way (Quiet Diplomacy)that has produced results.
Dialogue is the key not self-serving Rhetoric from people who never practised what they now preach. |
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Formby
United Kingdom
246 Posts |
Posted - 16 Sep 2008 : 05:13:12
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| Then there ought to be no western aid, do you say? |
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njucks
Gambia
1131 Posts |
Posted - 16 Sep 2008 : 10:06:56
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quote:
Originally posted by Formby
Then there ought to be no western aid, do you say?
it depends on which part of my text you refering to?
IF Western Aid is contingent on Africans acceptng serving-Rhetoric from the West, then YES THERE OUGHT TO BE NO WESTERN AID.
IF lack of Western Aid will make Africa regain ownership, control and efficiently utilise its own natural resources and land without unhelpful foreign interference, then YES THERE OUGHT TO BE NO WESTERN AID.
i hope this helps |
Edited by - njucks on 16 Sep 2008 10:18:31 |
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lurker
509 Posts |
Posted - 16 Sep 2008 : 10:33:08
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nice rhetoric, njucks, but hardly realistic in the given circumstances.
you ask the average zimbabwean what they wnat out of this "deal".
they want an end to violence, a free electoral choice, but most of all, they want FOOD!
this can only come with the help of outside agencies and this depends on the role mugabe is seen to be retaining and actually playing.
this western (or other) aid is a harsh fact and factor in the immediacy of the recovery of food supplies and other commodities to this troubled land.
so, for the long term, you may want to use the allegory of teaching a man to fish rather than giving him fish, but if we listened to your advice, lots of people will continue to starve until zimbabwe is self-sufficient again.
and if the aid comes in, who is to say that there are a whole shedload of "colonial" pre-conditions attached?
this theory of tsvangirai returning land is so much poppycock. |
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Janko
Gambia
1267 Posts |
Posted - 16 Sep 2008 : 11:57:09
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You know, the intention is very good, but of course no road is smooth and straight, it’s sometimes bumpy, sometimes meandering through tick forest and sometimes tires puncture or motor stop but the determination is promising and hopeful.
Hopefully the advancement/development of Zimbabwe would not be dependent on AID, be it from hell or heaven, for if she does, she would be jumping from the frying pan into the fire, I would not wish that for her people.
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Clean your house before pointing a finger ... Never be moved by delirious Well-wishers in their ecstasy |
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lurker
509 Posts |
Posted - 16 Sep 2008 : 12:05:43
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maybe there is some sense in what you say, but how do you propose to feed the people and sort out the ruined economy without aid initially? on fresh air? can't happen, can it. there has to be outside assistance to kickstart the internal machinery and infrastructure which has been destroyed by the very tyrant who remains in charge. that means money and that means aid. it is just a fact.
if people wnat to assume that there will be all sorts of colonial blackmail and condionality, let them. the zimbabweans, at this point, will not rather starve cos of principles than eat cos of hunger.
some would always try and take advantageof this hunger, and they are from outside and more oftne than not inside africa.
it works both ways.
forget the conspiracy theories and , if this whole "plan" eventually works, let the people regrow and propser with whatever help THEY choose to accept.
and by the way, to those who think tsvangirai is a puppet to the colonialists, he has less esteem than ever now, having abandoned his principles to sign an agreement with his mortal enemies.
he is either doing this to appear the working man's hero., at his own physical expense, or he is trying to stay in the limelight, until such time as he can win a free election. either way, some think he has sold out , far from the picture painted by some that he is a toady to the west.
the whole aid thing is up in the air, anway, until the donors-to -be find out who is actually in charge. they will not give if they think mugabe will sit there and swallow it all up into his accounts as per usual.this whole saga is in embyonic form right now. |
Edited by - lurker on 16 Sep 2008 12:10:41 |
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Janko
Gambia
1267 Posts |
Posted - 16 Sep 2008 : 14:43:39
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Zimbabwe needs a Marshal-plan, not AID
Implying AID for Zimbabwe is luring her back to the status quo, god forbid. And the question of who is and not responsible for what happened, in these needy times is a waste of time and life.
Rightly, Zimbabwe needs to come up on her feet after such a circle of decline.
How? What Zimbabwe needs now as a sober way forward is a Marshal-Plan kind of investment to build her infrastructure etc. and not AID. Such a plan would have her feature in focus and enable her to gain the skill of fishing.
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Clean your house before pointing a finger ... Never be moved by delirious Well-wishers in their ecstasy |
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Momodou
Denmark
11634 Posts |
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njucks
Gambia
1131 Posts |
Posted - 16 Sep 2008 : 17:12:38
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Momodou, thank you for the link. i am happy that the document condems violence and aims to improve the situation. i am particularly delighted that Morgan has put his ink on this paper which contains a very important clause denied here in previos debate.
it is the past that still haunts them. it is Zimbabweans, themselves who have realised the dangerous foreign interference.today ex-Rhodesians have become ''Ministers for Africa'' from the otherside thinking they can achieve their goals through ''instructions''.
RECOGNISING and accepting that the land question has been at the core of the contestation in Zimbabwe and acknowledging the centrality of issues relating to the rule of law, respect for human rights, democracy and governance.
ARTICLE V LAND QUESTION 5. Land Question
5.1 Recognising that colonial racist land ownership patterns established during the colonial conquest of Zimbabwe and largely maintained in the post-independence period were not only unsustainable, but against the national interest, equity and justice.
there is no need to repeat previous debates here. one thing i have learnt is that the best way to deal with self-serving Westerners in Africa,and even in this Bantaba, is through Quiet Diplomacy. 
i almost forgot ...
ARTICLE IX
EXTERNAL INTERFERENCE External Interference
c.
that no outsiders have a right to call or campaign for regime change in Zimbabwe. |
Edited by - njucks on 16 Sep 2008 17:17:10 |
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Formby
United Kingdom
246 Posts |
Posted - 18 Sep 2008 : 00:25:13
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| But Njucks, you are an outsider, unless you are a Zimbabwean. But I tend to agree with you, the solution to Zimbabwean problems lies with the people themselves. They have recently been brave enough to vote against the man who has self-served to deny and persecute them. Never forget that Mugabe is not for the Zimbabwean, only for the Zimbabwean that furthers him. History has shown that the common man can empower and free himself from the tyrany of the ruling class with effort and sacrifice. May the people contiunue forward. |
Edited by - Formby on 18 Sep 2008 00:25:57 |
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njucks
Gambia
1131 Posts |
Posted - 18 Sep 2008 : 10:58:21
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quote:
Originally posted by Formby
........... They have recently been brave enough to vote against the man who has self-served to deny and persecute them.
i hope you will also agree that 'Sir' Mugabe was infact a member of the self-serving club of Kinghts of the British Empire, in fact a ''Commander of the Order of the Bath'' untill he was killed out this year.
if you are familiar with African politics, you would also recall that the people of Zimbabwe were brave to independently reject through the ballot box an attempt by Mugabe to change the Constitution in 2000, long before the world (West)woke up.
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Edited by - njucks on 18 Sep 2008 11:02:28 |
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lurker
509 Posts |
Posted - 18 Sep 2008 : 14:16:19
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TODAY THE RED CROSS ARE HANDING OUT FOOD TO THE STARVING IN ZIMBABWE.SOMETHING SIR BOB FAILED TO DO IF THEY DID NOT VOTE HIS WAY.DOES THIS COUNT AS "WESTERN AID" AND IF SO, SHOULD IT NOT BE BANNED AS REQUESTED BY SOME ABOVE ABOVE IN FAVOUR OF ZIMBABWEANS SORTING OUT THEIR OWN PROBLEMS WHATEVER THEY MAY BE WITHOUT INTERFERENCE.?
OR ARE PEOPLE IMPLYING THAT EVEN THIS AID COMES LADEN WITH "SERVING RHETORIC FROM THE WEST" AND IT IS BETTER TO STARVE TO DEATH THAN TAKE ANYTHING FROM THE EVIL EX-COLONIALISTS AND THEIR SCHEMING HENCHMEN?
A JOB WITH THE P.R. SECTION OF ZANU-PF AWAITS. |
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