Press Statement
July 9, 2003
MDC welcomes Bush and Mbeki’s commitment to the Zimbabwean crisis.
We are encouraged by the statements of Presidents Thabo Mbeki of South Africa and George W. Bush of the United States, that there has been a meeting of minds between the two presidents on the Zimbabwe crisis.
President Thabo Mbeki is particularly encouraging when he says that the two presidents are of one mind about the urgent need to address the political crisis in Zimbabwe. Significantly, we note that President Bush said that they share the same objective to restore democracy, peace, and peoples’ freedoms to Zimbabwe.
President Mbeki stated that both presidents noted the deteriorating economic situation in Zimbabwe and that they are not happy to see people go hungry adding that the time has come for this to stop.
I reiterate the MDC position that currently there are no formal negotiations and talks between the MDC and ZANU PF. Whilst there are emissaries from various groups that include churches, civic groups and indeed the South African government, who are shuttling between MDC and ZANU PF in an attempt to get the two parties to resume formal dialogue that broke down in May 2002, so far none of these efforts has succeeded.
The crisis in Zimbabwe has been allowed to drag on for 16 months since the flawed elections of March 2002. The MDC position remains clear and consistent; it is ready to engage in unconditional dialogue anywhere, anytime. This position has remained unchanged since April last year and has been repeatedly relayed to the South African Government who should exert pressure on Zanu PF to bring them back to the negotiating table, and ensure that the talks are brought to a successful conclusion. Whilst it is indeed up to us as Zimbabweans to find a solution to the crisis facing our Nation we desperately need honest and determined brokers who will do everything in their power to ensure that the talks are not derailed.
We are heartened by the sense of urgency displayed by Presidents Mbeki and Bush and now hope that President Mbeki will ensure that formal talks commence within days rather than weeks. We also hope that a firm time frame will be established to restore democracy to Zimbabwe, which reflects the need to resolve the crisis urgently as expressed by President Mbeki.
Morgan Tsvangirai
President
Movement for Democratic Change
Zimbabwe Information Centre Inc, PO Box K824, Haymarket NSW 1240, Australia. www.zic.com.au
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