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Africa Subsaharan
Zimbabwe rivals to wield equal power in unity govt
2008-09-13
President Robert Mugabe and the opposition will wield equal power in a unity government aimed at ending Zimbabwe's protracted political crisis and economic meltdown, sources said Friday.
Until Bob and the army have the opposition killed ...
While details of Thursday's accord will be formally unveiled on Monday, a source close to the talks told AFP that both the veteran leader and opposition boss Morgan Tsvangirai would co-lead the economically battered nation. "Mugabe will chair cabinet, while Tsavangirai takes charge of a national security council which consists of 31 cabinet ministers," said the source, who spoke on the condition of anonimity.

"Power will be shared, no one will get more power than the other party, even (in) the hiring and firing of cabinet members," the source explained. "All decisions are made by the council, but the council will have to report back to Mugabe." South African newspapers also said Friday the pact provided for a 50-50 unity government. Zimbabwe's economy has collapsed over the past decade with the world's highest inflation rate, chronic shortages of foreign currency and food, skyrocketing unemployment and widespread hunger.

Authorities have tried measures including price controls to cushion shoppers against price increases but these have fuelled the black market where scarce goods are readily available at more than 30 times the official price.

Once hailed as a model economy, Zimbabwe's fortunes have nosedived since 2000 when Mugabe seized white-owned farms and handed them over to landless blacks, often with no farming skills. While South Africa, whose president Thabo Mbeki mediated the talks congratulated Zimbabweans over the "historic" deal, the European Commission on Friday was cautious, saying that it wants to see how the agreement plays out. "The European Commission of course welcomes this significant step forward," said John Clancy, commission spokesman on humanitarian aid and development issues.

"However we will have to wait to learn much more about this on Monday," he said. "At this stage we are cautiously optimistic". The European Union said it was reconsidering Friday plans to extend its sanctions against Zimbabwe, following the Harare deal, according to the French EU presidency. "We will have to evaluate the situation during the day," said a senior presidency diplomat.
Posted by:Fred

#1  Who gets to run the thugs and the army?
I wonder if they'll get equal salaries: Mug gets US$ and Tsv gets Z$ :-)
Posted by: James   2008-09-13 09:52  

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