2008 Articles 25 Dec Kingdom Come 21 Dec Christmas 15 Dec Step Forward 5 Dec Beginning 1 Dec Amendment 30 Nov Facilitation 26 Nov Genocide 24 Nov Running Out 17 Nov Crisis 15 Nov Somalia 12 Nov What Next? 8 Nov Leadership 2 Nov Chipo 1 Nov Rome Burns 29 Oct Failure 25 Oct High Noon 19 Oct Never Easy 10 Oct Abyss 8 Oct Filibustering 4 Oct Chaos in Zim 29 Sept A Mule? 21 Sept On Step 16 Sept The End 12 Sept New Beginning 11 Sept Deal? 6 Sept Consequences 3 Sept Need a Deal 2 Sept Dollar Died 31 Aug Steering 29 Aug Unstuck 23 Aug Betrayed 18 Aug The Devil 13 Aug 13 Aug 08 12 Aug Today 11 Aug Cliffhanger 8 Aug Whats Going On 27 Jul Progress 22 Jul Agree to talk 21 Jul Mbeki kicks 16 Jul Crunch Time 13 Jul Economics 9 Jul Reality Looms 2 Jul Where? 30 Jun Looking Glass 26 Jun Battle 22 Jun What Now? 21 Jun The Commitment 16 Jun Do or Die 13 Jun Morning After 10 Jun Closing Doors 26 May Current Outlook 24 May Fan Club 19 May Tyranny 17 May End Game 15 May Flushing 8 May Violence 6 May Bizarre Process 25 Apr Cornered 20 Apr Electoral Fraud 19 Apr Jesse 17 Apr This Farce 11 Apr The Devil 6 Apr Wounded Buffalo 1 Apr Dying Kick 31 Mar Politcl Tsunami 27 Mar Current Situ. 26 Mar 4 days to go 21 Mar 8 days to go 15 Mar Election Time 27 Feb Games Begin 17 Feb Public Office 11 Feb Choices 4 Feb Decision Time 26 Jan Ambushed 25 Jan The Struggle 20 Jan Truth or Fiction 12 Jan Mugabe Mistake 8 Jan Surprise 2 Jan Kenya Lessons
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The Consequences of Failure
Sitting here on a Saturday morning in the first days of spring in southern
Africa, we must all contemplate the possible consequences of the failure of
the negotiations launched by the SADC States in March 2007. At that time the
concern of South Africa was the protection of the 2010 Soccer World Cup,
which was being threatened by the decision of Mugabe to delay the March 2008
elections to June 2010.
That concern led to a secret meeting between Mbeki and Mugabe in Accra when
Mbeki told Mugabe that under no circumstances could he accept a
controversial electoral process in Zimbabwe at the same time as the World
Cup. He also informed Mugabe that when the elections were held in March
2008, they would have to be credible and based on the SADC guidelines for
elections. To create those conditions the SADC sponsored negotiations were
launched.
They were expected to last for three months and then leave 9 months of
preparation for the first free and fair elections in Zimbabwe for two
decades. It was not to be; Mugabe procrastinated, allowed the process to
continue and accepted limited reforms in October followed by a flat refusal
to do any more. Even so, the limited reforms had the effect of giving
Zimbabweans the chance to vote under reasonable conditions and Zanu PF was
defeated in the subsequent elections in March 2008.
What then followed was a complete farce - aided and abetted by Mbeki who
knew full well that Tsvangirai had beaten Mugabe and had in fact garnered
more than the 50 per cent required for outright victory. He allowed the run
off and when this was accompanied by politically inspired and managed
violence against the MDC he had to then deal with a run off election that
was not recognised by the African observer teams present for the elections
on the 27th June. He then allowed Mugabe to continue with the farce and
declare himself President with unseemly haste even before the final results
of the electoral farce were known. Mbeki then had to live with the
consequences.
Confronted with the clear evidence of electoral fraud made public by the
African observer missions and spurred on by massive international outrage at
the behavior of the Mugabe regime, Mbeki lamely began to pick up the pieces
of his flawed process. He called for the negotiating teams who had been
involved in the 2007 process to reconvene as if nothing had happened and was
faced with demands by a bruised and battered but far from defeated, MDC. He
was forced to concede these and when finally talks got under way it was with
a new agenda and broader based teams than had been the case in 2007.
By intervening, Mbeki stopped Zanu PF from simply forming an illegal
government and carrying on as before. Zimbabwe slid into a form of suspended
reality, without an effective administration and Cabinet and no
Parliamentary process. That was five months ago. In this time the economic
and social crisis in Zimbabwe has intensified significantly.
Despite the consequences Mbeki still tried to use what remaining space he
had in this process to secure the position of Zanu PF - a Party he once
referred to as the 'Party of the Revolution'. He guided the talks and when
it came to the final hurdle - he simply drafted a version of the agreement
that would have left Mugabe in power and given Tsvangirai an empty chalice
with responsibility and no power. Even worse, he crafted a deal that he knew
full well, would not be acceptable to the international community and would
not therefore attract the support it needed to succeed.
Had Morgan signed, the only winner would have been Mugabe and Mbeki -
Zimbabwe would have continued to slide into anarchy and poverty.
But Tsvangirai did not sign, desperate, Mbeki called for Parliament to be
convened to demonstrate that Mugabe did hold a majority - with the help of
Mutambara. That failed. Even so Mbeki held onto his belief in the rightness
of his cause irrespective of the consequences. He appealed to the SADC
leadership to support a last ditch attempt to get an agreement - afraid to
act on his own and be labeled as a bully.
On Monday the President of Tanzania, Mr. Kikwete visited Washington DC and
held talks with the President G W Bush. They talked about Zimbabwe and if I
know anything about these things, Kikwete was told what was acceptable in
terms of an agreement at the SADC talks. He would have been given clear
guidance on the minimum criteria that had to be satisfied if the agreement
was to attract international aid.
Kikwete came home and traveled to Lusaka where he met with the SADC
leadership. Mbeki was told that if he was to do a deal on Zimbabwe that had
any chance of international acceptance that it had to conform to certain
requirements. The issue is now clearly back in Mbeki's court. He is expected
to fly to Harare at any time - probably on Monday, for a final attempt to
get an agreement.
I personally am convinced that he simply has no alternative now but to do
what is needed to get Mugabe to agree to a deal that will essentially lead
to his eventual political demise.
The consequences of failure are 'too horrific to contemplate'. At stake is
the Soccer World Cup into which South Africa has already poured R5 billion,
the social and political stability of South Africa and the continued growth
and expansion of regional economies.
The battle for the Presidency in South Africa in next year's elections is
spiraling out of control as the ANC fights itself and attempts to force
through a violation of the rule of law as it tries to protect Jacob Zuma
from prosecution. If Mbeki cannot stem the flood of economic and political
refugees into his country and cannot control and manage the succession issue
he will run the risk of doing South Africa serious damage. A deal in
Zimbabwe that creates a workable transitional government and permits
international aid, would go a long way towards achieving that. Failure will
plunge not only Zimbabwe, but also the entire region into a crisis that will
be very costly in the long run.
Eddie Cross
Bulawayo, 6th September 2008
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