Presidency clarifies reports claiming SA recognises Mugabe
Posted 30th June 2008 at 05:40 PM by NewsTracker
Pretoria - The Presidency has noted reports claiming that South Africa intends to recognise President Robert Mugabe following the recently-held Presidential election run-off in Zimbabwe.
“The Presidency wishes to emphasise that these reports do not emanate from statements made by any official of the South African government,” the Presidency said in a statement on Monday.
As a member of the Southern African Development Community (SADC), South Africa will consider the reports of the SADC and other observer teams which monitored the elections and adopt a position together with other member states.
Much has also been said about the supposed positions of the South African government at the African Union Summit (AU) currently taking place at Sharm-El-Sheikh, Egypt.
Suggestions that Minister of Foreign Affairs, Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma had “lobbied AU colleagues to maintain the status quo” after a caucus meeting on Friday – which would include recognition of Mugabe as President, as reported in a Sunday newspaper, are a complete fabrication and a distortion of the truth, said the statement.
The AU requested an input from SADC to guide its overall approach regarding the current impasse in Zimbabwe.
It is in this context that a SADC Ministerial caucus was thus convened to consider an appropriate response to guide the AU on this matter.
“In this regard, Minister Dlamini Zuma did not lobby anyone as implied in the article, but was formally requested by her colleague to brief them on the attitude of the SADC facilitator, President Thabo Mbeki, to the current situation in Zimbabwe,” the statement said.
Critical to note is that Minister Dlamini Zuma was requested to speak in her two capacities, namely, as the Deputy Dean of the SADC Foreign Minister and secondly in South Africa’s capacity as SADC facilitator in Zimbabwe.
Minister Dlamini Zuma noted that despite the Presidential run-off elections, Zimbabwe remains a deeply divided and polarised society, with neither of the parties – the Zanu-PF or the MDC – able individually to extricate Zimbabwe from the current impasse.
“Accordingly, both Zanu-PF and the MDC must work together and unite the country and its people behind efforts to find a common solution to their national problems.
“In this regard Zanu-PF and the MDC must enter into negotiations which will lead to the formation of a transitional government that can extricate Zimbabwe from its current political challenges,” the department said.
It is thus a complete fabrication therefore to suggest that the minister confirmed to the meeting caucus that “SADC was nearing a deal where we (Zimbabweans) will have a power-sharing arrangement because the results of 29 March elections did not yield a winner”.
The statement pointed out that Minister Dlamini Zuma made no such references in her briefing to the SADC Foreign Ministers as suggested in the article.
It said that South Africa will take positions collectively with other AU member states, informed by the inputs of SADC and any other briefings that will be provided to the summit. – BuaNews
“The Presidency wishes to emphasise that these reports do not emanate from statements made by any official of the South African government,” the Presidency said in a statement on Monday.
As a member of the Southern African Development Community (SADC), South Africa will consider the reports of the SADC and other observer teams which monitored the elections and adopt a position together with other member states.
Much has also been said about the supposed positions of the South African government at the African Union Summit (AU) currently taking place at Sharm-El-Sheikh, Egypt.
Suggestions that Minister of Foreign Affairs, Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma had “lobbied AU colleagues to maintain the status quo” after a caucus meeting on Friday – which would include recognition of Mugabe as President, as reported in a Sunday newspaper, are a complete fabrication and a distortion of the truth, said the statement.
The AU requested an input from SADC to guide its overall approach regarding the current impasse in Zimbabwe.
It is in this context that a SADC Ministerial caucus was thus convened to consider an appropriate response to guide the AU on this matter.
“In this regard, Minister Dlamini Zuma did not lobby anyone as implied in the article, but was formally requested by her colleague to brief them on the attitude of the SADC facilitator, President Thabo Mbeki, to the current situation in Zimbabwe,” the statement said.
Critical to note is that Minister Dlamini Zuma was requested to speak in her two capacities, namely, as the Deputy Dean of the SADC Foreign Minister and secondly in South Africa’s capacity as SADC facilitator in Zimbabwe.
Minister Dlamini Zuma noted that despite the Presidential run-off elections, Zimbabwe remains a deeply divided and polarised society, with neither of the parties – the Zanu-PF or the MDC – able individually to extricate Zimbabwe from the current impasse.
“Accordingly, both Zanu-PF and the MDC must work together and unite the country and its people behind efforts to find a common solution to their national problems.
“In this regard Zanu-PF and the MDC must enter into negotiations which will lead to the formation of a transitional government that can extricate Zimbabwe from its current political challenges,” the department said.
It is thus a complete fabrication therefore to suggest that the minister confirmed to the meeting caucus that “SADC was nearing a deal where we (Zimbabweans) will have a power-sharing arrangement because the results of 29 March elections did not yield a winner”.
The statement pointed out that Minister Dlamini Zuma made no such references in her briefing to the SADC Foreign Ministers as suggested in the article.
It said that South Africa will take positions collectively with other AU member states, informed by the inputs of SADC and any other briefings that will be provided to the summit. – BuaNews
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