SA welcomes Zimbabwe’s peace promise
Posted 22nd July 2008 at 12:48 PM by NewsTracker
By Bathandwa Mbola
Pretoria - South Africa has welcomed the landmark signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Zimbabwe’s political parties in Harare on Monday.
President Robert Mugabe and Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) leaders Morgan Tsvangirai and Arthur Mutambara signed the deal, which paves the way for fully-fledged negotiations aimed at ending the political deadlock in the country.
The signing was overseen by Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) facilitator South African President Thabo Mbeki.
In a statement, the South African government said the signing represented a positive step forward in ongoing dialogue among the parties.
“We are convinced that the MoU has laid a firm foundation for the Zimbabwean people to start on a new road towards political stability and economic recovery,” said government in the statement.
Faced with mounting global pressure, runaway inflation and economic crisis, the leaders agreed that there was a need to work together towards an inclusive government the closest language to a power-sharing accord.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, President Mugabe said his party and the opposition had agreed to amend the country's constitution, while Mr Tsvangirai promised that he would act to put the interests of Zimbabwe at the forefront.
President Mbeki said the deal committed both sides to an intense process to try to complete substantive negotiations as quickly as possible, adding that all parties involved recognised the urgency to hold the negotiations, which is aimed at ending the political crisis facing the country.
The MoU stated: “The parties hereby declare and agree to commit themselves to a dialogue with each other with a view to creating a genuine, viable, permanent and sustainable solution to the Zimbabwean situation and, in particular, to implement this Memorandum of Understanding”.
The MOU also envisaged that the dialogue will be completed within two weeks from Monday.
It also requires each party to issue a statement condemning the promotion and use of violence and call for peace in the country and shall take all measures necessary to ensure that the structures and institutions it controls are not engaged in the perpetration of violence.
Expressing gratitude to President Mbeki for working tirelessly behind the scenes to assist the people of Zimbabwe in their quest for a lasting political and economic solution, the three further committed to continuing to implement the SADC and African Union’s mandate.
These objectives include peace, stability and economic prosperity shared by the Zimbabwean people and the international community.
“In this regard, we edge all those in the international community who are genuinely committed to the resolution of challenges facing Zimbabwe to support the process towards the speedy and successful conclusion of the dialogue now underway.”
The signing of the deal made a major breakthrough in the development of ending the southern African country's political crisis.
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has also welcomed the signing of the MoU, commending the efforts of President Mbeki and his mediation team.
“The UN is committed to supporting these mediation efforts through its participation in the recently-formed Reference Group,” he said in a statement.
The secretary-general further encouraged all sides to engage, in good faith, in serious talks that would lead to a lasting solution to the political crisis and address the urgent economic and humanitarian needs of the Zimbabwean people.
Mr Ban further urged the enabling of humanitarian operations in order to allow the provision of assistance to those in dire need, said the statement. – BuaNews
Pretoria - South Africa has welcomed the landmark signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Zimbabwe’s political parties in Harare on Monday.
President Robert Mugabe and Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) leaders Morgan Tsvangirai and Arthur Mutambara signed the deal, which paves the way for fully-fledged negotiations aimed at ending the political deadlock in the country.
The signing was overseen by Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) facilitator South African President Thabo Mbeki.
In a statement, the South African government said the signing represented a positive step forward in ongoing dialogue among the parties.
“We are convinced that the MoU has laid a firm foundation for the Zimbabwean people to start on a new road towards political stability and economic recovery,” said government in the statement.
Faced with mounting global pressure, runaway inflation and economic crisis, the leaders agreed that there was a need to work together towards an inclusive government the closest language to a power-sharing accord.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, President Mugabe said his party and the opposition had agreed to amend the country's constitution, while Mr Tsvangirai promised that he would act to put the interests of Zimbabwe at the forefront.
President Mbeki said the deal committed both sides to an intense process to try to complete substantive negotiations as quickly as possible, adding that all parties involved recognised the urgency to hold the negotiations, which is aimed at ending the political crisis facing the country.
The MoU stated: “The parties hereby declare and agree to commit themselves to a dialogue with each other with a view to creating a genuine, viable, permanent and sustainable solution to the Zimbabwean situation and, in particular, to implement this Memorandum of Understanding”.
The MOU also envisaged that the dialogue will be completed within two weeks from Monday.
It also requires each party to issue a statement condemning the promotion and use of violence and call for peace in the country and shall take all measures necessary to ensure that the structures and institutions it controls are not engaged in the perpetration of violence.
Expressing gratitude to President Mbeki for working tirelessly behind the scenes to assist the people of Zimbabwe in their quest for a lasting political and economic solution, the three further committed to continuing to implement the SADC and African Union’s mandate.
These objectives include peace, stability and economic prosperity shared by the Zimbabwean people and the international community.
“In this regard, we edge all those in the international community who are genuinely committed to the resolution of challenges facing Zimbabwe to support the process towards the speedy and successful conclusion of the dialogue now underway.”
The signing of the deal made a major breakthrough in the development of ending the southern African country's political crisis.
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has also welcomed the signing of the MoU, commending the efforts of President Mbeki and his mediation team.
“The UN is committed to supporting these mediation efforts through its participation in the recently-formed Reference Group,” he said in a statement.
The secretary-general further encouraged all sides to engage, in good faith, in serious talks that would lead to a lasting solution to the political crisis and address the urgent economic and humanitarian needs of the Zimbabwean people.
Mr Ban further urged the enabling of humanitarian operations in order to allow the provision of assistance to those in dire need, said the statement. – BuaNews
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