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Zimbabwe Power-Sharing Talks Enter Fourth Day

By VOA News
11 September 2008

Zimbabwean political leaders are set to hold a fourth day of power-sharing talks Thursday, and it remains unclear how close they are to a deal.

At the end of Wednesday's talks in the capital, Harare, President Robert Mugabe called the progress "encouraging" and said he hopes all parties will sign an agreement Friday.

Main opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai said there is very little work left to do in the negotiations.

But the state-run Herald newspaper reports Thursday that little progress was made in Wednesday's talks, and that prospects for a deal this week appear "slim."

The sides are stuck on the question of how President Mugabe and Tsvangirai would divide power in a national unity government.

South African President Thabo Mbeki is mediating the talks under a mandate from the Southern African Development Community.

Mr. Mbeki put off a planned trip to Swaziland for a second day Thursday so he can stay in Harare. The South African president had been scheduled to report on the talks to the SADC's security committee.

The talks appeared deadlocked a week ago, after Tsvangirai rejected a proposal that would have given him a largely ceremonial post as prime minister.

Despite this week's progress, The Herald says Mr. Mugabe has warned he will form a new government by the end the week no matter what transpires in the negotiations.

Tsvangirai's party, the Movement for Democratic Change, gained control of parliament in the March parliamentary elections, and he won more votes than Mr. Mugabe in the presidential poll.

But official results showed Tsvangirai falling short of a majority, and he boycotted a runoff presidential election because of state-sponsored attacks on his supporters.

Mr. Mugabe won the uncontested runoff, extending his nearly 30-year rule.

The parties are under international pressure to reach a power-sharing deal so Zimbabwe can begin recovering from its deep economic crisis. The country is suffering food and fuel shortages that have helped drive up inflation to an estimated 11 million percent.