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Zimbabwe leaders hunker down for second night of talks

Other News Materials 11 August 2008 21:36 (UTC +04:00)

(dpa) - Crucial talks between Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe and opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai on a government of national unity entered a second night Monday amid pressure on the two men to strike a deal and begin rebuilding the battered economy.

The two leaders resumed talks in the afternoon under the mediation of South African President Thabo Mbeki after a first marathon 14-hour session ended in the early hours of Monday without a final agreement.

Mugabe, Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) leader Tsvangirai and Arthur Mutambara, leader of a breakaway MDC faction, are expected to spend another night trying to achieve a negotiated settlement to Zimbabwe's nearly decade-long political crisis.

Among the key stumbling blocks is the division of powers between Mugabe and Tsvangirai.

Information leaked from the talks in South Africa showed Tsvangirai poised to become prime minister, but it is still not clear how much power he would wield.

Addressing a rally earlier in Harare on Heroes' Day - a holiday commemorating Zimbabwe's fallen freedom fighters - Mugabe talked of "a new dispensation" while issuing his by now stock warning against Zimbabwe's "enemies" trying to reverse his lawless land redistribution programme.

Giving an insight into the atmosphere of the talks, Mugabe, 84, admitted: "There was a time I'd feel like raising my fist."

"All of us would lose patience but we'd say why lose patience when the facilitator remains calm," he said, praising Mbeki's mediation.

Mbeki arrived in Harare Saturday to try to clinch agreement between the leaders on a deal after nearly two weeks of talks between Mugabe's Zanu-PF and the two MDC factions in South Africa.

Mugabe said earlier "sticking points" remained but that they could be overcome.

In a sign of a softening of his stance towards Tsvangirai, which he has previously called a Western "puppet," Mugabe told Monday's rally: "After a fight, the family sits down. That's where we are."

Zimbabweans are hoping a negotiated settlement will deliver them from a decade of hardship wrought by Mugabe's populist policies.

Eustina Mafuwa, a 36-year-old teacher decked out in Zanu-PF regalia for Heroes' Day, said she had spent the previous night with her ear glued to the radio in case of a breakthrough.

"I'm hopeful they'll immediately start working together and address the economy," she said.

Matthew Dube, a 31-year-old black-market foreign currency dealer whose business is at risk in the event of an economic turnaround, said he doubted a "GNU" (government of national unity) between the longtime foes would work.

"If that happens it will not be anytime soon. By then I'll be rich or finished my auto electrician course."

Analysts say the dire state of the economy, as characterized by inflation of over 2 million per cent and critical food shortages, are what ultimately convinced Zimbabwe's leader of 28 years to agree to share power.

A number of Western countries have promised increased aid and investment if Tsvangirai and the MDC lead the next government.

Mugabe has also found himself increasingly isolated after several African countries and the West refused to recognize his victory in June presidential elections.

Mugabe contested the run-off election alone, after Tsvangirai, who won the first round of the election in March, withdrew over a campaign of state-backed attacks on his supporters that killed over 120 people. dpa cb cm pmc

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