According to CNN, Robert Mugabe and Morgan Tsvangirai– Zimbabwe’s President and Prime Minister, respectively– held a rare joint press conference Monday. As ONE Blog readers are probably aware, the two have a complicated political relationship, so this is an interesting development:
“We are different parties; we go at each other at party level. Yes. But let it not be said that we are dysfunctional, (that) we are at war. No,” said Mugabe, 86, defending an attack he made on Tsvangirai at a party conference over the weekend.
“This inclusive government will not collapse. We will make sure that it does not collapse,” said Tsvangirai, adding that there was a “camaraderie” with his former political enemy.
Over the weekend, Mugabe told his supporters that he was tired of working with Tsvangirai and wanted elections next year.
But after meeting with Tsvangirai and Mutambara, Mugabe said that the coalition had given Zimbabweans “a sense of togetherness.”
Both Mugabe and Tsvangirai said Zimbabweans would go to elections once a referendum for a new constitution has been held.
Zimbabwe Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai has fired 4 top Cabinet ministers according to the AP:
All those involved were from Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s Movement for Democratic Change party. Tsvangirai has no power over ministers from President Robert Mugabe’s ZANU-PF party in a unity government forged last year as a compromise after disputed national elections in 2008.
The Tsvangirai politician who shared the police ministry with a ZANU-PF official was shuffled to the housing ministry and the previous housing minister was dismissed. The ministers of energy, women and youth also were dismissed.
Tsvangirai told reporters the slow pace of restoring law and order, rehabilitating power infrastructure and achieving democratic reforms in general led to “a loss of confidence in the new administration among the electorate.”
“As a result, I have decided on a number of changes needed to strengthen the performance of the MDC in government and outside government,” he said of the first shuffle since he took office in February last year.
Mugabe rarely fires his ministers, most of them longtime ZANU-PF loyalists. Several ZANU-PF politicians have survived corruption allegations over the three decades Mugabe has been in power in Zimbabwe.
AFP reports:
New York-based advocacy group Human Rights Watch said on Monday that Zimbabwe has broken its promise to halt physical abuse of diamond miners and should have its international certification frozen.
The call came in a new report issued by the group to coincide with a meeting in Tel Aviv of partners in the Kimberley Process (KP) certification scheme, created to prevent the sale of “blood diamonds”.
Human Rights Watch (HRW) said Zimbabwe should be suspended from the group as it had reneged on a promise made last year to improve conditions at its Marange diamond fields. Such a move would bar the country’s exports of the gems.
Accreditation of Marange’s production was suspended last November but is likely to be reinstated at the Tel Aviv conference.
Several humanitarian groups oppose such a move, arguing instead that the whole country should be disbarred until conditions at Marange are improved.
“Human Rights Watch has received new reports that soldiers in Marange are engaging in forced labor, torture, beatings, and harassment,” the report said.
The group said its findings were based on more than 30 interviews of people from the Marange district, government officials and staff of other rights groups, some as recently as last month.
CNN just posted a great story out of Zimbabwe about four new publications recently awarded licenses in the country. This is a big deal freedom of press in the country:
The papers granted licenses include the previously banned “Daily News,” which was shut down by Robert Mugabe’s government in 2002. The papers will be the first privately owned newspapers to go on sale in six years.
Trevor Ncube, who is one of southern Africa’s most powerful publishers, told CNN that approval of the newspaper license was wonderful news and was an opportunity for Zimbabweans to celebrate.
“This is very exciting and it’s a huge time for Zimbabweans and it’s an opportunity for change,” Ncube told Becky Anderson on Connect the World.
“We’re clearly in a period of transition and this newspaper will play a role to empower Zimbabweans.”
Ncube already owns and runs two weekly newspapers in the country including the “Independent” and “Standard.”
The announcement is in stark contrast to the Mugabe government’s previous policy of allowing only government-controlled daily newspapers in the country.
According to the AFP, Zimbabwe Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai met with Secretary Clinton yesterday to “recognize that Zimbawe has made progress toward democracy as he appeared to suggest it ease sanctions”:
But there was no sign US President Barack Obama’s administration would ease sanctions targeted at President Robert Mugabe and his loyalists, the people with whom Tsvangirai has shared power uneasily for more than a year.
The United States — along with the European Union — maintains a travel ban and asset freeze on Mugabe, his wife and inner circle in protest at controversial elections and alleged human rights abuses by his government.
In an interview with AFP and another journalist, Tsvangirai appeared to make the case for at least an easing of US sanctions when he visited Washington for talks with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
He came “to update her on the latest situation in the country in terms of where the bottlenecks are, where progress has been made, and what the United States should do,” the premier said.
“There should be a recognition (by Washington) that there is progress, but (perception of) that progress may not be sufficient to convince the American government,” Tsvangirai said, referring to efforts to lift the sanctions.
AP reports:
Zimbabwe’s information minister says the country will implement wide-ranging media reforms that could bring in independent media outlets that would break the government’s hold on the media.
Webster Shamu said Monday that a new licensing authority will open this month and will take applications from new broadcasters and newspapers. Zimbabwe’s last independent daily newspaper was shut down in 2003 amid accusations that it criticized the government led by President Robert Mugabe. Mugabe’s party controls all the main state newspapers and the sole broadcaster.
Robert Mugabe marked Zimbabwe’s 30 years of independence from Britain today with a speech. CNN reports:
Mugabe’s speech at a rally Sunday was in addition to other festivities marking his three decades in power. Events included songs, dance and an all-night reggae concert in the capital, Harare.
He called on Zimbabweans to be tolerant, treat one another with dignity, and refrain from engaging in violence, big or small.
“Your leadership in the inclusive government urges you to desist from any acts of violence that will cause harm to others and become a blight on our society,” he said. “Don’t fight even over girlfriends. The country is full of beautiful women. If you can’t get one, come to Mugabe for assistance.”
Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai also attended the rally but did not speak. Crowds erupted into cheers every time his face appeared on giant screens televising the event in the stadium.
Mugabe, 86, said he was committed to reform, and urged Zimbabweans to support a constitutional reform that would make way for fair elections in the future.
