Political temperatures on the rise

Zimbabwe opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai on Tuesday called for international pressure to bring President Robert Mugabe to the negotiating table, while dismissing reports that his party would participate in a transitional government. Speaking at a meeting of G8 ambassadors, the leader of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) warned that the country's economic crisis threatened Zimbabwe's social fabric and charged that the government lacked the policies to steer the country out of harm's way. "Even at this late hour we still believe that the only viable solution, to end this crisis and give the country a chance to recover, must go through a process of serious and sincere dialogue. Therefore, the urgency of international pressure being exerted to bring Mugabe to the negotiating table cannot be overemphasised. It is the only way to avert a catastrophe," Tsvangirai said. Leaders of the G8 industrialised countries meet next week in Evian, France, where they will debate renewing "targeted sanctions" against Mugabe and other leading personalities in his administration. Mugabe's term in office expires in 2008. But there has been intense speculation that he could retire early, making way for a transitional authority to include the MDC, which would steer the country to fresh elections. But in an apparent hardening of the party's position, Tsvangirai stressed the MDC would "neither be part[y] to a dubious process that seeks to expand and sanitise ZANU-PF's illegitimate rule, nor will we accept a secondary role in any so-called transitional arrangement." Rather than a transitional government, which he described as an "illegitimate arrangement", the MDC's position was that the constitution should be adhered to, should Mugabe announce his departure. "An interim/acting president, logically from the ruling party, would take over the office of the president, and the presidential polls shall be held within a period of 90 days to choose a new and substantive president. This is a cast-iron constitutional provision and there are no compelling reasons to deviate from it ... The issue of a constitutional amendment to enable the formation of a so-called transitional government therefore does not arise," an MDC statement quoted Tsvangirai as saying. "In our view, the starting point in the resolution of the crisis of legitimacy and governance in Zimbabwe must be Robert Mugabe's immediate and unconditional exit from the office of the president. This will pave the way for interim arrangements to be put in place for the holding of presidential polls that will result in the installation of a legitimate government, and usher in a new political dispensation that will restore democracy, peace, stability and prosperity to Zimbabwe." Tsvangirai called for the immediate halt to political violence and the restoration of the rule of law as a "non-negotiable issue for progress on substantive issues in the negotiation process". Tsvangirai had earlier called on Zimbabweans to hold a week of "democracy marches", starting on 2 June, as part of the "final push" against Mugabe. Such protests are illegal, raising the prospect of confrontation between the security forces and MDC supporters. "We are ready to crush any demonstrations which will lead to the destruction of property or is a threat to national security," Home Affairs Minister Kembo Mohadi told the official daily, The Chronicle. "If the demonstrations are peaceful, then they can go ahead. But if they are violent, we will not stand by and watch," he was quoted as saying. Warning they would use "military force", pro-government war veterans last week said they would clamp down on any opposition demonstrations. "It's going to be hot," a diplomatic source in Harare told IRIN. "The diplomatic community is certainly very worried about the possibility of street violence and would appeal to all sides to make sure that democratic rules [recognising the right to protest] are fully respected, and that demonstrations are done in a peaceful manner."