Pitfalls on the road to reconciliation

Church mediators on Friday dismissed accusations by a senior government official who claimed they were politically biased and unable to play the role of "honest broker" between Zimbabwe's two rival parties. The official The Herald newspaper on Thursday quoted Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa as saying: "They are [opposition Movement for Democratic Change] MDC activists wearing religious collars." In response Bishop Trevor Manhanga told IRIN: "Comments suggesting that any member of the mediation team are members of the MDC are without foundation. None of us are members of MDC, nor do we desire to be members of any political party. We feel that we do not have to respond to innuendos, especially since President [Robert] Mugabe was very cordial during our meeting at State House." Talks between the government and the MDC broke down in April 2002 after the opposition went to court to challenge the presidential election result which they alleged was stolen. But as Zimbabwe's political and economic crisis has deepened, the church has stepped in as mediators in recent weeks to reopen the dialogue between the two parties. The local clergy have largely remained neutral since the start of the political troubles. However, the Zimbabwe Council of Churches recently apologised for "not having done enough at a time when the nation has looked to us for guidance". Observers told IRIN the church intervention has come at a time when both sides of the political divide might be feeling they had exhausted their options. "For a long time the churches took a back seat to what was going on in the country, but as their constituencies become more impoverished they are forced to sit up and take notice. Their role is also brought on by the deteriorating economy and the pressure from the US and South Africa. But also, there is a greater realisation amongst members from both political parties that they have reached a stalemate in their own strategies. Out of this frustration, the church has emerged as a sensible option because of their apparent non-partisanship," said Brian Raftopoulos of the Institute of Development Studies. He warned that the road towards a resolution of the country's apparent political impasse was likely to be long and full of pitfalls. "The backlash such as Chinamasa's remarks was expected, especially since there never was consensus within ZANU-PF whether they should proceed with talks. A number of individuals within the ruling party have a great deal to lose, should the talks get underway. It is likely that there are going to be further attacks on the process as the momentum towards a negotiated settlement increases," said Raftopoulous. Meanwhile, Manhanga said the church-led mediation team was still awaiting written responses from the political parties to proposed talks. "The MDC has said it would respond by today (Friday) and we are not sure when ZANU-PF will respond. As soon as we have their responses, we can then look at the convergences and divergences and take it from there," he confirmed.