Mugabe delivers broadside to neighbours

President Robert Mugabe has called on neighbouring countries not to interfere in Zimbabwe's internal affairs, while signalling that constitutional reform was on the cards, possibly to smooth the way for a chosen successor. Speaking in a televised interview to commemorate his 82nd birthday over the weekend, Mugabe said: "We have tolerated some of them because they are our friends. We hope in future they will keep away." He was responding to a question on what he thought of diplomatic interventions by South Africa and Nigeria in Zimbabwe's political crisis. Mugabe sneered at his colleagues in the African Union, suggesting their interest in resolving Zimbabwe's problems was more to do with pressure from western governments deemed hostile to his ruling ZANU-PF. Mugabe also said the country's constitution would be amended as many times as was necessary. He is due to retire in 2008. Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Minister, Patrick Chinamasa immediately hinted there were several possibilities for constitutional reform. One option was the current parliamentary term, which expires in 2010, could be reduced to 2008 so that presidential and parliamentary elections could be held that year. Another possibility would be to have a president elected to serve a seven-year term from 2008 to 2015, so that parliamentary and presidential polls could be synchronised in 2015. A third, believed to be favoured by Mugabe, is to have his successor elected by parliament in 2008 to serve for two years before joint elections are held in 2010. Political commentator and conflict resolution expert, Webster Zambara, said that scenario would give Mugabe's chosen successor, most likely Vice-President Joyce Mujuru, time to entrench herself in power. "That option is ideal for Mugabe in that when parliament is whipped into choosing his preferred candidate, that person would have two years to establish himself or herself and to weed out potential opponents. That would ensure that the succession issue is much smoother," he commented. The weekend also added a new twist to the split in the main opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) with Arthur Mutambara returning to the country to lead the pro-Senate faction ahead of their congress in Bulawayo this weekend. Mutambara, an academic who was a former militant leader of the University of Zimbabwe Student Representative Council, has been living abroad. The official Herald newspaper quoted a statement by Mutambara in which he said he had witnessed with distress the split in the MDC over the past four months. The rump of the party has remained loyal to MDC leader and former unionist Morgan Tsvangirai, which is set to hold its own congress next month. "Mutambara's advantage could be that he has an activism background, just like Tsvangirai, but his slight advantage could be that he also has a very strong academic background to eclipse that of Mugabe," said Zambara.