Zimbabwe power talks continue

ZIMBABWE’s rival parties resumed power-sharing talks yesterday, a day ahead of the expiry of a deadline to conclude discussions to end a ruinous political crisis.

After a near week-long break following suggestions the talks were deadlocked, negotiators met again in South Africa to resolve the crisis, which intensified after President Robert Mugabe’s controversial re-election.

A spokesman for the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), confirmed the party’s negotiators had returned to Pretoria for Sunday’s meeting.

The meeting comes after a bomb exploded at Harare’s main police station on Saturday night, shattering windows and damaging buildings, but causing no injuries, police said.

The talks had broken up on Tuesday as negotiators flew home to consult with their leaders amid suggestions by the MDC that discussions on power sharing between Mugabe and rival Morgan Tsvangirai were deadlocked.

South African President Thabo Mbek flew to Harare for talks with Mugabe after the adjournment and also met Tsvangirai in Pretoria. The South African leader, who has faced heavy criticism in the past over accusations of treating Mugabe with kid gloves, said the talks were “progressing”.

Zimbabwe’s economy has been in meltdown since Mugabe began a chaotic land reform programme, with inflation now at 2.2 million per cent.