Presidents seek to end Zimbabwe crisis

Three African presidents arrived in Zimbabwe today for intense negotiations aimed at ending the political chaos and violence that has crippled the nation for three years.

South African President Thabo Mbeki, Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo and Malawi President Bakili Muluzi went to a Harare hotel where they were scheduled to meet President Robert Mugabe, whose increasingly autocratic rule has been blamed for causing the crisis.

Zimbabwe officials said the main talks with Mugabe were to be held at his State House offices, where reporters for some foreign media organisations were refused entry.

The visiting leaders were also scheduled to hold a separate meeting with Morgan Tsvangirai, leader of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change.

Mugabe, 79, who led the nation to independence in 1980, narrowly defeated Tsvangirai in presidential polls last year that independent observers said were deeply flawed.

The new mediation efforts come ahead of a trip to southern Africa by Walter Kansteiner, the US State Department’s top Africa official who will attempt to win backing for political reform in Zimbabwe.

The Zimbabwe Herald newspaper, a government mouthpiece, said: “There is trepidation about the timing of the visit in view of the pronounced positions of the British and American governments over regime change in Zimbabwe following their successful invasion and occupation of Iraq.”

Zimbabwe is suffering its worst economic crisis since independence. Inflation has soared to a record 228%, unemployment is nearly 70% and Zimbabweans are facing acute shortages of hard currency, food, petrol, medicines and other essential imports.