Zimbabwe amending constitution amid progress

Zimbabwe's Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa was scheduled to present constitutional amendments to politicians today to prepare the way for national elections next year, parliament officials said.

It comes amid signs of the first significant progress in talks between the government and the opposition in the country.

The nation’s dire economic meltdown appeared to have forced the government to make concessions in South African-brokered talks on political and economic reforms with the fragmented opposition Movement for Democratic Change, according to analysts.

South Africa has imposed a strict information blackout on the talks, but leaks indicate Chinamasa, Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe’s chief negotiator, expressed willingness at the last round of meetings in Pretoria this month to grant some opposition demands ahead of next year’s polls.