Mugabe is still in power as part of the coalition Tsvangirai joined in
In a clear signal that the European Union is going to keep pressure on the
government Tsvangirai leads, Dutch Development Aid Minister Bert Koenders
said the bloc wants to see clear progress on human rights, the reining in of
security services and reforming the country’s central bank before resuming
aid.
“It is the agreement of the parties in Zimbabwe itself regarding human
rights, security, regarding economic policy, regarding land survey that
forms the basis for our future support,” Koenders told reporters after
meeting Tsvangirai in The Hague.
Tsvangirai said he hopes to get the green light for a new round of talks
with the European Union at the end of his trip to discuss reforms and future
aid.
“I did not come here with a begging bowl. Re-engagement is a process,” he
told reporters after meeting Koenders. “We have been isolated for the last
10 years and re-engagement means … our cooperation partners need to
understand what we are doing … and we also have to understand the concerns
of our partners.”
Tsvangirai’s spokesman James Maridadi told The Associated Press that
Tsvangirai next travels to the United States and plans to meet President
Barack Obama on Friday. He also will meet officials at the World Bank and
International Monetary Fund before returning to Europe.
The Netherlands has long been a staunch supporter of human rights in
Zimbabwe. This year it will hand over euro15 million (US$21.27 million) in
emergency aid and last year Tsvangirai sought refuge in the Dutch embassy in
Harare amid election violence.
Mugabe blames Western sanctions for his nation’s economic meltdown, charges
repeatedly dismissed by the United States and Britain, the former colonial
ruler.
Both Tsvangirai and his finance minister, Tendai Biti, have urged the West
to lift what they called “restrictive measures” against Zimbabwe now that a
coalition government was making progress toward economic and democratic
reform.
Western donors and financial institutions, however, say reforms have not
gone far enough as disputes over key government posts and violent seizures
of white-owned farms continue to plague the coalition.
Attempts by the Tsvangirai side of the coalition to scrap sweeping media and
security laws to allow for freedom of expression and movement have made
little headway. Tsvangirai acknowledged at his party convention last weekend
Mugabe hard-liners were obstructing a return to the rule of law.
Associated Press (AP)