Ruling Zanu-PF party began power-sharing talks with opposition in South Africa last week, but doubts over progress after talks were adjourned on Tuesday have been abound.Mr Tsvangirai told media that Mr Mugabe denied the violence in the southern African country.
“My role and Mr Mugabe’s in the envisaged co-sharing government will have to be discussed by the negotiating parties. I am not in any position of defining what his role would be,” Mr Tsvangirai was quoted.
“What I would hope is that it will allow him (Mugabe) a process of an honourable exit,” he said.
Government and opposition officials have been holding negotiations at a secret location in South Africa. The adjourned talks, aimed at resolving Zimbabwe’s post-election crisis, are expected to resume on Sunday.
South African president Thabo Mbeki, who has led negotiations over Zimbabwe’s crisis, has said parties are determined to find a solution within a two-week timeframe.
Talks, which started a week ago after Mr Mugabe and Mr Tsvangirai met for first time in a decade, were halted earlier this week.
Mr Tsvangirai’s Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) accuses Mr Mugabe and his Zanu-PF party of stealing Zimbabwe’s presidential election.
MDC leader said he was not in a position to define what his role or that of Mr Mugabe’s would be after end of talks. But he added, there have been sticking points.
“Some issues have been ironed out, while others are still outstanding. We hope that as the negotiations proceed, they will find a common compromise,” he was quoted as saying.
About his rare meeting with the president, Mr Tsvangirai said he was sure that there was a common understanding that there is a need to solve the crisis through a transitional process.
“He is just as human as every one of us, that he has similar concerns, although, of course, I think he is ignorant, and chooses to be in a denial stage as far as violence is concerned,” he said.
MDC claims that two of its supporters were killed in capital Harare last week by Zanu-PF supporters, even after an agreement to start talks had been signed.
The party has previously said that more than 120 of its supporters have been killed, some 5,000 abducted and 200,000 forced to flee their homes after being attacked by Zanu-PF militias and security agents, accusations Zanu-PF denies.
Mr Tsvangirai pushed Mr Mugabe into second place in the first round of voting on 29 March, but he pulled out of a 27 June run-off election after a wave of deadly attacks against his supporters.
Both leaders are under pressure from within Africa and rest of world to negotiate a national-unity government to end a crisis that has ruined Zimbabwe’s economy and flooded neighbouring states with millions of refugees. It has been not been clear what compromise could be reached at power-sharing talks.
MDC maintains only Mr Tsvangirai can lead a new government because he won a first-round presidential vote in March and only pulled out of a June run-off vote because of violence he says killed 122 of his supporters.
Media reports further show that Zanu-PF has said it will not accept any deal that fails to recognise Mugabe’s re-election.
afrol News
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