Deal in Zimbabwe
Sep. 13th, 2008 09:32 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
nairiporterhttp://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601116&sid=acOnweixbkg0&refer=africa
Sept. 13 (Bloomberg) -- Zimbabwe's power-sharing agreement marks a new turn in mediation efforts by South African President Thabo Mbeki in the country wracked by the world's highest inflation rate, the African Union said.
The accord ``marks a turning point in the efforts aimed at promoting reconciliation, stability and fostering conditions conducive for the recovery of their country,'' Jean Ping, chairman of the Commission of the AU, said in an e-mailed statement from Addis Ababa, dated yesterday.
Ping, 65, urged the international community to support the implementation of the agreement and praised the ``leadership, skillful diplomacy and tireless efforts'' of Mbeki, 66, who was asked by the South African Development Community to facilitate the talks.
The agreement, reached Sept. 11 in Harare between President Robert Mugabe and opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai, ended a six-month deadlock. It will allow the government to focus on the southern African nation's decade-long recession and the world's highest inflation rate of 11.2 million percent.
Under the agreement, the Movement for Democratic Change's Tsvangirai, 56, will become prime minister, heading a council of ministers, said a senior member of the MDC's governing national executive and two members of the politburo of Mugabe's Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front. The three officials declined to be identified because the deal is confidential until it's announced on Sept. 15.
