Mbeki's 'scathing' report to Mugabe

Mbeki's 'scathing' report to Mugabe

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SOUTH African President Thabo Mbeki wrote a stinging report to Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe in 2001, pleading with him to stop land grabs and admit that the ruling party has failed to create a democratic state.

In a 37-page analysis of the situation in Zimbabwe, written a year after Zanu-PF lost a referendum to the opposition, a landmark event that triggered violent land seizures, Mbeki warns of the consequences.

"Of critical importance... is the obvious necessity to ensure that Zimbabwe does not end up in a situation of isolation... condemned to sink into an ever-deepening social and economic crisis that would result in the reversal of many of the gains of the national democratic revolution."

Mbeki, who has been criticised many times for failing to speak out publicly against Mugabe, in this document warns of the dangers of "stripping white capitalists of their wealth".

He says it "would result in the collapse of the economy with disastrous effects".

The "discussion document" was written in August 2001 and will appear in the June issue of New Agenda, a journal of social and economic policy.

The document was leaked to the Mail and Guardian newspaper, which posted it on its website on Friday, the day of Zimbabwe's one-candidate presidential runoff.

Mbeki begins the report by saying: "This discussion document is a humble contribution to the work that Zanu-PF must carry out... Zimbabwe is confronted by a number of problems that require urgent solutions."

Quoting lengthy paragraphs and numbers from International Monetary Fund (IMF) reports and other economic research, Mbeki asks, "What went wrong?" in Zimbabwe.

He points out that the private sector played a "minimal role with regard to the task of bridging the disparities between black and white".

Mbeki says one of the "serious mistakes" was that the government had to borrow too much money to fund its social upliftment programmes.

"One of the things that went wrong was that the programmes adopted to improve the quality of life proved to be unaffordable... the national democratic state resorted to borrowing, to make up the shortfall in resources available to the government."

By the end of the 1980s, interest payments on the loans amounted to 6,7 percent of the GDP.

"In time the high budget deficit would necessarily lead to the collapse of the social services...

"What had seemed to be the fertiliser that ensured the growth of these services, would turn out to be the toxic substance that would kill these services."

This obliged Zimbabwe to turn to the IMF for help.

But when Zimbabwe defaulted on its IMF debt in 2001, the world body refused to reschedule the debt.

"The party of revolution has to [decide] whether [it] can afford an unfriendly relationship with the IMF at the same time as, in reality, it cannot do without support and assistance from the IMF," Mbeki says.

Also, Zimbabwe cannot afford to "end up in a confrontational position relative to the UK", referring to the former colonial power's role in the land restitution process.

"To resort to anti-imperialist rhetoric will not resolve the problems of Zimbabwe but may compound them."

Mbeki says Zanu-PF must carry out a "serious review" to pull Zimbabwe out of its "deepening crisis" and admit that it had lost contact with the masses.

"Government actions have taken place that have led to accusations about disrespect for the independence of the judiciary, the violation of the rule of law, the suppression of the right to freedom of expression and the independence of the media and the denial of the right to the people of Zimbabwe of their right freely to choose their government....

"The party of revolution in Zimbabwe must admit to itself that it has created the conditions for others to reach these conclusions."

Mbeki calls on the ruling party to "distance itself from the violence and intimidation of the 'war veterans' and related forces and practices".

"Everything we have said indicates that, at this stage, it is not possible for the party of revolution in Zimbabwe to act in a manner that would ensure the further encouragement of popular democracy in that country," Mbeki says. - Sapa
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