Tsvangirai savaged over mass action U-turn

Tsvangirai savaged over mass action U-turn

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By Staff Reporter

MORGAN Tsvangirai last night faced a savage attack from a rival faction of the MDC.

Tsvangirai, the founding MDC leader who now heads a faction of the feuding opposition party was accused of political opportunism as details of a confidential document (see report) proposing a political settlement with President Robert Mugabe's Zanu PF party were published.

The secret document, published by New Zimbabwe.com, reveals that Tsvangirai is now quietly considering the option of opening talks with Mugabe's party, leading to a transitional unity government and constitutional reform process.

Gabriel Chaibva, spokesman for the MDC faction led by former NASA rocket scientist Arthur Mutambara, said they were "shocked and dismayed" by the revelations.

Said Chaibva: "Tsvangirai projected himself as a hard-nosed leader who opposed dialogue with Zanu PF in favour of 'confrontation'.

"Tsvangirai declared that the dispute between himself and us was that we favoured and sought dialogue with Zanu PF while he favoured and sought confrontation. We have not forgotten claims by Tsvangirai that our leadership wanted to kill him so that we could talk and compromise with Zanu PF. Guess who is now seeking dialogue and compromise with Zanu PF?"

At his faction's congress in March, Tsvangirai told supporters that they should prepare for a "a winter of discontent and short sharp action to remove the dictator".

Political commentators immediately warned that Zimbabweans were not in the mood for any "mass action", pointing to weaknesses within his party which had just split over differences among senior leaders. Analysts warned that if it were to take off, such a plan would be easily neutralised by Mugabe's security forces.

However, Tsvangirai still went on a nationwide campaign to mobilise for the "mass action".

With winter almost over in Zimbabwe, evidence first emerged that Tsvangirai was backing off from confronting the Mugabe government on a visit to the United Kingdom during which he told supporters that the planned "mass action" was only intended to force Mugabe to the negotiating table.

The confidential document, titled MDC proposals for the resolution of the Zimbabwean crisis: Sign posts to peace, democracy, legitimacy, reconstruction, and national healing, appears to be the final confirmation that Tsvangirai has abandoned the confrontational course.

The document says in part: “The opposition and ordinary Zimbabweans suffer from incessant political repression and the negative effects of a collapsed economy, which cannot be reconstructed under the present political conditions.

“Therefore, no possible relief is on offer. Only a negotiated political settlement provides for a resolution of the crisis.”

The MDC says there is now consensus at home and abroad that the current situation was unsustainable and only dialogue would rescue the country.

In its document — also termed the Road Map — the MDC proposes phased talks, starting with Zanu PF and then later other political parties and civic groups.

It says: “Our proposed road map entails the following:

Stage A: Negotiations and agreement between Zanu PF and MDC on the framework.

Stage B: Negotiations between MDC and Zanu PF on a transitional authority.

Stage C: Negotiations between civil society, Zanu PF, the MDC and other political formations on the involvement of civic society in various transitional bodies including the constitutional conference.

Stage D: The enactment by parliament of the constitutional conference act and the necessary amendments to the Zimbabwean constitution to cater for the transitional authority and cabinet and any other matters incidental thereto.”

The MDC says Stage E will deal with the drafting of the new constitution by the constitutional conference, while Stage F would focus on the holding of a referendum on the new constitution.

Stage G will concentrate on mechanisms for free and fair elections “for all arms of government under international supervision in terms of the new constitution.

“The two political parties should establish a legally recognised bi-partisan negotiating team to meet as soon as possible to map the route forward, discuss and agree on key issues to the process and draft the constitutional reform agenda for the constitutional conference,” the MDC states.

“The two parties in the bi-partisan negotiating team must agree to: the composition, structure, terms of reference; and methods of work of the constitutional conference. An Act of Parliament should establish the constitutional conference.”

Tsvangirai's advisers have been defending the document. In a newspaper column, Grace Kwinjeh, his deputy international affairs secretary defended the document.

She said: "This draft document is our modest submission as a party to the current political discourse on possible solutions to the current economic and political turmoil we find ourselves in as citizens.

"The first stage is Constitutional Reform, followed by the setting up of a Transitional Authority that will oversee the running of Free and Fair elections in the final stage."

She added: "We are proposing a non-violent route to the resolution of the crisis based on consensus by all key political players in a process that does not confer a political advantage to any person or group, even ourselves as the authors of the document.

"There has been enough violence in our country's history for anyone to contemplate an alternative to a negotiated settlement."

However, Tsvangirai's opponents are seeing the latest policy shift as evidence of desperation by the MDC leader following his stillborn plans for Mugabe's ouster through a program of sustained popular street protests.

Chaibva said: "We hold the view that Tsvangirai is self-seeking and opportunistic. Here is a leader who in one breath is talking about mass-action, ostensibly to 'topple' Mugabe. In the next breath he is saying No! No! It’s about demanding free and fair elections.

"Next he claims he does not want to remove Mugabe 'undemocratically'. Since when has mass action been democratic? Tsvangirai is a leader who is inconsistent, confused and who has no strategy on anything that matters."
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