Zimbabwe rivals in historic pact

Zimbabwe rivals in historic pact

Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe has signed a historic power-sharing deal with his long-time rival, opposition leader, Morgan Tsvangirai.
The two smiled and shook hands at the ceremony in the capital, Harare, attended by African dignitaries.
Mr Tsvangirai said the agreement provided the best hope for Zimbabwe and called on President Mugabe to work together to implement the deal.
Details are still emerging of how exactly power will be shared.
Mr Mugabe, MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai and Arthur Mutambara - leader of a breakaway MDC faction - signed the agreement in front of some 3,000 invited guests in Zimbabwe's International Conference Centre.
REPORTED DEAL Robert Mugabe:
President
Heads armed forces
Chairs cabinet
Zanu-PF has 15 ministers Morgan Tsvangirai:
Prime minister
Chairs council of ministers
Controls police force
MDC has 16 ministers - 3 from smaller faction
The signatories were introduced in the terms used in the agreement; Robert Mugabe as president, and Mr Tsvangirai as prime minister.
To rapturous applause, the leaders shook hands after exchanging signed copies of the accord.
Mr Tsvangirai said the agreement was a "product of painful compromises" and that it did not provide "an instant cure" to the fortunes of Zimbabwe.
"I've signed this agreement because I believe it represents the best opportunity for us to build a peaceful and prosperous democratic Zimbabwe," he said.
He said his hope for the future was stronger than the grief felt for "the needless suffering of the past years".
He called for the support of the international community and African neighbours in helping to rebuild the country - healthcare, education and economy.
The new deputy prime minister, Mr Mutambara, said the compromise agreement was a victory for Zimbabwe.
"This is a victory of Zimbabweans saying to each other there is more that brings us together than that which divides us," he said.
The BBC's George Alagiah in Harare says that the mood among ordinary Zimbabweans is one of relief rather than outright jubilation; people just want to get on with their lives.
'Highly polarised'
Negotiations started at the end of July, but stalled over the allocation of executive power between Mr Mugabe and Mr Tsvangirai.
The breakthrough came late on Thursday after months of difficult negotiations mediated by South African President Thabo Mbeki.
Details of the agreement were expected to be made public on Monday.
HAVE YOUR SAY Let's just say the deal is a step in the right direction GS, Harare
As prime minister, Mr Tsvangirai is expected to chair a council of ministers which is responsible for the day-to-day managing of the country's affairs.
According to the leaks, the MDC and another MDC faction will together have 16 ministers, while President Mugabe's Zanu-PF will have 15 ministers.
Some members have called it a climb-down, although others have said it is the best available.
David Coltart, an MP from the smaller MDC faction, said on Friday that most MDC members who are due to become ministers "have at some stage in the last nine years been brutalized on the instructions of those they will now have to work with".
The MDC accuses the army and Zanu-PF of organising a campaign of violence against opposition activists to ensure victory in the June presidential run-off.
"Zimbabwe remains highly polarised and it will take statesmanship on all sides to make this work," he said in an e-mail to his supporters.
Mr Tsvangirai and President Mugabe have not commented on the agreement.
'A new page'
The deal opens the way for international donors to help to revive Zimbabwe's collapsing economy, where inflation is at more than 11,000,000%.
The BBC's Allan Little in Johannesburg says Morgan Tsvangarai's trump card was that he alone could attract the foreign-funded reconstruction effort that Zimbabwe needs.
But he also knows that the foreign donor countries will want to see hard evidence - and soon - that power really has shifted away from Robert Mugabe, our correspondent says.
European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana said a decision on lifting sanctions on Zimbabwean officials had been postponed until October.
Mr Solana said the EU needed to study the details of the power-sharing agreement but that he expected it to open "a new page" for Zimbabwe.
Mr Mugabe, in power since independence from Britain in 1980, won a controversial presidential run-off election in June.
He ran unopposed after Mr Tsvangirai withdrew, claiming the MDC was the target of state-sponsored violence.
In the first round of the presidential election in March, Mr Tsvangirai gained more votes than Mr Mugabe, but official results say he did not pass the 50% threshold for outright victory.