Zimbabwean opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) leader Morgan Tsvangirai will not attend a regional summit on Zimbabwe’s political crisis, a party spokesman said, throwing the mediation process into disarray.
“He is not going. He was denied a passport,” MDC spokesman Nelson Chamisa said.
The meeting of the heads of state of Angola, Swaziland and Mozambique — who form the security committee of the Southern African Development Community — is aimed at trying to help Zimbabwe’s political rivals break a deadlock in negotiations on forming a Cabinet.
Tsvangirai was due to meet yesterday with Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe and other southern African leaders in the Swaziland capital Mbabane.
The leaders planned to discuss ways to break an impasse over forming a proposed unity government.
But Tsvangirai “did not go to Mbabane, as he was only issued an emergency travel document yesterday, and the problem was that he did not have a valid visa to go to South Africa,” an official with the MDC said on condition of anonymity.
Tsvangirai has not been granted a normal passport for nearly one year, and is only allowed to leave the country on emergency travel documents valid for a single trip.
“There is no way you can expect him to be in Swaziland when they are making it difficult for him,” the MDC official said.
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