African leaders were due to step up calls yesterday for an end to Western sanctions against Zimbabwe and urge South Africa to plead Harare’s cause within the G20 rich and developing nations, officials said.
The Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries would also press Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai to end a row over a power-sharing pact that was holding up vital foreign aid, the officials said.
“We are convinced that if sanctions are lifted, Zimbabwe, within the framework of its current political agreement, will have the possibility to move towards development,” said Congolese Foreign Minister Alexis Thambwe Mwamba.
“We will also ask South Africa, which is the only sub-Saharan African country that is a member of the G20, to plead for Zimbabwe’s cause,” said Mwamba, whose country is taking over the SADC chair and hosting the meeting in Kinshasa.
South African President Jacob Zuma is being watched for signs he will take a tougher line than predecessor Thabo Mbeki over Mugabe, who has been hit by EU and US sanctions including a travel ban for alleged rights abuses and vote-rigging.
Last month, Zuma called on the West to repeal the sanctions. But in what sounded like a tougher tone on Mugabe, he also stressed the need for respect of democracy and human rights.
A recovery in Zimbabwe’s economy is important for South Africa because millions have been driven to seek work in their wealthier neighbor. Zimbabwe says it needs US$10 billion in foreign reconstruction aid, but Western nations are reluctant to release aid without political and economic reform.
Mugabe and Tsvangirai formed a power-sharing government in February as part of a SADC-backed deal to end a political crisis.
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