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(TALKZIMBABWE) President, PM denounce conference disruption

President, PM denounce conference disruption
Tendai Midzi
Mon, 13 Jul 2009 21:42:00 +0000

PRESIDENT Robert Mugabe and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai expressed dismay Monday over the disruption of the First All Stakeholders Conference on the drafting of a new constitution by party supporters.

The first day of the two-day stakeholder conference in Harare was suspended after hundreds of Zanu PF and MDC-T party loyalists clashed. Speaking on state television Monday night after meeting with PM Tsvangirai, President Mugabe said, "We will not brook nonsense in future. Unnecessary quarrels should be a thing of the past."

PM Tsvangirai also addressed Zimbabweans on television, saying the incident undermined "the spirit and credibility" of the power-sharing agreement signed by the main political parties.

The PM said that he hoped the conference would resume unhindered.

Reports from the country said the clashes started when civil servants organizing registration Sunday were only able to accredit 300 delegates of the 4,000 invited to attend.

A report by VOA says "tensions began rising in the hall lobby as Movement for Democratic Change supporters began chanting slogans quickly followed by groups loyal to Zanu PF."

Tensions were reportedly high even before the opening of the meeting, with supporters of Zimbabwe's two political rivals sang songs denigrating each other.

Some out-of-town delegates slept overnight outside the conference centre to be sure they were accredited before the start of proceedings Monday morning.

There were not enough personnel, stationery or cameras to cope with the ill-planned conference.

When it became clear registration was impossible before the start of conference, many delegates left the line and walked into the hall.

Some of the protestors accused the MDC-T party of attempting to write a constitution that would deny them the right to land.

Veterans of the country's 1970s independence war, who led the run on white-owned farms starting in 2000, called for the constitutional discussions to be halted for at least three months, claiming the process had been hijacked by the West "to reverse the gains of the liberation struggle."

Under the Global Political Agreement that President Mugabe and PM Tsvangirai signed last September and implemented in February, Zimbabwe is supposed to write a new constitution by July 2010.

Labels: CONSTITUTION, MORGAN TSVANGIRAI, MUGABE

posted by MrK @ 11:24 PM