[R-G] West shifts policy on Zimbabwe

[Anthony Fenton]

West shifts policy on Zimbabwe

By Barry Moody
Reuters
Tuesday, February 3, 2009; 9:32 PM
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/02/03/AR2009020303574_pf.html

ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) - Britain expressed skepticism on Tuesday about  
Zimbabwe's new coalition government but pledged support because of the  
suffering of the population, indicating a shift in the West's stance  
on the crisis.

The comments from Mark Malloch Brown followed a similar marked shift  
of tone from Washington since opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai  
agreed to enter a power sharing government with President Robert  
Mugabe last week.

The new Obama administration has dropped its public demand for Mugabe  
to step down and the European Union also welcomed the deal, although  
Western powers say they are not ready to lift sanctions on the  
president and his entourage until they see concrete evidence of reform.

Malloch Brown said he had been convinced by African leaders at a  
summit in the Ethiopian capital that the new government must be given  
a chance.

"I think the one message I've got loud and clear from this summit, and  
I'm very sympathetic to it, is we've got to give this a go, we've got  
to all do our best to support it, because the needs of Zimbabweans are  
so overwhelming," he told BBC radio in an interview from Addis Ababa.

"We're skeptical but we've got to try and help this work," he said,  
saying Britain and others would be generous donors if the agreement  
succeeded.

Mugabe used a session of the summit on the global economic crisis on  
Tuesday to rail against Western powers, which he accused of blocking  
support to Zimbabwe from the IMF and World Bank, whose programs have  
been suspended because of arrears.

"Due to some illegal, unilateral, extraterritorial legislation by some  
powerful members of the same institutions, the enjoyment of our rights  
of membership have been strangulated," Mugabe told his fellow African  
leaders.

"We believe that these illegal actions are not only unjustified and  
cruel but they have also led to the needless suffering and foreign- 
induced polarization of the people of Zimbabwe."

NEW GOVERNMENT

The new government, with Tsvangirai as prime minister, is due to be  
sworn in by February 13, although the opposition MDC accused Mugabe's  
ZANU-PF on Tuesday of backtracking on the agreement by delaying  
discussions on contentious issues.

Former colonial power Britain has been one of the fiercest critics of  
Mugabe, accusing him of destroying the economy of the formerly  
prosperous country and using militias to violently suppress  
opposition. The veteran Zimbabwean leader blames the crisis on Western  
sanctions.

Zimbabwe suffers the world's highest inflation rate, officially put at  
231 million percent, and acute shortages of food, fuel and foreign  
exchange.

A cholera epidemic has killed 3,229 people and infected 62,909 others  
-- Africa's deadliest outbreak in 15 years.

Malloch Brown's remarks suggested African leaders have persuaded  
Western powers to take a softer line over Zimbabwe while the power- 
sharing government starts work.

In Washington, State Department spokesman Robert Wood said actions by  
Mugabe will determine the success or failure of the unity government.

"The U.S. will only consider new development assistance and easing of  
targeted sanctions when we have seen evidence of true power sharing as  
well as inclusive and effective governance," Wood said.

The toning down of U.S. rhetoric was a sharp change from the previous  
Bush administration, which had intensified calls for Mugabe, in power  
since 1980, to quit.

Analysts say Western rhetoric against Mugabe is often counter- 
productive in Africa, feeding his allegations that Britain and other  
powers are plotting to overthrow him.

Malloch Brown made clear, however, that Britain would not drop  
sanctions against Mugabe and his entourage until it had seen whether  
they were making a real commitment to power-sharing, echoing U.S. and  
European views.

"We really hope this time it is different for the sake of the people  
of Zimbabwe and we will work as though it is different, but we are not  
going to completely put away our stick, if you like, until we're  
convinced it is."

Britain, Washington and the EU are holding out promises of a major aid  
package to Zimbabwe but only after there is evidence of substantial  
political and economic reform.

"At this stage we need proof on the ground ...We have to see the  
implementation of the agreement before we can talk about possible next  
steps," one EU diplomat told Reuters in Brussels.

(Additional reporting by Daniel Wallis, Marius Bosch in Johannesburg,  
Ingrid Melander in Brussels and Sue Pleming in Washington; Editing by  
Diana Abdallah)
© 2009 Reuters