Deputy Foreign Minister Nicholas Goche said rural people had voted for land while those in urban areas had voted for jobs in the 2000 parliamentary elections which the Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front almost lost winning only 62 seats against the Movement for Democratic Change’s 57.
Goche said the MDC could have “put up a frog” in the urban areas and would still have won against the ruling ZANU-PF.
Goche said though it was good to have other voices in parliament. It was now up to the MDC to prove whether its members could articulate their policies to help alleviate the people’s suffering.
Full cable:
Viewing cable 00HARARE3652, DEPUTY MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS TIGHT-LIPPED
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This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.
051411Z Jul 00
CONFIDENTIAL PTQ7488
PAGE 01 HARARE 03652 01 OF 03 051408Z
ACTION AF-00
INFO LOG-00 NP-00 AID-00 ACQ-00 CIAE-00 SMEC-00 INL-01
DINT-00 DODE-00 DOEE-00 DOTE-00 SRPP-00 DS-00 EB-00
EUR-00 FAAE-00 FBIE-00 VC-00 H-01 TEDE-00 INR-00
IO-00 LAB-01 L-00 VCE-00 AC-01 NSAE-00 OIC-02
OMB-01 OPIC-01 PA-00 PM-00 PRS-00 ACE-00 P-00
SP-00 STR-00 TRSE-00 USIE-00 PMB-00 DSCC-00 PRM-01
DRL-02 G-00 NFAT-00 SAS-00 /011W
——————6A65E4 051408Z /38
FM AMEMBASSY HARARE
TO SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 6517
INFO AMEMBASSY PRETORIA
AMEMBASSY LONDON
AMEMBASSY PARIS
NSC WASHDC
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 HARARE 003652
SIPDIS
DEPT FOR AF A/S SUSAN RICE, DAS SCHNEIDMAN
AF/S RENDER, BOOTH, FAULK
NSC FOR SENIOR DIRECTOR FOR AFRICA GAYLE SMITH
LONDON FOR PFLAUMER
PARIS FOR BISA WILLIAMS
CONFIDENTIAL
PAGE 02 HARARE 03652 01 OF 03 051408Z
E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/05/00
TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM PINS PINR KDEM ZI
SUBJECT: DEPUTY MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS TIGHT-LIPPED
ABOUT NEW CABINET APPOINTMENTS
CLASSIFIED BY POLITICAL OFFICER MAKILA JAMES, REASONS
1.5 B/D.
REFTEL: A) HARARE 3165, B) HARARE 02961
¶1. (C) SUMMARY: DEPUTY MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS
NICHOLAS GOCHE WAS TIGHT-LIPPED OVER POSSIBLE CABINET
CHANGES IN A JULY 3 CONVERSATION WITH THE AMBASSADOR.
GOCHE, HOWEVER, NOTED THAT IT WILL BE DIFFICULT FOR THE
PRESIDENT TO REAPPOINT THOSE MEMBERS WHOM THE PUBLIC
REJECTED IN THE RECENT PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS. THE
MOVEMENT FOR DEMOCRATIC CHANGE (MDC) WILL NOT BE INVITED
INTO THE CABINET, GOCHE SAID. THE GOVERNMENT AND
COMMERCIAL FARMERS UNION (CFU) HAVE COME TO AN AGREEMENT
“IN PRINCIPLE” FOR THE ACQUISITION WITHOUT COMPENSATION
OF ALMOST ALL THE 804 PUBLICIZED PROPERTIES, ACCORDING
TO GOCHE. WAR VETERANS WILL REMAIN ON THE OCCUPIED
FARMS FOR THE FORESEEABLE FUTURE. END SUMMARY.
¶2. (C) ON JULY 3 THE AMBASSADOR, ACCOMPANIED BY POLOFF,
CALLED ON THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS,
NICHOLAS GOCHE, FOR A POST-PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS
ASSESSMENT OF THE GOVERNMENT. GOCHE WAS IN A LESS
COMBATIVE MOOD THAN WHEN THE AMBASSADOR LAST SAW HIM ON
JUNE 12, TO DELIVER A JOINT DEMARCHE WITH OTHER HEADS
CONFIDENTIAL
PAGE 03 HARARE 03652 01 OF 03 051408Z
OF MISSIONS TO CONDEMN POLITICAL VIOLENCE AND CALL FOR A
HALT TO IT IN THE COUNTRY (REFTEL A). GOCHE PLAYED OFF
THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE MDC’S 57 SEAT WIN TO ZANU-PF’S
62 IN THE JUNE 24 AND 25 VOTE, NOTING “THE RURAL AREAS
VOTED FOR LAND AND THE URBAN AREAS VOTED FOR JOBS.
CONCEDING THAT HIGH URBAN UNEMPLOYMENT LOST THE ELECTION
IN THOSE AREAS FOR ZANU-PF GOCHE, SAID THE MDC COULD
HAVE “PUT UP A FROG” IN THOSE AREAS AND STILL WOULD HAVE
WON AGAINST THE RULING PARTY. NEVERTHELESS, THE DEPUTY
MINISTER SAID IT’S GOOD OTHER VOICES ARE IN PARLIAMENT;
NOW THE MDC HAS TO PROVE WHETHER ITS MEMBERS CAN
ARTICULATE THEIR POLICIES TO HELP ALLEVIATE THE PEOPLE’S
SUFFERING.
¶3. (C) IN RESPONSE TO THE AMBASSADOR’S QUESTIONS ABOUT
POSSIBLE NEW FACES IN THE CABINET, THE DEPUTY MINISTER
BECAME TIGHT-LIPPED. GOCHE FLAT OUT REFUSED TO SHARE
ANY OF THE RULING PARTY’S THINKING, WHICH CAME OUT OF
THE EXTRAORDINARY TWO-DAY POLITBURO MEETING ON JUNE 28
AND 30. GOCHE SAID IT WAS A SHAME THAT THE PARTY LOST
CERTAIN PARLIAMENTARY SEATS CURRENTLY HELD BY CABINET
MEMBERS SUCH AS, MINES, ENVIRONMENT AND TOURISM
MINISTER, SIMON KHAYA MOYO, MINISTER OF STATE IN THE
VICE PRESIDENT’S OFFICE, SITHEMBISO GLADYS NYONI, AND
MINISTER OF HOME AFFAIRS, DUMISO DABENGWA. ONE UNIQUE
CASE FOR THE PRESIDENT TO CONSIDER WILL BE THE
REAPPOINTMENT OF THE ONLY REMAINING WHITE MEMBER OF HIS
CABINET, MINISTER OF HEALTH AND CHILD WELFARE, TIMOTHY
STAMPS. STAMPS RAN ON THE ZANU-PF TICKET AT THE PRIMARY
STAGE AND WAS DEFEATED. THE HEALTH MINISTER REMAINED IN
THE CABINET AFTER THE PRIMARIES AND WAS NOT ELIGIBLE TO
CONFIDENTIAL
PAGE 04 HARARE 03652 01 OF 03 051408Z
CONTEST IN THE PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS FOR ZANU-PF.
CONSEQUENTLY STAMPS HAS NEVER “FACED THE PEOPLE” AND
TECHNICALLY HAS NOT BEEN REJECTED BY THEM, SO MUGABE
COULD REAPPOINT HIM WITH LESS DIFFICULTY THAN THOSE THE
PEOPLE VOTED OUT, GOCHE ADDED. THE DEPUTY MINISTER
DISMISSED THE IDEA OF THE MDC BEING OFFERED ANY
POSITIONS IN THE CABINET.
¶4. (C) ECHOING MUGABE’S TELEVISED CNN INTERVIEW OF A
FEW DAYS BEFORE, GOCHE SAID THE MDC COULD NOT BE BROUGHT
INTO THE GOVERNMENT AS ITS MEMBERS WERE UNKNOWN
QUANTITIES, AND THAT THERE HAD BEEN NO UNITY GOVERNMENT
TALKS AT THIS STAGE. MOREOVER, GOCHE SAID THE MDC WOULD
NOT ACCEPT
(12 VIEWS)
