Tanzania was fed up with Mbeki’s failure to confront Mugabe

Tanzania’s Foreign Minister Bernard Membe was thoroughly fed up with South African President Thabo Mbeki’s refusal to confront President Robert Mugabe even though there was evidence of ongoing violence and atrocities in the run-up to the 2008 presidential elections run-off.

Membe told United States ambassador to Tanzania Mark Green: “A state of war exists in Zimbabwe; how is it possible to conduct fair elections?”

Membe said that President Jakaya Kikwete had named the former President of Nigeria, Olusegun Obasanjo, as his special Envoy from the African Union to travel to Harare to meet separately with Mugabe and Morgan Tsvangirai in search of a way forward.

Mugabe and Mbeki were “working hard” behind the scenes to quash the Southern African Development Community Troika gathering and the meetings Obasanjo was trying to schedule.

Full cable:

Viewing cable 08DARESSALAAM389, TANZANIA: FOREIGN MINISTER MEMBE CONFIRMS

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PP RUEHDU RUEHMR RUEHRN RUEHROV

DE RUEHDR #0389 1761436

ZNY CCCCC ZZH

P 241436Z JUN 08

FM AMEMBASSY DAR ES SALAAM

TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 7636

INFO RUCNIAD/IGAD COLLECTIVE PRIORITY

RUCNSAD/SOUTHERN AF DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY COLLECTIVE PRIORITY

RUEHDS/AMEMBASSY ADDIS ABABA PRIORITY 3323

RUEHBS/AMEMBASSY BRUSSELS PRIORITY 1422

RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON PRIORITY 0399

RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS PRIORITY 0308

RUEHDS/USMISSION USAU ADDIS ABABA PRIORITY

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RUCNDT/USUN NEW YORK PRIORITY 0078

C O N F I D E N T I A L DAR ES SALAAM 000389

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ADDIS FOR AU MISSION

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/24/2018

TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREL TZ ZI

SUBJECT: TANZANIA: FOREIGN MINISTER MEMBE CONFIRMS

EMERGENCY SADC TROIKA MEETING ON ZIMBABWE TO BE JUNE 25 IN

SWAZILAND

REF: A. WILLS/AF COM EMAIL 6/22/08

¶B. DAR ES SALAAM 0382

Classified By: Ambassador Mark Green for reasons 1.4 (b,d).

¶1. (C) Bernard Membe, Tanzanian Minister of Foreign Affairs

and International Cooperation, told Ambassador Green in a

June 24 phone call that an emergency meeting of the leaders

of the Troika (Angola, Swaziland and Tanzania) of the SADC

Organ on Politics, Defense and Security (OPDS) will be held

in Swaziland beginning on June 25 (Ref A). According to

Membe, President dos Santos, the Chair of the Troika, is not

in good health, so asked the King of Swaziland to host the

meeting. “A state of war exists in Zimbabwe; how is it

possible to conduct fair elections?” Membe bemoaned.

¶2. (C) Membe also reported that President Kikwete has named

the former President of Nigeria, Olusegun Obasanjo, as his

Special Envoy from the African Union to travel to Harare in

order to meet separately with Robert Mugabe and Morgan

Tsvangirai in search of a way forward. Minister Membe

confided to the Ambassador that the Government of Tanzania

(GOT) had learned that “behind the scenes” Robert Mugabe and

President Thabo Mbeki are “working hard” to quash the SADC

Troika gathering and the meetings Obasanjo is trying to

schedule. (Comment: The Ambassador noted that while he had

heard Membe criticize Mbeki previously, the Minister’s tone

in this discussion indicated he was thoroughly fed up with

Mbeki’s refusal to confront Mugabe, even though evidence of

the ongoing violence and atrocities in Zimbabwe are obvious.

End Comment.)

GREEN

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