Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai said President Robert Mugabe was a tyrant who had ignored democratic principles and become isolationist because of his belief that the West had shunned him due to his land reform programme.
Although he acknowledged Mugabe’s role in independence, Tsvangirai said Mugabe’s record during the past 10 years was indefensible as he had turned against his own people.
Despite this tarnished image, Tsvangirai said, Mugabe still wanted to be remembered as a liberation hero.
Tsvangirai was speaking to a congressional delegation from the United States led by Greg Meeks.
He described himself as a vulture. He had his prey in sight but had to be patient.
Full cable:
Viewing cable 09HARARE720, TSVANGIRAI DISCUSSES GPA PERFORMANCE WITH CODEL
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Reference ID |
Created |
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Classification |
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VZCZCXRO1295
OO RUEHBZ RUEHDU RUEHMR RUEHRN
DE RUEHSB #0720/01 2520941
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 090941Z SEP 09
FM AMEMBASSY HARARE
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 4884
INFO RUCNSAD/SOUTHERN AF DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY COLLECTIVE
RUEHAR/AMEMBASSY ACCRA 3015
RUEHDS/AMEMBASSY ADDIS ABABA 3130
RUEHRL/AMEMBASSY BERLIN 1559
RUEHBY/AMEMBASSY CANBERRA 2393
RUEHDK/AMEMBASSY DAKAR 2760
RUEHKM/AMEMBASSY KAMPALA 3178
RUEHNR/AMEMBASSY NAIROBI 5623
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RUZEJAA/JAC MOLESWORTH RAF MOLESWORTH UK
RHMFISS/EUCOM POLAD VAIHINGEN GE
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHDC
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 2306
RHEHAAA/NSC WASHDC
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 HARARE 000720
SIPDIS
AF/S FOR B. WALCH
DRL FOR N. WILETT
ADDIS ABABA FOR USAU
ADDIS ABABA FOR ACSS
STATE PASS TO USAID FOR J. HARMON AND L. DOBBINS
STATE PASS TO NSC FOR SENIOR AFRICA DIRECTOR MICHELLE GAVIN
DEPT FOR AF/RSA KMOODY
STATE PASS TO HOUSE FOR STEPHANE LEBOUDER
E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/09/2019
SUBJECT: TSVANGIRAI DISCUSSES GPA PERFORMANCE WITH CODEL
MEEKS
REF: HARARE 707
Classified By: CDA Donald K. Petterson for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).
——-
SUMMARY
——-
¶1. (C) On September 2, Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai
updated a visiting Congressional delegation on the
performance of the inclusive government since his June visit
to the U.S. He began by reinforcing some of the more
positive messages out of Zimbabwe, such as continued low
levels of violence )- certainly compared to the widespread
violence of 2008 )- and progress towards economic
stabilization, but quickly transitioned to a discussion of
continued political intransigence manifested in ZANU-PF’s
failure to fully implement last September’s Global Political
Agreement (GPA). He was more candid than usual in
criticizing President Mugabe and appeared frustrated by the
inclusive government’s limited progress. END SUMMARY.
¶2. (C) The Codel, which also met with President Robert Mugabe
(Ref) and parliamentary leaders (Septel) was led by
Representative Greg Meeks (D-NY), and included
Representatives Marcia Fudge (D-OH), Sheila Jackson-Lee
(D-TX), Jack Kingston (R-GA), and Melvin Watt (D-NC). The
Charge was also present at the meeting which was held at the
prime minister’s offices in Harare.
—————————————
Still Stuck on Those Troublesome Issues
—————————————
¶3. (C) Tsvangirai highlighted three categories of
outstanding issues holding up the work of government:
deadlocked issues, unimplemented issues, and non-compliant
issues. The deadlocked issues are the appointments of
Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) Governor Gideon Gono and
Attorney General Johannes Tomana, which Mugabe argues were
made under his constitutional authority, but which Tsvangirai
contends violated the GPA requiring the principals to agree
on all senior appointments. Unimplemented issues are those
that have been agreed on by the parties, but have not been
implemented by Mugabe. These include the appointments of MDC
governors and the swearing in of Deputy Minister of
Agriculture-designate Roy Bennett. (NOTE: Although not
denying that he agreed with Tsvangirai on the appointment of
MDC governors, Mugabe has recently asserted that he will not
appoint MDC governors. END NOTE.) Lastly, non-compliant
issues are violations of the GPA which include the
politically-motivated and selective persecution of MDC MPs.
¶4. (C) While discussing the media space in Zimbabwe,
Tsvangirai painted a mixed picture. Acknowledging that there
had been some positive signs, he mentioned that he had been
interviewed by CNN the day before. (NOTE: CNN and BBC had
been banned from operating in Zimbabwe until recently. END
NOTE.) But he was disappointed by the continued partisanship
of the state)controlled media which defends ZANU-PF and
attacks the MDC on a daily basis.
Qattacks the MDC on a daily basis.
——————————————— —
A Less Conciliatory Tsvangirai iscusses Mugabe
——————————————— —
¶5. (C) Tsvangirai’s comments regarding Mugabe were more
forceful and candid than the conciliatory tone he had adopted
HARARE 00000720 002 OF 003
since joining the government. In the presence of an MFA
representative, he described Mugabe as a tyrant who had
ignored democratic principles and become isolationist because
of his belief that the West had shunned him due to his land
reform program. He acknowledged Mugabe’s role in
independence, but said his record during the past ten years
was indefensible and that he had turned against his own
people; he lamented that Zimbabwe had gone from a “bread
basket to a basket case.” He also shared that Mugabe wants
to be remembered as a liberation hero, but knows his own
record.
————–
The Road Ahead
————–
¶6. (C) While acknowledging that outstanding issues had not
been resolved, Tsvangirai characterized the current political
process as an “evolution” and not a “revolution.” It was
important to keep the eye on the ball; the ultimate goal was
legitimate elections. Congressman Meeks asked whether
elections would take place within the two-year time frame
that had been discussed at the time of the signing of the GPA
or whether they would be delayed; Tsvangirai responded that
two years was a long time and he hoped Zimbabwe could get to
the point of fair elections. He added that “there was no way
this government could go on forever.” It was his expectation
that a completed constitutional process would lead to
elections prior to the expiration of the current five-year
presidential term in 2013. (NOTE: Deputy Prime Minister
Arthur Mutambara, MPs from both parties and other diplomatic
contacts have suggested that the inclusive government will
need more time to generate progress, reduce tensions, and
build institutions. Therefore elections should not take
place until 2013 as set out in the current constitution. END
NOTE.)
¶7. (C) Tsvangirai described himself as being like a vulture
-* he had his prey in sight (read elections), but had to be
patient. He did note that withdrawal from the GPA was a
“trump” card to use if ZANU-PF became inalterably
obstructive.
————————
No Mention of Sanctions?
————————
¶8. (C) As the discussion shifted to means by which the U.S.
could further support Zimbabwe, Tsvangirai accepted that full
U.S. engagement would depend on progress on issues in support
of democratic principles. He referred to President Obama’s
comments to him in June that Zimbabwe must help the U.S. to
help Zimbabwe. At no point did he lobby the Codel for the
repeal of the Zimbabwe Democracy and Economic Recovery Act
(ZDERA) or the lifting of targeted measures against prominent
members of ZANU-PF. He said that though he had developed a
close relationship and friendship with former Ambassador to
Zimbabwe James McGee, whom he admired for his work in
Zimbabwe, he hoped that the next American ambassador would
QZimbabwe, he hoped that the next American ambassador would
redefine his role from one of highlighting Zimbabwe’s plight,
to one of promoting Zimbabwe’s recovery.
——-
COMMENT
——-
¶9. (C) Tsvangirai is obviously frustrated by Mugabe and
ZANU-PF. Nevertheless, he was relaxed, in good humor, happy
HARARE 00000720 003 OF 003
to meet with the Codel, and confident he and the MDC would
ultimately prevail. In contrast with Mugabe in his meeting
with the Codel (Ref), Tsvangirai was well-briefed, and
articulately and deftly dealt with the issues he knew were of
concern to the Codel. END COMMENT.
¶10. (SBU) Codel Meeks did not have an opportunity to clear
this message before departing Harare.
PETTERSON
(15 VIEWS)
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