ARTHUR MUTAMBARA . . . pleaded with the world to help Zimbabwe rebuild its shattered economy

HARARE – South Africa at the weekend urged Western nations to lift sanctions against Zimbabwe’s government as President Robert Mugabe and the opposition plan to form a new unity government next week.

Pretoria spoke as a Zimbabwean opposition leader Arthur Mutambara pleaded with the world to assist his country rebuild its shattered economy, adding a unity government with Mugabe was not a perfect arrangement but the best possible option available to extricate the country from crisis.

Main opposition MDC party leader Morgan Tsvangirai and Mutambara, who heads a smaller faction of the opposition, will be sworn in as Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister on February 11, in a power-sharing government led by Mugabe as President.

South African presidency director general Frank Chikane said with moves afoot to create a unity government in Harare, the United States (US) and the European Union (EU) should remove visa and financial sanctions imposed on Mugabe and his top lieutenants in 2002 as punishment for failure to uphold, democracy, the rule of law and violating human rights.

Chikane told South African radio on Saturday: "Now that (Tsvangirai) has decided to be part of the inclusive government . . . it requires them to call for the end of sanctions. So we expect Europe and the US and other countries to stop the sanctions."

Tsvangirai had resisted joining the unity government but relented as the Southern African Development Community (SADC) piled pressure on him and Mugabe to form a unity government to tackle Zimbabwe’s long-running economic and humanitarian crisis.

Speaking on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting in Davos, Mutambara said the unity government was a flawed arrangement but offered Zimbabweans their best chance out of the crisis.

The US and Zimbabwe’s former colonial power Britain that have led criticism against Mugabe should now heed the call for help from Zimbabweans as they try to rebuild their country.

"We are asking for the international community to support this agreement, support this government without equivocation and help us try to salvage our country," Mutambara told international media.

He added: "It's not for Britain or America to judge our agreement, your job as America or Britain is to support what we try to do. All the skeptics must now shut up and support what Zimbabweans want. Listen to us as Zimbabweans."

Western financial support is critical to any programme to revive Zimbabwe’s comatose economy.

But reaction from Washington and London has been lukewarm with both saying they will adopt a wait-and-see attitude to the unity government, raising fears Western countries would not immediately provide financial support to assist Zimbabwe’s recovery.

US State Department acting spokesperson Robert Wood told the press that Washington would judge the unity government on results.

"I've seen the reports about this agreement, but as you can understand, we are a bit skeptical. These types of things have been announced before . . . the key is always implementation," he said.

British Foreign Secretary David Miliband said: "The new government will be judged on its actions, above all by the people of Zimbabwe."

Once a model African economy, Zimbabwe is the grip of an unprecedented economic and humanitarian crisis marked by hyperinflation, acute shortages of food and basic commodities, amid a cholera epidemic that has killed more than 3 000 Zimbabweans since also August. – ZimOnline