No Deal, No Humanitarian Assistance

Zimbabwe’s power sharing talks mediated by South African President Thabo Mbeki did not yield a deal after four days of marathon discussions.President Mbeki expected to have clinched a deal before regional heads of state and government meet for a summit he is hosting and will assume the rotating chairmanship of the regional block.Robert Mugabe and Arthur Mutambara the principals of ZANU PF and the smaller faction of the MDC respectively, are said to have agreed on a deal. Morgan Tsvangirai walked out of the talks on Tuesday, but his secretary general Tendai Biti said the talks had not collapsed. However ZANU PF is said to be clinging on to executive powers for its president Robert Mugabe, which Tsvangirai is refusing for the moment. Morgan Tsvangirai confirmed in a public letter that there were still sticking issues which have not been resolved, and that he was still committed to reaching an agreement. He also emphasised the dire humanitarian crisis and asked president Mbeki to intervene and ensure the immediate resumption of aid to the starving, sick and dying people.