Links ~ 19 September 2008
September 20th, 2008
Zimbabwe deal in deadlock amid power wrangle (Times Online)
After telling supporters today that he was still firmly “in the driving 
seat”, President Robert Mugabe met his chief political foe, Morgan
Tsvangirai, and another opposition leader, Arthur Mutambara to agree on the allocation of ministries. But Nelson Chamisa, spokesman for Mr Tsvangirai’s movement for Democratic 
Change, told reporters: “The meeting was inconclusive, it was a deadlock and 
has been referred to the negotiating teams for further work to try and find 
common ground.”
Washington issues Zimbabwe ultimatum (Financial Times)
The US will not provide any development aid for Zimbabwe until its unity government shows it has stopped using humanitarian assistance for political purposes, Washington has warned Harare. In an interview with the Financial Times, Jendayi Frazer, the US’s senior diplomat on Africa, highlighted the risk of gridlock within the new coalition and added that the US would move very slowly to lift sanctions on Zimbabwe.
Zimbabwe Unveils Z$1000 Note as Leaders Discuss Cabinet (VOA News)
Zimbabwe’s central bank has just unveiled a 1,000 Zimbabwe dollar note. This comes only weeks after the bank loped 10 zeros off the currency to make it easier for Zimbabweans to carry out even the most basic transactions without carrying piles of notes around. The introduction of the new note has also coincided with the raising of the daily withdrawal limit to the same amount. Tendai Maphosa reports from Harare that ordinary Zimbabweans don’t see the new limit making their lives any easier.
Cash shortages Persist Despite Introduction of New Note (SW Radio Africa)
The introduction of a higher value banknote on Wednesday by the Reserve Bank has failed to ease cash shortages, which has kept many banks busy with long queues of desperate customers wanting to withdraw money.
Despite Political Pact, Zimbabwe Police Arrest Union Leader, Students (VOA News)
Days after the signing of a power-sharing accord between Zimbabwe’s former ruling ZANU-PF and the opposition Movement for Democratic Change, police Thursday arrested the president of the Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe, Takavafira Zhou, for allegedly engaging in “riotous behavior.â€
Violence persists while ink is still wet on Zimbabwe power sharing deal (SWRadio Africa)
Arrests and beatings continue in Zimbabwe barely three days before the ink has dried on the power sharing agreement between ZANU PF and the two MDC formations.10 students from Bindura State University were arrested on Wednesday during protests calling for a conducive learning environment. Three student leaders Chiedza Gadzirayi (22), Laswet Savadye (24) and Respect Mbanga (21) were allegedly beaten up while in police custody.
Bumpy Road for Zimbabwe’s Power-Sharing Deal (Time)
The shotgun marriage between Zimbabwe’s government and opposition was never going to be easy, but it could falter at the first hurdle. Despite signing a power-sharing agreement on Monday, President Robert Mugabe and his arch-rival and new Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai have failed to agree on who will control which portfolios in a new cabinet. A meeting between the two men on Thursday aimed at resolving the issue broke up without agreement, as reports began to trickle in of violence breaking out in different parts of the country between supporters of Mugabe’s Zanu-PF and the opposition MDC. While most of the violence of recent months has been directed against opposition supporters — thugs controlled by Zanu-PF killed, tortured and displaced thousands to intimidate them into staying away from the polls — on Thursday it was the government crying foul.
The Herculean task of rescuing Zimbabwe’s economy (New Zimbabwe)
THE signing of a power sharing agreement between the main political parties 
on Monday the 5th of September has raised hopes for a laboured revival of 
the world’s fastest shrinking economy.

The appointment of Morgan Tsvangirai as the Prime Minister and a possible 
appointment of an MDC Finance Minister is expected to provide fresh impetus 
towards renewed efforts to resuscitate Zimbabwe’s comatose economy.

The unity government will have to immediately take clear steps to resolve 
the economic crisis as a priority before expectations of a quick fix turn 
into despair.

Years of economic ruin and failed policies have given us an international 
test case on ‘how not to manage an economy’ — condemning many Zimbabweans 
into poverty.
ZIMBABWE: Raising a moribund economy (IRIN News)
Financial aid is vital to the recovery of Zimbabwe’s once vibrant agricultural and industrial sectors, but will only come if the new inclusive government speedily adopts “comprehensive and workable frameworks” to address the dire economic straits prevailing, analysts told IRIN. “Financial aid is basic to the agricultural recovery programme, just as it is to the whole economy. Those that are willing to assist will be cautious because they want to see what sort of policy frameworks are put in place before committing themselves,” Sam Moyo, a land expert, told IRIN. The frameworks alone “could take months to put in place, and real work has to start after that”.
Statement on Zimbabwe by John Holmes, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator (Relief Web)
The humanitarian community in Zimbabwe is moving quickly to provide assistance to the large needy groups in Zimbabwe, particularly the most vulnerable. This is a critical moment, which comes immediately after the peaceful resolution of the political stalemate in Zimbabwe and the lifting of the restrictions on field operations of non-governmental organizations (NGOs). Already, NGOs and UN agencies are re-establishing operations to provide basic life-saving assistance and expect to reach nearly three million people across the country by October. During this period when humanitarian needs are particularly acute, we – the United Nations, the Government of Zimbabwe, the humanitarian and development communities and regional countries – must work more closely than ever to ensure that these needs are met.
