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Misanet / Sowetan Sunday World, 3 March - An urgent meeting will be convened soon between President Thabo Mbeki and President Robert Mugabe to discuss the political situation in Zimbabwe, the office of the president has confirmed. Mavivi Myokayaka-Manzini, the ANC head of international relations, stirred confusion this week when she dismissed reports that Mbeki would be meeting Mugabe. "Although a specific date has not been set, the intention to meet was stated last Sunday and this was also repeated on Tuesday. But it would be difficult to say when the president (Mbeki) would meet with Mugabe as he's gone to attend the Organisation of African Unityıs summit in Libya," an official in the South African president's office said. The official would not divulge South Africa's proposed agenda for the meeting. "It's a delicate situation. South Africa is committed to help Zimbabwe and ensure it does not collapse. We will be proposing realistic options. It's not going to be a rush intervention but an intervention that will recognise Zimbabwe as an independent state," the official said. No one in the president's office could confirm whether Mbeki has had private bilateral talks with Mugabe during the OAU summit. The government has refrained from calls by local opposition parties and the Zimbabwean opposition party, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), to put pressure on Mugabe to end the political and economic crisis in his country. It is, however, believed that South Africa's quiet diplomacy involves moves to aid Zimbabwe. The government is believed to be helping Zimbabwe set up a meeting with the International Monetary Fund to renegotiate payment of Zimbabwe's debt. Sources also said that discussions were underway in the trade and industry department on plans to aid Zimbabwe's crumbling economy. The South African government has been severely criticised by opposition parties, which said it was doing too little to intervene in Zimbabwe. Similar sentiments were expressed by the MDC, whose leader, Morgan Tsvangarai, met with Tony Yengeni, the ANC's parliamentary chief whip, last week. Tsvangarai and Yengeni would not disclose details of their meeting, except that the MDC had asked to brief the ANC about the situation in Zimbabwe. "This was an important development and the next step would be a meeting between Mbeki and Mugabe," said Dennis Cruywagen, the ANCıs media officer in parliament. "The government is concerned and we do not want to see Zimbabwe imploding. But we must respect its sovereignty as a state." Though the details of the Mbeki-Mugabe meeting remain unclear, the crisis in Zimbabwe deepens. War veterans have threatened to eject the country's chief justice from his office this week.
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