Zimbabwe Parties Agree on Power-Sharing Bill: MDC

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Harare, : Zimbabwe's political rivals have agreed on a draft constitutional amendment to allow them to form a power-sharing government, but obstacles still remain to setting it up, the opposition said on Friday.

On-off talks between President Robert Mugabe's ZANU-PF and opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai's MDC have made little progress since they reached a deal in September seen as the best hope of pulling Zimbabwe back from economic collapse.

"We have reached an understanding, an agreement on the draft constitutional bill, pending consultations and endorsement by our different leadership organs," MDC spokesman Nelson Chamisa said.

Negotiators from ZANU-PF, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) and a breakaway MDC faction have been meeting with mediator Thabo Mbeki in South Africa to discuss the amendment, under growing regional pressure to finalize their deal.

Chamisa said the talks had ended.

"The draft constitutional amendment bill is just one of a number of issues that have been on the table. These issues, including the sharing of some cabinet posts, the appointment of provincial governors and other senior government positions, have not been resolved," he said.

"On our part, the MDC leadership will meet next week to discuss this, and give a direction as to how we are going to proceed."

ZANU-PF officials were not immediately available for comment.

Many in the southern African country hope a deal will bring in a new government to end a economic crisis where unemployment stands at 90 percent and official inflation is 231 million percent.

The real level is thought to be even higher. Some estimate that prices of basic goods are doubling every 24 hours.

An outbreak of cholera has killed nearly 400 people and U.N. agencies said on Friday it was "the tip of the iceberg" of a major health crisis.

The opposition has so far refused to enter a power-sharing government that would make Tsvangirai the Prime Minister, accusing ZANU-PF of trying to take the most powerful ministries and freeze it out.

Asked what an agreement on the constitutional amendment meant after more than two months of negotiations, Chamisa said:

"If you are an optimist, you will say the glass is now half full, and if you are a pessimist, you will say the glass is half empty."


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