UN Security Council to be briefed on crisis in Zimbabwe

By Tichaona Sibanda
23 June 2008

The United Nations Security Council is set to receive a briefing on the dire political crisis in Zimbabwe, following the decision on Sunday by the MDC President Morgan Tsvangirai to withdraw from the run-off election.

The international community stated that they wanted a special U.N. Security Council meeting to address the situation. UN envoy Haile Menkerios, who spent five days in Zimbabwe last week meeting all the stakeholders, is set to brief the Security Council about his visit.

Regional and world leaders have all sympathised with Tsvangirai’s decision to pull out of Friday’s presidential vote due to the extreme violence, intimidation and fears of ballot rigging. The leaders have also unanimously agreed the situation in Zimbabwe now needs to be discussed at the African Union and United Nations, before the crisis escalates even further.

Briefing the media on Sunday, Tsvangirai called for international intervention after Mugabe said he would not be permit him to take office even if he won Friday’s run-off. The MDC leader said maximum pressure must also be exerted on SADC and AU to put considerable pressure on the regime to try and get an outcome where the will of the Zimbabwe people is respected.

Tsvangirai has suffered arrest and beatings at the hands of Mugabe before and on Monday the Dutch government confirmed he had taken refuge at their Harare embassy. There is now growing evidence that the deteriorating political situation in the country has become an embarrassment for African leaders and a burden on SADC leaders, as millions of Zimbabweans have sought sanctuary in regional countries.

SADC members such as Zambia, Tanzania, Angola and Botswana have broken ranks to criticise Mugabe’s regime. He has also come under regular attack from South Africa’s ruling African National Congress and its leader, Jacob Zuma, Mbeki’s likely successor next year.

Political commentator Isaac Dziya said the discussion at the UN on Monday should be centred on sending peacekeepers to Zimbabwe to prevent the situation from getting even more out of control.

‘The intervention by the international community is long overdue and I think as Zimbabweans, people put too much faith on Thabo Mbeki to solve the crisis, but he has evidently failed and therefore there is need for a new mediation team to be appointed,’ Dziya said.