VOA标准英语2009年-Zimbabwe Leaders Resume Power Sharing Talks

Leaders of Zimbabwe's three main political parties have begun negotiations 1 to implement 2 a stalled power-sharing agreement aimed at ending 10 months of political stalemate. The two major parties appeared to harden their positions on the eve of the talks.
　
Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe, left, with Mozambique's Armanado Guebuza in Harare, 19 Jan 2009

The presidents of South Africa and Mozambique arrived in Zimbabwe and immediately began talks with President Robert Mugabe, Prime Minister-designate Morgan Tsvangirai and the leader of a third party, Arthur Mutambara.

South African President Kgalema Motlanthe, his predecessor 3 Thabo Mbeki and Mozambican President Armando Guebuza are leading a regional effort to resolve differences that have prevented the formation of a unity 4 government mandated 5 by a four-month-old power sharing agreement.

Mutambara told reporters it was time for flexibility 6, compromise and pragmatism. But he underlined that his group, as an opposition 7 party, supported the demands of Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), and he said he hoped Mr. Mugabe's ZANU-PF party would respond positively 8 to these demands.
　
Morgan Tsvangirai (r), leader of the main opposition party in Zimbabwe is flanked by bodyguards 9 upon his arrival at Harare International Airport, 17 Jan 2009

Mr. Tsvangirai met Sunday with his party leadership, one day after returning home following a two-month absence. MDC Spokesman Nelson Chamisa told reporters the talks were critical, but the party would maintain its demands.

"It is a watershed 10 in terms of bringing to finality and closure the chapter of negotiations," said Chamisa. "And in that regard the MDC is not going to be bulldozed into accepting piecemeal 11 the outcome of those negotiations. We are going to insist on our outstanding issues."

The MDC is demanding a more equitable 12 sharing of key cabinet ministries 13, the redistribution of provincial 14 governorships and senior government posts, and the release of about 30 activists 15 who have been detained under what it says are trumped-up charges.

Mr. Mugabe also indicated that ZANU-PF would not make further concessions 16. In an interview with the government-owned Sunday Mail newspaper, the Zimbabwean president said the other parties at the talks would either accept the agreement or break it. He has indicated he was prepared to form a new government on his own if the talks did fail.

Zimbabwe's parliament is due to reconvene Tuesday to debate a constitutional amendment 17 that would legalize September's power sharing agreement.

Under the accord, Mr. Mugabe would remain president while Mr. Tsvangirai would take the newly created post of prime minister. Mutambara would be named one of two deputy prime ministers.

The power-sharing accord was reached after lengthy 18 negotiations that began following disputed elections in which the MDC won a majority of the seats in parliament.

Mr. Tsvangirai received the most votes in the first round of the presidential vote, but Mr. Mugabe won the second round after Mr. Tsvangirai withdrew, citing a campaign of intimidation 19 against his supporters.

The crisis aggravated 20 Zimbabwe's economic problems, characterized by hyper-inflation, high unemployment, a cholera 21 epidemic 22 that has killed more than 2,000 people and food shortages that have humanitarian 23 groups scrambling 24 to provide food aid to more than one half the population.