Political leaders in Zimbabwe have failed to agree on a unity
government, threatening a power-sharing deal aimed at pulling the
country out of its political and economic turmoil.
President
Robert Mugabe and opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai took part in the
meeting Saturday, along with the leader of an opposition party splinter
group, Arthur Mutambara.
The talks ended without a deal, but all
the parties agreed to have their negotiators continue to work on
settling their differences. One sticking point has involved the
distribution of key ministry and government positions.
Mr.
Mugabe of the ruling ZANU-PF party and Mr. Tsvangirai of the opposition
Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) signed a historic power-sharing
deal in September. That agreement calls for Mr. Mugabe to remain
Zimbabwe's president and Mr. Tsvangirai to become prime minister.
Zimbabwe
has been without an official government for months following disputed
presidential elections. Mr. Tsvangirai won the most votes in the first
round, but he pulled out of the runoff because of alleged
state-sponsored violence against his supporters.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP and Reuters.
