US embassy cable - 03HARARE1119

C O N F I D E N T I A L HARARE 001119 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR D, P, AF/FO AND AF/S 
NSC FOR AFRICA SENIOR DIRECTOR FRAZER 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/03/2013 
TAGS: PGOV, ZI 
SUBJECT: INTERNAL MEDIATION EFFORTS BETWEEN MUGABE AND 
TSVANGIRAI 
 
SIPDIS 
 
Classified By: Joseph G. Sullivan for reasons 1.5b/d 
 
 
 1. (c) Father Fidelis Mukonori, who has been involved for 
several years in mediation efforts between President Mugabe 
and the MDC and who has a long-standing relationship with 
Mugabe dating back to before independence, told the 
Ambassador June 3 that Mugabe and Tsvangirai had agreed in 
principle to a face-to-face meeting inside Zimbabwe, although 
the   date had not yet been set. (MDC sources told us that 
Mugabe had proposed that the meeting take place privately in 
Mugabe's rural home and that Tsvangirai cancel planned 
demonstrations.  The MDC tells us that Tsvangirai agreed to 
cancel demonstrations, but only if the meeting took place 
before June 2.)   Father Fidelis said that it had almost been 
agreed to schedule the meeting the weekend prior to the MDC's 
June 2 mass action, but that Mugabe had not wished the 
meeting to be held under that time pressure.  Nonetheless, 
Father Fidelis believed that he had Mugabe's agreement to 
meet and that it should be possible to schedule the meeting 
soon.  Fidelis Mukonori thought that a face-to-face meeting 
would help ease tensions and assure that ongoing, quiet 
contacts between ZANU-PF and the MDC were more successful. 
He related that Tsvangirai had told him that Mugabe reminded 
him of his father and that Mugabe had appreciated this 
reference. 
 
2. (c) Father Fidelis believed that Mugabe's resignation was 
definitely on the table with the key issues being the 
modalities and precise timing of the departure.  Fidelis 
anticipated that it would be important to assure the immunity 
and well-being of Mugabe and his family and that he be 
treated with the dignity which Mugabe accorded Ian Smith. 
Fidelis expected the December ZANU-PF Party Congress to 
choose a successor, although he said the Congress could be 
pushed up, after the Ambassador doubted that Zimbabwe could 
continue in crisis that long.  Fidelis said that quiet 
ZANU-PF/MDC contacts were continuing, including those between 
Justice Minister Chinimasa and MDC Secretary General Welshman 
Ncube, but that he believed a meeting at the top was needed 
to give this a push. 
Mukonori asked that the US be prepared to encourage dialogue 
at the right moment. 
 
3.(c) Comment: In the last several months, numerous 
Zimbabwean and international mediators have put themselves 
forward.  Father Fidelis Mukonori has been at this for some 
time and has a better-established relationship with Mugabe 
than most others. Fidelis has in the past been guilty of 
excessive optimism, but he now has had recent encouragement 
from Mugabe to take up the mediating role again and Fidelis 
does appreciate that Mugabe's retirement is the key to 
resolution of the political crisis.  Mugabe has initially 
welcomed and later stymied a number of mediation efforts in 
recent months.  We are encouraged by the more personal 
efforts of a Mugabe confidant, but will temper out optimism 
until after a face-to-face meeting takes place. 
SULLIVAN