Originally published by the Voice of America (www.voanews.com).
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September 11, 2008

Zimbabwe Power-Sharing Talks Enter Fourth Day
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http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=1E23B75:A6F02AD83191E1608B627FA377B6346DE55ED32ED25AB8F6&
 
It remains unclear how close parties are to deal 
Security guard in front of Harare Rainbow Towers in Harare, 11 Sep 2008,
where main political rivals are holding talks Zimbabwean political
leaders are set to hold a fourth day of power-sharing talks Thursday,
and it remains unclear how close they are to a deal. At the end of
Wednesday's talks in the capital, Harare, President Robert Mugabe called
the progress "encouraging" and said he hopes all parties will sign an
agreement Friday. Main opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai said there is
very little work left to do in the negotiations. But the state-run
Herald newspaper reports Thursday that little progress was made in
Wednesday's talks, and that prospects for a deal this week appear
"slim."The sides are stuck on the question of how President Mugabe and
Tsvangirai would divide power in a national unity government. South
African President Thabo Mbeki is mediating the talks under a mandate
from the Southern African Development Community. Mr. Mbeki put off a
planned trip to Swaziland for a second day Thursday so he can stay in
Harare. The South African president had been scheduled to report on the
talks to the SADC's security committee. The talks appeared deadlocked a
week ago, after Tsvangirai rejected a proposal that would have given him
a largely ceremonial post as prime minister. Despite this week's
progress, The Herald says Mr. Mugabe has warned he will form a new
government by the end the week no matter what transpires in the
negotiations. Tsvangirai's party, the Movement for Democratic Change,
gained control of parliament in the March parliamentary elections, and
he won more votes than Mr. Mugabe in the presidential poll. But official
results showed Tsvangirai falling short of a majority, and he boycotted
a runoff presidential election because of state-sponsored attacks on his
supporters. Mr. Mugabe won the uncontested runoff, extending his nearly
30-year rule. The parties are under international pressure to reach a
power-sharing deal so !
 Zimbabwe can begin recovering from its deep economic crisis. The cou
ntry is suffering food and fuel shortages that have helped drive up
inflation to an estimated 11 million percent.


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