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O 011456Z OCT 08
FM AMEMBASSY HARARE
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 3514
INFO RUCNSAD/SOUTHERN AF DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY COLLECTIVE
RUEHAR/AMEMBASSY ACCRA 2334
RUEHDS/AMEMBASSY ADDIS ABABA 2452
RUEHRL/AMEMBASSY BERLIN 0966
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RUEHKM/AMEMBASSY KAMPALA 2506
RUEHNR/AMEMBASSY NAIROBI 4938
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RUZEJAA/JAC MOLESWORTH RAF MOLESWORTH UK
RHMFISS/EUCOM POLAD VAIHINGEN GE
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHDC
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 1601
RHEHAAA/NSC WASHDC

C O N F I D E N T I A L HARARE 000890 
 
SIPDIS 
 
AF/S FOR B. WALCH 
DRL FOR N. WILETT 
ADDIS ABABA FOR USAU 
ADDIS ABABA FOR ACSS 
STATE PASS TO USAID FOR E. LOKEN AND L. DOBBINS 
STATE PASS TO NSC FOR SENIOR AFRICA DIRECTOR B. PITTMAN 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/01/2018 
TAGS: PGOV PREL ASEC PHUM ZI
SUBJECT: BITI FRUSTRATED OVER POWER-SHARING AGREEMENT 
 
REF: A. HARARE 889 
     ¶B. HARARE 840 
 
Classified By: Ambassador James D. McGee for reason 1.4 (d) 
 
¶1.  (C) A clearly frustrated Tendai Biti told polecon chief 
on September 30, that no formal negotiations were taking 
place to allocate ministries and conclude the agreement 
between ZANU-PF and the MDC.  Biti suspected, however, that 
negotiations were taking place between Ian and Theresa Makone 
and other close Tsvangirai advisors, and ZANU-PF.  According 
to Biti, Mugabe and Tsvangirai had tentatively agreed on a 
division of ministries with only home affairs (police), local 
government, finance, and foreign affairs yet to be decided. 
 
¶2.  (C) Under the Mugabe-Tsvangirai agreement, according to 
Biti, ZANU-PF would head most important ministries including 
justice, information, defense, and land.  Biti opined that 
Tsvangirai had caved to Mugabe--"Tsvangirai's idiocy is 
shocking"--and argued that only if the MDC gained the four 
remaining ministries would the division be fair.  He was not 
optimistic this would happen; he believed that a compromise 
would result in each party taking two ministries. 
 
¶3.  (C) Biti said the allocation of ministries should be open 
to formal negotiation and that the entire subject should be 
opened up.  He had written to Mbeki suggesting this, and had 
told Mbeki the current arrangement negotiated by Mugabe and 
Tsvangirai could not be sold to the MDC national council. 
Nevertheless, he expected Tsvangirai to give in to Mugabe, 
sign an agreement, and present it to the MDC as a fait 
accompli.  Biti said he felt betrayed by Tsvangirai's 
compromises with ZANU-PF. 
 
¶4.  (C) Biti also expressed bitterness that several members 
of MDC-Mutambara had allied with independent MP Jonathan Moyo 
to challenge the election of Lovemore Moyo as speaker.  As 
with Tsvangirai, Biti bemoaned that he had been betrayed by 
MDC-Mutambara leader Welshman Ncube. 
 
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COMMENT 
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¶5.  (C) Our conversation with Biti took place before 
Tsvangirai's briefing on the stalemate in talks (Ref A), and 
we now know that Tsvangirai did not realize Biti's fears and 
concede the ministries of home affairs and finance to 
ZANU-PF.  Nevertheless, under the tentative agreement between 
Mugabe and Tsvangirai, ZANU-PF will head critical ministries 
such as defense, land, justice, and information.  Ideally, as 
Biti suggested, the entire division of ministries should be 
renegotiated.  This is unlikely to happen, and it is 
therefore critical that at a minimum the MDC ultimately be 
given responsibility for home affairs and finance. 
 
¶6.  (C) Despite his disagreements with Tsvangirai, Biti said 
he will do nothing to weaken or splinter the MDC.  He is 
still talking, however, about taking a sabbatical from the 
frustrations of Zimbabwean politics (Ref B).  END COMMENT. 
MCGEE