Mbeki consults Mugabe

Ex-South African President Dr Thabo Mbeki will soon meet President Mugabe over strategies to counter Western regime change-linked attacks on ex-liberation movements.

This comes as Gwede Mantashe, Secretary-General of South Africa's ruling ANC, last Friday hit out at Western powers for angling for regime change in that country. At the Presidential Youth Interface Rally in Masvingo last Friday, President Mugabe revealed that Dr Mbeki was concerned about the relentless onslaught on former liberation movements.

The President said Dr Mbeki had singled out Zanu-PF among the few remaining movements with strong ideological and liberation leanings. "VaMbeki vaiti kwangosara marevolutionary movements mashomani, and we are one of those, in his own reckoning. Saka, he wants to come and discuss with me kuti way forward ingave yei; yekuti maparty edu aive revolutionary kare, vadzorerwe mugwara.

"Haachaona zvakanaka iwewe, zvakatwasanuka. Kumwe it's because of changes that have happened … kunaana Tanzania, kunaana Angola. Saka, tinoda kuramba takabatana."

President Mugabe said liberation parties in Southern Africa risked denting their rich legacies if they were not inspired by their founding values. "Vashomanini nyika idzodzi idzi … that will help to maintain at least the legacy of our revolutions and enable, perhaps, the future generation; our youth movements to carry on the revolution as it has been maintained in the past.

"Nekuti uyu ane unhappiness nezviri kuitika kuSouth Africa. Kumaneighbours eduwo kunoramba kuine maquarrels … kunaana Mozambique, kunaana DRC, and we don't think Chama Cha Mapinduzi will remain what it was during the time of Mwalimu Julius Nyerere. So, the roots of the party; this is what we want it to be. We have been the roots, vakuru, with you."

The President implored youths to be wary of the West's regime change agenda. "Maintain that position that we had in the past vis-a-vis imperialism and the onslaught on us to have regime change. Europe is not accepting anyone who is not their choice, kana. They would want to choose or get into a position of influence (through) their own people in our political systems.

"And Europe is now dried up in terms of natural resources. Hakusisina manatural resources epasi…gold, you don't talk of any gold in Europe and various minerals as well. Saka, hakuna maminerals. Manatural resources havasisina; masango. Havasisina wildlife, nzou neshumba.

"Saka vachiti regai kuuraya mhuka dzenyu imi; regai kutengesa mirewo yenzou, kutya kuti Africa patinoenda tichiwona mhuka dzese idzi, varivo vasarirwa nadzo, zvikaenda tozozviwana kupi?

"Tozonokwasha kupi kwatinga-PFuure mhuka? Saka hurombo…kuAfrica vatori nani, asi Europe haisisina chose. Isu tinahwo hwupfumi ihwohwo. Let us be preservants of our own species."

On the sidelines of the ANC's Policy Conference in Johannesburg, Mantashe told journalists that the interface had focused on threats posed by regime change.

"We angled our debate on the characterisation of regime change, as characterised by developing countries, namely China and Russia. And I want to quote the increasingly widespread Western practice of overthrowing legitimate political authority by provoking internal instability and conflict against governments that are considered inconvenient and insubordinate to their interests, and replacing them with blind-puppet regimes that pander to their interests. That is a reality in South Africa. It's a reality in the world."