Morgan Tsvangirai has agreed to enter power sharing talks with Robert Mugabe, saying Zimbabweans have suffered enough and it is time for that country's crisis to come to an end. This was the upshot of Friday's decision by President Thabo Mbeki, who is mediating between the various Zimbabwean parties, to appoint a reference group to assist in negotiations. Independent Newspapers understands that power-sharing talks could begin as early as next week. The breakthrough comes as SADC foreign, defence and security ministers were warned in Durban on Friday, that the region's unity and peace, was being threatened by member states' differences over Zimbabwe. Reached for comment on Friday night, Tsvangirai, the leader of the majority faction in the Movement for Democratic Change, said: "I think we do have to co-operate with the group and expedite the second phase which is to start substantive negotiations.""I am advised that the reference group with Mbeki is coming to Harare on Monday to sign the memorandum of understanding and we will obviously sign as well. It is a positive step and we look forward to finding the solution we were looking for. Zimbabweans had suffered enough and its time for this (the crisis) to come to an end." The three man group, comprising special representatives from the African Union, the United Nations, and SADC, was agreed upon on Friday at a meeting attended by Mbeki, AU Commisioner Dr Jean Ping, UN envoy Haile Menkerios and Angola's deputy foreign minister George Chikote, as well as the South African facilitators. Speaking on their behalf, Minister Sydney Mufumadi, described the group as a "support mechanism". He said Mbeki had "invited" the three men "to constitute a reference group which will interact with the mediator on an ongoing basis in order to ensure that we get through the mediator systematic support to continue with the process of executing the task given to him by the SADC".
Tsvangirai has previously resisted entering into power sharing talks, demanding that a second mediator be appointed to assist Mbeki, whom he believes is not impartial. Mufamadi said "we think it is important for the facilitators to have the benefit of such input". He said the group would be kept informed on an ongoing basis at a strategic level and he said they would appoint people on the ground in the country wherever the negotiations take place and that those appointees would get "briefings on a daily basis from the facilitation team". UN secretary general Ban Ki-moon had accepted the move. Speaking on his behalf, Menkerios said the UN security council had supported Mbeki and SADC's efforts and that this new reference group allowed this support "to find expression".