Zimbabwes rivaliserende ledere proklamerer enighed om en ny grundlov for det plagede lande i det sydlige Afrika. Det fjerner en stor forhindring for at holde nyvalg, men det er endnu uklart, om præsidentens beføjelser indskrænkes.
Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai said a “long journey” had ended, while President Robert Mugabe said he was “glad” that a deal had been reached, BBC online reports Saturday.
The prime minister had set the adoption of a constitution as a condition for polls due before the October deadline for elections.
Mr Tsvangirai’s Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) party and Mr Mugabe’s Zanu-PF party entered into a fractious (skrøbelig) coalition following the 2008 election, which was marred by violence and allegations of vote-rigging.
Details of the deal have not been made public, but it is understood that the powers of the president have been curbed – a key demand of the MDC.
The 88-year-old Mr Mugabe – in power since independence in 1980 – is expected to run for another term in office and to be challenged by Mr Tsvangirai for the presidency.
Mr Mugabe said the constitution would be put to a referendum. Once approved by voters, elections would be held.
The MDC had argued that Zimbabwe was a highly centralised state, and power should be devolved to lower levels of government.
Zanu-PF had now agreed to the formation of elected provincial legislatures. There would be an executive in each province, headed by an elected chairman.
Agreement had also been reached to overhaul the legal system by creating a constitutional court as the highest of the land.
However, it remained unclear what agreement had been reached on the powers of the army, police and intelligence services – another major sticking point between the parties.
The MDC has repeatedly accused the security forces of unleashing violence against its supporters during the 2008 election to help Mr Mugabe hold on to power.
