Tsvangarai accuses Mugabe of party persecution

Zimbabwean Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai has accused President Robert Mugabe, of persecuting his party, MDC group, after a high-level EU delegation called for Zimbabwe's two main political parties to work together.

The BBC reports that speaking at a rally to mark the 10th anniversary of the formation of his MDC party, Tsvangirai said he would not stand by as Mugabe's ZANU-PF "continues to violate the law, persecutes our members of parliament, spreads the language of hate, invades our productive farms ... ignores our international treaties."

Swedish International Development Minister Gunilla Carlsson also said targeted sanctions against Zimbabwe would not be lifted until human rights abuses were put to an end.

The visit by EU Aid and Development Commissioner Karel De Gucht and the Swedish EU presidency is the first since the EU began targeted sanctions in 2002 against members of Mugabe's government for alleged human rights violations says Reuters.

The BBC said that the EU delegation felt relations with Zimbabwe were entering a "new phase" but full cooperation hinged on the implementation of a power-sharing deal.

The agreement between Mugabe and his long-time adversary Tsvangirai has been beset with problems as their parties accuse each other of stalling the process by not fully implementing the deal, which Zimbabweans hoped would end hardships said Reuters.

- NZ HERALD STAFF