[I know I will burn in hell for saying this, but I think the Anglican Archbishop needs a swift kick in the head for talking such complete nonsense.

Kindly note, the S.African churches sent some trucks to Zimbabwe with food, blankets, etc for the Mugabe’s newly-made homeless – and the trucks still have not reached the destination because … wait for it… they won’t accept “genetically modified food” … What a load of cr*p!!! Jan]

I apologise for the unintended pun in my title! Jan]

President Thabo Mbeki is “trying his best” to resolve the situation in Zimbabwe, Anglican Archbishop Njongonkulu Ndungane said in Cape Town on Wednesday.

He was speaking after a two-and-a-half-hour meeting in Pretoria on Tuesday night between Mbeki and a South African Council of Churches (SACC) delegation, of which Ndungane was a member.

Ndungane said the fact that Deputy President Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, Minister of Finance Trevor Manuel and Minister of Agriculture and Land Affairs Thoko Didiza were also present at the meeting is an indication of how seriously the government views Zimbabwe.

“He [Mbeki] is trying his best to get the situation resolved,” he said. “This exercises the mind of our president very seriously.”

Ndungane said the delegation, led by SACC president Russell Botman, was not made privy to the “finer details” of South African diplomacy on Zimbabwe, and he himself is not a in a position to prescribe to the government how it should approach the matter.

However, there is a lot going on that people did not know about, which is the nature of diplomacy, he said.

Ndungane, who visited Zimbabwe as part of a fact-finding SACC delegation last month, said the country is in a serious crisis, and this has to be recognised by its leaders.

“From where I sit, I think there is no time for political posturing, no time for denial,” he said.

What is needed is “clear heads and options for a solution”.

Ndungane said South Africans have expressed concern about the terms of a proposed multibillion-rand government loan to Zimbabwe.

The SACC delegation was, however, assured at Tuesday’s meeting that the South African government has a good record of fiscal discipline and is not going to enter into a loan agreement in an irresponsible way.

“We believe those assurances and hope that they help to allay any fears on that score,” Ndungane said.

If Zimbabwe is expelled from the International Monetary Fund — which it will be if a $100-million payment is not made by the end of this month — it will open up a “can of worms” for the country.

“Is it something that we all wish? I think that is where we need responsible responses to the problems facing Zimbabwe. From where I sit, I do not think I would like to see a meltdown of Zimbabwe.”

Ndungane said he hopes that a stalled church aid consignment to Zimbabwe will get under way from Johannesburg on Wednesday once a genetic-modification-free certificate is issued by the South African Department of Agriculture and Land Affairs for the maize that makes up part of the consignment. — Sapa

Source: Daily Mail & Guardian
URL: http://www.mg.co.za/articlepage.aspx?area=/br…/p>