Zimbabwe's ruling and opposition parties have agreed an agenda for talks aimed at resolving the country's political crisis, with President Robert Mugabe's legitimacy at the top of the list.
The talks will begin May 13 after the two sides prepare their arguments for "substantive discussions of the agenda items," said a statement released today.
The agenda will cover "conditions for normal political activity" and include debate on the legitimacy of elections last month that returned Mr Mugabe to power but have been rejected by the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), charging massive vote rigging.
Topics also include confidence-building measures, politically motivated violence and the southern African country's constitution and laws.
Mr Mugabe's ruling Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) has insisted that it will not even consider fresh elections as demanded by the MDC.
But Mr Welshman Ncube, the head of the MDC delegation to the talks, said the agenda had been adopted by consensus.
"It wasn't difficult," he told reporters after the negotiations. "That is a consensus agenda representing what all the parties want to be on the agenda."
While the agenda allows for discussion of the March 9-11 election, the ruling party delegation stressed that the two sides remained poles apart.
"We are saying the MDC must accept the legitimacy of the election, they must accept the legitimacy of the government. we are the government, we are the ruling party, and ... that position is non-negotiable, non reversible," said the ZANU-PF team leader, Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa.
The MDC, whose leader Morgan Tsvangirai was defeated by Mugabe in the March polls, has refused to recognise the result of the vote and called for fresh elections under international supervision.
The talks next month are expected to last six days. A final phase of talks will be agreed at the end of that round.
AFP