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The ANC denies there are divisions in the alliance over the SACP's request for Mbeki to step down
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May 02, 2008, 20:00
South Africa will send a team to Zimbabwe to investigate claims of violence, African religious leaders were told by President Thabo Mbeki today. "He assured us that he would do everything to ensure that the run-off election happens in an atmosphere of peace...," the All Africa Conference of Churches' president, the Reverend Nyansako-ni-Nku said after four hours of talks with Mbeki at the Presidential Guesthouse in Pretoria.
"... In order to achieve that, the president said that right away they will dispatch a team to check every allegation of violence," he said. It was during their talks that the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission announced that Movement for Democratic Change leader Morgan Tsvangirai had won 47.9 percent of the vote -- not enough to avoid a run-off election.
President Robert Mugabe, of Zanu-PF, had won 43.2% of vote, while a third candidate, Simba Makoni, had obtained the remaining 8.3%. The inter-religious group, consisting of religious leaders from several African countries, said Mbeki was "adamant" that everything would be done to ensure a peaceful second round of voting, which included the deployment of a South African team to Zimbabwe.
"A team will leave for Zimbabwe to engage stakeholders, to make them realise that the peace and progress of Zimbabwe are at stake, and to make sure everything that can is done to make sure the violence is under control," Nyansako-ni-Nku said.
The religious leaders were confident that Mbeki's continued engagement with Zimbabwe would bear results, he said. "If we do not have confidence in his leadership we would not have come here in the first place," he added. Mbeki did not speak to the media following the meeting and his spokesman would not comment on the outcome. - Sapa
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