Mugabe to Face New Pressure at African Summit

Robert Mugabe was due to arrive in Tanzania today for a summit of southern African leaders at which he is expected to face fresh pressure over his crackdown on political opponents.

The two-day meeting of the 14-nation Southern African Development Community begins in the Tanzanian commercial capital, Dar es Salaam, tomorrow.

It will be chaired by the Tanzanian president, Jakaya Kikwete, whose country is among three appointed by the SADC to try and address the political crisis in Zimbabwe.

Earlier this month, Mr Kikwete visited Zimbabwe after reports of a brutal police crackdown on the country's opposition drew renewed international attention to the country's long-running political and economic crisis.

An international outcry erupted after Morgan Tsvangirai, the leader of the Movement for Democratic Change, was badly beaten following his arrest when police broke up a banned prayer meeting on March 11. Several other opposition figures also needed hospital treatment.

The UK has been among a series of nations lobbying Zimbabwe's neighbours - notably South Africa - to put more pressure on Mr Mugabe's regime.

"Let's be very clear - the solution to Zimbabwe ultimately will not come simply through the pressure applied by Britain," the prime minister, Tony Blair, said last week. "That pressure has got to be applied within Africa."

On Friday, South Africa intervened directly by meeting Zimbabwe's opposition leaders for the first time in three years and hosting separate talks with the country's vice-president, Joice Mujuru.

"It is difficult to see how a total meltdown won't take place," Aziz Pahad, the South African deputy foreign minister, said before the talks began.

He said South Africa was trying to avert catastrophe by using "constructive diplomacy" to encourage dialogue between the Zimbabwean government and the opposition, and criticised Britain and US for "megaphone diplomacy".

Yesterday, Mr Mugabe's former right-hand man Jonathan Moyo told the Guardian that the president's time as Zimbabwe's ruler was drawing to a close because of opposition within his own Zanu-PF party.

The president would face a "very high threat of a palace coup if he refused to retire voluntarily", Mr Moyo, an independent MP who broke from the president two years ago, said in Johannesburg.

"Compelling forces are gathering against Mugabe's continued rule. Neighbouring leaders and factions within Zanu-PF agree that Mugabe has become a liability," the former information minister added. "They are pressing Mr Mugabe to retire when his current term expires in 2008.

"Mr Mugabe does not want to accept that, but even a master politician has a limited number of tricks in his hat, and he is running out of ploys that he can use. No one will buy his anti-western, anti-imperialist rhetoric any more."

The SADC meeting is also expected to address the violence in Congo. More than 100 people died when fighting between army forces and fighters loyal to a failed presidential candidate broke out in the capital, Kinshasa, on Thursday.