Deaths and deals

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THE INSIDE VIEW

The African Union’s endorsement of ‘deal democracy’ this week may help resolve the Zimbabwean tragedy, but it reinforces the precedent set by regional mediators after Kenya’s election crisis in January. The message to an unpopular incumbent is clear: you can steal an election, hammer the opposition, then sit tight and shrug off the opprobrium. Finally, you can offer a power-sharing deal and stay on the throne – complete with international recognition and legal immunity. Too big, messy and expensive, power-sharing governments are tolerated by voters if they appear to be the last barrier against mass violence. The AU refused to sanction Zimbabwe’s President Robert Mugabe as demanded by a younger generation of leaders in Botswana, Sierra Leone, Nigeria and Kenya. Instead, they called on Zimbabwe’s leaders to seize the momentum offered by the latest turn of events. Translated, that means accepting South African President Thabo Mbeki’s formula for a government of national unity. That, Mugabe says, is what he was calling for in his hurried inauguration speech two days after his farcical re-election. For Morgan Tsvangirai and the opposition, that is a deal too far. They would accept a transitional government to promote reconciliation, oversee reforms and hold credible elections – but no free pass for Mugabe’s securocrats. If Zimbabweans can halt ‘deal democracy’ in its tracks, Africa will owe them a big favour.