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Team on Union affairs in snap meeting
2008-05-16 09:53:30
By Judica Tarimo
Members of the committee dealing with Union affairs met in Dar es Salaam yesterday following persistent exchanges of bitter words between the ruling CCM and the opposition Civic United Front (CUF) over the proposed coalition government in Zanzibar.
The high-profile ministerial meeting was held under the chairmanship of the Vice President, Dr Ali Mohamed Shein.
At least 12 CUF elders and supporters believed to be championing the secession of Pemba Island from the Union and Zanzibar were reportedly arrested last week by security forces.
Their whereabouts are still unknown, with law-enforcement agents saying they are in safe and sound condition in custody.
Authorities on the mainland had earlier on said yesterday’s meeting had nothing to do with the drawn-out political stalemate between CCM and CUF over the possibility of a power-sharing deal in Zanzibar.
In brief remarks to open the meeting, Dr Shein said: ``We should demonstrate our full commitment to strengthening our Union and resolve outstanding problems facing it for the benefit of all Tanzanians.``
He expressed the government’s readiness to work on ambiguities in the structure of the Union and appealed to delegates to the meeting to develop mechanisms for dialogue aimed at coming up with a lasting solution to the problem.
``One thing that is especially noteworthy is that we need to respect the Constitution of the United Republic of Tanzania as well as that of Zanzibar… We should also respect all other laws of the land,`` stated the Vice President.
The agenda of the closed-door meeting was not made public but the war of words following the suspension of peace talks between CCM and CUF will likely feature prominently.
The government had already condemned calls for Pemba`s secession as a treasonable and malicious attempt to tarnish the country`s image.
``This secession plea is malicious and unconstitutional, to say the least. It is being advocated by a few people in Pemba.
It is a very bad sign of spiteful behaviour that cannot be left to roll on unabated,`` Mohamed Seif Khatib, Minister of State in the Vice-President’s Office (Union Matters), told reporters on Wednesday.
``I don`t believe they know what they mean by saying that they want to form a distinct state separate from the United Republic,`` he added.
Unconfirmed reports say the Pemba ``elders`` have already presented their secession plea to the United Nations Development Programme.
Zanzibar police sources said the people now in custody could be taken to court in Dar es Salaam before the end of this week but have given few details.
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