Deputy PM comment on Europe, China's investment in Zimbabwe

SHOTLIST 1. Wide of interview with Zimbabwe Deputy Prime Minister, Arthur Mutambara 2. SOUNDBITE: (English) Arthur Mutambara, Zimbabwe Deputy Prime Minister: "We must get credit for just that, for turning the country around, where former opponents, former rivals are in the same government. We are going to make progress. What we don't want from Europe are pre-conditions. We don't want them to patronise us and give us benchmarks. We are saying yes, we must do our part, yes we must walk the talk, yes we must implement the agreement, but why don't you give us the benefit of the doubt?" 3. Close-up of hands 4. SOUNDBITE: (English) Arthur Mutambara, Zimbabwe Deputy Prime Minister "So we have said to Europe, we are ready for recovery we are ready for investment, come and work with us so as they come to visit us, we are quite keen to demonstrate that we are serious about unity, we are serious about inclusiveness, and we want them to be partners with us, to work with us, but however we need to walk the talk ourselves as Zimbabweans." 5. Wide of Arthur Mutambara 6. SOUNDBITE: (English) Arthur Mutambara, Zimbabwe Deputy Prime Minister "First and foremost, even if they (China) wanted to be neo-colonial power of Africa, we wouldn't allow them to do so, because we are only talking as partners, we are only talking on our terms. For example, we are saying we are only interested with China coming to get raw materials to feed themselves here in China. So it's not possible for China to be neo-colonial power because Africans are in charge of their circumstances in Africa. So we are partnering as equals, and we are designing win-win situations in our environment. China has the finance. We have the resources. We are resource-rich, but we are cash poor, but we are also sovereign nations. We are also Africans in charge of our own destiny and hence our participation and our involvement is that of equals and partners." 7. Wide of interview STORYLINE Zimbabwe said on Friday that the European Union delegation that arrives in China later this week should not "patronise" the country with pre-conditions for removing EU sanctions. Deputy Prime Minister, Arthur Mutambara, visiting China for the World Economic Forum, said Zimbabwe should get international recognition for the power sharing agreement. "We must get credit for just that, for turning the country around, where former opponents, former rivals are in the same government. We are going to make progress. What we don't want from Europe are pre-conditions." Mutambara said. A high-level European Union delegation will visit Zimbabwe- the first such visit since 2002 - to hold talks with top officials, including President Robert Mugabe, the EU said Thursday. The visit to Harare marks a thawing of ties with Zimbabwe and eases its international isolation after sanctions were imposed against Mugabe's government seven years ago to protest the country's human rights record and authoritarian rule. The aim of the visit, which will also include talks with Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, is to push ahead proper implementation of Zimbabwe's power-sharing agreement, said EU officials. The EU has been keen to promote Zimbabwe's unity government after Tsvangirai agreed to become premier of a power-sharing government with Mugabe following disputed presidential elections in March 2008. EU officials said the weekend talks were unlikely to lead to a quick move by the 27-nation bloc to drop its sanctions, which would need unanimous backing from all EU member states. The EU says it will not ease sanctions against Mugabe's government unless human rights violations stop and Mugabe shows he is serious about sharing power with Tsvangirai. You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/9964427f9b74727b8e7c64e1560febec Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork

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