JOHANNESBURG, South Africa - Talks between Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe's party and the opposition will begin this week, a lawyer for the opposition's top negotiator said Wednesday.
Until now the opposition Movement for Democratic Change and Mugabe's ZANU-PF had, at least in public, been unable to agree to start talks about Zimbabwe's political crisis since Mugabe won a widely condemned June 27 presidential run-off election.
Lawyer Lewis Uriri disclosed that talks were planned for this week during a court hearing Wednesday. Uriri was in court to ask for the return of the passport of Tendai Biti, the opposition's No. 2 official.
Uriri said Biti needed it to go to neighbouring South Africa for the talks. Uriri said Biti had wanted to leave Tuesday because the talks were to have begun Wednesday.
A judge ordered the passport returned. Biti had to surrender it after being charged with treason.
Attempts to reach opposition or government spokesmen for further comment were not immediately successful.
A spokesman for South African President Thabo Mbeki, who had been mediating on-again, off-again talks between the two sides, also was not immediately available.
As late as Wednesday morning, the opposition issued a statement saying "there are currently no negotiations between itself and ZANU PF," and Biti had told The Associated Press talks about talks weren't even underway.
But the state media in Zimbabwe reported earlier in the week that talks were imminent and government spokesman Bright Matonga had told The AP earlier Wednesday that "things are moving at a faster pace than you think."
Talks at the UN about slapping Mugabe and some of his top political and security officials with sanctions may be spurring developments.
The sanctions are aimed at punishing Mugabe after opposition candidate Morgan Tsvangari dropped out of the presidential run-off, citing widespread violence and intimidation against his supporters.
