Opposition leader Tsvangirai returns to Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe’s main opposition leader returned home Saturday to face a dilemma: participate as a junior partner in a lopsided government or let President Robert Mugabe regain total control.

Morgan Tsvangirai of the Movement for Democratic Change insisted that he would not be bulldozed into an agreement at a meeting Monday with bitter rival Mugabe and the presidents of South Africa and Mozambique and regional mediator Thabo Mbeki.

There is deep concern that the long-standing political deadlock is exacerbating the country’s economic meltdown.

In a rare visit, the head of the United Nations children’s agency said the 2,200 deaths from cholera were just a small example of the crisis.

“The cholera outbreak is the tip of the iceberg,” UNICEF Executive Director Ann Veneman said. “Over half the population is receiving food aid, health centers have closed and when the school term starts there is no guarantee that there will be enough teachers.”

Tsvangirai returned to Harare after two months abroad. He was to hold talks with his party on whether it should pull out of the power-sharing agreement that was reached in September but not implemented.

Mugabe’s party has grabbed most of the key ministries, appointed provincial leaders and reappointed the Central Bank governor blamed for the country’s dizzying inflation rate, officially put at 231 million percent.

“I will not be bulldozed into joining this government, which does not reflect the interests of the people,” Tsvangirai said at the Harare airport. “I’m not going to betray them.”

But he emphasized that he was still committed to the power-sharing agreement.

“I hope that we find a political solution to save this country from total collapse.”

Mugabe has said he will press ahead unilaterally if Tsvangirai does not come on board.

Tsvangirai won the first round of presidential elections in March but pulled out of the runoff vote because of violence against his supporters. Under the power-sharing accord, he would be prime minister, with Mugabe as president.

The Movement for Democratic Change is holding out for the Home Affairs Ministry. Leaders say that post would be the only way they could rein in the police, which are accused of some of the worst violence and a recent wave of abductions of opposition supporters.

Tsvangirai has rejected proposals by southern African mediators to split the ministry.