Don’t trust Mugabe but power-sharing best bet, says Tsvangirai

In an interview with The Associated Press on Tuesday, Morgan Tsvangirai also said he believes the international community will rally to help end Zimbabwe's political and economic crisis, which has spawned hyperinflation and sent thousands fleeing to neighboring South Africa every day.

Mugabe ceded some power in Zimbabwe for the first time in 28 years, signing a power-sharing deal with Tsvangirai and a leader of a splinter opposition faction Monday.

"The deal as far as we are concerned is the best thing for the country," Tsvangirai said at his home in the capital. "We will be able to work within the deal to achieve the necessary transformation."

Meeting with reporters for his first interviews since signing the deal, the 56-year-old Tsvangirai looked confident but tired as he spoke about the hard work ahead.

Under the pact, already criticized by other opposition leaders, Mugabe remains president and head of government, chairing the Cabinet. Tsvangirai will be prime minister and head of a new Council of Ministers responsible for forming Government policy. He is deputy chairman of the Cabinet.

Long-simmering, bitter differences and the nation's economic collapse - Inflation is officially running at 11 million per cent - put the deal under intense pressure.

Tsvangirai was asked if he trusted Mugabe.

"Ask me a generic question and I say 'No' because of the experience I have had with him," he responded. "(But) I trust he is committed to this agreement, I trust he wants this deal as much as we do. He wants to move forward because it is part of his legacy."

In the decade that he has opposed Mugabe, Tsvangirai has been tortured, detained repeatedly and went through a treason trial with a possible death sentence.

On the windowsill in his home office a sign reads: "I wish a long life to my enemies so they may see all my successes."

Tsvangirai said the support of the international community as well as financial institutions such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund is "essential for creating international confidence."

"This is the beginning of building the necessary confidence for investment and aid. We are confident that we will be able to lay the groundwork for encouraging people (investors and aid agencies) to come to the country," he said.

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