Make leaders' pact work to end standoff
For over a week now, the entire nation's attention has been riveted on Zanzibar, following the rare and highly unexpected meeting between two erstwhile political foes, President Amani Abeid Karume and the Civic United Front leader, Maalim Seif Shariff Hamad.
That Mr Hamad, who has not been seeing eye to eye with the Isles� President, finally agreed to meet with him at State House, is a momentous political development.
For the man, who lost two hotly disputed presidential races to Mr Karume to come forward for a big handshake and go ahead to urge his supporters to recognise his rival, is quite significant. The two men have given hope to a land, which has been bitterly split between the supporters of the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi and CUF for nearly 10 years.
The hostilities and animosity between the rival camps has been so deep that some families won�t even come together if one of their members dies. The political standoff, which has seen the country literally split down the middle, has been costly, as development is impossible in such a poisoned atmosphere.
Judging from the stream of goodwill messages from embassies, foreign dignitaries, other local politicians and even public officials, the anxiety over the situation in Zanzibar extends beyond the territory and Tanzania�s border. And it all goes to show that many care about the need to secure the future of Zanzibar.
Bloody clashes have characterized the past elections, with state security personnel being accused of taking sides.
The shooting to death of 45 opposition supporters in 2001, after the hotly disputed general election of 2000 that Mr Hamad accused CCM of rigging in favour of President Karume, was one of the lowest points.
Since then, Zanzibar has remained tense. The latest in the grim trend has been the violence-marred voter registration for next year�s General Election, in which Mr Karume will not be defending the seat, having served his two five-year terms.
Past efforts by various leaders and the international community to bring the rival parties to some sort of agreement or accommodation have largely failed due to deep mistrust and lack of political goodwill.
The first and second peace accord (Mwafaka) talks in 2001, overseen by former President Benjamin Mkapa, produced a lull.
But failure to honour the agreement forced another round of talks, Mwafaka three, when President Jakaya Kikwete succeeded Mr Mkapa in 2005. But this, too, stalled over a year ago over lack of consensus within CCM to honour a negotiated power sharing agreement.
Therefore, with the clock ticking towards 2010, and with rising tension and clashes over voter registration, there is a sigh of relief as Mr Karume and Mr Hamad declared they have abandoned their hard-line positions to chart a new political chapter for the Isles.
However, many, including the ardent supporters of the two men are asking what the terms of the rapprochement are. The unease among CUF members that greeted Mr Hamad�s plea for the recognition of Mr Karume as President, is no doubt due to this void.
It is, therefore, important that both leaders come out openly to let the anxious public know what is entailed in their newfound working relationship. Questions such as the fate of the stalled mwafaka, the Karume succession and Zanzibar's continued role in the Union Government remain the subjects of unending speculation.
However, the public must be wary of any schemes to derail whatever plans may be in the pipeline after a decade of political uncertainty and instability
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