LONDON — Zimbabwe’s Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai was booed and shouted down during a speech in London on Saturday, when he called for exiles to return to the country of their birth.
Tsvangirai told a packed Southwark Cathedral that he had one message, that “Zimbabweans must come home.”
His appeal was greeted by boos and chants of “Mugabe must go.”
When Tsvangirai could not be heard above the crowd, he left the pulpit for two minutes before returning to face questions.
He said: “I did not say ‘pack your bags tomorrow,’ I said ‘you should now start thinking about coming home’.”
After answering several more questions briefly, he was ushered away by security guards.
Tsvangirai spoke on Saturday about his “extraordinary” working relationship with his one-time bitter enemy President Robert Mugabe in Zimbabwe’s power-sharing government.
In an interview with the Daily Telegraph, Tsvangirai also appealed to the half a million Zimbabwean exiles in Britain to return home and help rebuild their shattered nation.
Tsvangirai insisted that Mugabe — who previously tried to crush his Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) was an essential part of the country’s “transitional solution”.
“Yes, I am actually surprised”
“In fact, he is an indispensable, irreplaceable part of the transition,” he said.
He admitted he was surprised that he and Mugabe can meet every Monday and talk constructively about their policies.
“It is a workable relationship, surprisingly. Yes, I am actually surprised. Who would have thought that sworn opponents like us could sit down and talk about what’s good for Zimbabwe? It’s an extraordinary experience.”
In an appeal that he is expected to repeat later on Saturday in a speech in London, Tsvangirai said it was time for the men and women who fled Zimbabwe under Mugabe’s rule to return as the nation picks itself off the floor.
“The government needs these professionals. We also need whatever savings they made to help economic development. It is time to come home,” he said.
“We need support if we are to avoid sliding back”
The British capital is the latest stop on a tour which has taken in Washington, Berlin, Stockholm and Brussels as he drums up support for the ‘new’ Zimbabwe — albeit one that still has 85-year-old Mugabe as president.
“We need support if we are to avoid sliding back to where we were. I am telling these leaders that I need to re-establish Zimbabwe’s relations with the outside world — we must be part of the community of nations again and not a pariah state,” Tsvangirai said.
“Look at what we have achieved in the four months of this coalition government. We have brought inflation down from 500 billion percent to three percent, we have started opening schools that had been closed for more than a year, and we have reopened hospitals.”
The Telegraph said the only time that the ebullient Tsvangirai’s mood darkened was when he talked about the death of his wife Susan in a car accident in March which he himself survived.
Despite immediate suspicions that it was an assassination, Tsvangirai insisted “it was an accident”.
“It was a terrible experience. Susan and I had gone through all the trials, the tribulations and the triumphs and she would have loved to have seen this new Zimbabwe.
“There was a great outpouring of grief from the people of Zimbabwe when she died and in many ways her death united Zimbabweans.”
Further comments on Prime Minister Tsvangirai’s speech can be seen via the following link: BBC
Additional reporting: ZimbabweMail
they booed you which was good why dont you do a good example by sending your own kids back home , be a man and stop telling pple ****e
Did he expect the failed asylum seekers to agree with him ? As usual the same people from Zimvirgil etc turned up to sing their master’s tune. It is intresting to note that the BBC report is only bringing out the negative in all this… at the end of the day Morgan did not say come back tomorrow, and to be honest not everyone wants to be in this country .. and it is those people who really want to go home who will listen to what Morgan is saying.
It is not every one who can come home. Around 1996 Zimbabwe had already started to over produce professionals. I graduated at the University of Zimbabwe then and struggled to find a job. I come here to South Africa and I find a job which gives me around 16 000 rands a month. It would not be wise for me to come home now.
I believe even at present 2009 zimbabwe still has a good supply of professionals for reconstructing the economy.( Compared with most Southern african countries South Africa included) Some of the civil servant jobs people with degrees and diplomas are doing can be done by someone with only two years of secondary education ( Form two) and a little bit of maturity and on the job training. For example you hardly need O Level to be a policemen but we are insisting on A level. Same goes for primary school teachers and nurses.Train the young people who are still there and give them opprtunities to develop themselves and the country. Create stability and opportunities for those that are there.
What politicians should plan for is that people in the diaspora should enhance their skills so that when we eventually come home we can contribute. At the mean time we can contribute by investing into small business and properties. Think about it . .
Tsvangirai benzi remunhu hu prime minister hwa 2009-2010 chaka kutadzisa kumirira ma elections a 2010 chii. nhasi wave kuti tiende kumusha enda wega kunzara. dai nhasi takubata taida kurova chimusoro ichocho.haudzidze sei zvakaitwa Nkomo na Mugabe. zvimatama tora vana vako uende navo kumusha
Its a shame to the MDC that they are now enjoying the gravy train so much that they have now forgotten to consult their membership regarding such important issues. The diaspora is the head that is sustaining our populace back home and by calling us to get back home, who is going to feed our families? What mechanisms does he has to ensure we will be employed immediately on return to maintain the status quo when there is 90% unemployment in Zimbabwe? His call smacks of adding to the impoverishment of our countrymen and to increase our subjugation to the tyrant Mugabe. Does Morgan have advisers? They should have told him not to casually tackle this very emotive issue here in the UK because he is now seen as pandering to the whims of Mugabe. He must not waste money criss-crossing the world pronouncing this nonsense about the situation in Zimbabwe. The whole world is aware that NOTHING fantastic has happened in Zim to warrant such unguarded comments from such a revolutionary! He must stay at home and spearhead the struggle he voluntarily decided to lead until Mugabe gets the message the people do not want him anymore!
But that should not be the way to treat your dear PM who is doing so much for his country. This guy is going the best to hold the nation together and some think of booing him, what a shame. You are behaving like Mugabe and his ZPF
This guy has been tortured, beaten, tried to be assasinated and lost his wife for the struggle of this country and for you and me to see a free Zim and you treat him like this, what a shame and I pitty u diasporans.
The PM is a hero of our time.
I thot diasporans had much respect but it seem those back home are much better. That is why u are being used by the white man coz you are brainless.
Musatambe nagushungo. anojaza muvengi wanke kusvika akunda chete. Honai Morgan avepakamanikana. Ndomaperero ake iwayo.
Thanks to you Timothy ,How can educated people treat our Prime Minister like that he didn’t say pack your bags now and go home he said you should consider and think about going home to rebuilt the shattered economy of which he is doing his best to make ends meet in Zimbabwe.Respect is the key guys you really behaved like the Mnangagwas,Gonos and the Charambas you dissapointed me so so much.
Even if you wanted to tell our beloved Prime Minister that you don’t think its time to go home you were going to be given a chance to aks questions and stress out you views,Oh! my God really how could you do such a thing now Mugabe is rejoicing together with Grace and the Chiwengas and Tomano too.
Anywhere it happens the Prime Minister is a good leader he understands that its a long way to go and during the journey he will encounter some obstacles…i guess thats one of them.
God bless Our Beloved Prime Minister, all those dedicated to rebuilt Zimbabwe,Africa and the world as a whole.
I love MT too but he erred and was rightly put in his place. We want our vote 1st and from here in the diaspora before we can even consider returning. Migration has been happening for thousands of year so Zimz are no different. Above all the rhetoric of patriotism and sovereignty..etc… each person just wants to live decent life. If conditions threaten that then people if able, will move to where they can fend for themselves with dignity not what has been happening at home. Sorry PM but next time be smarter when addressing people, we are not gullible or the rent-a-crowds Mugaybe buses in for rallies.
In the modern world this is common place, politicians get booed and jeered, its part of life in democratic societies so Mr PM/president-elect have a taste of what life will be in a democratic Zimbabwe.
Save,ini hangu ndatsamwa nenyaya yenyu yamaramba makakangoti nayo yekuda kudzora ma diaspora kumusha. Chii chinoshamisira chavanogona chatiri kutadza isu takasara kumusha. Musakanganwe kuti ku diaspora kwakaenda ma nurse ,ma teacher, ma doctor , varoyi, mbavha, mhondi, ma**** and etc and we have an equal share or more of such people at home. I suggest what we need now is to do our things quietly here at home. When we strike gold, word will get around quickly and everyone one will be fighting to get into the first plane back home. Vanobva kwaMarange hapana akambovanyengerera kuti vadzokere kumusha panguva yengoda. Vakamhanya vega kudzokera. Do you think Bingu waMutharika is going to come to Zimbabwe asking all the people of Malawian origin to track back home to Malawi. What is there for them to do there in poor Malawi? Let’s say,for argument’s sake on your return back home you bring back 1 million teachers and nurses, how much are going to pay them for their services? 100usd allowances? Nyarayiwo varume. Ino inguva yeku dealer nema issues evanhu varimuno vamuripa ma 100usd avo. I think what we need from our bros. and sisters in the diaspora is to encourage them to invest their moneys back home but we need to create a conducive environment first, Save. Wake up…hatina nguva yatiinayo. I am dissapointed with this one mistake of yours. I hope this is going to be the last one from you.
Tsvangirai anoda kurutsiswa. Akadyiswa naMugabe.
Even if Mugabe goes, munouya kumusha mukatangira papi madiasporans. Kuno hakuna basa rekukwesha chembere by the way. There are no jobs for you so your best bet is to keep the impression that Mugabe is waiting to kill you so that you keep waiting for assylum ikoko and get your two pennies. Come out clean kwete kuda kufunga kuti we are all stupid. I would not be suprised if you guys had been given an opportunity to vote and voted for Mugabe so that you can stay in that country.Get a life boys!!!!
We told you long back that Chematama is a fake Mugabe a.s.s. licker. Now see it for yourselves. Apana zviripo – mawara chete. Mugabe’s errand boy!!
Vana mainini Abel, most of the diasporans here have already got citizenship. In case you didn’t know, one can migrate as a skilled professional and get on the fast track to citizenship. It is a myth that you propagate that most Zimz are cleaning bums etc..even if they were, kuZimbabwe ndiko kusina chembere neharawa here? Mabasa akasiyana siyana mainini, not everyone in Zim is a manager or president at that.
Haiwawo ana Fcuk ZANU!
munoda kunyebera aniko imi. we have all the statistics.
Panyaya yeharahwa, iwe ungabate garo rembuya yechibhoyi iwe uchiikwesha, unotoda yamisisi vanobva vakukandira kakoroni or something.
Grai ikoko makanyarara not to make useless noises and booing our messnger watakatuma ikoko.
bottomline———-those who want to go back home please feel free. zimbabwe has always been free..we all know that except for a few political skirmishes blown out of proportion. if you do not want to go home , then stay where you are.There is no need to castigate morgan even if i dont like him myself. He tarnished the image of our beautiful country through lies and more lies, and now its pay back time.
Look at how his party works-Sekai holland comes out and says zimbabwe is still under attack and some mdc leaders are threatened daily–fabricated story of course.At the same time morgan is on tour as leader of mdc and primeminister of zimbabwe telling everyone who cares to listen that zimbabwe yanaka..but the only person they will listen to is sekai holland.Now morgan will learn how these people operate. Mugabe suffered because of that.They simply cause confusion.They new morgan would be on this tour begging and so they planted their story about holland.
I can tell you , i was in zimbabwe for two months doing charity work , and the country is as peaceful as heaven. not a single incident occured through out my stay. Now i am back there in three months again with no worries.Morgan is telling the truth but there are those who do not want to hear it. They have their own agendas. So please give us a break .You decide for yourself if you should go home or stay..Gordon brown though is licking his lips because he has now been given the opportunity to deport people if he wishes…watch out just before the next elections..be ready to run.
Mainini Abel, what stats are you on about when you don’t even have computers or even paper to write them on? So who nurses the aged and incapacitated in Zimbabwe? Think for a change mainini and not just parrot what Mugaybe incoherently rattles off.
Stalin it all depends on your definition of freedom, the ZANU definition of freedom is Zimbabweans are there to serve them, wait on them and carry the burden so they can lead movie star lifestyles. ZANU has successfully managed to reduce most to poverty status, you stripped men of dignity by them been unable to provide for their families, you’ve forced millions to flee and make a life elsewhere, is that the freedom you talk about? You blame MT for sanctions but it was ZANU’s ruinous policies that brought those sanctions. If there are any real men in ZANU they’d stand up and admit it and then maybe we can start working towards solutions instead of blaming everybody else. We need real leaders we can believe in, do we need forex to farm? Makagovana mapurazi but right now there is very little food in the country, is it the sanctions you harp on about or just incompetence?
The frustration that many people have with Morgan is understandable, but i think it should have limits. Here is a man who rose from the deepest depth of a mine to become a symbol of hope to many people. He has bone the brunt of the dictatorial regime’s ruthlessness, which everyone has witnessed throughout the world. He brought and sustained a real … Read Morechallenge to Mugabe’s rule. He tried many avenues to persue a democratic Zimbabwe and for that he must be given some form of respect. It is sad to see a man who has given up many things for national freedom being booed off the stage by people who are arm chair observers completely out of touch with how it feels to confront tyranny.
We have some elements who really prefer the situation being chaotic in Zimbabwe while they enjoy the comfort of being in diaspora.Think about our families in Zim.Stay here,but let`s not make Tsvangirai look like a fool,when he is simply trying to make our home a better place.
is it not you who parrots BBC propaganda maiguru Fcuk zanu? we nurs our own relatives here not for me to nurse someone else’s like you are doing there.
We understand your frustrations there, just keep doing what you are doing and help those you left behind here. You are not very usefull to them from here.
I think the context of the speech was taken out of context by those who just does not like MDC. The speech was aimed at making sure that people prepare for their future by investing in Zuimbabwe. On the other hand the episode illuminated the failures of MDC UK since the former Zanu Pf apologetic (Chawora) took over power in February 2008. How can a leader commercialise the coming into UK of a head of state. Probably Chawora staged managed the episode in Southwark so that as usual he can feed his Zanu Pf ascarides. I do not trust Chawora at all he must first apologize for his actions and part in Gukurahundi.
Anywhere the thing is the guy whom you are booing has achieved more than you as far as fixing Zimbabwe is concerned.Your mothers and grandfathers pray everyday for that guy cause with him they see a bright future for themselves and their kids of which the kids a booing that person.Shame on you guys however im not actually saying the Prime Minister was right by saying come back home but all im saying is even if you did not agree with him, as educated and respectful people a different diplomatic way could have been used……where are the Zimbabweans whom i know professionals not these who behave like animals.
Definitely you were going to be given time to ask questions thats when you should have given the Honorable Prime Minister to clear your questions next time please behave don’t embarrass our own Prime Minister in a foreign land we don’t appreciate that and we never will.
@Phil, I agreed with yu totally. Surely if some foreign nationalities can pay due respect to the Democratic ICON how on earth does Zimbabweans not pay respect to one of their own. I believe those were enemies planted in the crowd with a point to score.
Even marriage chaiyo, a wife can get bashed by their husband, but they can not go around telling everyone everything happening in the marriage, becoz those issues are resolved within the confines of the marriage itself not by outsiders.
In any case he did not say go home immediately but said we should be thinking of going back home in the near future. A country is developed by its own qualified, experienced and professional citizens.
If we cant grab the oppotunities in earnest, others will do that and we end up saying other nationalities are getting preferences ahead of us, when in actual fact we would have hesistated to do that.
Times like these are when people take positions until the situation gets better, becoz the signs of the economy starting to open up are there for all to see, although there are still flaws in the process.
Democratic change is a process not an event. That is all the ICONIC figure was trying to say although we all know that he struggles to drive the point home.
Thanks Timothy people like you are needed to to make not even Zimbabwe But the world a better place.
Despite MT’s gallant efforts at a civilised and peaceful transition force maybe be needed to rid ourselves of the tyrants that impose themselves upon us. It’s almost impossible for any other means when leaders in the region aid Mugabe’s cause, that was the most disappointing aspect of it all for me. It didn’t really surprise because most of them have been in power for ages as well. Africa needs better leaders than the lot we have.
‘Exiles??????????’ Why do you refer to these fake failed Asylum Seekers as exiles. These are simply people looking for a good life. They were never involved in politics in Zim. They only use politics (MDC and MT) to get ‘Asylum’. Dont forget the British welfare system is very generous. Who would want to leave such a good life for the 3rdW. In the UK you even get paid and good accomodation while loafing in the council flat and even driving a good jalope.
So you remain second-class citizens all your lives (in the UK)!!! Shame on you. Thank you Mr PM for the sterling work you are doing
I hope mugabe can see what he has done to the Zimbabweans, they want him gone first befor they can return. shame
hahahahahhahaha lol shame on you Zimbabweans in the Diaspora! hamudika kudzoka kumusha!
President Tsvangirai’s failure to appeal to the people in the diaspora was not his fault but that of the useless Chaora and his non-existent executive. They misinformed the President. If they had taken the time to consult the membership via the Branch Chairs, President Tsvangirai would not have been booed in that manner. They should have told him that the Zimbabweans in the diaspora still believe that MUGABE MUST GO, TO SAVE ZIMBABWE. That blunder was wholly avoidable. Now is the time or serious damage limitation and control. People no longer have faith in the President. If the President is to survive another election it is necessary to get rid of the placeholders that make up the provincial executive. In addition, President Tsvangirai should have made an effort to meet the party people well before his public appearance. Any dissatisfactions may have been highlighted privately and not in front of the world stage. Surely it is common sense.