Mugabe denounces Britain in first major speech since election
Friday, 18 Apr 2008 14:43
Robert Mugabe has denounced Britain
Zimbabwe's president Robert Mugabe has denounced Britain in his first major speech since the disputed national elections last month.
Addressing a crowd of 15,000 supporters, Mr Mugabe said: "Down with the British. Down with the thieves who want to steal our country."
The speech was the first by Zimbabwe's president since the election crisis began.
Opposition party, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), have claimed that their leader Morgan Tsvangirai won the country's presidential election but no official results have been published and Mr Mugabe appears unwilling to relinquish power
Mr Mugabe, 84, was speaking today at an event marking 28 years of independence from British rule.
He said that the day was a celebration of when Zimbabwe "finally shook off the chains of British racist settler colonialism".
"Our political history is well known, yet with time, we feel more challenged to recall it, especially for those who appear ignorant of it or are deliberately engaged in reversing the gains of our liberation struggle," he said.
"We, not the British, established democracy based on one person, one vote - democracy which rejected racial or gender discrimination and upheld human rights and religious freedom," he said.
Mr Mugabe called on his fellow countrymen "to maintain utmost vigilance in the face of vicious British machinations and the machinations of our other detractors, who are allies of Britain".
"Whereas yesterday they relied on brute force to subjugate our people and plunder our resources, today they have perfected their tactics to more subtle forms," he warned.
Earlier, Mr Tsvangirai alleged that his party had came close to a deal with the ruling Zanu-PF party to overthrow Mr Mugabe.
Mr Tsvangirai claimed that his MDC party was approached about the possibility of forming a unity government on the day of the disputed presidential elections last month.
Subsequent talks broke down however, Mr Tsvangirai told the BBC.
"We were prepared to consider the issue of an inclusive government including some members of Zanu PF," he said.
"In fact they were suggesting how many and they were talking about a panel from which we were going to choose."
The talks however collapsed as both sides failed to come to an agreement.