Zimbabwe's Tsvangirai seeks crucial Mugabe meeting

By Nelson Banya

HARARE (Reuters) - Zimbabwe's opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai has requested a meeting with President Robert Mugabe in a last-ditch effort to salvage a power-sharing deal, an opposition spokesman said on Friday.

Tsvangirai and Mugabe signed a unity pact last September, but the agreement appears to be unravelling following a dispute over the control of key ministries and the abduction of several opposition and human rights activists.

Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) spokesman Nelson Chamisa told Reuters that the opposition party had sought a meeting with Mugabe on the dialogue.

"We have written to Mugabe, indicating that we want a meeting between him and (MDC) president Tsvangirai to bring finality and closure to the dialogue," he said.

"We can't keep Zimbabweans guessing, we have to close the chapter on dialogue, whether in success or failure."

Chamisa said Mugabe had yet to respond to the MDC's overtures. He declined to give details on what Tsvangirai expected from the meeting.

Chamisa said Tsvangirai, who has been outside Zimbabwe since a regional summit in South Africa last November, would return to the country "within days".

Last week, Mugabe's spokesman told state media the veteran leader would appoint a new cabinet in February, despite the stalled talks with the opposition. Chamisa said the MDC would not be part of that government.