'No Commonwealth move' before polls

The appearance of a Zimbabwean minister caused a sensation

The Commonwealth is unlikely to take any punitive action against Zimbabwe until after next weekend's presidential election there, said Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien.

He was speaking after consultations at the summit of heads of government in Coolum, Australia.

Chretien: "Everybody agrees that nothing will happen before the election"

Leaders have been holding informal talks amid sharp divisions on the issue of Zimbabwe and the human rights record of President Robert Mugabe.

With Tanzania and Namibia publicly opposing any discussion of the issue at all, the summit has at times resembled a black-white divide.

According to Mr Chretien, there will be a consensus on Zimbabwe but "everybody agrees that nothing will happen before the election".

He was speaking after talks with Britain's Prime Minister Tony Blair, South African President Thabo Mbeki and Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo.

The Canadian premier promised a press release on Monday but said already that plans would include his proposal for a "mechanism for a quick decision" once Commonwealth election observers report their conclusions.

'Racial split'

States such as Britain and Australia have been urging Zimbabwe's suspension from the body.

But Zimbabwe's Information Minister, Jonathan Moyo, described Britain's stance as "disgraceful" when he made an impromptu appearance at the summit.

President Mugabe himself has reportedly called on Mr Blair to keep his "pink nose" out of Zimbabwe's affairs.

Mkapa: "You are assuming that if the government wins, the election is not fair - that's ridiculous"

Tanzania's President Benjamin Mkapa bridled at the idea of any interference in Zimbabwe's affairs before the election, urging the Commonwealth to listen to its people on the ground.

"You are assuming that if the government wins, the election is not fair. That's ridiculous," he said.

Namibian President Sam Nujoma said it was an insult for an international organisation like the Commonwealth to be debating the situation in Zimbabwe.

This is being interpreted in some quarters as a veiled threat to walk out of the summit.

But Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said Zimbabwe should have been suspended from the Commonwealth long ago, and accused African countries of closing ranks around Zimbabwe.

"There is very much a regional view in Africa that they want to do a certain amount to protect a fellow country," he said.

The BBC's diplomatic correspondent, Barnaby Mason, says the disagreement looks at times like a black-white divide for the 54-nation Commonwealth.

Other business

The debate over Zimbabwe has been drowning out debate over broader issues at the summit such as poverty, disease and the environmental protection.

Tuvalu Prime Minister Koloa Talake spoke on behalf of small islands facing rising sea levels when he urged the Commonwealth to take a tougher stand on climate change.

Some islands in the South Pacific which he recalled visiting as a boy had already vanished, the 60-year-old leader said.

Tuvalu is a string of nine islands and atolls barely reaching more than five metres above sea level and it says it could be swallowed by the sea within 50 years as a result of global warming.

A report on HIV-Aids says that Commonwealth states are hindered in fighting the disease by traditional taboos as much as by lack of medicines.

The head of the Commonwealth's health programs, Dr Rosemarie Paul, said member states account for 60% of HIV/AIDS cases but only 30% of the world's population.