CHOGM Media Conference

Media Centre
Nigerian President
HE Chief Obasanjo
March 4 2002

CONVENOR: Gentlemen, President Obasanjo is about to leave for Nigeria but has agreed to answer the press questions after he has said a few words about next year's CHOGM. Please keep in mind that he's got a flight to catch. President.

MR OBASANJO: Thank you very much. Gentlemen, I want to take this opportunity that I have. The time that I have is rather short. First of all, I would like to express, on behalf of my division and on my own behalf, our appreciation to Prime Minister Howard and the Government of Australia for the very splendid arrangement that they have made for CHOGM this year and, of course, also I thank all my colleagues at CHOGM at Coolum for giving Nigeria the honour of hosting CHOGM 2003.

Of course, I have got a team here to man what has been done here at Coolum. Our task force will go to work immediately in preparation for next year. I believe that the outcome of our meeting this year is very satisfactory in every sense of the word, even though we still have the third executive session to go on tomorrow. We have agreed on the statement on Zimbabwe, we have agreed on the Coolum declaration and my input tomorrow will be only as a community.

Now I will take questions from you.

CONVENOR: Anybody got any questions?

QUESTION: President, in your position on the group that will receive a report from the actual observers, will you be comfortable if that report is adverse with imposing sanctions or suspending Zimbabwe? How bad does that report have to be, in your eyes, before these sanctions will be in place?

MR OBASANJO: It is not a question of being comfortable or not being comfortable. It is a question of setting up a system to deal with a situation. We all agree that it would be wrong to be pre-judgmental. We will have observers submit their report through the Secretary-General and that will serve as a trigger mechanism, and what has to be done must be done. It is not a question of whether I am comfortable or uncomfortable. It is whether what has to be done must be done.

QUESTION: Could you tell us if the mandate given to you by the leaders today, within the Harare principles, includes sanctions in terms of economic sanctions or other types of sanctions? Will you consider those?

MR OBASANJO: Well, we will go by the Harare declaration and the Commonwealth action program which, of course, as we say in the statement of Zimbabwe, have arrangements from collecting disproving to suspension and whatever else is between that range. Anything that is in that is, of course, within what we can take as such.

QUESTION: (Indistinct).

MR OBASANJO: Our economic sanction is conveyed in that. I am not sure if the economic sanction is part of it, but if it is, then it's not included.

QUESTION: Just to be clear, if there is a report from these observers which says there's not been a free and fair election, are you prepared to take tough action against Zimbabwe?

MR OBASANJO: Well, that's what I have just said. We have been given a joint task to perform. We have to perform it.

QUESTION: Mr President, we spoke to someone about Zimbabwe outside just now who said that the Commonwealth is waiting too long to act in relation to Zimbabwe. She says she fears a blood bath after the election, whatever the result. What's your response to what she said?

MR OBASANJO: Well, it depends. What do you do. You have an election process, and the election is not completed until you really have voted. Now, if you are asking the Commonwealth to act before the election actually takes place, I believe that to be unfair. What are you going to base it on? I agree with the election process and with the registration of voters and all that. It's until you get to the actual voting you cannot announce an election as free and fair or not free and fair. You can say that the aspect of it has been faltered or default or whatever or - but you cannot declare it really, categorically not free and fair until you get to the result.

QUESTION: Do you believe, given your opposition to Zimbabwe being suspended, that you can be seen as an honest broker?

MR OBASANJO: Well, I am a fair man and I believe that anybody will believe Zimbabwe should be suspended before the election, is not fair. If you cannot agree that Zimbabwe should be given the election process to go through and that our observers, who are men and women of honour, cannot be put on the ground to give a report so that others can act on the report, and you say it cannot fair, then you tell me who can be fair? If every man who say that Zimbabwe should be suspended even before election, then - I'm sure it's not only Zimbabwe that was discussed. If there's a decision on the new partnership for African development, which is a new initiative, yes, we will be forced out. If the Commonwealth does have the G8 supporting that program, the Commonwealth should support that program, and there is no divergence of view on that.

QUESTION: Mr President, there have been reports that you have been given a guarantee or a promise from President Robert Mugabe that you would stand down after the elections. I wonder if you have, in fact, discussed a so-called honorable exit with the Zimbabwean president and whether there's any truth in the report?

MR OBASANJO: Not really. I have heard from people that have carried that report. I was in Zimbabwe, yes. I met President Mugabe and Morgan on both sides of the equation and I discussed wide-ranging issues that would lead to a free and fair election, but I did not discuss how any of them were going to celebrate victory or take themselves out of the country.

QUESTION: President, do you believe there will be a blood bath as a result of this action, and do you believe that will happen before and after the election?

MR OBASANJO: Well, I think, if I may say this, what is happening in Zimbabwe may be driven, with all due respect. I don't say that there will be or there will be none. That if the election is reasonably fair and free, whoever loses will accept his loss and whoever wins will win with magnanimity. I don't see a blood bath, but if there's a blood bath and people enter in a fight in Zimbabwe and they go for a blood bath, it would be a pity for their country. What we need to do for Zimbabwe now is to help that country, which is already going down economically and going down socially. It's not to inflame them with violence and bitterness.

QUESTION: Mr President, does the new mandate mean that the powers of CMAG have been stripped?

MR OBASANJO: Well, CMAG was acting on behalf of CHOGM, and one of the things that was actually done at this CHOGM is the new political order for the Commonwealth in the 21st Century, which will make the Secretary-General and the chairman at any time more involved than we have ever been. That way, maybe some of the resentment that we get against CMAG may also be removed.

QUESTION: Mr President, could you clarify what any roles CMAG is going to be playing in this process in Zimbabwe, because Prime Minister Howard mentioned that CMAG's role had been clarified somehow and I'm not sure I understand how that's been clarified?

MR OBASANJO: Well, my understanding is that CMAG will have a new role, not only in Zimbabwe but in the Commonwealth as a whole as a result of the position we take on the high level study that we approve, we endorsed yesterday. It gives CMAG a certain role. It gives the Secretary-General and us a role. The chairman will be working with the Secretary-General. It is a role that has not been there before.

CONVENOR: All right. I'm sorry, we have to cut this short. The president does have to catch a flight, so do please excuse him. Thank you.

MR OBASANJO: Thank you very much.

ENDS