Mugabe cannot be barred: Downer

By Amit Baruah

SINGAPORE: Australia said on Tuesday that it could not stop the President of Zimbabwe, Mr. Robert Mugabe, from attending the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Brisbane from October 6-9. The Foreign Minister, Mr. Alexander Downer, was quoted as saying that while he ``understood'' the anger about the situation in Zimbabwe, Canberra had no choice but to accept every CHOGM leader's attendance. ``The only circumstances where a host of a Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting would ban someone visiting would be if the country was expelled from the Commonwealth,'' Mr. Downer said. A couple of Australian Government MPs have demanded that Mr. Mugabe be barred from attending CHOGM on account of the violence against white farmers in Zimbabwe. According to available information, 49 out of the 52 eligible Commonwealth nations will attend the summit meeting in Brisbane.

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Section  : International
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