The Netherlands will not be giving the Zimbabwean government a cent for the time being. During a brief visit to The Hague, Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai heard that the aid would only start flowing when his government guaranteed more respect for human rights and press freedom.
 

“You can count on the Netherlands,” Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende told his Zimbabwean counterpart Morgan Tsvangirai. But it turns out he was mainly referring to moral support. Because as Dutch government sees it, Zimbabwe still needs to clean up its act before it can receive more financial aid.

"The objective of the mission is to educate, educate and educate our partners, it is not about going around with a begging bowl. Because we believe that the country has been isolated for the last 10 years, it is time to re-engage in normalised relations."
 

Mr Tsvangirai wanted to give the Netherlands a sign of his goodwill. "And this doesn't come cheap, it has to be reciprocal. We have to do something (...) through the global political agreement, we have set our own benchmarks, that are in fact coinciding with the expectations of our cooperating partners. So, to me, it's mutual. And that is confidence building that we are looking at".

Tour
But Mr Tsvangirai hopes he will not be leaving entirely empty handed. Zimbabwe needs around 32.5 billion euros for reconstruction. The Netherlands is the first stop on a tour which will eventually lead to the White House.

 
Together with Dutch Development Cooperation Minister Bert Koenders, Mr Tsvangirai stressed how important it is that the transitional government, in power since 11 February, should succeed. It offers the only way out of Zimbabwe’s malaise.

 
Mr Koenders put the ball in Zimbabwe’s court when it comes to aid to the government. Zimbabwe should to stick to the criteria it has set itself in the field of human rights, security and economic policy. As long as these conditions are not met, says Mr Koenders, the Netherlands won’t be granting aid directly to the government.

Slow
The criticism must be familiar to Mr Tsvangirai. During his MDC party’s recent congress he expressed his own concern at continuing political intimidation and human rights abuses.

 
For the past three months, the implacable opponents Morgan Tsvangirai and Robert Mugabe have been governing side by side. Only last year Mr Tsvangirai sought refuge in the Dutch embassy in Harare because he feared for his life under Mr Mugabe’s repressive regime.

With fitting understatement Mr Tsvangirai says, "We've not been the best of friends. There was acrimony in the country, there was polarisation between the parties. But ultimately, we have signed an agreement in which we set the national interest above our personal feelings. It is an extraordinary relationship, it is a very practical and productive relationship. …we have our differences but we differ respectfully. Ultimately we have a national responsibility to ensure that this government succeeds".

Optimistic
John Masuku, journalist with the independent radio station Voice of the People warns against too much optimism in the short term. "It will take some time and it will also take resilience and motivation of the Zimbabweans themselves to take advantages of any slightest opportunity because certain habits have been entrenched for a very long time especially for those who have been in the ruling ZANU PF, those who hold key positions. It will take time for them to accept that there will be a complete overhaul of the system for intense and purposes had become rotten".

Conclusion
“You can count on the Netherlands,” said Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende during a press conference, in which he praised Mr Tsvangirai for his perseverance and commitment. But for the moment, it’s mainly moral support. Whether Dutch money will start flowing into Zimbabwean government coffers depends on Zimbabwe itself.