'Readmission will serve as a recognition to the progress thus far'

"President Zuma ... welcomed efforts by the leaders of the Commonwealth Group attending the . summit, to consider the readmission of Zimbabwe," the president's spokesman, Vincent Magwenya, said yesterday.

"Zimbabwe's readmission into the Commonwealth will serve as a recognition [of] the progress that has been achieved thus far.

"Equally, along with the lifting of sanctions, it will represent the international community's support and encouragement to parties to continue the dialogue that will deliver a lasting solution to the challenges facing the country."

Impetus for Zimbabwe's readmission to the club came last week from an unlikely source - British Prime Minister Gordon Brown. Ahead of the summit, Brown suggested that the Commonwealth should make a conditional offer to Zimbabwe by holding out the possibility it could rejoin the group in 2011 - if it delivered on human rights and political reforms.

Therein lies the rub. While Zimbabwe's power-sharing government has undoubtedly made some progress - including reining in inflation and raising living standards - human rights abuses, including violent land grabs and the targeting by the state of supporters and members of Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic Change, have continued apace.

Surely these and other obstacles to genuine democracy - including a commitment by Robert Mugabe's Zanu-PF to hold free and fair elections - need to be in place before sanctions are lifted and the world welcomes Zimbabwe back into the fold.