When thieves fall out

A report from Der Spiegel tells us that there is something of a froideur between those two important members of the great transnational fraternity, the United Nations and the European Union.

It would appear that the EU is dissatisfied with the UN's draft document on sustainable development, a concept that has so far eluded definition:

"The European Union deeply regrets that the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) was unable to agree on an ambitious text on energy, climate, air pollution and industrial development," EU environment commissioner Stavros Dimas and German environment minister Sigmar Gabriel said in a joint statement Saturday.

Something to do, perhaps, with the developing countries not liking to be tied down by the developed ones.

That is not all. The European Union, which is considerably less stern on the issue of Zimbabwe than Der Spiegel makes out, nevertheless, is unhappy about the fact that Francis Nhema, that country's environment minister, has just been elected to be chairman of the UN's Sustainable Development Commission.

Zimbabwe under its present government has gone from being Africa's most productive economy to a place of complete collapse and famine in several parts. Mr Nhema himself is reported to have wrecked the farm he was generously awarded by President Mugabe. Seems to me that he is the most appropriate candidate for the post.

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