Zimbabwe's influential state controlled newspaper has sharply critisised President Joyce Banda's administration for bowing down to western donors not to allow Sudanese President Omar al Bashir to attend an African Union summit in Lilongwe, which has led to its shifting to Ethiopia.

"Much as we are aware that up to 40 percent of Malawi's budgetary requirements were funded by western donors, which had been withdrawn after the diplomatic tiff with wa Mutharika government, we ask whether this preference for donors vis a vis African principles is a statement that Africa is donor dependent," says part of an editorial comment in the Herald newspaper of Monday.

The comment further says Malawi's decision not to allow al Bashir has thrown Africa into a tailspin decision-making position and this could mark the beginning of more problems, saying how the African Union deals with this problem is critical.

"The country should have hidden behind the AU resolution that its members ignore the ICC (International Criminal Court) arrest warrant for al Bashir to ward off western pressure," says the comment.

The government of Zimbabwe and other African countries have not come out clearly on the matter although South Africa, Zambia and Botswana have said they could not guarantee that al Bashir could not be arrested if he jets into their respective countries.