Zimbabwe: Western Election Observers Rejected
Zimbabwe
says it will not invite election observers from Western
countries to monitor a presidential run-off unless they remove
sanctions, rejecting opposition demands.
Justice Minister Patrick
Chinamasa said Zimbabwe would not bow to pressure to invite
election monitors from Western countries and the United
Nations.
After weeks of equivocation,
opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai said at the weekend he would
contest the run-off against Robert Mugabe even though he
believes he won outright in the first round and accuses the
ruling ZANU-PF of vote-rigging.
Tsvangirai's Movement for
Democratic Change (MDC) said he would return home to deal Mugabe
a "final knock-out" after almost three decades in power.
“Opposition’s Demand”
But Tsvangirai said he would only
stand if international observers and media were given full
access to ensure the vote is free and fair.
Zimbabwe's government rejected
any conditions for the run-off, but has previously allowed in
election monitors from regional group SADC.
Only one European country --
Russia -- was invited to observe the March 29 poll. Diplomats
accredited in Zimbabwe were the only other Western observers
allowed to monitor the vote.
The standoff has dashed hopes
that the election will bring relief to millions of Zimbabweans
suffering severe food, fuel and foreign currency shortages and
the world's highest inflation rate of 165,000 percent.
Mugabe blames Zimbabwe's economic
collapse on Western sanctions, which have failed to weaken him.
Western countries say the limited measures are designed only to
target Mugabe and his top officials.
The MDC said it had stepped up
efforts to secure SADC peacekeepers for the run-off after weeks
of violence that intimidated voters.
A former guerrilla leader, Mugabe
has ruled Zimbabwe since independence from Britain in 1980. The
West and rights groups accuse him of human rights violations and
wrecking the economy, but he is viewed as an independence hero
by many in Africa.
Official results showed ZANU-PF
lost its parliamentary majority for the first time in the
elections, and that Tsvangirai beat Mugabe in a parallel
presidential poll, but not by enough votes to avoid a run-off.
Both the government and opposition have challenged some of the
results.
REUTERS/MICHAEL
