Zimbabwe opposition to discuss run-off dilemma

Zimbabwe opposition to discuss run-off dilemma

Zimbabwe's main opposition party holds a high-level meeting today, to discuss whether its leader Morgan Tsvangirai should take part in a run-off election against President Robert Mugabe.

Election officials announced yesterday that Tsvangirai, who heads the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), had beaten Mugabe in the March 29 presidential poll but failed to win the absolute majority necessary to avoid a second ballot.

The MDC has accused election officials of cooking the results, which showed Tsvangirai won 47.9% of the vote to Mugabe's 43.2%. The party says Tsvangirai won the election outright and Mugabe's rule is over.

But it has not signalled how it will handle the run-off. The MDC's national executive was scheduled to meet at 12pm. "We will be meeting later today over that and other issues, to see how we go forward after the blatant cheating that we suffered yesterday," MDC spokesperson Nelson Chamisa said. "We maintain that we won the presidential election outright and that in a fair and just world, there would be no need for the so-called runoff." Chamisa said the party leadership would make the final decision on the run-off.

Mugabe, in power for 28 years, has accepted the official results and will contest the second ballot. The veteran ruler would hold on to power under electoral laws if Tsvangirai boycotts the run-off, which by law should be held within 21 days of the first ballot's results.

The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) has the power to extend the period in between the two ballots, and political observers say a 40-day wait was likely.

Human rights abuses
The opposition, Western governments and human rights groups have accused Mugabe of unleashing militias to scare Zimbabweans into backing him in the run-off. The government denies the allegation and says the MDC has carried out political violence.

Mugabe's critics have expressed doubts the next ballot will be fair and said violence that has erupted since the elections made it difficult to hold another vote.

"The ruling party's bloody crackdown on the opposition makes a free and fair run-off vote a tragic joke," Georgette Gagnon, Africa director at Human Rights Watch, said in a statement. "The violence must stop and an impartial process be put in place before any new vote is held."

Zimbabweans are struggling with a deep economic crisis, marked by chronic food and fuel shortages, inflation of more than 165 000% and rising poverty and malnutrition. It is unclear how Western powers will react to the run-off.

Yesterday, the US and former colonial power Britain questioned the credibility of the official results. Mugabe, still regarded as a liberation era hero in much of Africa, accuses Britain, the former colonial power, of plotting with the opposition to oust him.

Few African leaders, including President Thabo Mbeki, have dared to criticise the Zimbabwean leader publicly. Mbeki complained yesterday that political interference by British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and US President George W. Bush had threatened his efforts to mediate between the ruling Zanu-PF and the MDC.

The US and other nations have pledged billions of dollars in reconstruction aid if Mugabe is removed from power. - Reuters