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This article participates on the following special index pages:
2008 harmonised elections - Index of articles
Zimbabwe
election officials arrested for 'undercounting Mugabe'
Alexi Mostrous,
The Times (UK)
April 08, 2008
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/article3705320.ece
Seven election officials
were arrested by Zimbabwean police yesterday for allegedly undercounting
votes cast for President Robert Mugabe in the March 29 presidential
elections.
The officials, who were
working for the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission in four provinces,
will be charged with fraud.
"We're still
investigating, but we have established that there was deflation
of figures in respect of the Zanu (PF) presidential candidate, Robert
Mugabe," Wayne Bvudzijena, a police spokesman, said.
Zimbabwe's High Court
is due to rule today on an opposition petition demanding the immediate
release of the presidential election results, which have yet to
be published, 10 days after the polls closed. However, no decision
had been issued by lunchtime.
The Movement for Democratic
Change (MDC) has said it won the election with 50.3 per cent of
the vote, just above the threshold to avoid a run-off ballot.
Morgan Tsvangirai, the
MDC leader, flew to South Africa yesterday to seek help in finding
a solution to the stalemate. He met Jacob Zuma, the ANC leader,
in Johannesberg, whose political rival President Thabo Mbeki has
previously said there is no need for outside intervention in Zimbabwe.
At least 23 white-owned
farms in Zimbabwe have been invaded by supporters of Mr Mugabe over
a weekend of violence which saw the embattled President stoke fears
of a new "white invasion" of Zimbabwe. The raids were
carried out by so-called war veterans, the militias who led the
first wave of farm seizures, sparking the collapse of Zimbabwe's
economy.
Mozambique's President
Armando Guebuza said his country was willing to house refugees from
Zimbabwe in the event of post-election violence in the country.
Speaking at an event
to mark Women's Day celebrations in Maputo, Guebuza said his
country would accept refugees. "We are thinking of the good
of the people of Zimbabwe," he said.
"The election process
in Zimbabwe is not in an impasse. It appears to me that there are
issues before the courts.
"Let's wait
for the outcome of the court case. We have to respect the sovereignty
of Zimbabwe and for that we have leave it up to them to decide their
own fate without us pressurizing them."
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