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2008 harmonised elections - Index of articles
Zimbabwe
run-off to be delayed
Al
Jazeera
May 11, 2008
http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/6F5E9D05-074D-4E5E-86FA-2EABDBFEA328.htm
The presidential
run-off between Robert Mugabe, the Zimbabwean president, and Morgan
Tsvangirai, the opposition leader, will not be held in the next
few weeks, the head of the country's electoral commission has said.
Legally a run-off should be held within 21 days of the May 2 announcement
of results from the first vote.
George Chiweshe, the chief of the electoral commission, confirmed
on Sunday that by law a run-off should be held within 21 days, but
he said the date is likely to be extended because government officials
needed more time to prepare.
Tsvangirai said over the weekend that he would participate in the
run-off but added that failure to hold the second round within the
time limit risked rendering the election process illegitimate.
Justifying delay
Government officials say the electoral commission has up to a year
to hold the second round.
"It was
ambitious for the legislature to think 21 days would be enough,"
Chiweshe told the state run Sunday Mail newspaper.
He also said there are
legal provisions to extend the period before the election is held.
"We want to make
it clear we intend to hold the run-off at the earliest date because
the period set by the legislature shows that it should be held as
soon as possible."
The electoral body is
waiting for the government to allocate funds to hold the poll, Chiweshe
said.
It took the commission
more than a month to announce results from the disputed March 29
presidential election.
Tsvangirai, leader of
the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), maintains that
he won the first round and says that the official figures were fraudulent.
But Tsvangirai,
who has remained abroad since the vote because of threats to his
life, said on Saturday
from South Africa that he will take the risk of returning to Zimbabwe
to contest a run-off, despite the danger.
Opposition
fears
Mugabe
has been accused of orchestrating violence against the opposition
since the first round, raising questions about whether a run-ff
would be free or fair.
The opposition accuses
the electoral commission of being biased towards Mugabe and says
any further delays could see more activists come under attack in
an effort to prevent them voting.
Meanwhile, Mugabe's ruling
Zanu-PF party has launched its run-off campaign.
Patrick Chinamasa, a
presidential spokesman, said on Sunday that the party will not allow
an opposition victory.
"Mugabe, at 84,
do you believe he is fighting for himself? That's what the people
of Zimbabwe should understand," he told reporters in Harare.
"He is fighting
blatant attempts at recolonising Zimbabwe."
Tsvangirai has told regional
leaders that if he were to win the presidency, he would respect
Mugabe's place in Zimbabwe's history.
Tsvangirai told reporters
on Saturday that Mugabe would be treated as the "father of
the nation" in the interest of building peace and stability
in Zimbabwe.
Last month he said he
believed that the Zimbabwean people would press for Mugabe to stand
trial for crimes against humanity.
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