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Parties to check results
BBC News
April 29, 2008

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7370474.stm

Representatives of Zimbabwe's presidential candidates are set to meet the electoral commission to review the results of the disputed election.

Officials say the results, which have still not been published more than four weeks after the vote, will be announced once they agree on the final figures.

Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) leader Morgan Tsvangirai has said he beat President Robert Mugabe outright.

The MDC says 15 of its supporters have been killed in post-election violence.

More than 200 of its activists were arrested during a police raid on its Harare headquarters on Friday.

A judge has ordered that they should either be charged or set free, following an MDC petition.

"The court also ordered that those who need medical help be given access and that all should appear in court," said MDC lawyer Alec Muchadehama.

The police say they are looking for suspects involved in political violence but the MDC says those arrested had fled their homes after attacks by ruling party supporters.

On Sunday, a senior UN official urged both to renounce the use of violence.

Human rights commissioner Louise Arbour said she was very concerned by reports of political violence and intimidation in the aftermath of last month's elections, particularly by rural supporters of the governing Zanu-PF party.

The top US envoy to Africa, Jendayi Frazer, has said Washington is willing to seek UN sanctions against Zimbabwe if the post-election crisis continued.

Ms Frazer also urged African leaders to speak "very loudly" against the political violence which opposition and human rights groups have accused the government of instigating.

She said the US embassy had received documented evidence of more than 450 beatings, one death and about 1,000 people who had been displaced.

Ms Frazer's comments came a day after the electoral commission announced Mr Mugabe's Zanu-PF had failed to regain its parliamentary majority after a partial recount of votes.

The results were unchanged in 18 of 23 seats where recounts had taken place, it said.

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