SA wants observers in Zim soon

2005-02-21 22:23

Pretoria - South Africa on Monday said it wanted foreign election observers invited by Zimbabwe to monitor next month's key parliamentary vote there as soon as possible.

"The quicker the various observer missions go in now, the better they will be able to help contribute to making sure that the guidelines are implemented," deputy foreign minister Aziz Pahad told journalists in Pretoria.

"We still have 40 days or more to ensure that we can make a contribution, with all Zimbabweans, to ensure that the climate is there for free and fair elections to take place," he said.

Zimbabwe has invited 32 observer missions for the March 31 ballot, which will be closely watched as a test of Harare's commitment to hold free and fair polls after elections in 2000 and 2002 which were marred by allegations of violence and fraud.

Twenty-three of the teams are from African nations, five are from Asia, three from the Americas and Russia is the only nation from Europe to be invited by the government.

The African Union (AU), the Southern African Development Community (SADC), the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa, the Non-Aligned Movement and the United Nations are among the regional and international organisations to which invitations have been extended.

Liberation movements

South Africa's ANC, Tanzania's Chama Chama Pinduzi and Mozambique's Frelimo are some of the former liberation movements turned governing parties coming to witness the closely watched polls.

President Robert Mugabe, who has ruled the country for nearly 25 years, did not allow an observer mission from the European Union for the 2002 presidential election which was slammed as fraudulent and violence-marred by the opposition and observers from the Commonwealth.

EU foreign ministers meeting in Brussels on Monday agreed to extend sanctions, including an arms embargo, against Zimbabwe for another year.

However, the ministers are to review the decision - which marks the fourth year in a row of EU sanctions against Harare - after the legislative elections.

The measures consist of an arms embargo as well as a travel ban and freeze on funds of people suspected of having committed human rights violations in the country.

- AFP